Def Leppard are an Englishrock band. They formed inSheffield, England in 1976. Its founding members include: lead singerJoe Elliot, bassistRick Savage, guitaristPete Willis, and drummer Tony Kenning. When Kenning left the band in 1978, Frank Noon played the drums. The same year, Def Leppard made their firstextended play, namedThe Def Leppard E.P. The song“Getcha Rocks Off” on it became a massive hit in the UK[6]. Frank Noon was replaced by drummerRick Allen, and guitaristSteve Clark joined the band shortly after. The band was a part of thenew wave of British heavy metal in the 1970s and 1980s.
Their firstalbum,On Through the Night (1980), was a hit. In April 1980, Def Leppard signed with Leber-Krebs management. Later in 1980, they went on their first U.S. tour with Ted Nugent,AC/DC, andJudas Priest. In 1981 they released their second album,High ‘n’ Dry. After the album came out,MTV broadcasted Def Leppard for the first time. MTV showed their hit song “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak.”
In 1982, Pete Willis was replaced byPhil Collen. The band started recording their third album with producer Mutt Lange. In 1983, their third album,Pyromania, was released. Thesingle “Photograph” was also released, and the album sold 100,000 copies in a week. In 1984, drummer Rick Allen lost an arm due to a car accident. He started to play with an electronic drum kit, and taught himself how to play the drums with one arm. In 1986, Rick Allen played music with the band for the first time since his accident.
In 1987, the band’s fourth album,Hysteria, was released. The album had 12 singles, and sold 16 million copies. In 1991, guitarist Steve Clark died. He died because of a mixture ofalcohol andpainkillers. In 1992,Vivian Campbell joined the band. Vivian Campbell was the guitarist forDio andWhitesnake. That year, the band releasedAdrenalize. This album was number one on theBillboard 200 music chart for five weeks, and sold six million copies.
In 1993, the song “Two Steps Behind” was used for the end credits of the movieLast Action Hero. The same year, thecompilation albumRetro Active was released. In 1995,Vault was released. It is an album of all of Def Leppard’s best selling songs.Vault went to number two on music charts inNew Zealand. In 1996, the albumSlang was released.
VH1 made a “Behind the Music” episode on Def Leppard. Other TV exposure followed, such as “Storytellers”, and “Ultimate Albums.” In 1999, the albumEuphoria was released. In 2000, the band was put on the Hollywood RockWalk, ahall of fame for rock musicians in Los Angeles. In 2001, they released their first DVDs, “In the Round, In your Face” and “Historia”. The same year, VH1 broadcast the movie “Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story.”
In 2002, the albumX was released. In 2005, the album and DVD “Rock of Ages” is released. In 2006, Def Leppard released their covers album namedYeah!. In 2008, the band’s twelfth album,Songs from the Sparkle Lounge, was released.[7] The band was put into theRock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.
