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Def Leppard

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Def Leppard

Def Leppard are a hard rock and heavy metal band from Sheffield, England, which formed in 1977 as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. The band consists of Joe Elliott (vocals), Phil Collen (lead guitar), Vivian Campbell (rhythm guitar), Rick Savage (bass guitar), and Rick Allen (drums). The band has sold over 65 million albums worldwide, and have two albums with RIAA diamond certification, Pyromania and Hysteria.[3]

History

Early years (1977–1979)

Rick Savage, Pete Willis and Tony Kenning, all students at Tapton School in Sheffield, formed a band called Atomic Mass in 1977. The band originally consisted of Willis on guitar, Savage on bass (after originally playing guitar), with Kenning on drums. Only 18 at the time, Joe Elliott tried out for the band as a guitarist following a chance meeting with Willis after missing a bus. During his audition, however, it was decided that he was better suited to be the lead singer. Their first ever gig was in the dining hall in A Block in Westfield School in Mosborough, Sheffield.

Soon afterward they adopted a name proposed by Elliott, "Def Leopard", which was originally a band name he thought up while writing reviews for imaginary rock bands in his English class (and in at least partial reference to the band Led Zeppelin).[4] At Kenning's suggestion, the spelling was slightly modified in order to make the name seem less like that of a punk band. In January 1978, Steve Clark joined the band. According to Joe Elliott, he successfully auditioned for the band by playing Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" in its entirety.

In November, just prior to recording sessions for what would be a three-song release known as the Def Leppard EP, Kenning abruptly left the band. He was replaced for those sessions by Frank Noon. By the end of the month Rick Allen, then only 15 years old, had joined the band as its full-time drummer.

Sales of the EP soared after the track "Getcha Rocks Off" was given extensive airtime by renowned BBC Radio DJ John Peel, considered at the time to be a champion of punk rock and new wave music.

Throughout 1979, the band developed a loyal following among British hard rock/heavy metal fans and were even initially considered the leaders of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (a status eventually claimed by Iron Maiden). Their growing popularity led to a record deal with the major label Phonogram/Vertigo (Mercury Records in the US).

Rise to fame (1980–1983)

Def Leppard's debut album, On Through the Night, was released on 14 March 1980. Although the album hit the Top 15 in the UK, many early fans were turned off by the perception that the band was trying too hard to appeal to American audiences[citation needed] by recording songs like "Hello America" and touring more in the US (supporting Pat Travers, AC/DC, and Ted Nugent). A performance at the Reading Festival in August (Iron Maiden also appeared) was marred when audience members expressed their displeasure by pelting the band with rubbish.

The band had by then caught the attention of AC/DC producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange, who agreed to work on their second album, High 'n' Dry, released on 11 July 1981. Lange's meticulous approach in the studio helped them begin to define their sound. Despite the album's unimpressive sales figures, the "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" promo clip became one of the first metal videos played on MTV in 1982, bringing the band increased visibility in the States. After the album's release, a European tour followed. The band opened for Ozzy Osbourne and Blackfoot.[5]

Phil Collen, former guitarist with the glam band Girl, replaced Pete Willis, who was fired on 11 July 1982, due to excessive alcohol consumption on the job. (Willis would later resurface with the bands Gogmagog and Roadhouse.) This personnel change took place during the recording of their third album, Pyromania, which was released on 20 January 1983 and also produced by Lange. The lead single, "Photograph", turned Def Leppard into a household name, supplanting Michael Jackson's "Beat It" as the most requested video clip on MTV and becoming a staple of rock radio (dominating the US Album Rock Charts for six weeks). It also hit #12 on the pop charts.

Fueled by "Photograph" and subsequent singles "Rock of Ages" and "Foolin'", Pyromania went on to sell six million copies in 1983 (more than 100,000 copies every week in that year) and was held off the top of the US album charts only by Michael Jackson's Thriller. The album has since been certified Diamond by the RIAA in the US. Def Leppard's US tour in support of Pyromania began opening for Billy Squier in March and ended with a headlining performance before an audience of 55,000 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego, CA in September. As a testament to the band's popularity at the time, a US Gallup poll in 1984 saw Def Leppard voted as favourite rock band over peers such as The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, and Journey. However, this popularity was not matched in their native England, a fact that greatly bothered them.

