Anthrax’s Scott Ian on AC/DC’s Malcolm Young: ‘Greatest Rhythm Guitarist of All Time’
Anthrax‘s Scott Ian hailed AC/DC‘s Malcolm Young as “the greatest rhythm guitarist of all time” in a tribute to the late rocker who died Saturday at the age of 64.
In an Instagram post, Ian – whose own approach was so influenced by Malcolm Young’s style that he tattooed an image of the rhythm guitarist on his left bicep – praised Young’s “intensely powerful, percussive and economic style of playing.”
“His uncanny ability to wring only the necessary notes out of his Gretsch was what made AC/DC – his riffs, feel and tone the soul of that band,” Ian continued. “What he means to me is unquantifiable. I am a rhythm guitarist because of Malcolm Young, he lives with me always and I hope to honor the man and his legacy every time I play.”
Ian added, “And now I’m going to crank ‘Riff Raff’ and play along.”
In a 2015 interview following news of Young’s retirement from AC/DC, Ian commented, “Malcolm is the engine in the Mack truck that is AC/DC”:
Ian is among the army of guitarists that have paid tribute to the AC/DC co-founder following Young’s death after a three-year battle with dementia.
Tom Morello echoed Ian’s sentiment that Young was the “#1 greatest rhythm guitarist in the entire history of rock n roll,” while the E Street Band’s Steven Van Zandt called Young “the essential rhythm guitarist of the world’s greatest working class Hard Rock band.”
Guns N’ Roses’ Slash told Rolling Stone, “Malcolm Young was one of the best ever rhythm guitarists in Rock n Roll. He was a fantastic songwriter and he had a great work ethic too.”