I do love bootlegs. They are a chance to hear a band’s live shows that were never released, a radio broadcast, old forgotten demos or whatever it may be. Bands hate them because they don’t get paid, however, diehard fans want them as they want to consume everything from their favorite bands. I own quite a few bootlegs for Def Leppard on CD, vinyl and DVD so we will go through a bunch, but first we will start with this one. It was released in 2013 and what is cool about this one it is a collection of various demos and rare albums from Def Leppard.

The first 3 songs, which were recorded a Fairview Studios in Hull, England back in November 1978, were actually released by the band. The songs “Ride Into the Sun”, “Getcha Rocks Off” and “The Overture” are taken from the band’s debut E.P. called ‘The Def Leppard E.P.’. We discussed that album in full detail on the first post in this series so we won’t repeat that story here. Back in 2013 when this bootleg was released, those three songs were extremely hard to find. There were only 1,000 copies or so of the first E.P. The band has since released them as a Record Store Day Release on a 12″ Single rather than the 7″ E.P. originally (The Def Leppard E.P. (1979/2017)). They have also re-released in the Box Set called The Early Years ’79-’81 (2020). Check those out as well.

The next batch of demos, songs 4-10, were recorded back at Fairview Studios during the Summer of 1979. These songs were never released, then in 1984, the bootleg called ‘First Strike’ was released without the permission of the band or management. Def Leppard sued to get the production stopped and they won. They even were paid royalties on what was sold. You can still find these on Discogs or ebay, but be prepared to pay through the roof on them as they are very rare. Someday I’ll get one.

What was great about these songs is that “Heat Street” and “See the Light” I don’t think I have seen the light of day yet, while “Glad I’m Alive” was on The Early Years Box Set. The other 4 songs were re-recorded for the debut album ‘On Through the Night’ which we will get to later. These demos were recorded live and are raw and fantastic.

“Heat Street” has some fiery hot guitars, pounding drums and Joe sounds so young. A 70’s rocker and pure gem. “Answer to the Master” has that memorable opening riff and gives us a band that is young and hungry. The drum fills and guitar back and forth is brilliant and then that solo…WTF!!. This is a sign of the great things to come as the writing is great, the melody is perfection, it is one of my favorite early Lep songs. “See the Light” is a more calmer song, more pop than rock and sounds like it could still use some work. Still though, a very promising song and shows the boys aren’t one dimensional.

“When the Walls Come Tumbling Down” sees the band go all dark and apocalyptic with talks of radian bombs. The opening is rough, but when the song kicks in full blast, it is a scorcher. Heavier and more metal than most of what they do. Then we get a fist in your rocker with “Wasted”, a total high-energy drinking song. Crank it and get ready to chug as many beers as you can before the song is over. Could this be an early attempt at speed metal…who knows.

“Sorrow is a Woman” slows things down and it has a great bass groove. This darker edged song sees a very different guitar playing sound, more hollow and distorted and it really sounds cool and unique. I really dig this one too. Then the coolest song they’ve never released on a studio album, “Glad I’m Alive”. It is a fast paced, groove-tastic piece of brilliant rock that is such a shame they never did anything with this as it is perfection. Heck, the line “Too Many Jitterbugs, Not enough Jive” is the best thing they’ve ever written. Love it!!

Then the next set of songs are not easily available. I don’t have them anywhere else in the collection. They were recorded live at the Paris Theater in London in August 1979 and broadcast on the BBC. They even left the BBC announcer introduction the band which is great. The date though can’t be right because the announces says the band already has a hit in the UK and US with the album ‘On Through the Night’ which didn’t come out until 1980. Regardless, it is a killer set opening with the song we just talked about “Glad I’m Alive” and they slay it live and such a killer guitar solo. Let me tell you that Pete Willis and Steve Clark are the dynamic duo. They were the best combo the band has ever seen (sorry Phil and Vivian).

They race through “Hello America” and the band sounds so tight. Joe’s vocals are loud and enthusiastic. “When the Walls Come Tumbling Down” and it is such a honestly the song sounds corny live as that opening is rough and sounds so weird. When the band kicks in full gear things get better as the music chugs along like a runaway locomotive.

Then they played two from the E.P. with “The Overture” and “Getcha Rocks Off”. “The Overture” is a slow groove at first then the back half is a fast paced rocker which sees the band slamming away and commanding the stage. “Getcha Rocks Off” has that killer opening riff combo of Clark and Willis. The band turns it up a notch and lays waste to all in front of them. They close with “Wasted” and damn those guitars are killing it even more. A lethal combo those two. The band is a hard and heavy machine and making their name known.

The album ends with a couple singles and a B-Side. First is “Wasted”, but this single is different than the album version which is odd. It had never been released on an album until the release of The Collection, Volume 1 (2018). it sounds more raw and like an early demo of the studio track or something. It is still great though. The same with “Hello America” as it is a single version that isn’t the album version either. I’m not sure the reason behind this, but I like different versions so I’m all good. The final track is the B-Side to “Hello America” and was never released on album until the Volume 1 of The Collection as well. “Good Morning Freedom” opens with some great drumming from young Rick Allen. His drumming throughout is fantastically slamming. Another rocker and another gem from this band. It is more razor sharp guitars cutting through those Elliott vocals. A great way to end the compilation.

And that is it. This is a really a great collection of early rare Def Leppard tracks. Some have since been released, but here you have it all in one place. And the sound quality is excellent, nothing wrong with these recordings at all. A bootleg that sounds good is always great thing. You get the Def Leppard E.P., early demos, a live show from the BBC and singles and B-sides that didn’t see an album release until at least 2018. Prior to that, this was the place to get it all. I think this is a greaet set and worth it if you find out there. Plus it will save you big bucks from buying either or both of the two box sets to get these. My Overall Score is a 5.0 out of 5.0 Stars as I can see pulling this out to hear early Lep. Thanks for stopping by.

