I didn’t buy the “Hysteria” album when it came out. I know its sacrilegious to say it, but Def Leppard was out of the news cycle and the magazines for quite some time. You know the saying, Out of mind, out of sight. I had heard about Rick Allen’s car accident and the troubles the band had with producers. Plus I was still spinning “Pyromania” so I didn’t feel like I needed a new Def Leppard album.
When “Woman” came out as a single, it didn’t do any real business in Australia. Then came “Animal” and it just cracked the Top 50, but like “Woman”, it was largely ignored. I do wish I purchased the 7 inch singles for these releases at the time, as getting singles with B sides that had unreleased material moved you into the “cool” crowd amongst your mates. Well that’s how it was in Australia. Plus I was a collector.
Then came “Pour Some Sugar on Me”.
It had this “I Love Rock N Roll” riff with a bit of “Since You’ve Been Gone” and I was all in. It was the last song recorded on the album, featuring a signature riff written by Joe Elliot and a vocal line inspired by the mash-up of Aerosmith and Run-DMC on “Walk This Way”. Mutt Lange, always the song doctor, heard “hit potential” and within two weeks, the song was recorded and added to the album as the twelfth track.
The 7 inch single I have has “I Wanna Be Your Hero” as the B-side which as I understand is the UK and Australasia version, however the USA version has “Ring Of Fire” and the 12 inch version of the song has “I Wanna Be Your Hero”.
“I Wanna Be Your Hero” was originally called “Love Bites”. As we all know they used the title for a completely different song.
I was hooked as soon as the arpeggio guitars start. The vibe and feel reminds me so much of the “High N Dry” and “Pyromania” albums. Songs like “Comin Under Fire”, “Foolin”, “Too Late For Love” and “Another Hit And Run”. Maybe that’s why it became a B side as the band felt like they were re-writing their past, which according to Angus Young is totally fine to do. And AC/DC don’t look like they are losing doing it.
Check out the song structure, with verse, pre, verse, pre and then the CHORUS cranks in. And the music behind the Chorus, is very “Photograph” like.
Going back to “Pour Some Sugar Of Me”, in Australia it was played regularly by music television, and suddenly I was interested in the album.
Def Leppard was everywhere again and “step inside I did”.
In 1983 and 84, it felt like there was “Pyromania” and then there was everything else.
Quiet Riot didn’t have the same success in Australia that they had in the U.S and Motley Crue was a few years away from their “Home Sweet Home” fame in Australia.
The Lep’s wanted to be on top of the pop charts. That was their mission. The rise was slow but gradual.
If you like rock and metal music, you would like this album. If you like pop and other forms of music, you would still like this album.
The “Pyromania” story begins with “High ’N’ Dry”.
The album didn’t sell what the band and the label expected it to sell. And their UK headlining tour had them selling 25% of the tickets. In other words, they were pulling in between 400-500 people in 2000-seat theatres.
Def Leppard was then given a supporting slot on the European Leg of the “Point Of Entry” tour by Judas Priest. But they never had a chance to make an impact, coming on second after Accept, who had massive momentum with “Balls To The Wall”.
The tour finished in December, 1981.
But the band was busy writing riffs on the road and man, they sure had a lot for new songs. They also revisited some older songs and rewrote em lyrically or rearranged em musically.
“Medicine Man” wasnt good enough to make the “High ‘N’ Dry” album but it was beefed up and retitled “Rock Rock (Till You Drop)”. With new lyrics, it became the album opener.
There was another unfinished track which was described as “a dual-guitar pop song” by Joe Elliot in an interview at TeamRock.com. Well that song was also finally completed, and it became known as “Photograph”.
Producer Mutt Lange, was also on board, being listed as a co-writer on all of the album’s 10 tracks which bothered Willis as he believed that wasn’t the case.
When the band was given the green light to record, the budget was tight. Two albums in, the band was in debt to their label to the tune of £700,000, and each band member was on wages of £40 a week.
A cold hard truth on the realities of the recording business and the creative accounting of the labels is that the bands incur debts that could last forever.
The album finally hit the streets in January 1983.
But.
The album was selling slow in the U.K. A showcase gig at the Marquee Club in London on February 9 had a very small attendance.
But in North America, it was a different story.
MTV put the songs “Photograph,” “Foolin’” and “Rock of Ages” on constant rotation.
