rock music

RE-REVIEW: Def Leppard – Songs From the Sparkle Lounge (2008)

Part Thirty-Four of the Def Leppard Review Series

Original Review:Β  Songs From the Sparkle LoungeΒ (2008)

DEF LEPPARD – Songs From the Sparkle Lounge (CD Collection Volume 3 Disc 3) (Originally 2008, 2021 remaster)

Finally!Β  Three misfires in a row (Euphoria, X, Yeah!) and Def Leppard finally had a new album that rocked and was worth listening to again.Β  While imperfect, the badly-titled new album Songs From the Sparkle LoungeΒ really felt like an actual effort this time.Β  With the exception of one credit on one song, everything here was written by Def Leppard and only Def Leppard.Β  And — hallelujah! — no ballads.Β  What a refreshing turn of events.Β  A lot of the album was written and recorded on tour.Β  It seemed like Def Leppard were really listening to the fans who said “We’re tired of pop and ballads.Β  Please, write us a rock record again like you used to.”

We mostly got it.

Of course, in the press Leppard exaggerated as they often did, comparing the album to High ‘N’ Dry, AC/DC, and Led Zeppelin.Β  And so, the fans knew not to get their hopes up too high.Β  The album rocked, but not like that.Β Β The standard version of Sparkle Lounge was a tight eleven tracks, just under 40 minutes.Β  No bloat.Β  But let’s get to the elephant in the room first.

When discussing this album, dissenters often point to track 2, the first single “Nine Lives” as the main offender.Β  As a collaboration with Tim McGraw, it reeks of terrible offences committed by Bon Jovi earlier in the decade.Β  In order to find new success, too many rock bands went to Nashville for fresh names and influences.Β  Fortunately, Japanese fans were able to buy a version of the album including the song without Tim McGraw, and just Joe Elliott ripping the lead vocals.Β  That is definitely a preferred experience.Β  McGraw’s voice makes it sound…not like Def Leppard!Β  The two worlds simply do not mesh.Β  Fortunately “Nine Lives” is not a country song, but a hard rocker with a slight twang in the electric guitars.Β  It’s actually a pretty good song, when you edit Tim out.Β  So there’s that.

However, opening Songs From the Sparkle Lounge is a song you can only describe as “real” Def Leppard!Β  Combining the loopy vibe of the Slang era with the riffiness of Pyromania, “Go” is out of the gates on the right note.Β  It slams.Β  Heavy, modern, guitar-heavy and hooky without pandering to trends.Β  It merely combines some of Leppard’s best and heaviest ingredients in a modern way.Β  The only critique would be the title.Β  “Go” is a word that Leppard overuse.Β  “Go”, “Let’s Go”, “Gotta Let It Go”, “Let It Go”…just too much “going” on!

After “Go”, you have to sit through the Tim McGraw song before we’re back to tunes with integrity.Β  The glam rock “C’Mon C’Mon” was in the vein of that “Pour Some Sugar” sound, ultimately derived from Gary Glitter.Β  Β It too was a single (to be discussed next time) and sits comfortably in the Hysteria-style box.Β  Not exactly like AC/DC and Led Zeppelin as Joe claimed, but not a bad track if a bit too much like a sequel.

“Love” written by Rick Savage was an important tune and surprisingly the longest at 4:17.Β  It’s the one that they called “not a ballad” and you can get where they were coming from.Β  Yes there’s a soft acoustic intro but the song is bigger and more dramatic than the average ballad.Β  A big heavy chunky section rises towards the end.Β  The acoustic version on the Japanese release could fairly be pigeonholed as a ballad, but the standard album cut it more like Leppard meets Queen.Β  Freddie and the boys seem to be the biggest influence on “Love”, especially vocally.

Phil Collen wrote “Tomorrow” which is one of the most pop of the tunes, sort of in an Adrenalize mold.Β  The chorus is solid and there’s a nice guitar part to bite into.Β  Not a highlight but not a throwaway.Β  Just a good hard rock tune that sounds great in the car come chorus time.

Vivian Campbell contributed the low groove of “Cruise Control”, whose bassline is the main feature, rolling and churning beneath the song.Β  Interesting tune with some truly great and adventurous guitar playing from Viv.Β  Playing for feel and not speed.Β  But the band reverts to their standard form again on the uptempo rocker “Hallucinate”.Β  Though the hooks sound like you’ve heard ’em all before, they’re all welcome to return on this great track.

Another solid song, “Only the Good Die Young”, boasts some mellotron that always seems to recall the Beatles.Β  Not a constituent part of the average Def Leppard rocker, but an enhancement that works well here.Β  Joe ever references a “diamond in the sky” so it’s probably not coincidence.Β  A good tune made better by stepping just slightly outside the box without destroying the box.

Joe’s “Bad Actress” is by far the hardest rocker on the album, going full speed ahead to a place that Leppard had not gone in many years.Β  Pure heavy and reckless rock, pedal to the metal, just givin’ ‘er as much as there is in the gas tank.Β  This, yes this, is what fans had been begging for!Β  Something that really drives but still sounds like Def Leppard.Β  Something that wouldn’t have sounded too out of place in the early years.Β  Finally, we got “Bad Actress” out of them!

The penultimate track “Come Undone” slows it back down to a deliberate 90s pace.Β  Decent album track, but might have been considered filler in an earlier age.Β  Unfortunately, it’s just one of those easy to forget second-last album tracks.

Fortunately, Leppard saved the best track for last:Β  “Gotta Let It Go”, which rocks so hard on the chorus that it might just rip your head off.Β  This Vivian contribution opens with deceivingly soft drum programs before absolutely exploding on the epic chorus.Β  It’s a brilliant slice of songwriting from the Irish rock wizard, and the way the lead and backing vocals overlap on the chorus is just the kind of thing Def Leppard do so exceptionally well.Β  An absolute triumph that leaves a sweet taste in the mouth when the album is complete.Β  This kind of closer invites repeat listens.

