At one time in their career, Def Leppard made a statement that a band only releases a live album when they have run out of ideas. I’m not sure the actual count, but we are on maybe the fifth or sixth live album they’ve released now. And based on ‘Drastic Symphonies, I would say they are out of new ideas. With that aside, I’m still a massive fan and buy everything. In fact, back in April 2024 for Record Store Day, I got in line to get the very limited vinyl release of ‘One Night Only: Live at the Leadmill’ which was a Record Store Day First (not exlcusive) release and limited to only 6,000 copies. And I was able to grab one.
That is what we are reviewing today. It came in a beautiful gatefold with a great live shot of the band at the club and is on 2LP’s of a cool silver cover that coincides with the album cover. The LPs are housed in a thick cardboard like sleeve with some great pictures of the band members taken at the show. They later released it on October 11, 2024 in CD format that either had a DVD or a Blu-Ray included. And, I have the CD/Blu Ray combo as well as I like to have at every format (I know I didn’t get the DVD but the Blu Ray is better visually so that is all I need).
If you read my site, you know Def Leppard is one of my all-time favorite bands, if not the #1 band on my list. And for that, this list was extremely hard for me to do, yet easy as well. I will already go ahead and say it, there is not a horrible album in this bunch only some I like more than others and yet a few that are absolute no-brainers as the top choices. And yes, I am biased.
Speaking of top choices, my Top 5 is my Top 5 because each album is completely different. The band completely changed up the sound and style on each of these albums and when the band does that, for me they hit it out of the park.
From the very beginning in 1980 with their debut and all the way up to today, the band has been mainstay in my musical journey. In 2019, they were inducted in to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and all I can say is it is about damn time!!! They received the highest public vote so I am not the only one that things these guys from England are pretty darn great. And their last studio album was 2023’s ‘Drastic Symphonies’…so they are still going strong…sort of.
So, let’s get to it. Here is my favorite Def Leppard albums from the worst one to the very best. I hope you enjoy it.
WORST – DRASTIC SYMPHONIES (2023)
This album is basically dreadful with some shining moments. There are only 6 tracks worth listening to in my opinion and the rest was waste of time. They did at least experiment with a few tracks, although some were so bad they hurt, at least they tried. The problem was they should’ve “Tried” on all the songs rather then simply add orchestration to a lot of the original tracks. That is laziness. Keep “Turn to Dust”, “Paper Sun”, “Hysteria”, “Too Late For Love” and “King of the World”, skip the rest.
As we end another month, it is time to go back and see what 2 Loud 2 Old Music added to the collection. This is January 2025 and we have lots of vinyl, CDs, cassettes and a great start to the year.. So much to go through including more Voice of America Archive Albums as well as additions to the Rock Candy collection, the Kiss collection and Box Set collection. Lots of great albums to go though and show for this month so I hope you enjoy the show!!
So go check it out as it will be live tonight right now, February 3, 2025 at 8pm. Thanks for stopping by and please click “Like” and hit “Subscribe” as it helps out the site when you do.
And if you can’t watch the video…here is everything…
In 2023, Def Leppard felt it was time to tell their story, in their words. ‘Definitely: The Official Story of Def Leppard’ is a personal account of Def Leppard from their formation all the way up to 2022’s last studio album ‘Diamond Star Halos’. The book was released in 2023 and there were several versions you could buy. By the time I got around to buying it and the only option available to me was the Publisher’s Edition which is strictly the book. There were other options you could’ve purchased as well.
There was the Deluxe Copies which was Editions Numbered 1 to 350. The Deluxe copies are fully bound in black vegan leather, with an inset aluminium plate on the front, printed with a portrait of the band, and the Def Leppard logo blocked on the back. Every Deluxe copy is signed by Joe Elliott, Phil Collen, Rick Savage, Rick Allen and Vivian Campbell. Presented in a clamshell box, the interior holds the specially pressed 7″ single. The red and black marbled vinyl presents two previously unreleased live recordings: the A-side is ‘Animal’ (performed at the Royal Albert Hall, 2018), and the B-side is ‘Slang’ (recorded in Las Vegas, 2019). A compartment under the book includes five Diamond Star Halos guitar picks in a small cloth bag and three replica tour passes. A large pull-ribbon, printed with the Def Leppard logo, lifts the book.Exclusive to the Deluxe copies is a signed and numbered photographic print of Def Leppard on stage at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, Wembley Stadium, 20 April 1992. Suitable for framing, the print is signed by Joe Elliott, Phil Collen, Rick Allen, Rick Savage and Vivian Campbell. Completing the Deluxe boxed set, a second recess under the book contains a collectable cassette of the band’s latest studio album, Diamond Star Halos.
