Thursday
Dec132018
Def Leppard Make It Into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Thursday, December 13, 2018 at 09:46AM
The newest class of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees was announced this morning and our beloved Def Leppard has made the cut! I am so happy for them. They seemed pretty stoked too:
It’s official, we are 2019 @rockhall Inductees. THANK YOU to all of our fans & the Rock Hall committee! What a way to wrap up an incredible year. #RockHall2019 #DefLeppard pic.twitter.com/zLd1JRHv6U
— Def Leppard (@DefLeppard) December 13, 2018
Reader Comments (18)
*** Originals only, no covers.
*** B-Sides are eligible.
*** Each studio album doesn’t have to be represented, but I wanted to highlight standout tracks from Leppard’s entire catalog instead of just being lazy and listing all of Pyromania for my Top 10.
*** My goal was to focus on songwriting, arrangement, performance and production.
20) WINGS OF AN ANGEL (Def Leppard, 2015)
Wings Of An Angel is a moody gem that easily sounds like it could have been on Side 2 of Pyromania. This song is for all the old school fans that insist Leppard doesn't rock anymore.
19) LONG LONG WAY TO GO (X, 2002)
If this power ballad were released in 1990, it would have been a #1 Billboard single. Written by Wayne Hector and Steve Robson, LLWTG was later covered by Lionel Richie but Leppard’s version is far superior due to their trademark lush background vocals.
18) SORROW IS A WOMAN (On Through The Night, 1980)
Sorrow Is A Woman is a standout tune off Leppard’s debut LP that bassist Rick Savage brought to the table. I’ve always loved the dynamics, Rick Allen’s thundering drums and the multiple guitar solos from Steve Clark and Pete Willis. Very mature for such a young band.
17) RING OF FIRE (B-side, 1987)
My all-time favorite Leppard B-side. A speedy tune most every other rock band would kill for and Leppard used it as a leftover. Played live in Japan once in 2002 but never in the States, Ring of Fire was taken out of consideration for the Hysteria LP after the band wrote Rocket and Pour Some Sugar On Me.
16) ANOTHER HIT AND RUN (High ‘N’ Dry, 1981)
I used to work at a record store with a guy that argued Let It Go and Another Hit and Run were the best back-to-back tracks to open a hard rock album. I couldn’t disagree with him. Half a second after Let It Go ends, Another Hit and Run takes the same A chord and pummels you like a runaway truck. Hit and run, indeed.
15) PAPER SUN (Euphoria, 1999)
Dynamics rule again, Collen/Campbell guitar solos flying all over the place, a killer arrangement, and 1,000 overdubbed voices flying out of the speakers like killer bats. Honorable mention to the crushing “Scar” from 2002’s X which is almost exactly the same song.
14) BREATHE A SIGH (Slang, 1996)
Due to its organic production, Slang is often mistaken for a grunge album. In fact, the title track is the only song on the album that sounds like classic Def Leppard. But there’s four – count ‘em – FOUR stellar ballads on Slang and not only is Breathe A Sign the best ballad on the album, it’s one of Leppard best ballads of all-time.
13) DIE HARD THE HUNTER (Pyromania, 1983)
Leppard have always balanced their commercial material with epic album tracks and they’ve never done it better than on Die Hard The Hunter. Mutt Lange is credited as primary songwriter here and the man/myth/legend knows how to build a song brick by brick. DHTH hasn’t been played live since 1988 and that’s a damn shame. Bring on the Viva! Pyromania residency already!
12) STAND UP (KICK LOVE INTO MOTION) (Adrenalize, 1992)
Adrenalize isn’t an album I revisit very often even though it’s full of great pop metal songs. Guitarist Steve Clark died in 1991 during pre-production and Leppard admittedly sleepwalked through the recording process, but Stand Up stands out as a shining, mid-tempo moment in Leppard history.
11) ANIMAL (Hysteria, 1987)
One of Joe Elliott’s best lead vocals ever committed to tape, this song came on leaps and bounds from the original 4-track demo from 1984. Written, re-written and re-re-written, this is a classic case of don’t release something until it’s right. And you wonder why Quiet Riot faded away so quickly? No songs.
