Tonight’s band is famous for loud, fast rock. But this song is different: a slow, sad blues. A lonely man on the road keeps moving on, from town to town, and never stops.
Learn from Songs · Unit 12: Review · B1
Ride On
A slow, lonely blues by AC/DC and their singer Bon Scott: phrasal verbs with on (ride on, move on, carry on, go on), informal gonna / gotta / wanna and how to say them in standard English, and the present continuous for change, with Philo, Sophia, Marcos and Demetria.
SOPHIA
MARCOS
AC/DC playing slowly? I don’t believe it.
SOPHIA
Listen and see. Bon Scott, their singer, sings it very simply. Many fans think it is his best vocal.
DEMETRIA
A lonely song. Why does he keep leaving?
Before you listen: the song
Sydney, 1976
AC/DC is a rock band formed in Sydney, Australia, by the brothers Angus and Malcolm Young, who had come from Scotland as children. Their first great singer was Bon Scott, also born in Scotland, a funny, warm man with a rough voice.
“Ride On” is on the album Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (1976). Unlike most of their songs, it is a slow blues. Bon Scott died in 1980, aged thirty-three, and “Ride On” is often remembered as one of his most personal songs.
In the song, a lonely man is on the road again. Things haven’t gone well, and he is moving on, hoping that one day he will find something better.
Moving on is not the same as running away.
Listen: the road
PHILO
Listen once. How does the man feel? What does he keep doing?
SOPHIA
Listen to the slow guitar. Then answer Section A.
🛣️ Listen to the song: “Ride On” (Bon Scott, Angus Young and Malcolm Young, 1976), by AC/DC.Find the recording →
📜 Read the words while you listen: “Ride On”, AC/DC.Read the lyrics →
Phrasal verbs with on
MARCOS
He rides on. He moves on to the next town. Carry on! Go on, tell me. Hold on!
SOPHIA
on often means “continue”: ride on, carry on, go on, keep on. move on = go to a new place or stop thinking about the past. hold on = wait / don’t let go.
Gonna, gotta, wanna
DEMETRIA
In songs: I’m gonna, I gotta, I wanna. In standard English: I’m going to, I’ve got to, I want to.
SOPHIA
These spellings show how people really speak. Fine in songs, messages and dialogue; in essays and exams write the full forms.
Present continuous for change
PHILO
He’s moving on. Things are getting worse. He’s getting tired of the road.
SOPHIA
be + -ing for situations that are changing: The days are getting shorter. My English is improving. With get + adjective: get tired, get old, get better.
Sophia’s comparison: Cain and Odysseus
PHILO
Cain was told he would be a wanderer on the earth, never staying anywhere. He went away and lived in the land of Nod, which means “wandering”.
SOPHIA
And Odysseus wandered for ten years, but he was always going home. That is the difference: one man is running away, the other is moving towards something.
Sophia’s summary
| Words and forms | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ride on / carry on / go on | continue | Carry on! |
| move on | go somewhere new / leave the past | It’s time to move on. |
| gonna / gotta / wanna | informal speech | going to / have got to / want to |
| be + -ing for change | changing situations | Things are getting better. |
| get + adjective | become | He’s getting tired. |
Practice
Listen to the song for Section A, then do the rest. Press “Check my answers” at the end. You can try again as many times as you like.
A · Listen: the song
Listen to the song and choose the best answer.
1. What kind of song is it?
2. How does the man feel?
3. What does he keep doing?
4. Who was the singer?
5. Where was AC/DC formed?
6. Which album is it on?
B · Grammar and vocabulary
Write the missing word or words.
7. It’s time to move .
8. Don’t stop! Carry .
9. I’m gonna leave. = I’m to leave.
10. I gotta go. = I’ve to go.
11. Things are better. (get)
12. He’s getting of the road. (very bored)
C · Right or wrong?
Is the sentence correct English?
13. “I wanna go home.” (in an essay)
14. “It’s time to move on.”
15. “My English is getting better.”
16. “Carry out singing!” (= continue)
Talk and write
Discussion and writing
Song to standard. Find three lines in songs you know with gonna, gotta or wanna. Rewrite them in standard English. Which sounds better?
Discuss. 1. When is it right to move on, and when should you stay? 2. Why are slow songs sometimes more powerful than fast ones? 3. What is getting better in your life?
Write (100–120 words). Moving on. Write about a time you (or a character) moved on from something. Use three phrasal verbs with on and the present continuous for change.
Now play the gamebook: a lonely rider who never stays.Play the gamebook →