Suddenly rock and metal bands changed the way they recorded. NWOBHM bands started to sing more melodically and with multi-layered backing vocals.
Joe Elliot once said that he wanted the power of AC/DC mixed with the variety of Queen for Def Leppard. That equals “Pyromania”.
I had the vinyl but it was also in the same box that went missing during a house move however I picked this up on CD.
Rock Rock (Till You Drop)
It’s a sound and groove that Cinderella and Kix and many other U.S acts would put to good use to build careers’ on.
But it was guitarist Pete Willis who wrote the riff to “Rock Rock (Till You Drop)” however he’s not credited.
Willis and Lange didn’t get along at all, constantly clashing with each other in the studio which then also led to tension with the other members.
As a founding member, Willis didn’t believe he could be removed or fired. But removed he was.
Anything goes
Photograph
There is no denying the riff. It’s as good as any of the classic riffs that guitarists play in guitar shops and so forth. Structurally, the song goes all AC/DC style riffing in the verses and pop rock like in the Chorus.
Stagefright
Rick Savage came up “Stagefright”.
It’s got this Sweet “Action” vibe merged with metal riffage in the verses and a pop chorus.
Too Late For Love
As soon as this song starts off, I swear I’ve heard it somewhere else.
Die Hard The Hunter
You feel the sadness as soon as the Emadd9 clean tone arpeggios kick in and it gets even sadder when Joe starts singing “Let’s toast”. Then it goes into a riff that Queensryche used when they wrote “Revolution Calling”.
That section from 4.05 to 5.05 always gets me to stop what I’m doing and start paying attention.
Foolin
The opener to Side 2, with that majestic guitar part.
The magic is in the arpeggiated intro and the eventual build up with the layered backing vocals singing “Is anybody out there?”.
This song stands the test of time.
The lead break begins with a call and response. It reminds me of “Over The Mountain” from Randy Rhoads and Ozzy.
Rock Of Ages
The first time I heard em.
Yeah, it’s better to burn out / Yeah, than fade away
A rock and rollers creed.
Rise up, gather ’round / Rock this place to the ground
Burn it up, let’s go for broke / Watch the night go up in smoke
Rock on (rock on) / Drive me crazier / No serenade, no fire brigade / Just the pyromania, come on
This is the embryo of “Pour Some Sugar On Me” and they take inspiration from Queen, by using songs like “We Will Rock You” and “Another One Bites The Dust” as influences for the verse delivery/structure.
When the Chorus comes in after two verses, it’s well worth the wait. “Don’t Stop Believin’” from Journey also used this kind of song structure.
Rock of ages, rock of ages / Still rollin’, keep a-rollin’
Rock of ages, rock of ages / Still rollin’, rock ‘n’ rollin’
You won’t be able to stop yourself from singing along with the chorus.
Comin Under Fire
This song is a must for any guitarist. It merges 70’s classic rock, with the NWOBHM sound with Scorpions Euro Metal.
The intro alone has it all.
Arpeggiated guitar lines hook you in and then the pedal point riff blasts through the speakers.
When the verses come in, we are greeted with volume swells that outline the different chords.
Like the pre-chorus of “Foolin”, the chorus of “Comin Under Fire” has excellent layered backing vocals. Lyrically, it’s not the best, but musically, it rules.
Billy’s Got A Gun
Steve Clark was a Jimmy Page fan, so it was no surprise that he was the one who created this Zeppelin-influenced epic.
Never underestimate the ability of a song to paint a picture.
This is my favourite Def Leppard cut and it has so many good bits.
The verse bass riff reminds me of “Heaven and Hell”. The backing vocals are so layered, melodic and operatic. The overall drum groove reminds of “Kashmir”. And I guarantee you that Chris DeGarmo, Geoff Tate and Michael Wilton all had this album and paid particular attention to this song as the “Operation Mindcrime” album is musically influenced by “Billy’s Got A Gun”.
And you get an unbelievable solo and an ending that makes you press play again, so you hear the album over and over and over again.
As time marches forward, the greatness and power of this song is being forgotten.
And it’s like the band made a crossroads deal to achieve fame. The success of this album put the band members on different paths than the previous ones they were on and that would lead to different outcomes for them.
On New Years Eve, 1984, Rick Allen went to overtake a car and failed to negotiate the bend. He lost part of his left hand in the accident and surgery to reattach it, led to an infection and then eventual surgical amputation.
