Thunderstruck

Lore & Background

Angus Young stated in the liner notes of the 2003 re-release of The Razors Edge that the song has sold over a million digital copies since it became available for digital download. In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the "most Australian" songs of all time, "Thunderstruck" was ranked No. 8. The music video, directed by David Mallet, was filmed at London's Brixton Academy on 1990. The audience members were given free T-shirts with the words "AC/DC – I was Thunderstruck" on the front and the date on the back, and these T-shirts were worn by the entire audience throughout the filming of the video.

Reader's Guide

The track is a popular song to learn among beginning guitarists. Writing for WRKR in 2025, Joe Davita expressed resentment towards children who play the riff in music stores, such as Guitar Center. He said: "You've probably heard AC/DC's 'Thunderstruck' so many times that you change the station whenever it comes on the radio. Nothing against it, it's a monster song, but unless Angus Young is playing that riff, nobody needs to hear it, not even from you, kid who plays it pretty well." He included the song on his list of the "10 Worst Guitar Center Songs Ever". Rayne Leat, a niece of former Iron Maiden drummer Clive Burr, is a professional wrestler. She wrestles with a metalhead gimmick and her finishing move, a step-up knee strike to the head called Thunderstruck, is a reference to the song.

Did You Know?

• In 2020, The Guardian ranked the song number eight on its list of the 40 greatest AC/DC songs, and in 2021, Kerrang! ranked it number six on its list of the 20 greatest AC/DC songs.
• In 2025 the song was voted 13 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of Australian Songs.