Released: 17 February 1975 (Australia only)
Recorded: November 1974 at Albert Studios, Sydney, Australia
Label: Albert Productions
The album was produced by Vanda & Young at Albert Studios in Sydney, Australia. George Young is the older brother of Angus and Malcolm, and also plays bass guitar on a number of the album's songs. AC/DC was still developing its sound when High Voltage was recorded in November 1974, and singer Bon Scott and the Young brothers were backed by a different rhythm section than the Mark Evans/Phil Rudd combination featured on their next three full-length studio recordings. Rob Bailey and Peter Clack were the band's bassist and drummer, respectively, at the time. According to Murray Engleheart's book AC/DC: Maximum Rock N Roll, bass duties were shared by Malcolm and older brother George, who also played live with the band infrequently, as well as Bailey. Clack played drums on "Baby, Please Don't Go", and the rest of the tracks were recorded by Tony Currenti, although John Proud also did some session work. Malcolm and Angus traded-off lead guitar parts on "Soul Stripper" and "Show Business," and Malcolm played the solo on "Little Lover." High Voltage was originally released on Albert Productions only in Australia, and has never been reissued by another label in this format.
Band members:
Rob Bailey – bass guitar. He joined the group in April 1974, with Malcolm Young (rhythm guitar), Angus Young (lead guitar), Dave Evans (lead vocals) and Peter Clack (drums). Bailey left in January 1975. From April 1974 until January 1975 Bailey was a regular member of the Australian hard rock band, AC/DC's rhythm section. He appeared in early video footage of AC/DC, the Last Picture Show Theatre video of "Can I Sit Next To You Girl". In August AC/DC, with Bailey, supported Lou Reed on his Rock'n'Roll Animal tour of Australia. Bailey was a band member during the recording of their debut album and while it is considered that he played on the album High Voltage (released in February 1975), the credit for bass guitar on the album was given to George Young.
Peter Clack - drums on track 1. For ten months he was an early member of hard rock band AC/DC. In April 1974 he joined Malcolm Young (rhythm guitar), Angus Young (lead guitar), Dave Evans (lead vocals) and Rob Bailey (bass guitar). He appears in early video footage of AC/DC, the Last Picture Show Theatre video of "Can I Sit Next to You Girl". Clack was a member of the band during the recording of their debut album High Voltage but most of the drum parts were recorded by session man Tony Currenti. Clack continued with AC/DC until January 1975 when he was sacked along with Bailey, Clack's permanent replacement was Phil Rudd.
Tony Currenti - drums on tracks 2-8. Australian drummer of Italian descent, best known as a session drummer for Australian hard rock band AC/DC (1975 debut album High Voltage and the "High Voltage" single) and various Vanda & Young projects. Currenti originally comes from the Italian island of Sicily, where he was born on 26 June 1951. He migrated to Australia with his parents, brother and sister in 1967 at the age of 16 with no knowledge of English. After two years, his parents got homesick and went back to Italy. Currenti, at that time 18 years old, played in a band around Sydney and thought he had a future in music, so he decided to stay. It was during this time in early 1974 that George Young approached Currenti and asked if he would record with his two younger brothers in a band called AC/DC. The album was called High Voltage and Tony played drums on all tracks but one ("Baby, Please Don't Go" was recorded by Peter Clack). After recording the album, Currenti was asked to join the group but declined for two reasons; one, Currenti was loyal to his current band Jackie Christian & Flight and two, he was an Italian citizen with an Italian passport which did not allow him to tour freely in England or Europe with the band without being called up for military service.
Bon Scott – lead vocals. Scottish-born Australian rock musician, best known for being the lead singer and lyricist of Australian hard rock band AC/DC from 1974 until his death in 1980. He was born in Forfar and lived in Kirriemuir, Scotland, for 5 years before moving to Melbourne, Australia, with his family in 1952 at the age of six. The family lived in the suburb of Sunshine for four years before moving to Fremantle, Western Australia. Scott formed his first band, The Spektors, in 1964 and became the band's drummer and occasional lead vocalist. He performed in several other bands including The Valentines and Fraternity before replacing Dave Evans as the lead singer of AC/DC in 1974. Scott replaced Dave Evans as the lead singer of AC/DC on 24 October 1974, when it became obvious the band and Evans were heading in different directions, with Evans having personal clashes with band members and management. With the Young brothers as lead and rhythm guitarists, session drummer Tony Currenti and George Young as a temporary bassist, AC/DC released High Voltage, their first LP in Australia in 1975.
Harry Vanda – production, backing vocals
Angus Young – lead guitar
George Young – production, bass guitar, rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Malcolm Young – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, bass guitar, lead guitar on tracks 3, 5, 6 and 8
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDZrbTd-kZs
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZq6jnL9Czw
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Q-Wxx1Xdu4
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7B0393ZPds
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FpeX7JqdyI
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MI62xmH-xAE
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBOSt4C_xqg
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kI_wcE_MEJg
