REVIEW: Def Leppard – “C’Mon C’Mon” (12″ picture single)

It’s the end of the WEEK OF SINGLES 2! Hope you enjoyed! I thought I’d save a recent and expensive acquisition for last.

Monday: Dream Theater – “Lie” (CD single)
Tuesday: Jimi Hendrix – “Valleys of Neptune” (7″ single)
Wednesday: Them Crooked Vultures – “Mind Eraser, No Chaser” (10″ single)
Thursday: Megadeth – “Creepy Baby Head” (“Crown of Worms” CD single)
Friday: CD Singles (of every variety) featuring T-Rev

DEF LEPPARD – “C’Mon C’Mon” (2008 12″ Mercury picture single)

This one was a gamble. It was not cheap to ship. All I had to go by was the non-descript B-side “Rocket” (Live). No indication of where or when. It could have been the live version previously released on the “Rocket” single back in ’88. Or more likely, it could be the live version later released on the Mirrorball CD. On that disc, recordings are noted as “Recorded at various points around the world, in the not so distant past.” Thanks for the specifics guys.

I don’t know what prompted me to hit the “buy” button given the uncertain B-side and price.  Maybe it was instinct.  Maybe it was that Mrs. LeBrain was out of the house.  Either way, in a couple weeks I had this rare 12″ picture single in my hot little hands.

Unfortunately it’s not much to look at: a Def Leppard logo on a black background.  On the other side…the track listing on a black background with a grey clover leaf!  Somebody at Mercury Records had no concept of what a picture disc can be!

Anyway, music trumps packaging. I don’t care about the A-side. It’s a crap song, let’s be honest. It’s Def Leppard trying be T-Rex for the umpteenth time. I care about the B-side. Upon first listen it was immediately obvious that this is an otherwise unreleased live version of “Rocket” and a great one at that. Unlike the mere 4:29 version on Mirrorball, this one is the fully extended version that Def Leppard sometimes play.

This extended performance of “Rocket” features an excellent Vivian/Phil guitar duel. At one point, Viv is positively in “Holy Diver” territory. It’s brief but it’s there and it’s unmistakable. This series of solos demonstrates one of the things I love about the guitar players in Def Leppard: they can shred when they want to! Then, after a brief segue, Joe Elliot breaks out “Whole Lotta Love” just as he did on the ’88 live version.

For the B-side:  5/5 stars
For the A-side and picture disc: 2/5 stars
Average: 3.5/5 stars

19 comments

  1. I think that looks pretty cool! I like that it’s simple and classic looking. And I quite liked the A-Side too… Cruise Control was the best track on the album though by far.

    And as far as “music trumps packaging”… no-one knows that better than Def Leppard. Their next deluxe edition will be a couple of tapes in a brown paper bag at this rate! Heh heh

    Like

    Reply

    1. Cruise Control is a great tune on that album…but my favourite was Gotta Let It Go.

      Def Leppard or their label need to learn a thing or two about packaging. Back to school with them!

      Like

      Reply

  2. Yeah it’s amazing that Leppard is lazy in the packaging,you think with other bands out there with em back in the day ie Maiden Leppard would step it up! But nope…..I still remember when Hysteria came out and I first purchased it on cassette and read the liner notes front to back which was good cuz it came from the horses mouths so to speak…but seriously it takes you 4 yrs at the time to get product out and u recap everything in two paragraphs???…
    Maiden spoiled me ,nobody came close when it came to them and packaging product esp Live After Death….

    Like

    Reply

    1. Live After Death was one of my first LP’s that I bought and that’s exactly what I bought it Deke. My neighbor had it and I saw the booklet and all the notes. You can read it for as long as it takes to listen to the album. How many beers, guitar picks, etc that they went through. Martin Birch’s own notes. All those hilarious photos in the book, plus both sleeves and gatefold. That thing was insane!

      Like

      Reply

  3. That packaging for that record ruined it for everyone else..no one ever came close it….29 yrs later and it still hasn’t been passed and never will be now …..

    Like

    Reply

    1. I’ll tell you something else Deke — the CD remaster out there has a similar booklet, not as extravagant of course, but good for a CD. But what they did was replace almost every single picture with an alternate photo. So it’s like having the record is a great package, but buying the CD is like a bonus because it’s all pictures you never had before. And they’ll all good, it’s all Ross Halfin so you know he takes thousands of photos and they can only use so many on the first LP.

      Like

      Reply

        1. If you look at Maiden’s career Steve Harris has always valued his fans’ money. He has respected their intelligence and their budgets. Utmost respect to Steve Harris, one of the classiest men in rock.

          It’s almost too bad I used up all my Maiden singles in my Maiden reviews from 2012. I have no more Maiden singles to show for next time I do a Week of Singles.

          Like

  4. As far as Leppard goes sounds like Rocket is a pretty cool version u know the guitarists in the band are very good u got the shredder(Collen) and the thinker (Campbell) and it works…..

    Like

    Reply

    1. That’s a good way to put it Deke but I would also say you could call Vivian the “Feel” player. Lately anyway he tends to play more smooth, bluesy type solos and that’s cool. On this he gets to shred a bit, they both do. And I love that they still do the whole medley with Whole Lotta Love, that’s just brilliant. May as well acknowledge where your whole roots originate.

      Like

      Reply

      1. Campbell I find his solos on the Ded Flatbird stuff is awesome..stays true to Clark’s style but fuses it with his chops….
        Even when I seen em live his solo spot seemed thought out whereas Collens was a shred Fest with lasers……

        Like

        Reply

    1. That’s one of my favourite cover images and I love how all their singles worked together as a puzzle to form the full face.

      I’d get a full back tattoo of that without shame, if I had a couple thousand bucks in a back pocket that I forgot all about.

      Like

      Reply

  6. I happen to have a Def Leppard Armaggeddon It picture disc single from 1988 – never played. I am not even sure why I bought it back then – not even much of a big fan, although I do like the song. The sleeve is plain plastic, but the disc is decorative.

    Like

    Reply

    1. That’s the one, that’s the one I bought — I got it wrong. Thanks for reminding me. It was Armageddon It. I bought it at Zellers!

      Play the B-side. Do you have anything to play it on? No? Then here is the B-side. Get a coffee, sit down with the hubs and enjoy. They all swapped instruments and got their roadie Malvin Mortimer to take the lead vocals on this Englebert Humperdink classic.

      Like

      Reply

  8. This part right here cracked me up: “I don’t know what prompted me to hit the “buy” button given the uncertain B-side and price. Maybe it was instinct. Maybe it was that Mrs. LeBrain was out of the house.”

    Man, we’ve all been there. Temptation…

    Worse is drunk record shopping. I have a buddy who got on Discogs while loaded and, well… he got a lot of lovely things but it wasn’t pretty.

    Like

    Reply

Rock a Reply