Sparkle Lounge ends as it began:Β  rocking.

Fortunately for Def Leppard, a young American fan of both them and Tim McGraw was hitting brand new heights in her fresh solo career.Β  At just 19 years old, she was born while Def Leppard were still the biggest rock band in the universe.Β  So, leaning even further into country music, Def Leppard would gain a lot of attention from a new younger crowd thanks to their big fan Taylor Swift.Β  It seemed a strange move for Leppard to make while they were just starting to rock again, but we’ll discuss the Swift collaboration in a future instalment.

Though Songs From the Sparkle Lounge does contain some fillers and some cuts that fail to stick in the memory, there are no outright “deletes” except arguably the McGraw track.Β  It doesn’t even fit with the vibe of the album.Β  The Leppard version should have been in the main album sequence, with the McGraw version as a bonus track and single in special markets.Β  Guaranteed, this album would be better remembered if that was the case.

3.5/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X
  29. Best Of (UK)
  30. Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection
  31. Yeah!
  32. Yeah! Bonus CD With Backstage Interviews
  33. Yeah…Nah! – Record Store Tales

Next:

35. β€œC’Mon C’Mon” (12β€³ picture disc)
36. CMT Crossroads (DVD with Taylor Swift)
37. B-Sides
38. Yeah! II
39. Yeah! Live
40. Mirror Ball – Live & More (Japanese import)
41. iTunes re-recordings

#998: Yeah…Nah!

Part Thirty-Three of the Def Leppard Review Series

There comes in a time in many, but not all, bands’ lives.Β  Its a fan moment, not a band moment, but just as important.Β  It’s the point in time when a fan starts losing interest.Β  Every fan has their own reasons.Β  I can chart the trajectory of my own Def Leppard love on a graph.

In grades 10 and 11, when Hysteria was at its peak, Def Leppard were my favourite band.Β  I cut them some slack for the lack of anything truly new on Adrenalize, given what the band had endured to get there.Β  Slang was the spiritual successor to Hysteria, returning to musical experimentation and dramatic change.Β  But it didn’t catch on, so Leppard were forced to contrive a “return to roots” on Euphoria, which failed to resonate with me.Β  The X debacle with all the boy-band pretensions was a right turnoff.Β  Only on Sparkle Lounge did the trajectory start to return in the right direction.

But…it was not the same.Β  A trust had been broken.Β  The band that I had loved in highschool (when my previous favourite band, Kiss, made some dubious direction choices in the late 80s) had taken some serious detours over the years that left me unsure.Β  As much as Kiss had let the quality slide themselves, I had a hard time forgiving Def Leppard over X.Β  And I don’t think that feeling from the before-fore times ever really comes back.

The Taylor Swift thing was like a reminder.Β  “Def Leppard are going to do things that you don’t like much.”Β  Nothing against Taylor who has her own style of art.Β  There is an entire demographic of fans that are not going to listen to a collaboration with Taylor Swift.Β  Many of them are reading this now.Β  Meanwhile, there are fans who have delighted to one degree or another in every twist and turn in the Def Leppard discography.Β  And that’s fine too.Β  There is no right or wrong.Β  It’s only fair for you to know where the head of the reviewer is.Β  This is your disclaimer.

Because of my love for this band, I’ll always give them a fair shot.Β  I just won’t always care.Β  And that’s the big difference.Β  Def Leppard went from a band that I cared deeply about, to one that I was buying music from out of routine instead of passion.Β  Similarly, with these reviews, they are being written out of diligence and not a place of deep commitment.Β  It is becoming harder work, so beware!

Thanks to Holen for the inspiration

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X
  29. Best Of (UK)
  30. Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection
  31. Yeah!
  32. Yeah! Bonus CD With Backstage Interviews

Next:

34. Songs From the Sparkle Lounge

REVIEW: Def Leppard – Yeah! Bonus CD With Backstage Interviews (2006)

Part Thirty-Two of the Def Leppard Review Series

DEF LEPPARD – Yeah! Bonus CD With Backstage Interviews (2006 Walmart exclusive)

Hard truth:Β  A lot of the Yeah! bonus tracks were better than the album itself.Β  Bonus tracks were issued to iTunes, Best Buy, Target, and Japan, but Walmart received an entire bonus CD.Β  If you could only afford two versions, Walmart would have been the way to go.Β  Sold separately, their bonus CD included both Japanese bonus tracks, three exclusive songs, and three exclusive backstage interview tracks.Β  That means if you owned this CD, you didn’t have to track down the Japanese printing to get all the songs.Β  You just had to buy three other different versions too!

The five songs on the Walmart set are as follows:

  • “American Girl” (Tom Petty)
  • “Search & Destroy” (The Stooges)
  • “Space Oddity” (David Bowie)
  • “Dear Friends” (Queen)
  • “Heartbeat” (Jobriath)

Because these tracks are included on a disc called Yeah! II in The CD Collection Vol. 3, we will review them individually (along with the other five bonus tracks) when we get there.Β  For now we’ll just give you some spoilers.Β  The Petty song is incredible, surprisingly so.Β  “Dear Friends” features Rick Savage on vocals and all instruments, and is completely different from Queen’s original (in a good way).Β  In fact all the songs tend to spotlight one or two members without the full band.Β  When we get to that disc in The CD Collection Vol. 3Β then we’ll spill all the beans.

The CD CollectionΒ does not include the interviews, which isn’t surprising.Β  They remain exclusive to the Walmart CD.Β  They are in the 2-3 minute range and total just 7:55 combined.Β  Still, that’s better listening than 45 minutes of Lars Ulrich in the Metallica box set.

