Former AC/DC Drummer Tony Currenti Ends 38-Year Stage Hiatus

Tony Currenti, the session drummer who handled most of the drumming duties for AC/DC‘s debut album, recently returned to the stage after nearly 40 years away from public performance.

Author Jesse Fink, the writer behind ‘The Youngs: The Brothers Who Built AC/DC,’ shared the news via his book’s Facebook page, posting a few pictures from the evening and writing, “After 38 years away from music, ‘High Voltage’ and ”74 Jailbreak’ drummer Tony Currenti made an impromptu return to the stage last night at the Bald Faced Stag in Leichhardt, Sydney, stepping up to play three songs with a couple of local musicians. Lucky crowd, historic night. Onya, Tony!”

Currenti, briefly made his way into the lineup as a replacement for Peter Clack, who was on his way out of the band. Already a member of the Australian act Jackie Christian & Flight prior to playing for AC/DC, Currenti can also be heard on 1984′s ”74 Jailbreak’ release.

In a recent interview with the St. George & Sutherland Shire Leader, Currenti explained that “Complications because of his Italian passport prevented him from joining the band when they went overseas in 1975.” By the end of the ’70s, he’d walked away from his music career entirely; today, he runs a pizzeria in Sydney, and apparently hasn’t seen the members of AC/DC in years. (As the article puts it, “His efforts to meet up with the band during their ‘Black Ice’ tour in early 2010 were unsuccessful.”)

No word on whether Currenti’s latest gig is the beginning of some fresh non-culinary activity, but you’re never too old to make some noise — and as his own Facebook page shows, he also recently met up with former AC/DC bassist Mark Evans.