According to AC/DC’s Angus Young, the title of this song (“Shot in the Dark”) is a reference to taking a “little nip” of booze, i.e. “a shot” of alcohol, in the nighttime. But the lyrics themselves don’t have anything to do with being intoxicated per se. Rather they allude more to the overall adrenaline rush, so to speak, that consuming spirits can give you.

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In the first verse, the singer uses this idea to refer to his feelings for a particular lady.  And the second verse, as well as we can say the song in general, is based on AC/DC’s desire to for this song to hit the listener like a “shot in the dark” – in other words like a strong blast of booze during the night.

This is the lead single from AC/DC’s 17^th conventional album, “Power Up”. And it marks the first track the band released since 2015, as they were on hiatus due to a number of respective personal issues.

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Being recorded in 2018-19, “Shot in the Dark” was made public by Sony Entertainment and Ledseplein Presse on 7 October 2020. And it was first teased by AC/DC about a week earlier, on 1 October.

This song was written by the band’s guitarist Angus Young and his brother and former AC/DC member, the late Malcolm Young (1953-2017).