Backstage interview #1 is compiled from all five members, and concerns the 2005 tour, and Leppard’s longevity.Β  It was Joe’s first tour as a non-smoker, though they didn’t get around as much as they would have liked.

Interview #2 is about the Yeah! album.Β  Joe is credited with the idea by Phil, having wanted to do his version of Bowie’s Pin-Ups album.Β  Coincidentally, someone at the record label thought it would be a good idea to do right at the same time that Joe felt the same way at the end of the X tour.

In interview #3, Joe discusses the reasoning for picking the songs.Β  There were three rules:Β  all songs had to be hits, British, and pre-date Leppard signing their record deal.Β  Clearly, these rules applied to the core album only and not the bonus tracks!Β  When it came down to the members agreeing on covers, things went much more smoothly than anyone expected.

With the very cool exclusive songs here alongside the interviews, this Walmart CD was a must!Β  It’s less so today due to the songs now being reissued in box set form, but Leppard fans will certainly enjoy giving it a spin.

4/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X
  29. Best Of (UK)
  30. Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection
  31. Yeah!

Next:

33. Yeah…Nah!Β  (Record Store Tales)

REVIEW: Def Leppard – Yeah! (2006)

Part Thirty-One of the Def Leppard Review Series

DEF LEPPARD – Yeah! (CD Collection Volume 3 Disc 1) (Originally 2006, 2021 remaster)

Yeah…nah!

Why Def Leppard, why a covers album?Β  The idea seems to have come from Joe Elliott, who had been pushing to do something like this for over 20 years.Β  Upon the completion of promotion for the X album and the two greatest hits that followed, Def Leppard had no new songs to put toward another album.Β  Therefore, Joe’s cover album concept seemed like the right move.

We had sneak previews of two songs, “Waterloo Sunset” and “No Matter What” on Best Of and The Definitive Collection respectively.Β  After nearly two years’ wait, we finally got the Yeah! album in 2006.Β Β  All told, 22 different studio covers and two additional live versions were released over the many different CDs released to various retailers.Β  That’s a total of 24 songs to collect.Β  Fortunately, every single one of those tracks is included in the CD Collection Volume 3.Β Β There are three bonus interview tracks that are not included, and we will discuss those next time.Β  For this review, we will focus on the core album; the basic 14 songs.

Opening with T-Rex’s “20th Century Boy”, there’s little question that Leppard nailed the authenticity vibe.Β  The guitar tones are perfect.Β  So why is my finger itching to reach for the skip button?Β  Doing covers is like performing magic.Β  It either happens or it doesn’t.Β  The highlight of this song is Canadian singer Emm Gryner’s awesome backing vocals.

“Rock On”?Β  No thanks.Β  I’ve never liked this track.Β  Blame Michael Damien for that, but…skip.

“Hanging on the Telephone” (The Nerves) is awesome!Β  Hard rocking, full speed, really kicking ass.Β  It takes Def Leppard a little further out of their comfort zone and it rocks!

From Def Leppard’s Best Of (UK only) comes “Waterloo Sunset” (The Kinks), which was an awesome bonus track but feels diminished among the other covers here.Β  It jumps out less in this context.Β  Still buttery smooth, still tasty.Β  They picked an excellent song to cover here.

The Sweet’s “Hell Raiser” was covered previously by Motley Crue, except they called it “Kickstart My Heart” I believe.Β  The instantly recognizable Justin Hawkins from The Darkness joins Joe Elliott on the microphone.Β  By the books, this should be a slam dunk.Β  Maybe it’s just a tad sterile.

One of the most pleasant surprises on the album is ELO’s “10538 Overture”.Β  They captured the lushness, the complexity and the many melodies.Β  It sounds very little like Def Leppard; another example of them stepping outside the box and absolutely nailing it.

Roxy Music appears via “Street Life”, which fails to make much of a lasting impression.Β  As the album progresses, most of the tracks seem to just inhabit this nondescript Glam Leppard vibe.Β  It happens again on Bowie’s “Drive-In Saturday”, and it really shouldn’t.

Free’s “Little Bit of Love” is highly polished, but sounds awesome just the same.Β  It’s like a jolt after being sleepy for the last couple songs.Β  Another jolt comes next.Β Β Ian Hunter himself appears on Mott’s “The Golden Age of Rock ‘n’ Roll”, and it’s not his first time with Leppard either for those who remember the Retro-Active album.Β  That’s Emm Gryner on piano too.Β  This song truly does recall the golden age of rock and roll.Β  Well done.

The previously discussed “No Matter What” by Badfinger is slotted in here, previously heard on Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection.Β  Pop genius, rendered well by the Leppard.Β  They take some chances on “He’s Gonna Step On You Again” by John Kongos, a different kind of rhythm for Leppard.Β  It’s memorable and tends to work more often than not.Β  Sounds a bit like what got their engines pumping in the Hysteria days.

Covering Thin Lizzy, now that verges on sacred ground.Β  And the good news is “Don’t Believe A Word” doesn’t sound bad.Β  Joe Elliott has worked on Thin Lizzy remixes in the past and he knows what he’s doing when it comes to this band’s music.Β  It’s not bad.Β  That’s accurate.Β  It’s not Thin Lizzy but it’s pretty close.

Phil Collen takes the lead vocal on “Stay With Me”, and he actually nails Rod Stewart’s voice.Β  Rod was a real screamer back in the Faces days, not the crooner he is now.Β  Phil probably needed about a thousand lozenges after singing “Stay With Me”.