And no one knew it at the time, but it was going to be long wait for the next album.
On a side note, Trevor Rabin and Mike Slamer are both thanked in the credits.
Those two dudes are very well known session guitarists, so I’m asking the question; did they actually play on this?
Slamer was used by producer Beau Hill on most of the records he produced in the 80s. If you have an Alice Cooper, Kix, Winger, Streets, Warrant, Fiona, Europe, Twisted Sister and Ratt album, then there is a high chance that Slamer played on it.
I don’t have the vinyl anymore. It was in a box that went missing in one of my many house moves. I’ve been meaning to replace it, but I just haven’t gotten around to it. And then Def Leppard announced those marvellous box sets that would cover their career a few years ago, and I’ve seen a few of em reviewed on the blogs I follow, so I’m thinking, it’s time to part with some monies and get em.
Spotify also has em to listen and man, listen I did. For those who reckon that once you’ve heard an album, you don’t need to purchase it, well those people have never understood the collectors mentality.
Anyway, let’s get to the album, released in 1981.
The band is the same as the debut with Joe Elliot on vocals, Steve Clark and Pete Willis on lead and rhythm guitars, Rick Savage on bass and Rick Allen on drums.
The album cover by Hipgnosis is smart and done well, but my 80’s mind, made me ignore it for quite some time. It wasn’t as good as the debut cover, and nothing like the covers of the other albums I was purchasing.
Let It Go
It’s written by Pete Willis, Steve Clark and Joe Elliott.
Many would say its AC/DC influenced and I would agree, but then again a lot of British acts like Queen, Sweet, Mott The Hoople and T Rex who influenced Def Leppard had songs with riffs like this. But producer Mutt Lange did work with AC/DC and during this period, “Back In Black” and “Highway To Hell” were selling like crazy.
Most Def Lep fans would know that it was originally titled “When the Rain Falls” with different lyrics and performed live during the “On Through The Night” tour.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Mutt Lange had something to do with the song title change.
Another Hit And Run
Written by Rick Savage and Joe Elliot. It’s one of my favourite tracks from when I dropped the needle on this. I can never get enough of the Chorus riff and the Verse Riff.
High ‘N’ Dry
The song is written by Steve Clark, Rick Savage and Joe Elliot. If you want to hear the embryo of the “Photograph” riff, then press play on this and enjoy.
And it also became famous when it made a list called the “Filthy Fifteen”, which is a list of songs criticised by the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), for having explicit lyrics that describe alcohol use and intoxication.
Seriously the subject matter on this song is meek compared to some other song. But then again what would a bunch of politicians wives know about hard rock music.
Bringin’ On The Heartbreak
One of Def Lep’s best slower tempo songs. Written by Steve Clark, Pete Willis and Joe Elliot. If those harmony guitars in the Intro don’t grab your attention, then please check for a pulse.
And that Chorus. Wow. The multi layered vocals that would become synonymous with the “Pyromania”, “Hysteria” and “Adrenalize” albums are all here.
Steve Clark also owns this song in the lead department. He didn’t have the top hat of Slash to give him that certain unique look, but his pentatonic playing is exceptional.
In relation to the videos, the live recording with Pete Willis is my go to version, but the video with the boat on a lake featuring Phil Collen is the more well-known one. And the 1984 remix version with the synths is a misstep. There was nothing wrong with the original at all.
Switch 625
An instrumental and it was the song playing in the end credits of “Cobra Kai” Season 4 finale. Written by Steve Clark and all solos are handled by him as well.
Just press play, close your eyes and let the music take you to the places your mind conjures up.
You Got Me Runnin’
Side 2 kicks off with this, written by Pete Willis, Steve Clark and Joe Elliot. I’ve read some reviews that basically ignore Side 2, but man, some of my favourites are here.
I like the 70’s vibe this song gives and the hooks keep coming with the Chorus vocal melody. And press play for the “you got me running” section just before the Pete Willis pentatonic bluesy solo.
Lady Strange
Written by Pete Willis, Steve Clark, Rick Allen and Joe Elliot.
How good is this song?
If it had a different title, it would still be in the set lists today.
The intro harmonies get me hooked and the Chorus riff with the melodic lead gets me moving and tapping my foot.