10) POUR SOME SUGAR ON ME (Hysteria, 1987)
PSSOM barely making my Top 10 may shock some friends of mine - I’m in the music video for the love of Pete (Willis)! I absolutely love Joe’s raspy, aggressive verses, but Sugar’s simplistic chorus tends to bore me a bit after 756,000 listens and MTV views since 1987. I swear Denver’s KBPI must have played this song ever hour on the hour for six straight months.
9) FOOLIN’ (Pyromania, 1983)
I remember watching the Foolin’ World Premiere Video on MTV with my sister when we lived in Texas and my dad said, “Is that what all the fuss is about?” A delicate, acoustic verse gives way to smokin’ bridge and killer staccato chorus. The guitar solo breakdown section is insane. The woman in the video is Billy Idol’s girlfriend Perri Lister. Joe Elliott rode a horse on a beach for an entire day, but those scenes were left on the cutting room floor. Useless knowledge that clogs my brain.
8) WASTED (On Through The Night, 1980)
The shining moment from their respectable debut LP, Leppard performed the rarely-played “Wasted” just for me when I was front row center at Denver’s Magness Arena in 2002. (And Joe Elliott high-fived me after “Four Letter Word” because I was losing my mind during that song. But I digress…) The definitive live version of “Wasted” from Dortmund, Germany in 1983 still gives me chills to this day.
7) HYSTERIA (Hysteria, 1987)
Elegant. Classy. It just goes to show the power of melody when paired with the right chord progression and lyrics. Add in a unique co-guitar solo where Steve and Phil play the exact same melodic solo at the same time. I flew to Las Vegas in 2013 to see the Viva! Hysteria residency and I shed a few tears when images of Steve Clark performing at Denver’s McNichols Arena show flashed on the video screens during this song.
6) ROCK OF AGES (Pyromania, 1983)
When Joe Elliott screams, “WE’RE GONNA BURN THIS DAMN PLACE DOWN” during the end of Rock of Ages in concert, that’s when you know you got your money’s worth. When I worked at School of Rock, the corporate staff played Rock of Ages during our franchise convention at my request. And yes, I crushed the guitar solo channeling my inner Phil Collen.
5) COMIN’ UNDER FIRE (Pyromania, 1983)
A surprise entry into my Top 5, Comin’ Under Fire features an emotive lead vocal, fantastic chord progression in the verses and chorus, trademark background vocals. Another Mutt Lange contribution, it’s been 35 years and I still never tire of hearing this song. Singer/songwriter Matt Nathanson released an acoustic cover of this tune on his 2018 Pyromattia EP and referred to Leppard as “a band that lives in rarified air” and “top tier greatness”. He ain’t lying.
4) LOVE BITES (Hysteria, 1987)
Producer Mutt Lange brought a country-ish demo of this song into the studio and the band Leppardized it into one of their most iconic songs. The Hysteria Classic Albums DVD spotlights some extra “Walker Brothers” background vocals that thankfully didn’t make the final mix. At the very end of the fadeout, producer Mutt Lange can be heard saying “Bloody Hell” through a vocoder.
3) BRINGIN’ ON THE HEARTBREAK / SWITCH 625 (High ‘N’ Dry, 1981)
Two songs that simply must go together, I still get pissed when I hear Heartbreak on classic rock radio and they fade out before the instrumental Switch. An emotional highlight of every Leppard live show watching “The Thunder God” Rick Allen crush the drums with one arm, Switch 625 is the icing on the cake that is Def Leppard’s breakthrough song and MTV music video. Originally titled A Certain Heartache.
2) ROCKET (Hysteria, 1987)
When I popped my newly-purchased Hysteria cassette tape into my Plymouth Duster on August 3, 1987, Rocket came blasting through my speakers and I quickly realized Leppard had taken songwriting and production to the next level. Based on a Burundi Black tribal drum rhythm Joe Elliott heard in a sauna, Def Lep were taking the rest of the hair metal wannabees to rock school. The intro backmasking effects features the line “We’re fighting with the gods of war” from Gods Of War. The 12" Lunar Mix is insane.
1) PHOTOGRAPH (Pyromania, 1983)
MTV was playing the music videos for Bringin’ On The Heartbreak, Let It Go and Saturday Night (High ‘N’ Dry) in medium rotation throughout 1981 and 1982, but when the Photograph clip debuted in December 1982, I lost my 12-year-old mind. Steve Clark’s riff, the melody, the hooks, the chorus harmonies, Joe Elliott’s Union Jack shirt and “You’ve gone straight to my heeeeeeeeead” scream, Phil Collen’s Ibanez Destroyer feedback solo, Thomas Dolby on keyboards, Rick Allen on the cowbell! Undeniable pop metal mastery. Six million albums sold in a few months and Def Leppard were the biggest rock band in the world. Check out their 1983 appearance on American Bandstand where Joe Elliott forgot where he was in the song while lip-syncing.