Yeah! is uneven and unnecessary.Β  We mentioned earlier that context is important.Β  “Waterloo Sunset” made a much bigger impact on the Best Of album.Β  Here, it struggles to be felt among 13 other covers.Β  Had these tracks come out on the B-sides of singles, some would probably be cult classic covers.Β  If anything, Yeah! got Def Leppard back into rock and roll music after the meandering X and EuphoriaΒ records.Β  Too many ballads, right?Β  That’s what we said.Β  So here’s some rock and roll for you like you ordered, right?

2/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X
  29. Best Of (UK)
  30. Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection

Next:

32. Yeah! Bonus CD With Backstage Interviews

REVIEW: Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection (US 2005)

Part Thirty of the Def Leppard Review Series

DEF LEPPARD – Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection (2005 Universal)

The Def Leppard’s Best Of released in the UK in 2004, North America followed suit in 2005 with Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection.Β  We’re not going to comment on that “definitive” claim, but this new compilation covered a bit of ground that the UK version did not.Β  With ten years and three albums since 1995’s Vault, it was a logical time to put out an updated collection.Β  With the musical Rock of Ages hitting the stage in Los Angeles, everything seemed to be lined up for Leppard.

Disc One is much the same as Best Of and Vault.Β  Same tracks in the same order with some slight variation.Β  The big difference here is that Disc One closes on something very special:Β  The High N’ Dry instrumental scorcherΒ  “Switch 625”.Β  It was a side closer on High N’ Dry and so fits the role of ending Disc One very well.Β  It’s the heaviest song on the disc by a mile, and the only one that was not a single somewhere.Β  A brilliant surprise especially to those who didn’t know Leppard’s heavy side.Β  This version fades in from “Bringin’ On the Heartbreak” just like it did on album.Β  Really, it’s a one-two combo.

Disc Two is a larger departure from that on Best Of.Β  They both begin with “Rock Rock (Till You Drop)” and then diverge.Β  Here, we carry on with a killer streak of early tracks from High N’ Dry and Pyromania.Β  “Let It Go”, “High ‘N’ Dry (Saturday Night)”, “Too Late For Love”, all rifftastic tracks of Clarkian proportions.Β  “Let It Go” isn’t on Best Of.

The key “bait” on these new greatest hits compilations was the inclusion of one new cover song.Β  On Best Of, it was “Waterloo Sunset” by the Kinks.Β  Here it is “No Matter What” by Badfinger, a truly poptastic inclusion that benefits from Leppard’s vocal prowess.Β  According to Phil in the liner notes, the band started playing it live on the X tour and therefore decided to record it.Β  With two great covers in the bag and on the shelves, we’d certainly expect the band’s forthcoming covers album to knock the socks off….

More great songs follow the Badfinger cover, beginning with the hit “Promises” from Euphoria which does deserve the spot.Β  “Mirror Mirror (Look Into My Eyes)” (which wasn’t on Best Of) and “Another Hit and Run” sandwich the hit “Women” from Hysteria.Β  It’s just a constant stream of awesome.Β  “Slang” follows, which although a great song indeed, sounds out of place next to these riff rockers.

The excellent ballad “Stand Up (Kick Love Into Motion)” is a disc highlight.Β  So is the early track “Rock Brigade”, a blazer from On Through the Night.Β  “Now”, from X, could have been left off.Β  It is however the only representation of the X album here.Β  The superior “Long, Long Way to Go” was included on Best Of, but not here.Β  Instead, we get a great epic track that was not on Best Of called “Paper Sun”.Β  A universal favourite from Euphoria, it really deserved to be on a compilation of some kind.Β  Then “Work It Out” from Slang is a modern sounding track that might not be heavy, but sure is worth uncountable listens over the years.

The closing trio of rockers are a delight.Β  “Die Hard the Hunter”, “Wasted” and “Billy’s Got a Gun” are beloved Leppard non-singles that have been cherished by fandom for a long time.Β  Particularly “Wasted”, likely the heaviest Leppard track of all time.Β  It’s all riff!Β  As for “Billy’s Got a Gun”, it gets the closing position that it should have had on Best Of.Β  They got the running order right this time.

Similar to the UK Best Of, this compilation has ample photos and liner notes inside.Β  The band track commentary remains, as does the opening essay.Β  For overall listening, this is probably the better of the two.

3.5/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X
  29. Best Of (UK)

Next:

31. Yeah!

REVIEW: Def Leppard – Best Of (UK 2004)

Part Twenty-Nine of the Def Leppard Review Series

DEF LEPPARD – Best OfΒ (2004 Mercury UK)

Nine years after Vault, why not another “best of” collection?Β  And why not make it a double?Β  And a “limited edition” too?

The approach was all but perfect for Def Leppard’s double Best Of.Β  Except when you look at it in hindsight.Β  You always need some bait, and this time the bait was an unreleased new track.Β  Suggested by Phil for a forthcoming covers album, Leppard recorded “Waterloo Sunset” by the Kinks, and quite well in fact.Β  The problem was it was going to be re-released in two years on 2006’s Yeah!.Β  So we spent all that money on one new track that we were going to end up re-buying in two years.Β  Hard to justify.

Fortunately, “Waterloo Sunset” is an excellent version.Β  It defies expectation in fact.Β  Phil and Vivian sound absolutely stellar on guitar, with warm tones.Β  It’s soft, laid back, and Joe Elliott nails the lead vocal in his own style.Β  It does sound like Def Leppard, but it does not sound like them bastardizing the Kinks in any way.Β  It sounds just fine, like a Waterloo sunset!

