AC/DC Gave Us Rock's Best Drinking Songs: Study

Generations of fans probably knew this already, but science has now confirmed that AC/DC is the top rock band for drinking songs.

They notched four of the Top 10 rock songs in a study conducted by whiskey retailer Flask & Barrel, claiming the No. 1 spot with 1990's "Thunderstruck," No. 2 with 1979's "Highway to Hell," No. 4 with 1980's "Back in Black" and No. 8 with "You Shook Me All Night Long," also from 1980.

Brian Johnson sang "Thunderstruck" and the Top 40 hits "Back in Black" and "You Should Me All Night Long," while original frontman Bon Scott handled vocals on "Highway to Hell."

Flask & Barrel analyzed Spotify playlists that referenced drinking or partying in their titles. They found a little over 23,400 of them, then separated the tracks by various types of music. "Thunderstruck" was tops among rock songs with 521 spots on party playlists. "Highway to Hell" appeared on 477 playlists, "Back in Black" was on 447 and "You Shook Me All Night Long" was on 393.

In all, AC/DC showed up on a genre-best 4,143 party playlists. Hip-hop was the most popular genre, however, with 70,249 tracks. Usher's "Yeah!" topping the hip-hop drinking songs list, with 1,191 appearances.

No. 3 among rock songs was Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" with 470; No. 5. was Eagles' "Hotel California" with 430. Tracks by Creedence Clearwater Revival ("Fortunate Son"), Fleetwood Mac ("Dreams"), Journey ("Don't Stop Believin'") and Toto ("Africa") rounded out the Top 10 for rock song appearances.

Top Rock Band Appearances on Party Playlists
1. AC/DC: 4,143
2. Queen: 3,512
3. Rolling Stones: 3,242
4. Red Hot Chili Peppers: 2,885
5. Fleetwood Mac: 2,864
6. Nirvana: 2,788
7. Led Zeppelin: 2,713
8. Creedence Clearwater Revival: 2,603
9. Guns N' Roses: 2,451
10. Green Day: 2,332