Hysteria era (1984–1989)

Following their breakthrough, the band moved to Dublin in February 1984 for tax purposes to begin writing the follow-up to Pyromania. Mutt Lange initially joined in on the songwriting sessions but then suddenly declined to return as producer due to exhaustion. Instead, Jim Steinman (of Meat Loaf's Bat out of Hell fame) was brought in.

On 31 December 1984, drummer Rick Allen lost his left arm in a car crash on the A57 in the hills outside Sheffield when his Corvette swerved off the road on a sharp bend and went through a drystone wall. Despite the severity of the accident, Rick was committed to continuing his role as Def Leppard's drummer. He practiced drumming with pillows and realized that he could use his legs to do some of the drumming work previously done with his arms.[citation needed] He then worked with Simmons to design a custom electronic drum kit. The other members of the band supported Allen's recovery and never sought a replacement. During this period, Mutt Lange returned as producer, and Allen's triumphant comeback was sealed at the 1986 Donington Monsters of Rock festival with an emotionally charged ovation after his introduction by Joe Elliott.

After over four years of recording, Def Leppard's fourth album, Hysteria, was released on 3 August 1987. In the UK, the first single from the album, "Animal", reached #6, giving the band their first successful single in their home country. Hysteria immediately topped the charts in its first week of release. However, US album sales were relatively slow (compared to Pyromania) until the release of the fourth single, "Pour Some Sugar on Me." The song hit Number 2, and Hysteria finally reached the top of the US Album Charts in July 1988. The "Pour Some Sugar on Me" video was #1 on Dial MTV for a record 73 days (from 26 May–5 September 1988). In October, the power ballad "Love Bites" would become Def Leppard's first (and only) Number One single on the Billboard Hot 100, and in January 1989, the band scored another US Top 5 hit with "Armageddon It."

Hysteria is one of only a handful of albums (and the third in rock history) that has charted seven singles or more on the US Hot 100: "Women" (#80), "Animal" (#19), "Hysteria" (#10), "Pour Some Sugar on Me" (#2), "Love Bites" (#1), "Armageddon It" (#3), and "Rocket" (#12). It remained on the charts for three years and has sold 18 million copies worldwide. Equally successful was the accompanying Hysteria World Tour, which ran for 15 months and saw Def Leppard perform "In The Round." The concept proved wildly popular with fans, as evidenced in the videos for "Pour Some Sugar on Me" and "Armageddon It" (and was later used again for the Adrenalize tour).

In 1989, Def Leppard won Favorite Heavy Metal Artist, as well as Favorite Heavy Metal Album (for "Hysteria") during the American Music Awards. It was the first time that a heavy metal category was added to the awards show. (The category has since been deleted.) By the end of the decade, although Guns N' Roses, Mötley Crüe, and Bon Jovi had garnered more mainstream exposure, Def Leppard had sold more records than any rock band in the US during the 1980s.

The Rock Survivors (1990–1999)

Following Hysteria, the band quickly set out to work on their fifth album, hoping to avoid another lengthy gap. However, Steve Clark's alcoholism worsened to the point that he was constantly in and out of rehab. Recording sessions suffered from this distraction, and in mid-1990, Steve was granted a six-month leave of absence from the band. Clark never reached the end of his leave, dying from an accidental mix of prescription drugs and alcohol on January 8 1991 in his London home. The remaining band members decided to carry on and recorded the album as a four-piece, with Collen mimicking Clark's style on his intended guitar parts. Def Leppard's fifth album, Adrenalize, was finally released on 31 March 1992. The album simultaneously entered at Number One on both the UK and US album charts, staying on the latter for 5 weeks. The first single, "Let's Get Rocked", was an instant smash hit, and its video was later nominated for Best Video of the Year at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards.

In April 1992, another world tour followed with Vivian Campbell joining the band, but the band's fortunes began to be affected by the rise of grunge and alternative rock.

A collection of b-sides and unreleased tracks recorded between 1984 and 1993, called Retro Active, was released in October 1993, preceded by the success of "Two Steps Behind" (from the Arnold Schwarzenegger film Last Action Hero). Another single, "Miss You In A Heartbeat", hit the Top 5 in Canada, becoming one of their biggest hits there. Retro Active has sold 3 million copies worldwide to date. Two years later, Def Leppard issued their first greatest hits collection, Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits (1980–1995), which has sold 8 million copies worldwide. Alternate track listings of the album were issued for North America, the UK, and Japan. The compilation included a new track, the ballad "When Love & Hate Collide", which became their biggest ever hit in the UK, hitting #2. It peaked at #58 in the U.S.