The compilation kind of plays as if disc one was the “greatest hit” and disc two is the “bonus disc”.Β  The first disc is almost an exact repeat of the UK version of Vault., with only slight differences.Β  It opens with the “video version” of “Pour Some Sugar On Me”, and then rolls through a what’s-what of Leppard hits.Β  Every song, in order, from the UK Vault, until you get to track 10.Β  Originally “Foolin'”, track 10 was swapped for “Action”.Β  Then for track 11, they inserted the recent ballad “Long, Long Way To Go”, a good selection.Β  “Make Love Like A Man” is also wedged in here, which let’s face it, most of us can do without.Β  The Vault tracklisting then resumes, with “Armageddon It” through to the end, but minus “Miss You In A Heartbeat”.Β  “Foolin'” eventually appears on CD Two, but “Miss You In A Heartbeat” does not.Β  In the end, CD One is two songs longer, and overall a better listen than the original UK Vault.

CD Two is the one that hardcore fans will enjoy more.Β  “Rock! Rock!”, what an opening number.Β  “Promises” is the only inclusion from Euphoria, and justifiably so.Β  Then you get “Slang” for a double dose of fun, and then the melancholy “Foolin'”.Β  An unfortunate inclusion is the morose “Now” from the X album, but it’s worth sitting through to get to “Rock Brigade” from the debut.Β  That’s an odd transition, by the way.Β  From Lep’s latest with programming and loops and bleeps and bloops, to their early hard riffing stuff.Β  Very weird.Β  Sounds like two different bands presented that way.

Every single track after the dull “Now” is a killer.Β  “Women” wasn’t on Vault.Β  Strange, right?Β  Rectified here.Β  Then onto “Let It Go”, the killer “Too Late For Love”, and “High ‘N’ Dry”.Β  A trifecta of perfect right there.Β  The disc takes a turn to the modern side again on “Work It Out”, but at least this track isn’t a waste of space.Β  It might not fit with the early Lep songs so well, but it has integrity and wickedly choppy guitars.Β  When it fades, we go into “Billy’s Got A Gun” which ups the Pyromania factor a notch.Β  “Hit and Run” and the ever-loved “Wasted” bring more of that old-school vibe, but sandwiched between them is the ballad “Stand Up (Kick Love Into Motion)”.Β  A great ballad and highlight of the disc, but in an odd setting to be sure.

Following “Wasted”, the disc closer is “Die Hard the Hunter”, another strange choice.Β  Would “Billy’s Got A Gun” not made for a better closer?Β  Or even “Wasted”?Β  Probably.Β  Good song, but in the wrong position for sure.Β  It’s just not the kind that closes an album.Β  It’s more the kind that closes a side (which it did on Pyromania).

Sonically, the second disc is the most uneven since it combines tracks from both the first album and the most recent.Β  It’s also a much more fun listen just because it includes a couple deeper cuts and some lesser heard gems.Β  I mean…”Wasted”, right?Β  Just wish it was the closer.

On the plus side, Best Of Def Leppard has a nice booklet with track commentary from the band members.Β  There’s an essay and a few photos.Β  It also comes in a nice cardboard slipcase with an embossed Def Leppard logo in shiny black.Β  The cover art, with that slate background, is simple, cool and effective.Β  There’s even a picture of Steve Clark inside (but no Pete Willis).

So what about that covers album?Β  In the liner notes, Joe says it’s recorded, but it took them until 2006 to release it.Β  In the meantime, the US would put out their own 2 CD compilation album, with a slightly different running order, a few different deep cuts, a Badfinger cover instead of the Kinks, and a better closing track.Β  How does the US compilation stack up against the UK?Β  Check in next time.

3/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X

Next:

30. Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection (US)
31. Yeah!

RE-REVIEW: Def Leppard – X (2002)

Part Twenty-Eight of the Def Leppard Review Series

Original Review:Β  X (Japanese import) (2002)

DEF LEPPARD – X (CD Collection Volume 3 Disc 1) (Originally 2002, 2021 remaster)

In a word:Β  “desperate”.

The opening boops and bops of lead single “Now” sounded like some pop band from Sweden, not Def Leppard.Β  Worse, they sounded desperate.

The last studio album Euphoria was sonically calculated to bring back the good old days, but only sold half a million copies in the US, in a case of diminishing returns.Β  To turn the ship around commercially, professional hitmakers Marti Frederiksen, Per Aldeheim and Andreas Carlsson were employed to help produce. Songs from professional songwriters were used.Β  The band’s core sound was watered down and only now and then does the real Def Leppard surface for air.

It has been argued that eliminating the first single (and first track) “Now” would strengthen the album.Β  While may be, we simply cannot ignore this track co-written by pro Marti Frederiksen.Β  While opens with clicks and wheezes like a life support machine, acoustic guitars and keyboards set up the tune.Β  Dark, soft and unimpressive until the main guitar hook kicks in at the chorus.Β  But the chorus is lifeless and uninspiring.Β  Only the chunky guitars have any impact, unfortunately hobbled by more clicks and sonic idiocy.Β  At least drummer Rick Allen, who co-wrote this and a number of the album tracks, sounds lethal.

The sonic blemishes go unabated on the ballad “Unbelievable”, written entirely by hitmakers including Max Martin.Β  The drum and sound effect programming is irritating and adds absolutely nothing to do the song.Β  Only on the chorus, where Leppard drown it out with their harmonies, do we get relief.Β  On X, Def Leppard had reach Peak Ballad, and that’s not a good thing.Β  Their reliance on them was hurting their credibility as a rock band.Β  If their voices were not so recognizable, you would not have been able to identity “Unbelievable” as a Def Leppard song.

Fortunately “You’re So Beautiful” has some spark.Β  This upbeat pop rocker has a nice, laid back chug and very sweet harmonies. It’s not overly encumbered by programming.Β  Phil Collen sings a chunk of it which adds another element.Β  It’s decent.

More acoustics abound on “Everyday”, making us wonder if Leppard ever intend to rock on this album.Β  As far as pop rock goes, “Everyday” is pretty good, with some pretty undeniable hooks.Β  Expertly constructed with the aid of Frederiksen, “Everyday” is a keeper.