The verse riff has some sped up chords that would be slowed down in a few years’ time for a song called “Pour Some Sugar On Me”.
But it’s that metal riff just before the Chorus that seals the deal. Press play to hear that and then to hear Clark wail.
And as they come out of the Chorus, there is this arpeggio riff which is excellent, Elliot starts singing and the music morphs into the verse riff and then we are back to the Chorus and that infectious vocal melody, of “lady strange I need you, lady strange I want you”.
On Through The Night
Written by Steve Clark, Rick Savage and Joe Elliot. The song has the same title as the debut album.
It’s another killer riff (which also becomes the verse riff) to start the song off. It’s very Blackmore like.
But press play to hear those Randy Rhoads style arpeggios in the Bridge just before the Chorus. For a band who wanted to rule the charts, they definitely kept their fingers on what was hot and what wasn’t.
Mirror Mirror (Look Into My Eyes)
Written by Steve Clark and Joe Elliot.
A very underappreciated cut.
Press play to hear how the verses are constructed. The drivers are the bass and drums.
Rick Savage plays a pulsing bass riff with Rick Allen providing a thundering beat and then the guitars start to decorate with chords at low volume and then at a more aggressive volume. Joe Elliot showcases his vocals chops moving between metal god and rock god melodies.
The Chorus has a catchy vocal melody with multi layered vocals.
And those harmonies in the solo. Just so many good sections in the song that words can’t describe.
I also like how in the last 40 seconds, it starts off with the pulsing bass and drums for a few seconds before the Chorus riff thunders in to close out the song.
No No No
Written by Rick Savage, Pete Willis and Joe Elliot.
I feel like its “Ballroom Blitz” merged with “Tie Your Mother Down” and I like it.
Def Leppard will always be known for “Pyromania” and “Hysteria”. Those albums have moved over 40 million in sales combined and they make up Def Lep’s streaming Top 10 lists as well. But I’ve never judged albums on how many units sold. It’s based on songs and riffs, and the quality and influence of this album cannot be ignored.
It’s the debut album from Joe Elliot, Pete Willis, Steve Clark, Rick Savage and Rick Allen, otherwise known as Def Leppard.
I would love to say I purchased this when it came out, but it was after “Adrenalize” that I went back and got this.
Rock Brigade
It brings the standard hard rock blues vibes to the album but it’s got all the glitter from Sweet added to it.
Pete Willis takes the solo spotlight on this.
Look out for the rock brigade is the catch cry and look out we did.
Hello America
After the “hello America” chants, a “Strutter” style beat and feel kicks in.
I like the Beach Boys vibe, especially after the solo section which Steve Clark nails.
Sorrow Is A Woman
Press play to hear the “Stairway To Heaven” inspired lead break.
And how good is that harmony solo section from the 2.40 mark, which leads to the Outro.
It Could Be You
It shows their love of UFO, Mott The Hoople, Sweet and hard rock Queen.
Hell, the song wouldn’t be out of place on a Judas Priest album.
Satellite
Listen to that tasty palm muted arpeggio riff from Steve Clark in the verses after the first Chorus and how good is that “staring up at the sky” section) which shows the adventurous and melodic spirit of the band.
Press play to hear the solo. It’s Pentatonic heaven and the section straight after the lead.
When The Walls Came Tumbling Down
How good is the clean tone intro?
And then it morphs into those galloping style riffs which was a big part of the NWOBHM and something Iron Maiden would use a lot, “The Trooper” comes to mind immediately.
With a Chorus that reminds me of New Wave acts.
Press play to hear the riff after the Chorus at 2.34.
Wasted
What a headbanging riff to kick off the song.
For anyone who wanted to question the metal credentials of Def Leppard, I always pointed them to this song.
Rocks Off
It’s interchangeable with “It Could Be You” with very similar riffs being the main riffs. Then again the whole blues hard rock movement was based on the same riffs being re-used by each individual artist.
It Don’t Matter
It could have come from the fingertips of Michael Schenker as “Rock Bottom” comes to mind. And how good is that Chorus, just a simple, “It don’t matter” line repeated in a simple AC/DC style backing vocal.
Answer To The Master
How good are those harmony leads in the Chorus?
And the song has a little drum solo before it moves into a section that reminds me of U.F.O.
But press play to hear, the lead break courtesy of Clark, with an open string lick before it morphs into the pentatonic lines.