NEXT UP: GIRL – ‘SHEER GREED’ (1980)

THE DEF LEPPARD COLLECTION SERIES

1. Def Leppard E.P. – 7″ Single (1979)
2. First Strike 1978-1979 (Bootleg CD)
3. Girl – Sheer Greed (1980)
4. On Through the Night (1980)
5. When the Walls Came Tumbling Down (April 26 1980) (2020)
6. High & Dry (1981)
7. Too Many Jitterbugs – B-Sides And Rarities (2020)
8. Raw – Early BBC Recordings (2020)
9. Girl – Wasted Youth (1982)
10. Pyromania (1983)
11. “Photograph” 7″ Single (1983)
12. “Too Late For Love” 12″ Single (1983)
13. Live at the L.A. Forum 1983 (2018)
14. Seattle, August 3, 1983 (Bootleg CD)
15. Pyromania TV Collection (Bootleg DVD)
16. Hysteria (1987)
17. “Animal” 7″ Single (1987)
18. “Women” 7″ Single (1987)
19. “Pour Some Sugar on Me” 7″ Single (1987)
20. “Hysteria” 7″ Single (1987)
21. “Armageddon It” 7″ Single (1988)
22. “Love Bites” 7″ Single (1988)
23. “Rocket” 7″ Single (1989)
24. Animal Instinct – The Def Leppard Story – Book Review (1987)
25. Rarities – Volume One (2018)
26. Live in Mountain View – August 17, 1988 (Bootleg DVD)
27. Historia – DVD (1988)
28. Live: In the Round, In Your Face (CD Video / DVD) (1989)
29. Adrenalize (1992)
30. “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad” – Cassette Single (1992)
31. “Tonight” CD Single (1993)
32. Live Shefield 1992 (Bootleg DVD)
33. Retro Active (1993)
34. Visualize DVD (1993)
35. Hard Rock Café – Singapore, Malaysia October 26, 1995 (Bootleg DVD)
36. Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits (1980-1995) (1995)
37. “When Love & Hate Collide” – CD Promo Single (1995)
38. Video Archive (1995)
39. Slang (1996)
40. Montreal: The Classic 1996 Broadcast (Bootleg CD)
41. Live Bites: FM Broadcast (Bootleg CD)
42. Live in Argentina 1997 (Bootleg DVD)
43. Euphoria (1999)
44. Rarities – Volume Two (2019)
45. Rarities – Volume Three (2019)
46. Tokyo 1999 (Bootleg CD)
47. Cybernauts – Live (2000)
48. X (2002)
49. Hysteria: Classic Albums DVD (2002)
50. Best of Def Leppard (2004)
51. Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection (2005)
52. Yeah! (2006)
53. Songs from the Sparkle Lounge (2008)
54. Man Raze – Surreal (2008)
55. B-Sides (2021)
56. Yeah! II (2021)
57. Yeah! Live (2021)
58. CMT Crossraods – Taylor Swift & Def Leppard (2009)
59. Down ‘N’ Outz -My ReGeneration (2010)
60. Man Raze – PunkFunkRootsRock (2011)
61. Down ‘N’ Outz -The Further Adventures of… (2014)
62. Def Leppard (2015)
63. The Lost Session (2018)
64. Personal Jesus 7″ Single (2018)
65. Down ‘N’ Outz -This is How We Roll (2019)
66. Hits Vegas: Live at Planet Hollywood – Vinyl (2020)
67. Hysteria: Live – Vinyl (2020)
68. Def Leppard Acoustic Vegas – 10″ Vinyl (2020)
69. Down ‘N’ Outz – The Music Box E.P. (2020)
70. Diamond Star Halos (2022)
71. High & Dry – Picture Disc (RSD) (2022)
72. Drastic Symphonies (2023)
73. Drastic Symphonies – Picture Disc (2023)
74. Definitely: The Official Story of Def Leppard (2023)

PREVIOUSLY POSTED:

1. The Def Leppard E.P. (1979/2017)
2. Def Leppard: Interview Picture Disc (1982?)
3. “Bringin’ On the Heartbreak” – 12″ Promo Single (1984)
4. Live at the Top (Bootleg) (1987)
5. “Pour Some Sugar on Me” –  5″ Shaped Picture Disc (1987)
6. Hysteria U.S. Tour 1988 – Tour Book (1988)
7. “Make Love Like a Man” – 12″ Single (1992)
8. “Let’s Get Rocked” – 12″ Single (1992)
9. Adrenalize: The 7 Day Weekend Tour (1992/1993)
10. X: World Tour (2003)
11. Mirrorball – Live & More (2011)
12. Def Leppard: The Definitive Visual History – Book Review (2011)
13. Viva! Hysteria (2013)
14. And There Will Be A Next Time…Live from Detroit (2017)
15. Hysteria: 30th Anniversary Box Set (2017)
16. The Story So Far – The Best of (2018)
17. The Collection, Volume 1 (2018)
18. Hysteria: The Singles Box Set (2018)
19. Live at Abbey Road Studios (2018)
20. Def Leppard: Concert Review – Charlotte, NC June 9th 2018 (2018)
21. The Story So Far – The Best of Volume 2 (2019)
22. The Collection, Volume 2 (2019)
23. London to Vegas (2020)
24. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 29 March 2019 (2020)
25. The Early Years ’79-’81 (2020)
26. The Collection, Volume 3 (2021)
27. Def Leppard Funko Pop!