One of Leppard’s softest ballads is “Long, Long Way to Go” written by One Direction hitmakers Wayne Hector and Steve Robson.Β  Fortunately it’s a song that Leppard makes work.Β  Rich strings and heavy production do not impede this time.Β  There’s an acoustic version included on the Japanese version of the album that lacks a lot of the excess, and is actually superior.Β  Fortunately, that version is included on a later CD in The CD Collection Volume 3.Β  “Long, Long Way to Go” is an album highlight.Β  Even though they didn’t write it, it deserves to sit up there with some of Leppard’s best balladeering.

“Four Letter Word” is the first actual rocker, even though it steals part of its riff from the superior “Armageddon It”.Β  Decent song, but unfortunately a knockoff.Β  Better is “Torn to Shreds” which is ballady, but still boasts a pretty tough chorus.Β  This song has a pop sound that implies it was cowritten by a hitmaker, but it was not.Β  This is all Leppard.Β  They were reaching for pop but at least they let it loose a bit on the chorus.

Irritating sound effects return on “Love Don’t Lie”, like ants at a picnic that just won’t go away.Β  Not a bad song, with a nice stuttery guitar part that would be nice to hear breathing on its own.Β  It’s not a total loss but the production is really un-rock in every way.Β  Now, let’s not get into an argument about being open minded, or categorising Leppard as a “rock” band.Β  Leppard have long called themselves a pop group, and that’s fine.Β  There’s that, and there’s a step too far into sonic indigestion, and that’s where we are.Β  Having said all this, the single “Gravity” is one of the most offensive of the songs.Β  It could have been Backstreet Boys or N*Sync with guitars.Β  Or worse.

“Cry” introduces the concept of a “guitar riff” to the X album.Β  Too little, too late, on an unremarkable song.Β  “Girl Like You” is a better song, but the programming and digital gunk are still there hovering in the background like a computer virus.Β  At this point, patience is wearing this and we just want this album to end.Β  One more ballad to endure, “Let Me Be the One” is over quickly, but what is the point?Β  There are so many ballads seeping into the Leppard catalogue at this point in time, and few of them are notable.

Fortunately, X ends on the best song, “Scar”.Β  Though not as heavy as “White Lightning” or as memorable as “Gods Of War”, “Scar” has that kind of dark edgy vibe.Β  It checks pretty much all the boxes.Β  It has a riff, a good melody, some very vintage Leppard-y guitar work, and great harmonies.Β Β One of X‘s strengths is the care put into the deeply layered vocals, a Leppard trait unheard to this degree since Hysteria.Β  It truly is a cool sound.

There were a number of bonus tracks and B-sides available to augment your X experience for better or for worse.Β  Japan had two bonus tracks:Β  the aforementioned acoustic “Long, Long Way to Go” and “Kiss the Day”, another slow pseudo-rocker.Β  The official website used to offer a song called β€œPerfect Girl”, which is a better demo of β€œGravity”.Β  All these and more such as “10 X Bigger Than Love” are now in the box set, and we’ll take a closer look at those songs when we get to disc four of The CD Collection Volume 3.

Oh, and why X as the title?Β  Counting Retro-Active and Vault, it’s their tenth album.Β  Yeah, Vault shouldn’t count, but what can you do?

If you were making a Def Leppard Best Of CD set (which, nine years after Vault, was Leppard’s next move), you could make a good case for including two songs from X, those being “Scar” and “Long, Long Way to Go” (preferably the acoustic version).Β  Is that what Def Leppard did?Β  Find out next time.

1.5/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)

Next:

29. Best Of (UK)
30. Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection (US)
31. Yeah!

REVIEW: Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (2001)

Part Twenty-Seven of the Def Leppard Review Series

CYBERNAUTS – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (2001 Arachnophobia Records)

While fans awaited the return of Def Leppard with another new album to follow 1999’s Euphoria, Joe Elliott and Phil Collen released more recordings from their Cybernauts side-project, a fun David Bowie cover band featuring members of the Spiders From Mars.Β  This time they entered the studio (both in Ireland and Japan) to lay down some covers.Β  These were released on a bonus disc in a very rare, very limited 2001 2 CD issue of the Cybernauts Live album.

Hendrix’s “Manic Depression” opens; organ-heavy and slightly more psychedelic.Β  After that rocks your socks, an awesome rendition of “All the Young Dudes” follows.Β  Purists may not like Joe Elliott’s straight-ahead delivery compared to the original, but his pure love of the song comes out.Β  He’s not trying to be someone else.Β  Just Joe.Β  And that’s fine for Leppard fans!

Phil Collen opens “Moonage Daydream” with some very delectable guitar.Β  An album highlight, the guys really do this one plenty of justice.Β  Keyboards add the appropriate subtle lush backdrop.Β  The solo section is sharp and wicked.Β  Just a killer cover.

A fairly standard version of “The Man Who Sold the World” is satisfactory but the song is picky about who sounds good covering it.Β  Phil’s guitar work is notable, as it has been throughout this set.

One tune that wasn’t on the live disc was “Time” from Aladdin Sane.Β  Dick Decent (R.I.P.) tickles the ivories in glorious glee.Β  From the same album comes “Panic in Detroit”, upbeat rock that doubtless inspired bands like The Darkness and Def Leppard.Β  The Cybernauts sound at home covering it.Β  The second half of the song is just a band jamming together and having a blast in the studio.

The closing track, “Lady Grinning Soul” is an excellent deep cut to go out on.Β  Complex, passionate and performed with expertise.Β  But is it really the end?Β  The track time of 19 minutes tells us something is up.Β  After a 10 minute silence, the Cybernauts return with an unlisted bonus track.Β  It’s an acoustic version of “Moonage Daydream”!Β  Probably even better than the first version!Β  Stunning acoustic solo by Phil.Β  Worth the wait?Β  Well, I invite you to edit out the silence yourself and just enjoy the music.