Such a unique band. Well deserved.
Thing is, Bob's comment belongs on here too. He points to the--yet again--insanity and inanity of pegging any sort of significance to the RaRHoF. I shrugged when I thought about Rundgren a few months back. Metalboy! schooled me on why he matters. Regardless, him not being in and Jackson getting the nod . . . well, you get my point (made often).
The problem is, both fans and bands feed the cow. Having Lep call this a 'badge of honor' strains credulity when you consider the fact that bkallday has it spot on (in part): this is a classic band with a pedigree that is untouchable when you consider what they did in their classic period.
This nod does nothing to legitimize (sounds like a Lep album title!) the band. It does nothing to recognize the fans (even if they are now a crucial part of the voting puzzle). It does everything to make the geniuses at the RaRHoF feel like they got it right, again, for once. Old dudes patting themselves on the back? Yup. We should be so proud.
At best, we will now have some Union Jack stuff at the museum. That, and only that, is worth the price of admission into this classless pile of twaddle.
I will now, gracefully, stop commenting on the RaRHoF nonsense.
What a travesty!
Janet Jackson, who doesn’t have one TRULY memorable song, never actually solely wrote a single word or note of ANYTHING in her canon of said unmemorable tunes, whereas Todd Rundgren’s REAL contributions to Rock & Roll are iconic, from his early days in NAZZ to his SOLO work to UTOPIA, as well as his career as a producer and inventor.
No one else in the business has contributed and participated more in the creation of Rock & Roll!
“Hello, It’s Me”, “I Saw The Light”, “We Gotta Get You A Woman” and “Bang On The Drum” and production credits including the New York Dolls’ legendary first album, Grand Funk’s iconic “We’re An American Band” and the Cheap Trick Song, “Heaven’s Falling” are all prime examples of the indelible mark he’s made on the world of music.
And, now, THE first TRUE Hair Metal band (Bon Jovi doesn’t hold a candle to these guys!) has FINALLY been inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame!
Metalboy’s Top 10 Def Leppard Songs:
1) Photograph
2) Foolin’
3) Bringin’ On The Hearbreak
4) Too Late For Love
5) High n’ Dry
6) Let It Go
7) Wasted
8) Women
9) Rocket
10) Rock of Ages
11) Rock Rock (‘Til You Drop)
12) Rocks Off
13) Action
14) You Got Me Runnin’
15) Travellin’ Band (Live w/ Brian May)
16) Lady Strange
17) Dangerous
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSnxHmpfUkA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtiFjIVCu_k
Steve and Phil CRUSH it!!!!
And yes, Miss Jackson writes her songs too. Like most pop artists she collaborates. A genius of the New Jack Swing sound. -- Allyson
Even if she did deserve to get in by whatever twisted criteria you, Wenner and Iovine, etc. are applying shouldn’t merit her induction into The Hall before Rundgren!
We’re talking Rock & Roll here, and Jackson ain’t more Rock & Roll!
At least they got one right we all agree on!
Anyways, happy to see the Lep in RnR HOF. Loosely, with the RnR :)
10 Songs I can't skip when they come across my ears:
Rock Brigade, Let It Go, Another Hit n Run, Rock til You Drop, Die Hard the Hunter, Women, Hysteria, Tear It Down, Action, Back In Your Face... and that only gets me to Euphoria. Cheers !
Todd Rundgren sucks. Imho of course! Lol
Rundgren is clearly better ...
Again, we can agree on Def Leppard!
Something tells me they will, at least Willis, since he was integral at the beginning.
And because they’re a class act all the way, save for the occasional bad song or licensing deal.
I think it is an issue of some people accepting what they do and others, such as myself, not doing so. A healthy point of disagreement, but not one based in misunderstanding its function or purpose . . . as explained, executed, or justified.
That said, I always give a nod to the museum, as it actually seems to do a better job of celebrating rock than the ceremony/process does. But I am now just repeating myself.