I really, truly, feel terrible for the family of Malcolm Young, as well as the guitarist himself. Ever since it was announced Young was taking some sort of leave of absence from AC/DC, rumors immediately began to swirl and the whole world started pounding down the door demanding answers.
The band confirmed that the guitarist would not be on their upcoming record but never really gave a reason. Fast forward to last week and there were again rumors flying left and right that Young is suffering from dementia. Well hoped it wasn't true… but sadly it is.
In a very brief statement Young's family gave to People Magazine that reads more like an understandable "fuck off" than anything else, the family confirmed the speculation.
"Malcolm is suffering from dementia and the family thanks you for respecting their privacy."
From 1973 to 2014, Young was the inspiration for I'm sure thousands upon thousand of musicians to pick up a guitar or even lay back into big, hooky rhythm guitar riffs rather than just shred their faces off constantly. We salute you, Young, and hope everything turns out the best it can possibly turn out for a situation like that.