On 23 October 1995, the band entered the Guinness Book of World Records by performing three concerts in three continents in one day (Tangiers, Morocco; London, England; and Vancouver, Canada).

Slang, released in May 1996, marked a drastic musical departure for the band by featuring darker lyrics and a stripped-down alternative rock edge. The US audience reception for Slang and its subsequent tour was a major dropoff from a decade earlier, but Q Magazine would nonetheless list Slang as one of the Top Ten Albums of 1996. This album was the first recorded performance of Rick Allen playing a semi-acoustic drum kit since his accident, and not his electronic set as was first used with Hysteria.

VH1 revived the band's fortunes in the US in 1998 by featuring them on one of the first episodes of Behind The Music. Reruns of the episode yielded some of the series' highest ratings and brought the band's music back into the public consciousness (following years of burial by the alternative rock climate). The episode was even parodied on Saturday Night Live. In an effort to capitalise on this new momentum, Def Leppard returned to its classic sound with the 1999 album Euphoria. The first single, "Promises", reunited the band with Mutt Lange and hit the US Mainstream Rock charts at #1 for 3 weeks. The album was certified gold in the US and Canada.

New-found popularity (2000–2007)

On 5 September 2000, Def Leppard were inducted into the Rock Walk of Fame on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard by their friend Brian May of Queen. In 2001, VH1 produced and aired Hysteria - The Def Leppard Story, a biopic that included Anthony Michael Hall as Mutt Lange and Amber Valletta as Lorelei Shellist (Steve Clark's girlfriend). The docudrama covered the band's history between 1977 through 1986, recounting the trials and triumphs of Rick Allen and Steve Clark. The 18 July broadcast still produced some of the channel's highest-ever ratings and is available on DVD.

Def Leppard's tenth album, X, saw the band's musical direction moving more towards pop and further away from the band's hard rock roots. Although greeted with generally positive reviews, X quickly disappeared from the charts, ultimately becoming the band's least successful release. However, the accompanying tour played to the band's strongest audiences since Adrenalize.

An expanded and updated best-of collection, Best Of, was released internationally in October 2004. The North America-only version, Rock Of Ages - The Definitive Collection, was released the following May. Def Leppard participated at the Live 8 show in Philadelphia and toured in the summer with Bryan Adams. In 2005, the band left their longtime management team, Q-Prime, and signed with HK Management.

On 23 May 2006, Def Leppard released an all-covers album titled Yeah!. The disc pays homage to classic rock songs of their childhood, originally recorded by Blondie, The Kinks, Sweet, ELO, and Badfinger among others. It debuted at #16 in the US, their tenth consecutive Top 20 album, and has scanned more than 140,000 copies to date.

The band, along with Queen, Kiss, and Judas Priest, were the inaugural inductees of "VH1 Rock Honors" on 31 May 2006. During the show, The All-American Rejects paid homage to the band with a cover of "Photograph". Soon afterwards, they embarked on a US tour with Journey. That October, Hysteria was re-released in a two-disc deluxe edition format, which combined the original remastered album with b-sides, remixes, and bonus tracks from single releases. Def Leppard began their "Downstage Thrust Tour", on 29 June, which took them across the US and into Canada. Support bands were Foreigner and Styx.

Recent events (2008-present)

Def Leppard at the 2008 Sweden Rock Festival

The band's new album, entitled Songs from the Sparkle Lounge, was released worldwide on 28 April 2008 and on 30 April 2008 in Japan. The album debuted at #5 on The Billboard 200 in America. The first single is entitled "Nine Lives" and features country singer Tim McGraw, who co-wrote the song with Joe Elliott, Phil Collen, and Rick Savage.