The Collector’s Copies were Numbered 351 to 1,500. The Collector copies are 3/4 quarter bound in black vegan leather, with a portrait of the band printed on an aluminium plate front cover and the Def Leppard logo blocked on the back cover. The 296-page book is finished with colour foil blocking on the spine, and red page edging. Every copy in the edition is signed by Joe Elliott, Phil Collen, Rick Savage, Rick Allen and Vivian Campbell. Presented in a clamshell box covered in a montage of images with an inset Def Leppard logo sticker and tour pass, the interior lid holds a specially pressed 7″ single. The red and black marbled vinyl presents two previously unreleased live recordings: the A-side is ‘Animal’ (performed at the Royal Albert Hall, 2018), and the B-side is ‘Slang’ (recorded in Las Vegas, 2019). A compartment under the book includes five Diamond Star Halos guitar picks in a small cloth bag and three replica tour passes. A large pull-ribbon, printed with the Def Leppard logo, lifts the book.
I know, I know…I reviewed this album last week. But this is The Collection Series and since a Picture Disc is very different from the normal vinyl and other items, I figured it deserved its own post. So bare with me…
In 2023, Def Leppard did something they hadn’t done in years. Give us a new album a year after the last studio album. In 2022, we were given ‘Diamond Star Halos’ and in 2023, ‘Drastic Symphonies’. Now, ‘Drastic Symphonies’ isn’t technically a studio album. And it isn’t technically a greatest hits compilation. Instead, what we are given is a remix album. Yes, Def Leppard chased the trend (although rather late) and gave us a Symphonic album. They remixed or reworked their songs and added classical music orchestration to it. The album was released on May 19, 2023, one week shy of the one year anniversary of the prior album. In my opinion, they should’ve taken much more time with it and got it right. Why? Let me explain.
A proper Symphony album is done live as that is where you really notice the difference. This is not a proper Symphony album. Instead, Def Leppard did one of two things with the songs. They either completely re-worked the song with the symphony dramatically added in a well thought out manner (sometimes it works, sometimes not). Or…they took a song and put in some symphony in places on the original track. The second way is pure and utter laziness and never works. Wiki says they completely redid all the songs with the exception of the vocals…but listening to it…I disagree. Some of these songs sound exactly like the original with symphony added and all I can say to that is “What is the freaking point!!”
In 2023, Def Leppard did something they hadn’t done in years. Give us a new album a year after the last studio album. In 2022, we were given ‘Diamond Star Halos’ and in 2023, ‘Drastic Symphonies’. Now, ‘Drastic Symphonies’ isn’t technically a studio album. And it isn’t technically a greatest hits compilation. Instead, what we are given is a remix album. Yes, Def Leppard chased the trend (although rather late) and gave us a Symphonic album. They remixed or reworked their songs and added classical music orchestration to it. The album was released on May 19, 2023, one week shy of the one year anniversary of the prior album. In my opinion, they should’ve taken much more time with it and got it right. Why? Let me explain.
A proper Symphony album is done live as that is where you really notice the difference. This is not a proper Symphony album. Instead, Def Leppard did one of two things with the songs. They either completely re-worked the song with the symphony dramatically added in a well thought out manner (sometimes it works, sometimes not). Or…they took a song and put in some symphony in places on the original track. The second way is pure and utter laziness and never works. Wiki says they completely redid all the songs with the exception of the vocals…but listening to it…I disagree. Some of these songs sound exactly like the original with symphony added and all I can say to that is “What is the freaking point!!”
Not all the songs were that way though. So it is worth going through them regardless what I think about the songs and the album overall. First, the orchestration on the album was done by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with the arrangements done by Eric Gorfain and they do a fantastic job overall. No fault of theirs for what is wrong with the album. They recorded their parts at Abbey Road Studios in London, so that is pretty cool. On to the music.
“Turn to Dust”, from ‘Slang’, opens the album and all I can say is…”This is how the album should have been done with EVERY song!”. They completely re-worked this song and what was a really cool song on ‘Slang’ is actually taken up a notch with this one. The orchestration mixed with the Eastern style music is a match made in heaven. By far, the best song on the album as it is purposeful and mindful on how orchestration can enhance and even improve a song. And if that wasn’t good enough, “Paper Sun” is done exactly the same way…well thought out and executed. The two best songs on the album for sure!!
Yes, if you’ve been following the Def Leppard Collection Series then you know I’ve reviewed ‘High & Dry’ already; however, since this the collection series, here is the Record Store Day Picture Disc that was released back in 2022 for ‘High & Dry’. I don’t usually buy too many Picture Disc unless they are like 12″ Singles or E.P.’s because I usually already have the albums. But with Def Leppard, if I see it, I buy it…and guess what…I saw it so I bought it!! It was released on April 23, 2022 and is supposed to be limited to 6,000 copies. It states it is an RSD First which means they plan on releasing the picture disc to the general public at any time now I guess. I don’t think I’ve seen it happen yet. I have scatted the pictures in the post and you can read along to the original review from last year. Enjoy!!…
Original Review:
While touring in support of their debut album, ‘On Through the Night’, Def Leppard opened for one of the biggest bands at the time, AC/DC. Famed producer, Robert John “Mutt” Lange, who produced AC/DC’s massive album “Back in Black”, took notice of the band and he was very impressed. So much so, he agreed to be their producer for the band’s sophomore album ‘High ‘N’ Dry’. A move that would change the course of history for this band and catapult them in to the stratosphere of rock stardom. But first, they had to do an album and this album saw the band head to a more melodic phase, however, the edge and rawness of the debut was still present.