This double disc of the Cybernauts will cost you a pretty penny.Β  It goes for over $200 when you can find an original.Β  Good hunting!

4/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live

Next:

28. X

REVIEW: Cybernauts – Live (2001)

Part Twenty-Six of the Def Leppard Review Series

CYBERNAUTS – Live (2001 Arachnophobia Records)

While fans awaited the return of Def Leppard with another new album to follow 1999’s Euphoria, Joe Elliott and Phil Collen released some recordings from their Cybernauts side-project, a fun David Bowie cover band.

But not just any cover band.

Cybernauts were formed as a tribute to the late Mick Ronson, featuring Spiders from Mars members Trevor Bolder, Mick Woodmansey, and Dick Decent.Β  The liner notes are a little bit contradictory when it comes to specific recordings.Β  One page in the booklet says the disc was recorded at the Olympia Theatre in Dublin, August 7 1997.Β  On another page, Joe Elliott states that the album was “pulled together” from a five gig mini-tour.Β  Dublin was the final date on that tour.Β  18 tracks, and almost 80 minutes of music comprise this live disc.

Without any preamble, we jump right into the rock and roll of “Watch that Man” from Aladdin Sane.Β  Cybernauts are naturally a little more heavy handed but Leppard fans will love it.Β  Things get punky with “Hang Onto Yourself”, full speed ahead, with Phil Collen whipping up some guitar magic to salute Ronson, while the original guys bang it out with bedevilling youthful energy.Β  Massive hit “Changes” comes next, a little chunkier than the version you’re used to but still brilliant.Β  Joe’s lead vocal has the Leppard sound, the Spiders’ backing vocals sound like Bowie.Β  It’s a mash-up of two bands.

Acoustic guitars come out for “The Supermen”, but then Phil kicks in with the distortion.Β  So far, an album highlight though purists might baulk at the heavier rock approach.Β  It’s followed by an emphatic “Five Years”, with Joe doing an excellent job of the complex vocals.Β  Bouncing from album to album, they do “Cracked Actor” next, a nice boogie.Β  The familiar “Moonage Daydream” is welcome, and the keyboards recreate the lush backdrop authentically.Β  Another album highlight with exceptional lead work by Phil.

A Mick Ronson solo cut called “Angel No. 9” from his second album Play Don’t Worry is rolled out next, with a wickedly tasty guitar lick.Β  A brilliant selection, the backing vocals by the Spiders are quite sweet.Β  “Jean Genie” is so familiar is almost skippable, but they pretty much had to play it — can’t blame them.

It’s pretty much non-stop classics from there on it.Β  “Life on Mars” featuring Dick Decent on piano has a more delicate touch and they do a fine job of it.Β  “The Man Who Sold the World” works well with the keyboards providing the backbone and Phil Collen doing his best Ronson.Β  “Starman” is great fun; Joe is clearly enjoying himself.

“The Width of a Circle” is the long bomber, clocking in at almost 10 minutes.Β  Progressive, guitar heavy and epic.Β  After that exercise, “Ziggy Stardust” is rolled out, and always welcome.Β  That guitar riff, the familiar melodies, they never tire.Β  Of course, Leppard covered it a couple times but not as convincingly as this.

The Velvet Underground’s “White Light, White Heat”, which also appeared on Ronson’s second album, is a party.Β  Backing vocals on this are awesome.Β  Joe teases a “goodnight” at this point, but the tracklist on the back reveals three encores.

“Rock and Roll Suicide”, “Suffragette City” and Mott’s “All the Young Dudes” are a pretty good three-for-three.Β  Encores that start slowly and laid back like “Rock and Roll Suicide” does are often like a mini-set unto themselves.Β  “Suffragette City” blasts forth with punky energy and then “All the Young Dudes” is the anthem to end the party.

But that’s not it for the Cybernauts.Β  In 2001 they did a Japanese tour, recorded some stuff in the studio, and released it.Β  We’ll talk about that next time!

4/5 stars

Previous:Β Β 

  1. The Early YearsΒ Disc One – On Through the NightΒ 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early YearsΒ Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC RecordingsΒ 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your FaceΒ DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4

Next:

27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts

REVIEW: Def Leppard – Rarities 4 (CD Collection Volume 2)

Part Twenty-Five of the Def Leppard Review Series

DEF LEPPARD – Rarities 4 (CD Collection Volume 2 Disc 7) (2019)

These box sets are not easy monsters to review.  It makes more sense to discuss the bonus tracks in context with the related studio albums.  Regardless, Rarities 4 deserves a little extra attention.  This is the disc that I had a little bit of personal involvement with.

Back in the years 2000-2001, before Def Leppard had an official standalone live album or box sets, the released 11 tracks worth of live material on their own website, for free.  Unreleased and sourced from the Slang and Euphoria tours, these tracks were not just valuable but essential additions to your Def Leppard collections.  Like many things that exist online only, they eventually disappeared.  If you had them, you had them.  If you didn’t, you wouldn’t.

The full 11 tracks were:  “Two Steps Behind”, “Women”, “Demolition Man”, “When Love and Hate Collide”, “Action”, “Animal”, “Bringin’ On the Heartbreak/Switch 625”, “Miss You In A Heartbeat”, “Rock! Rock! (‘Til You Drop)”, “Goodbye” and “Paper Sun”.