A tour in support of the album began on 27 March 2008 in Greensboro, NC,[6] with Styx and REO Speedwagon joining the band on US dates. The band also played several European rock festivals. An arena tour of the UK took place in June in which the band co-headlined with Whitesnake and was supported by US southern rockers Black Stone Cherry. The band then returned to Europe before coming back for a second leg of the UK tour in June. The first of these dates was at the Glasgow SECC on 17 June. Again they were be joined by Whitesnake; however hard rock band Thunder supported at some of these shows. Black Stone Cherry continued to support most of the dates, including some of the Thunder ones. Six shows which were cancelled during the USA/Canada leg of their world tour due to illnesses affecting Joe Elliott and Phil Collen would be rescheduled and played in August of that year. On 11 June, Def Leppard announced further dates for their 2008 World Tour. The extension would see them visit Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Whitesnake continued to support Def Leppard for their Indian and Japanese dates. Def Leppard toured 41 US cities plus Toronto, Canada, during summer 2009 and also played the Download Festival with Whitesnake and ZZ Top.

In October 2008, Def Leppard played with country superstar, Taylor Swift in a taped show in Nashville, Tennessee, in a show called CMT Crossroads: Def Leppard and Taylor Swift. This was released as a DVD on 16 June 2009 exclusively at Wal-Mart.[7] The release was the best-selling DVD of week, and the 10th best selling Wal-Mart music release.[8] The performance of "Photograph" by Taylor Swift and Def Leppard was up for both Performance of the Year and Wide Open Country Video of the Year at the CMT Music Awards in 2009.[9] Taylor Swift said of the performance, "Performing with Def Leppard was awesome! They are the coolest guys on the planet! It was the coolest thing in the world to have my band on stage with them...It was the most amazing feeling in the world..."[10] Joe Elliot from Def Leppard said, "What an absolute pleasure it was to work with Taylor and her band who are a great set of musicians. Myself and Taylor blended really well together, I think, and everybody, both bands and the crowd, had a great time. I'm really glad we had the opportunity to do this."[11]

In October 2009 the band announced that they would be cancelling the last leg of the 2009 North American tour, a total of 23 shows. The band cited, "unforeseen personal matters," as the reason for the cancellations.[12] The band has denied rumors about a breakup, saying, "We're not splitting. Not at all. We often joke, what else would we do? You just can't imagine doing anything else."[13] The band had been earning nearly $700,000 a show, placing them in the top 20 shows on tour.[12] According to Def Leppard's website, the band will not tour again until 2011.[14]

Def Leppard plans to release their previous albums on iTunes for the first time in 2010.[13] Def Leppard has been joined by bands like AC/DC, The Beatles, Garth Brooks, and Tool in their refusal to release music on iTunes.[15]

Musical style and legacy

Def Leppard's music is a mixture of hard rock, album-oriented rock (AOR), and heavy metal elements, with its multi-layered, harmonic vocals and its melodic guitar riffs.

However, even though they were often considered one of the top bands of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal movement of the late 1970s, in the mid-1980s the band were falsely associated with the growing glam metal scene, mainly due to their mainstream success and glossy production. To their defense, Def Leppard have expressed dislike of the "glam metal" label as it did not accurately describe their look or musical style.[16]

By the release of the Hysteria album, the band had developed a distinctive sound featuring electronic drums and effects-laden guitar sounds overlaid with a multi-layered wall of husky, harmonised vocals. Def Leppard is one of only five rock bands with two original studio albums selling over 10 million copies each in the US. The others are The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Van Halen.[17]

Band members

Further information: Def Leppard band members

Current members

Former members

Touring musicians

  • Jeff Rich – drums, percussion (August 1986 – supplement to Rick Allen)

Side projects

Phil Collen played guitar, uncredited, on Sam Kinison's "Wild Thing" from 1988. The video featured members of Poison, Bon Jovi, Mötley Crüe, Guns N' Roses, Ratt, and Aerosmith.

Collen also produced and played on the 1991 album On The Edge from Australian band BB Steal.

Joe Elliott sang lead vocals on two tracks on Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood's 1992 solo album, Slide On This. His then-wife Karla appeared in the videos for "Always Wanted More" and "Somebody Else Might".

Various members of Def Leppard have played on tribute records for Jeff Beck, AC/DC and Alice Cooper.

Joe Elliott performed on two tracks to the soundtrack of the 1996 Sheffield-set motion picture, When Saturday Comes, the title track and an instrumental, "Jimmy's Theme".

Cybernauts was a side project consisting of Joe Elliott and Phil Collen teamed with members of the Spiders From Mars (David Bowie's former band), minus the late Mick Ronson. The group played several shows, covering Bowie's Ziggy Stardust-era songs and released one internet only album (since deleted).