Overture
It’s 7 plus minutes long and it doesn’t feel laboured and boring. At the 2 minute mark it starts to go into a Thin Lizzy style of song, full of energy and harmonies.
But my favourite part is the stop start harmony section from the 4.20 mark and at 4.40, Joe Elliot starts singing a haunting melody, before a wah solo kicks in.
And from here to the end, it’s that good, that the only thing I could do is press repeat.
For all the multi-platinum and Diamond certifications that came afterwards, there is something simple and organic about the debut.
Check it out.
P.S.
Pete Willis will be forgotten in the future when Def Leppard is mentioned and written about, however his songwriting chops and guitar playing on this album is at a high level.
And let’s not forget Steve Clark. Together they formed a formidable guitar team.
Post Def Leppard, check out the excellent band Roadway in which Willis wrote most of the tracks. The album came out in 1991 and it’s a melodic rock gem, a continuation of the work he started with “Pyromania”.
There was no way Def Leppard could continue in the same vein of “Pyromania”, “Hysteria” and “Adrenalize” without a reset. It became a heavy burden to carry on the style of those albums. They had to change or die.
I was surprised when the opening musical notes of “Truth” started off, and the distorted “why don’t you tell me” vocal line. It was more in the vein of Brit Alternative Rock/Pop than Blues Heavy Rock.
Check out the exotic sounding lead break. And the demo version of the song sounds more natural and it’s my go to version as the mix is in the heavy rock category that I like.
I like the exotic middle eastern sounds on “Turn To Dust” before a groovy Rick Savage bass riff kicks in and the Chorus is classic Def Lep, with the layered vocals.
“Slang” always felt like an INXS song to me as it’s got that fun pop vibe.
How good is the repeating lick intro to “All I Want Is Everything”?
Then when the drums and bass come in, it’s got a perfect groove and Joe Elliot’s haunting vocal melody takes it to another level.
This track could have come from a Tom Petty album.
“Work It Out” is Vivian Campbell’s first songwriting contribution and it’s a high point on the album. The song reminds me of the sounds of British bands like Gun who had a brief moment in the spotlight between 1989 and 1995.
The chugging guitar sound was made by running Campbell’s guitar through a drum machine gate.
In the June, 1996, Guitar issue, Campbell said that when he was in Dio, he wrote some of the music, but writing a song for Dio was basically writing a guitar riff and 32 bars of a guitar solo. That was his world, as Dio would then arrange the pieces as he saw fit.
Campbell mentioned that Def Leppard is not about that. It’s about getting the song right for the record. Campbell further said that;
“In the 80’s there was more than just doing what was appropriate for the song. There was the plus, you know, that I had to do a solo for a record but also had to advance my career as a guitarist in the eyes of all guitarists.”
Make sure you stick around for the interlude section. It starts off funky, there’s a repeating palm muted guitar lick with ambient noise and then a bone crunching riff.
That’s right people, no guitar solo, but still plenty of guitar melodic licks and riffs played throughout.
That small fingerpicked intro for “Breathe A Sigh” is excellent. This is Def Leppard going more rhythm and blues with their unmistakable layered harmony vocals in the Chorus.
In a June 1996, Guitar issue, interviewer Rich Maloof mentioned how the hip hop groove is reminiscent of TLC’s “Diggin’ On You”.
How good is the arpeggio picked guitar riff and the vocal melody from the start in “Deliver Me”?
And that Chorus is heavy rock with the melodic layered vocals that I expect from Def Lep.
“Gift Of Flesh” has a slamming wah solo by Phil Collen done in one take.
“Blood Runs Cold” is another classic Def Lep track. The actual version and the “Rough Mix” version are both excellent.
How cool is the New Wave style of guitar on “Pearl Of Euphoria”?
And yes there had to be a song title with a word that ends in “ia”.
The June 1996 Guitar piece from Rich Maloof ends with these words;
As guitarists in a band that found success in a doomed era of rock, Collen and Campbell have adopted the Darwinian notion that survival is dependent on change. The new era is just as doomed, of course, but it speaks well for this pair that they knew to change and had the reserve of talent needed to grow.
As Collen concludes, “We’ve picked up a lot of experience on the way and we found a way to get it out of our system with an album we think is right. To us, that is the biggest thing. We weren’t even slightly worried, and we think anyone who likes us will like it. And hopefully we’ll get some new fans as well.”
