AC/DC Salute: 374 Bagpipers Set World Record With ‘It’s a Long Way to the Top’ in Melbourne
via No Comment TV / youtube
As AC/DC launched the Australian leg of their Power Up world tour in Melbourne on Tuesday night, the city roared to life — not just with electric guitars, but with the unmistakable wail of hundreds of bagpipes.
In a stunning tribute to one of the band’s most iconic songs, “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ’n’ Roll),” a sea of pipers gathered at Federation Square for what became a history-making performance.
Dubbed “The Great Melbourne Bagpipe Bash,” the event assembled 374 pipers, officially setting a new world record and surpassing the previous mark of 333, set in Bulgaria in 2012, according to the Associated Press. The oldest musician in attendance was an impressive 98 years old, proving rock and roll truly has no age limit.
A Fitting Stage: Where AC/DC Made History
The choice of Federation Square wasn’t just symbolic — it was sacred ground for AC/DC fans. The site sits along Swanston Street, the very stretch of road immortalized in the band’s 1976 music video for “It’s a Long Way to the Top.”
That video famously featured the band performing atop a flatbed truck as it rolled down Swanston Street, accompanied by members of the Rats of Tobruk Memorial Pipes and Drums.
Two of those original pipers, Les Kenfield and Kevin Conlon, returned for Tuesday’s performance, reuniting nearly half a century later for what became a poignant full-circle moment.
“It didn’t strike you at the time how big this event is until now,” Kenfield reflected in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “Now it’s one of the greatest things — probably the greatest thing I’ve ever done in my life.”
AC/DC Look Ahead: Classic Returns and Global Plans
When AC/DC hit the stage for their Melbourne tour opener, fans were treated to the first live performance of “Jailbreak” since 1991 — a deep cut that thrilled longtime followers.
The Australian leg of the Power Up tour will continue through mid-December, before the band takes their explosive show to South America and North America in 2026.
Nearly five decades after first rolling down Swanston Street, AC/DC’s legacy continues to thunder across generations — louder, prouder, and more alive than ever.