Phil Collen has a side band called Man-Raze, which released their debut album in June 2008.

Vivian Campbell has played with two side bands in recent years, Clock and the Riverdogs, and recorded a solo album, Two Sides of If, released in 2005.

Joe Elliott is working on a album with a new band called Down 'n' Outz, which includes members of The Quireboys.[13]

Vivian Campbell will be touring with Thin Lizzy in early 2010.[18]

Discography

Main article: Def Leppard discography

Awards and nominations

Main article: List of Def Leppard awards and nominations

See also

References

  1. ^ Def Leppard: Biography : Rolling Stone
  2. ^ allmusic ((( Def Leppard > Biography )))
  3. ^ (2009-02-26). Def Leppard Announces US Tour Newsroom America. Retrieved 2010-03-01.
  4. ^ According to the book "Bang Your Head: The Rise And Fall Of Heavy Metal" by David Konow.
  5. ^ Band Biography, DefLeppard.com.
  6. ^ Def Leppard.Com
  7. ^ PRESS RELEASE -- CMT CROSSROADS: TAYLOR SWIFT and DEF LEPPARD on DVD June 16
  8. ^ CROSSROADS is Wal-Mart's best-selling DVD this week
  9. ^ PRESS RELEASE -- CMT CROSSROADS: TAYLOR SWIFT and DEF LEPPARD on DVD June 16
  10. ^ CMT Crossroads: Def Leppard and Taylor Swift sneak peek
  11. ^ PRESS RELEASE -- CMT CROSSROADS: TAYLOR SWIFT and DEF LEPPARD on DVD June 16
  12. ^ a b "Def Leppard Cancels Third Leg of Tour" The Associated Press. Retrieved 2010-02-03.
  13. ^ a b c (2010-04-30). Def Leppard dismiss split rumours ahead of Sheffield gig Sheffield Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-05-03.
  14. ^ "Def Leppard Tour Info" Defleppard.com. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
  15. ^ (2008-09-28). AC/DC in notable company as they shun iTunes Canada.com. Retrieved 2010-05-03.
  16. ^ Def Leppard craves respect in interview, heavymetalmusic.biz.
  17. ^ Cohen, Jane and Grossweiner, Bob. (2008-01-09). "Def Leppard Continues North American Tour" Ticket News. Retrieved 2010-03-01.
  18. ^ (2010-05-12). "Def Leppard Website" deflepparduk.com. Retrieved 2010-05-28.
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Def Leppard

Tony Kenning (born Anthony Reuben Kenning) was Def Leppard's original drummer.

Career

Def Leppard

He attended Tapton School in Sheffield with fellow founding members Rick Savage and Pete Willis. With them, he formed Atomic Mass in 1977, which morphed into Def Leppard in November 1977. The demo recordings on the bootleg album Warchild are the only recordings he played on. Kenning quit the band because his girlfriend was not happy that he spent more time with the band than her. (Some sources claim that Kenning was fired from the band due to lack of enthusiasm.) Kenning left in November 1978. Frank Noon sat in for the recording of Def Leppard's EP but was never a permanent replacement. Tony was replaced permanently by Rick Allen later in November 1978. Rick has been Def Leppard's drummer ever since. He is still in contact with his former band mates and they meet occasionally when in town.

Cairo

Kenning was later a member of a band called Cairo, who released an independent single in 1984. The band had more in common with Spandau Ballet than Def Leppard, and featured Gerry Fletcher (vocals, guitar, woodblock), Phil Wainwright (keyboards), Andy Needham (bass), and Tony Kenning (drums, percussion). It should be noted that the drums sounded electronic rather than traditional.

This band should not be confused with the American Progressive rock band Cairo.

Track listing

  1. "Eight Bells" – 4:09 (Fletcher/Kenning/Needham/Wainwright)
  2. "Inside Out" – 4:07 (Fletcher/Kenning/Needham/Wainwright)
  • Eight Bells single notes: Pyramid Records SRT-4S-148 (UK, 1984 – Picture Sleeve)
  • Produced by Cairo and Geoff Hummerstone
  • Recorded in North London in May 1984
  • Jim Fletcher provides additional vocals on B1
  • The picture sleeve for the single featured a band logo design very similar to Def Leppard's original 1980 version.
Preceded by
Original
 Def Leppard Drummer
1977-1978 		Succeeded by

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