Crank “Slang” and enjoy an excellent Def Leppard record.
“On Through The Night” has just turned 41 and it’s time for a few spins over a few drinks.
“Rock Brigade” and “Hello America” bring the standard blues hard rock vibes to the album. “Hello America” also has this Beach Boys style vibe, especially after the solo section.
It’s tracks like “Sorrow Is A Woman” (with its wonderful “Stairway To Heaven” inspired lead break and how good is that harmony solo section after it which leads to the outro), “It Could Be You” (shows their love of Mott The Hoople, Sweet and hard rock Queen) and “Satellite” (listen to that tasty palm muted arpeggio riff from Steve Clark in the verses after the first Chorus and how good is that “staring up at the sky” section) which shows the adventurous and melodic spirit of the band.
How good is the clean tone intro to “When The Walls Came Tumbling Down”?
And then it morphs into those galloping style riffs which was a big part of the NWOBHM and something Iron Maiden would use a lot, “The Trooper” comes to mind immediately.
Then the headbanging riff to kick off “Wasted” starts. For those who wanted to question the metal credentials of Def Leppard, I always pointed them to this song.
“Rocks Off” and “It Could Be You” are interchangeable, with very similar riffs being the main riffs. Then again the whole blues hard rock movement was based on the same riffs being re-used by each individual artist.
“It Don’t Matter” could have come from the fingertips of Michael Schenker as “Rock Bottom” comes to mind. And how good is that Chorus, just a simple, “It don’t matter” line repeated in a simple AC/DC style backing vocal.
How good are those harmony leads in the “Answer To The Master” Chorus? And the song has a little drum solo before it moves into a section that reminds me of U.F.O. Finally, the lead break starts, with an open string lick before it morphs into the pentatonic lines.
“Overture” is 7 plus minutes long and it doesn’t feel laboured and boring. At the 2 minute mark it starts to go into a Thin Lizzy style of song, full of energy and harmonies. And my favourite part is the stop start harmony section from the 4.20 mark and at 4.40, Joe Elliot starts singing a haunting melody, before a wah solo kicks in. And from here to the end, it’s that good, that the only thing I could do is press repeat.
For all the multi-platinum and Diamond certifications that came afterwards, there is something simple and organic about the debut.
April 2020 has finished and a lot of new music has hit my earbuds and I am still listening to tunes released between January and March 2020. While the last post started off with the songs from previous months, this post will start the new ones;
“Souls Of Black” is a great album and it was my introduction to Testament in a post “Metallica Black Album” landscape. The earlier stuff is technical like thrash with Alex Skolnick creating jazz fusion solos over the chromatic riffs from Eric Peterson. Then Skolnick left and I was like why.
And throughout the years I have been following Testament and their releases. I don’t own a lot of the bands stuff, but I did have a pretty cool mix tape from the era and I recently purchased their first five albums in a CD box set for $23AUD.
And Peterson just kept writing excellent riffs that covered power metal, thrash, groove metal, nu-metal and black/death metal. Chuck Billy would sing, growl and spit those vocal lines out. Then Skolnick returned and so did my interest in the band.
These two songs stood out to me on their recent release. The riffs are top quality.
Walking On A Thin Line Hartmann
Oliver Hartmann has been a mainstay in the German rock scene for the last 20 years. He sings in Hartmann, and he is the lead singer for “Echoes”, a Pink Floyd tribute band.
And he plays bass and has done a lot of guest appearances on other records from European artists.
“Walking on a Thin Line” sounds like one of the best Scorpions songs that the Scorpions didn’t write.
Honesty Files And You’ll Say Urge Overkill
Ken Taylor from sunny “10 degrees Celsius” Melbourne commented on a blog post recently and he told me to check out an album from Urge Overkill (as I had mentioned the “Sister Havana” song and how the band was like a one hit wonder), which I did and I saved two songs. This album is from the mid 90’s so it doesn’t really belong on the April 2020 new music, but hey, its new music to me, as I heard it in April 2020.
We Will Rock You Empires Fall Welcome To The Night Stranger In The Room Darkness Remains Night Demon
“Night Demon” is another recommendation from Ken Taylor. Their energetic take on the NWOBHM and Iron Maiden is fresh. I really like how bands these days take an old style and sound and make it new.
