Chris Slade
A powerhouse drummer with impeccable timing, he provided the thunderous backbone for both prog-rock virtuosity and AC/DC's stadium-shaking anthems.
Born 1946 (age 80)·Welsh rock drummer·Birthday: October 30·Baby Boomers
Biography
Chris Slade's career is a roadmap through classic rock's most iconic eras, a Welsh timekeeper who mastered both complexity and pure, driving force. He first made his mark in the early 1970s with Tom Jones's band before finding a perfect home in the intricate, synth-driven landscapes of Manfred Mann's Earth Band. His precise, powerful style was adaptable, leading to work with guitar gods like David Gilmour in The Firm. But his most famous assignment came in 1989 when AC/DC needed a new engine. Slade's huge, rock-solid beat defined the multi-platinum 'The Razors Edge' album and its monstrous hit 'Thunderstruck,' his intro famously setting the track in motion. After a hiatus, he returned to the fold in 2015, proving his enduring power on a global stage. More than a session player, Slade is a musician's drummer, respected for his reliability, his distinctive circular kit setup, and his ability to anchor any song, from prog epics to three-chord rock.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Chris was born in 1946, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Chris Was Born
The biggest hits of 1946
#1 Movie
The Best Years of Our Lives
Best Picture
The Best Years of Our Lives
Chris's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1946Born
United Nations holds its first General Assembly
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $5,150Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Prisoner of Love" — Perry ComoBest Picture: The Best Years of Our Lives
1951Started school
First color TV broadcast in the US
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Too Young" — Nat King ColeBest Picture: An American in Paris
1959Became a teenager
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1962Could drive
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1964Could vote
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1967Turned 21
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1976Turned 30
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1986Turned 40
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1996Turned 50
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2006Turned 60
Twitter launches; Pluto reclassified as dwarf planet
Gas: $2.59/galHome: $174,700Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Bad Day" — Daniel PowterBest Picture: The Departed
2016Turned 70
Donald Trump elected president; Brexit vote
Gas: $2.14/galHome: $181,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Love Yourself" — Justin BieberBest Picture: Moonlight
2026Turned 80
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Recorded and toured on AC/DC's commercially massive 1990 album 'The Razors Edge,' which included the hit 'Thunderstruck.'
- Played on eight albums with Manfred Mann's Earth Band, including the hit single 'Blinded by the Light.'
- Was a member of the supergroup The Firm, alongside Jimmy Page and Paul Rodgers, recording two albums in the mid-1980s.
- Performed with AC/DC on their 2015-2016 'Rock or Bust World Tour' after being recruited to replace Phil Rudd.
Did You Know?
He uses a distinctive circular drum kit setup, with the drums arranged in a semicircle around him.
Before joining AC/DC, he almost joined the band Uriah Heep but turned it down to work with Tom Jones.
Slade is left-handed but plays a right-handed drum kit setup.
He was the drummer on the original recording of 'The Heat Is On' by Glenn Frey, from the 'Beverly Hills Cop' soundtrack.
“My job is to serve the song, to find the right feel and hit it hard.”
