There is something oddly magical about heavy rock and roll being coupled with bagpipes. When the instrument was invented more than 3,000 years ago, no one would have thought, "When electricity is invented, we need to get a bunch of us together to play an AC/DC song." Yet, reality has taken a turn.
If you are a fan of the best hard rock group produced by the great nation of Australia, you almost certainly know that their 1975 song, "It's a Long Way to the Top (if You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)," incorporates bagpipes in a fantastic way, much like the Dropkick Murphys do often on their tunes.
In 1976, the band, which featured Angus Young on lead guitar, of course, and Bon Scott on vocals, drove through downtown Melbourne on a flatbed truck blasting the tune in heavy traffic. Did it annoy some? Probably, but that was the point.
Bagpipers break record in an homage to AC/DC
One thing, though: The move was memorable. In fact, so much so that nearly 50 years later, and just hours before the current lineup of AC/DC, which still features Angus Young, took the stage in Melbourne, a massive group of bagpipers gathered together in Melbourne's Federation Square to play the band's tune from 1975.
In total, 374 bagpipers from just about everywhere showed, and that number is a record. The former record was from 2012, when 333 pipers got together in Bulgaria to play together. The group in Australia didn't just break the record; they obliterated it.
The oldest piper at the Aussie event was 98 years old, while the youngest ones were children well under 18. One can imagine the volume produced by the collection of bagpipers, as one bagpipe can be extremely loud. But again, that was partly the point.
As for going to see AC/DC, you can certainly do that as the band is on tour through much of 2026. The dates are below:
AC/DC 2025-26 tour dates:
- 11-12 Melbourne, Australia - Melbourne Cricket Ground
- 11-16 Melbourne, Australia - Melbourne Cricket Ground
- 11-21 Sydney, Australia - Accor Stadium
- 11-25 Sydney, Australia - Accor Stadium
- 11-30 Adelaide, Australia - Adelaide Street Circuit (BP Adelaide Grand Final)
- 12-04 Perth, Australia - Optus Stadium
- 12-08 Perth, Australia - Optus Stadium
- 12-14 Brisbane, Australia - Suncorp Stadium
- 12-18 Brisbane, Australia - Suncorp Stadium
- 02-24 São Paulo, Brazil - Estádio do MorumBIS
- 03-11 Santiago, Chile - Parque Estadio Nacional
- 03-23 Buenos, Aires - Estadio River Plate
- 04-07 Mexico City, Mexico - Estadio GNP Seguros
- 07-11 Charlotte, NC - Bank of America Stadium
- 07-15 Columbus, OH - Ohio Stadium
- 07-19 Madison, WI - Camp Randall Stadium
- 07-24 San Antonio, TX - Alamodome
- 07-28 Denver, CO - Empower Field at Mile High
- 08-01 Las Vegas, NV - Allegiant Stadium
- 08-05 San Francisco, CA - Levi’s Stadium
- 08-09 Edmonton, Alberta - Commonwealth Stadium
- 08-13 Vancouver, British Columbia - BC Place
- 08-27 Atlanta, GA - Mercedes-Benz Stadium
- 08-31 Houston, TX - NRG Stadium
- 09-04 South Bend, IN - Notre Dame Stadium
- 09-08 St. Louis, MO - The Dome at America’s Center
- 09-12 Montreal, Quebec - Parc Jean-Drapeau
- 09-16 Toronto, Ontario - Rogers Stadium
- 09-25 East Rutherford, NJ - MetLife Stadium
- 09-29 Philadelphia, PA - Lincoln Financial Field