Phil Rudd gets cold shoulder from AC/DC

AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd in Tauranga District Court. Photo/file

Embattled rock star Phil Rudd says he's seen the error of his ways and wishes he was touring with AC/DC again.

The Tauranga-based drummer pleaded guilty to drugs and threatening to kill charges last month.

Rudd told an Australian TV station his former bandmates, including guitarist Angus Young, weren't talking to him.

"They haven't called me. I wrote them a letter and I tried to get in touch with Angus but I've had no contact from anybody," Rudd told A Current Affair last night.

"I'm very disappointed, but that's life," Rudd added.

Phil Rudd, the drummer in the Australian rock band AC/DC, wasn't talking to reporters gathered outside his Tauranga house in November. Photo/John Borren

The drummer said he was "fit and ready to go" and wished he was touring with AC/DC.

He said it was up to Young to decide if he had a future with the band.

"I've seen the error of my ways and it's onward and upward from here," Rudd added.

Young responded to the Nine Network show, saying Rudd had changed from the bandmate they originally knew.

"Phil created his own situation," the guitarist wrote.

''It's a hard thing to say about the guy. He's a great drummer, and he's done a lot of stuff for us. But he seems to have let himself go. He's not the Phil we've known in the past."

Young reportedly sent the same statement to USA Today last November.

Rudd was also in a long-running dispute with former Tauranga restaurant staff he verbally abused and sacked.Last year, the drummer was ordered to pay more than $72,000 after kicking a door in and sacking workers during a tantrum at his restaurant, Phil's Place.

AC/DC performed at the Grammys earlier this year, with Rudd conspicuously absent. The group is about to embark on a US tour.

- NZME.