Every song you play, will have something familiar from a previous song you may have heard. And of course they do a rocking cover of Queen’s “We Will Rock You”.
Billy’s Got A Gun – Live Def Leppard
One of my favourite Def Leppard songs.
Can you feel it in the air?
Danger!!
What You Give Is What You Get (Edit) Dance (Edit) RATT
The RATT Atlantic Re-Issues are disappointing. Each album has an EDIT of a song released as a single as its bonus track.
The “Round And Round” edit cuts out DeMartini’s guitar solo and it goes straight into the harmony solo. The whole solo is a favourite of mine, so I couldn’t add that “edit” to the list. And from “Detonator” they have a dance funk mix for “Lovin’ You Is A Dirty Job” which is basically a joke.
I find it hard to believe that there is no extra material laying around or demos of the album songs. I remember reading an interview with Juan Croucier many years ago, and he states how he has over 60 songs left over from his RATT days, which either had him as the main songwriter or as a co-writer.
I play guitar and I know that even though a song is finished, there is another one in the works and other riffs been written. You just don’t stop creating.
The Canary Protest The Hero
From Canada.
Protest the Hero (known as PTH from now on) are one of my favourite bands. They had a recording contract for their first three albums between 2005 and 2011. They built a cult following and then got dropped by their label. The label even said to them they have “no audience”.
So they went the fan funding route in 2012, trying to raise $125K USD and they ended up getting $341K.
I was on board with the Indiegogo fan funding campaign for the “Volition” album.
I was also on board with the Bandcamp six month “Pacific Myth” subscription campaign, where I get a song a month for six months, with a video that highlights the making of, plus the sheet music and I get to download the cover of each song, plus the track and the instrumental track.
Then they released that as a six song EP.
And then it was all quiet on the Canadian front, until “The Canary” flew in. And I’m back in the cage, ready to support them again.
It’s from “On Through The Night”, Def Leppard’s first album and written by bassist Rick Savage, guitarists Steve Clark and Pete Willis and singer Joe Elliot.
Judas Priest producer Tom Alton is also behind the controls.
And yes folks, there are two albums before “Pyromania”.
Who would have thought, hey?
In art classes, Joe Elliot used to draw album covers from imaginary bands which didn’t exist. One of those covers had the band name Def Leppard.
Ooh yeah, ooh yeah set your sights on the satellite
A statement of intent.
Don’t worry about setting your goals as high as the sky, let’s go further and go for the satellites in outer space.
And space travel (in the early 80s) was still so unknown back then.
We were in awe of the tech.
It’s got the power, it’s got the strength to steal away your soul
Satellite is an artificial object placed into space to provide a service.
The satellite in this song i always saw as being an metaphor for desire/love but coming from England and being seen as one of the leaders of NWOBHM, the “love” word just didn’t fit with the cultural change.
It’s burning up the sky
Those clean tone arpeggios with melodic vocal lines which made “Photograph” and “Rock Of Ages” huge appeared from the outset, on the debut.
Message to terrorists everywhere: You can run, but you can’t hide.
Margaret Thatcher:
We’re determined to stand together… and we’re determined to take action.
Ronald Reagan:
We’re not going to tolerate these attacks from outlaw states.
We will not cave in.
Today, we have done what we had to do.
He counted on America to be passive… He counted wrong.
Has anything really changed these last 30 plus years?
This is from 2001.
George Bush Jnr:
Our enemy is a radical network of terrorists, and every government that supports them. Our war on terror begins with al Qaeda, but it does not end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped and defeated.
And the terror attacks have kept on coming. France, Belgium, England and Sweden come to mind, having suffered their fair share of attacks over the last 10 years.
And people are still involved in wars against outlaw states with no end in sight. The first Gulf War did nothing to solve the problem. The Balkan Wars over the breakup of Yugoslavia exterminated thousands and people went to The Hague for human rights abuses. Afghanistan and Iraq post 9/11, led to human rights abuses from the democratic countries and no one went to The Hague for it.
After that you had the Arab Spring and the civil war in Syria which has the Russians supporting the current government and the “allies” providing arms to the resistance. And when you add in the hostilities happening in African countries, you get a feeling that nothing has changed.
And it’s bizarrely funny, because most democratic countries have anti-discrimination and anti-racial laws to protect the people they more or less go to war against.
