What are AC/DC's biggest songs?

22 February 2024, 16:33 | Updated: 22 February 2024, 16:51

Radio X counts down the Top 10 most-streamed and most-viewed tracks from the Aussie rock titans.

By Radio X

@RadioX

Bludgeoning riffs, hollered vocals and a guitarist dressed as a schoolboy: AC/DC have been the essence of rock 'n' roll for the best part of 50 years now. With a back catclogue of timeless tunes, new generations of rock fans have paid homage to the unstoppable rock monster from Australia.

But what are AC/DC's biggest songs in the 21st Century? Radio X looks at the number of Spotify streams and YouTube video views to bring you their Top 10 biggest tracks.

1. AC/DC - Thunderstruck

   

   AC/DC - Thunderstruck (Official Video)

   The lead single from the 1990 album The Razors Edge, Thunderstuck is a phenomenon: an electrifying lightning speed riff and football terrace chanting. The single has gone ten times Platinum in the band's home of Australia, double Platinum in the UK and Platinum in the US. Despite only getting to Number 13 in the charts here, the song's reputation has grown and grown and at the time of writing, it's had over 1.3 billion streams and 1.4 billion views on YouTube. Impressive.

2. AC/DC - Back In Black

   

   AC/DC - Back In Black (Official Video)

   The title track from an album that honoured the memory of the late Bon Scott with the most bombastic song of AC/DC's career - a celebration of enduring even the worst tragedy. Back In Black (the single) has gone double Platinum in the UK and triple Platinum in the US, and notched up over 1.45 billion streams on Spotify and over 1 bilion views on YouTube.

3. AC/DC - Highway To Hell

   

   AC/DC - Highway to Hell (Official Video)

   Less of a tribute to the occult and more of a tribute to Acca Dacca's hard touring life, the title track of their 1979 album didn't graze the UK Top 40 in 1979, but made Number 4 in 2013 after a fan campaign tried to get the boisterous tune to Christmas Number 1. Highway To Hell has since had over 1.44 billion streams on Spotify and over 331 million views on YouTube.

4. AC/DC - You Shook Me All Night Long

   

   AC/DC - You Shook Me All Night Long (Official Video)

   The nearest thing AC/DC get to a romantic song, this classic was the first single from the group to feature vocalist Brian Johnson. The song has gone an astonishing 9 times Platinum in Australia, tripe Platinum in the States and Platinum in the UK, while notching up over 1 billion Spotify streams and over 319 million views on YouTube.

5. AC/DC - T.N.T.

   

   AC/DC - T.N.T. (Live At River Plate, December 2009)

   Originally giving its name to AC/DC's second Australian album, the explosive riff of this classic track was included on the band's first internationally-release LP, High Voltage in 1976. Certified Gold in the UK, T.N.T. has now enjoyed over 648 million streams and over 253 million views for a live version taken from a 2009 performance at the River Plate stadium in Argentina.

6. AC/DC - Hells Bells

   

   AC/DC - Hells Bells (Official Video)

   The ominous tolling of Hells Bells opened the album Back In Black, with the band paying tribute to their fallen comrade Bon Scott, who died in February 1980. The song has now had over 367 million streams and over 274 mullion views on YouTube.

7. AC/DC - Shoot To Thrill

   

   AC/DC - Shoot To Thrill (Iron Man 2 Version)

   This track from 1980's Back In Black album found a whole new audience thanks to its inclusion on the soundtrack of the film Iron Man 2 in 2010 - along with a whole host of AC/DC classics. This means the song now has over 357 million streams and over 190 million views of the "Iron Man 2" version of the video.

8. AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

   

   AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (Official Audio)

   The title track of the band's 1976 album, this anthem wasn't issued as a single in the US until 1981 and has since gone on to notch up over 333 million streams and over 4.7 million views on YouTube.

9. AC/DC - It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'N' Roll)

   

   AC/DC - It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'N' Roll) (Audio)

   A signature tune for vocalist Bon Scott, this was the song that opened the band's first internationlly-released album High Voltage, giving the world its first taste of AC/DC. The track also managed to include a bagpipe solo as a nod to the Young brothers' Scottish roots. A testament to hard work paying off, the tune has had over 247 million Spotify streams and 4.8 million views on YouTube.

10. AC/DC - Rock 'N' Roll Train

    

    AC/DC - Rock N Roll Train (Live At River Plate, December 2009)

    Taken from the band's fifteenth album Black Ice, Rock 'N' Roll Train made an impression on the subsequent tour: shows started with a cartoon playing on the video screens, climaxing with a huge prop train crashing onto the stage. The track has since had over 182 million Spotify streams and over 154 million YouTube video views for the "Live At River Plate" version.