Malcolm Young, Founding Member of AC/DC, Is Suffering From Dementia

Retirement of the founding member of the Australian-by-way-of-Scotland hard-rock band was announced last week

By Natalie Finn Oct 01, 2014 2:24 AMTags
Malcolm Young Morena Brengola/Redferns

There's a sad reason why the world of hard rock will be a little bit quieter from now on.

Malcolm Young, a founding guitarist of AC/DC whose retirement from the band was announced last week, is suffering from dementia.

"The family thanks you for respecting their privacy," his family confirmed the news in a statement to People. No other details were forthcoming.

The 61-year-old musician originally took a break from playing with AC/DC back in April due to then-undisclosed health reasons.

"After forty years of life dedicated to AC/DC, guitarist and founding member Malcolm Young is taking a break from the band due to ill health," the Australian-bred band announced on their website at the time. "Malcolm would like to thank the group's diehard legions of fans worldwide for their never-ending love and support.

"In light of this news, AC/DC asks that Malcolm and his family's privacy be respected during this time. The band will continue to make music."

Malcolm, who was born in Scotland but grew up in Australia, founded the band in 1973 with his younger brother Angus Young. They were later joined by singer Brian Johnson, bassist Cliff Williams and drummer Phil Rudd (who left and came back).

AC/DC was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003. The Young brothers' nephew Stevie Young started playing with the band this month as a replacement for Malcolm. A new album, Rock or Bust, is due out Dec. 2 and the band is planning a world tour to go with it.

Martin Philbey/Redferns

"We miss Malcolm, obviously," Johnson told Classic Rock magazine in June. "He's a fighter. He's in [the] hospital, but he's a fighter. We've got our fingers crossed that he'll get strong again...

"Stevie, Malcolm's nephew, was magnificent, but when you're recording with this thing hanging over you and your work mate isn't well, it's difficult...But I'm sure he was rooting for us. He's such a strong man. He's a small guy, but he's very strong. He's proud, and he's very private, so we can't say too much. But fingers crossed he'll be back."