The songwriting was more refined, everything seemed more purposefully composed, it was cleaner yet it was still powerful, engaging and after over 40 years with it, it is one of the best rock & roll albums of all time. Well…it is for me. The band, who was Joe Elliott, Steve Clark, Rick Savage, Rick Allen and Pete Willis, recorded the album between March and June of 1981 and it was released a very short time later on July 11, 1981. A short 16 months after the debut. Man, if they could’ve only kept that pace of releases, how much could they have released over the years. The album would go to #38 in the U.S. and #26 in the UK. Not a massive success, but enough of one thanks to the ballad “Brinin’ on the Heartbreak” which saw massive airplay on MTV, that the band was setup nicely for the next album.
Their third album ‘Pyromania’ was so big, so successful and so amazing, that ‘High ‘N’ Dry’ was re-released in 1984 with 2 additional tracks. One was a re-mix of “Bringin’ On the Heartbreak” which added synthesizers and piano overdubs to make it sound more like what was done on ‘Pyromania’. The other track was “Me & My Wine” which was the B-Side of the original release of “Bringin On the Heartbreak”. It too was re-mixed for a more modern sound. This re-release helped sell more albums which has since seen the album go double platinum. They even did new videos for it with Phil Collen on guitar who was not on this album at all as Pete Willis was at the time. The copy we are reviewing today is the original release without the 2 new tracks, the way it should be heard. Let’s get to it.
As we end another month, it is time to go back and see what 2 Loud 2 Old Music added to the collection. This is December 2024 and we have lots of vinyl, CDs, cassettes and even books plus some music related items. So much to go through including another Noble Record Exclusive, Voice of America Archive Albums as well as another addition to the Rock Candy collection, the Kiss collection and Box Set collection. Lots of great albums to go though and show for this month so I hope you enjoy the show!!
So go check it out as it will be live tonight right now, January 6, 2025 at 8pm. Thanks for stopping by and please click “Like” and hit “Subscribe” as it helps out the site when you do.
Def Leppard are known for taking long gaps between albums, but this might the longest. It has been 7 years since the last studio album, the 2015, self-titled gem, ‘Def Leppard’. Now, the band is back with an album that pays tribute to the era of glam rock with the likes of David Bowie, T. Rex and so many more. In fact, the title of their 12th studio album, ‘Diamond Star Halos’, is taken from the T. Rex 1971 song, “Get It On”. This is something Joe Elliott has been exploring with his Down ‘N’ Outz side project, but now that has leaked in to the Def Leppard camp…well, not really, as it has always been there. As Joe Elliott, Rick Allen, Rick Savage, Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell were all influenced by the great music of the 70’s.
‘Diamond Star Halos’ was released on May 27, 2022 and went all the way to #10 on the Billboard 200 album chart and even #5 in their UK home. Not a bad position for a band that have been around for over 40 years. And of course, I bought this album 4 times!! You read that right. I have the Target Exclusive vinyl with the yellow/red translucent vinyl and tarot card litho, but that is not all. I have 2 Japanese CDs as well. Why 2? Well, each one comes with 2 different bonus tracks so I had to have them both. And we don’t stop there. I even bought the cassette…yes, they put out a cassette with this one too. I had to have every format. Wait…hold the presses, I almost forgot. I also have the SDE Surround Sound version on Blu Ray and Dolby Atmos. So, I guess I have bought this album 5 times…yes, I have a problem.
Enough about my problems, let’s talk the album. It opens with the song “Take What You Want” which I swear is a throwback to ‘Pyromania’ era Leppard. I heavy rocker (well, as heavy as they get nowadays). Gang vocals, gritty riff, catchy chorus, it is all there. Then they glam it out with “Kick”. A poppy rock song that harkens back to T. Rex and Mott the Hoople. I admit, I like this one. Damn, is it catchy and gets stuck in your head.
“Fire It Up” cranks up the rock with some slamming riff, heavy bass from Sav and pounding drums from Allen. Joe almost raps the vocals and the chorus is layered with vocals as they are known to do. Their choruses are always huge. I have a love/hate with this one. Musically, killer…the rapping style lyrics, not so much.
As we close out 2024, what were the things I liked the most that I obtained in the collection? That is a very good question that we will answer in this week’s video. We will talk new releases, live albums, reissues and the coolest stuff I think I found this year to add in to the collection. A whole bunch of stuff so check it out!!
2 Loud 2 Old Music 