So after the backward guitar effects and machine gun like samples, a simple drum and bass groove kick it off.
In typical Def Lep fashion, the main into riff is underpinned by a guitar lick instead of a chord progression. And throughout the song, Steve Clark and Phil Collen, play the twin guitars like professionals, as one holds down the foundation and the other decorates the song like a Christmas tree.
We’re fightin’ for the gods of war
But what the hell we fightin’ for?
We’re fightin’ with the gods of war
But I’m a rebel
And I ain’t gonna fight no more, no way
How good is the Chorus and those multi-layered vocals?
I guess we are slaves to the gods of war, the corporations who lobby government ministers to get their hands on resources in other countries.
Every time our leaders choose to commit soldiers, the people who voted them in are thinking why. In Australia we still don’t know why we had to commit troops to US issues. Yeah, there is an old WWII agreement that states we will help each other but WWII was like 70 plus years ago.
And that outro section from about 5.20 that has the above mentioned voice overs and war sounds is a total departure from the main part of the song but it fits like a glove.
There is a Def Leppard story that did the rounds at the start of August. Almost four weeks later, it’s forgotten. That’s how fast people move on. If you are an artist and you spend 12 plus months on an album, just be mindful that it could be forgotten within a month, especially if it’s not part of a cultural movement or crossed over into the mainstream.
No one can forget how big Def Leppard was from 1983 to 1994. Huge. Even their sound was huge with multi-layered vocals and instrumentation.
Like all the 80’s heroes, they had a bit of a back lash in the 90’s and maybe alienated some of their fan base with their 90’s sounding “Slang” album. But like all great bands from the 80’s they had a renaissance. I wrote a while back about how I believe piracy made Twisted Sister relevant again from 2000 and onwards and that viewpoint is still held for Def Leppard.
It’s actually even more relevant for Def Leppard, because the band refuses to have their 80’s output on digital services due to a payment dispute with the record label. The label (Universal) wants to pay the band a royalty based on a sale, whereas the band wants the licensing royalty payment which is much higher. The band even found it easier to create their own forgeries (re-recording some of their classics) easier than dealing with the record label.
This leads to an interesting position.
If you cannot purchase the Def Leppard 80’s output legally or stream it legally (apart from the few forgeries the band did themselves and the live releases), what should people do?
Well in this case, they obtain the music illegally (provided they haven’t purchased a legal physical copy)?
In other posts, I have mentioned how bands survive by replenishing their fan base with younger fans. It’s the reason why bands like Ratt and Dokken haven’t really gone well in the 2000’s compared to Crue, Leppard and Jovi. Well, it turns out that Def Leppard is doing a pretty fantastic job at doing just that.
“In recent years, we’ve been really fortunate that we’ve seen this new surge in our popularity. For the most part, that’s fuelled by younger people coming to the shows. We’ve been seeing it for the last 10, 12 or 15 years, you’d notice younger kids in the audience, but especially in the last couple of years, it’s grown exponentially. I really do believe that this is the upside of music piracy.” Vivian Campbell
While the band is on the road, it works and their popularity is as big (maybe even bigger) as their 80’s popularity. The band is also a heavy user of YouTube, even though the site is the punching bag for the RIAA and the record labels. As YouTube recently said, they pay $3 per 1000 streams in the U.S. If it’s true or not, we will never know until we see proper financials from both YouTube and the labels. But if it is true, Def Leppard would be getting that cut themselves, and I haven’t heard of them taking YouTube to task over their payments. Even Metallica who controls their own copyrights don’t take YouTube to task. Both bands are heavy users of the platform, constantly putting up new content. But if you believe the RIAA and the record labels, YouTube is evil and due to its high volume of users, the payments are not enough.
But in Def Leppard’s case, you could say that YouTube is seen as a more likely driver of new fans than pirate torrent sites. Because all the research shows that YouTube has a user base made up of young people. They are also fostering a true connection with fans again which for a lot of artists who made it in the 80’s is a frightening prospect.
This model will not work for every band. In this case, each creator needs to look at the problem and find a solution that works for them. Eventually Def Leppard’s music will come to streaming services as the band will not be able to tour. But it will be on their terms and their terms only. Like AC/DC and Metallica. They signed their own streaming deal themselves and it’s got nothing to do with the record label.
destroyerofharmony 