To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the bands debut album, Def Leppard put together quite an impressive box set.  This disc is the second prized disc to have.  It is full of studio recordings and live songs from various BBC recordings in those early years.  Some pretty cool stuff and the only way to get it is to buy The Early Years ’79-’81 (2020)

The first set of songs were recorded in June 1979 and they were for a show hosted by DJ Andy Peebles.  The really cool thing about these four songs is that all the guitar parts were handled by Steve Clark. Pete Willis was unable to get off work to record the sessions. This was back when the band was still trying to make it. Those 4 songs that were recorded were “Glad I’m Alive”, “Sorrow is a Woman”, “Wasted” and “Answer to the Master”.  The guitar sound on these songs all sound a little different as a result, There isn’t as much depth as the guitar parts sound too similar than when Pete is on it as this guitars sound different than Steve’s.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=0aCn8uXNxcA%3Fsi%3DMUqRAnOxmz6y3Rax

The solo on “Glad I’m Alive” sounds different almost hollow like in a stage far from the band. Still, this is one of the coolest non-album tracks the band has ever done. “Sorrow is a Woman” sees Joe shine on vocals, but the music this time around lacks a little punch. “Wasted” is all guitar so it is all Steve. It isn’t as raw and crunchy as the original recording, but there is something cool on this one. Rick Savage’s bass seems to be higher in the mix to offset the lack of Pete’s guitar and it adds a new dimension to the song. They also added a lot of echo to Joe’s vocals at time which i very different from the original. Lastly, “Answer to the Master” really misses the second guitar,but still a solid recording of the song. I’d still would’ve been a fan of these songs if these were what I heard first. I didn’t have these versions in my collection so I think they are awesome. 

The second set of songs are from the Friday Rock Show Session which was hosted by Tommy Vance and it looks like they came out in October 1979. They recorded 4 songs for this show as well. This time they did “Satellite”, “Rock Brigade”, “Wasted” and “Good Morning Freedom”.  In the book, ‘Animal Instinct’, as they go through 1979’s shows from Joe Elliott’s journal of shows, this one is not shown which I find strange.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=metahgzTsFY%3Fsi%3DGoRx49iEsq3tyf1J

These songs sound a little more raw than the Andy Peebles sessions as they are done live (well recorded a few weeks earlier than the show aired). “Satellite” is up first in full form with Joe’s vocals a little rough and not very enthusiastic. The drumming by Rick Allen is great as he really has a nice feel and sound. “Rock Brigade” is up next and the opening sounds a little different than the album version, but not by much. It sounds a little less heavy and more poppy in my opinion. Not as much umph! And with “Wasted” they seem to have sped things up it isn’t as heavy sounding, but has more energy for sure. They’ve also added some echo to Joe’s vocals I don’t think are on the recorded version. And a great solo so need to hear that too. The real gem here is “Good Morning Freedom”. A track never released on an album and a great hard rock track as it is just balls-to-the-wall from start to finish.

The last set of songs on here are from the bands performance at the Reading Festival on August 24, 1980.  Here is the cool thing about these songs, I already have a few of these songs on a bootleg I picked up last year.  I am so glad now I have them on CD as I have struggled trying to get the vinyl recorded digitally.  The songs from the set were “Satellite/When the Walls Came Tumbling Down”, “Medicine Man”, “Overture” (which I didn’t have), “Lady Strange” and “Getcha Rocks Off”.  Of course, these do sound a little better here than on my bootleg, but I don’t care, I will listen to the bootleg again and again anyway.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=ZTukG2PYNtg%3Fsi%3DlFnh8rEtXUPTYjEx

The first track is a combo of “Satellite” and “When the Walls Came Tumpling Down”, but a little shorter as they are put together as a medley here and sped up to almost 100 mph. Another cool treat on this disc is the song “Medicine Man”. You will recognize the music as “Rock, Rock (Till You Drop)” off ‘Pyromania’, but this is 4 years earlier and it is not the same song. It is always cool to hear this one in its infant stages. “Overture” goes real slow and almost boring for about 2 minutes and then cranks up the energy and rock outs, thank goodness. And when it gets going, hold on tight as it is a wall of sound and explosive. Hang on tight.

Then comes one of my favorite songs from ‘High ‘N Dry’ with “Lady Strange” and this is before the album had come out so an early version. Really cool to hear this one so early too. Lastly comes “Getcha Rocks Off” and they definitely do that with this one. It is a blast. Joe interacts with the crowd as Rick Allen drums away and then that famous guitar riff comes in and the gloves are off. The song is faster than the studio version and Joe can barely catch his breath as he spits out those lyrics. A perfect song to go out on.

And that is it. Another great disc to get your hands on as it is cool getting different versions of these songs from little shows they did or live performances. The more the merrier in my book. The Andy Peebles Session is the coolest as it is a total different dynamic without Pete Willis on guitar since work wouldn’t let him have the day off. To get songs like “Glad I’m Alive, “Good Morning Freedom” and “Medicine Man”, all songs never on an album (at least in this form), is a treat. So gald Leppard finally releaed these buried treasures. My Overall Score is another 5.0 out of 5.0 Stars. This is the stuff collectors want!

NEXT UP: GIRL – ‘WASTED YOUTH’ (1982)

THE DEF LEPPARD COLLECTION SERIES

1. Def Leppard E.P. – 7″ Single (1979)
2. First Strikes 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!