A few years ago, I was contacted about my Def Leppard live tracks.  I was asked if I could provide the files, for use in a future box set.  I said “Hell yeah!”  Having a thank-you inside this set is one of my proudest moments.  They didn’t use them all, but instead they even dug up some addition live tracks that had never been released before.  For the record, the tracks from the original download collection that remain physically unreleased are:  “Two Steps Behind” (San Antonio 2000), “Women” (Salem 2000), “Action” (London 1999), “Animal” (Nashville), and “Rock! Rock! (‘Til You Drop)” (Cardiff 2000).  Instead for this they focused on special songs that were a little harder to find live versions of.

It’s really cool for something that once only existed as a file on your hard drive, to now sit as an officially pressed black vinyl record.  Hearing the tracks in a way never before.

The live tracks are organized in batches.  The first grouping comes from Montreal on the Slang tour in 1996.  First is the epic medley of “Bringing On the Heartbreak” and the rare “Switch 625”.  These are awesome versions.  They have a raw, unpolished sound yet the band still nail all the vocals and guitar thrills.  “Switch 625” is always a welcome track for its heaviness.  This version is extra chunky.  β€œLadies and gentlemen, the best drummer in the world, Mr. Rick Allen!”

Then another rarity:  the ballad “Miss You In A Heartbeat” acoustic with “Phillippe” Collen on lead vocals, but not before some shenanigans to the tune of “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door”:

β€œMama take this gin from me,
I can’t drink it anymore,
Where’s the sink, I gotta pee,
Looks like I’m checking into Betty Ford…”

It’s a delight to finally be able to share this version I’ve had for years with the world!

“Miss You In A Heartbeat” is always best in its fully electric version, but acoustically with Phil on vocals, it’s something special.  Truly it sounds great live, stripped and with Phil’s rasp.

Def Leppard must have found the original tapes for this Montreal gig, because I didn’t supply them with “Work It Out” or “Deliver Me”, two rarely heard bangers from Slang.  “Work It Out” was a single, a stuttery 90s construction that explored new territory for the British band.  They had come a long way from their New Wave of British Heavy Metal roots and were still writing new kinds of songs.  “Work It Out” has interesting guitars happening live, very different from the usual, but still Def Leppard.  “Deliver Me” is dark, heavy and maybe not idea for a Def Leppard concert, hence its rarity.  It’s cool to hear Leppard apply their vocal talents live to a song like this.  There are hooks but not happy bouncy ones.  This is more serious rocking.

This wraps up the live material from Montreal.  The CD detours into some interesting studio B-sides before we return to live songs later on.

“When Saturday Comes” doesn’t feature every member of Def Leppard – just Joe, Phil and Sav, and written by Joe.  This song and the instrumental “Jimmy’s Theme” are from the CD singles for “All I Want Is Everything” and a film called When Saturday Comes.  As such, they’re a little different.  Even it’s from the Slang era, “When Saturday Comes” has the bright anthemic singalong quality of a movie theme song.  “When Saturday comes, nothin’ else matters to me!”  Sounds like the good-time Leppard we remember regardless of the year.

“Jimmy’s Theme” on the other hand is a laid-back instrumental with a slightly bluesy feel.

Other B-sides from the “All I Want Is Everything” singles show up on a later box set, so fear not if you’re worried they left some out.  Moving on to the Euphoria era, there’s a sudden sonic shift as the band returned to a polished production sound.  “Burnout” (from one of the “Goodbye” CD singles) immediately sounds like the Leppard of Adrenalize.  Whether that’s your preference or not, it’s a heavy tune that probably could have served a useful purpose in toughening up the Euphoria album.  Some great guitar trickery on this one, and the return of the Leppard hook machine.  “Immortal” (also from the “Goodbye” single) is more upbeat, but does have a certain B-side quality.  Not bad, but something about it says “B-side”.

The singles for “Promises” had a couple cool B-sides as well.  “Worlds Collide” has to be one of the heaviest Leppard songs to date.  A solid pounder with a psychedelic bent, “Worlds Collide” proves Leppard hadn’t lost it.  Even in the Euphoria era, which felt like a grasp at past glories, there’s cool stuff like this that rocks without repeating history.

Finally there is “I Am Your Child”, the original Japanese bonus track from Euphoria.  It would have been nice to have it restored to the end of that album, because it really does make a fine coda.  “I Am Your Child” is a truly great Leppard tune with a variety of light and dark parts, and a super chorus.

Missing B-side from the “Promises” single is the “Album Snippets” featuring a three minute medley of some of the album tracks.  Not really necessary even for completists, but if you want it out you’ll have to buy the original single.  The cover tune “Who Do You Love” from the “Goodbye” single will turn up on a future box set.

Back to my live tracks to close the set:  “Demolition Man” from Denver in 1999 is so fast it sounds like they can barely keep up!  A real rarity that doesn’t get live action anymore.  Definitely a valuable inclusion, and a great listen due to the sheer energy of it.

Three tracks from Tokyo in 1999 end this disc.  “When Love and Hate Collide” has been heard a number of times in this box set, but this is the first fully electric live version in The CD Collection Volume 2.  Joe’s voice has a touch of rasp which gives it a little more edge.  Pretty great live version, justifying its inclusion over some of the other tracks.  Finally it’s two rare Euphoria tracks:  the epic “Paper Sun” and apt disc closer “Goodbye”.  “Paper Sun” just lays waste to the land, as one of the tracks that really has serious weight.  “Goodbye”, being a stock ballad, doesn’t have as much impact, but a live rarity it remains.

This brings us to the end of the The CD Collection Volume 2, the biggest most epic release I’ve ever had my name in.  To have that honour is so cool, something I will always treasure.  I don’t think Leppard needed my help with the Montreal tracks after all, but Denver and Tokyo sound like mine.  I hope one day they find reason to release the rest of the 11 download-only live songs.  Perhaps they’ll find the full tapes for Cardiff, Salem, San Antonio, London and Nashville.  Perhaps not.  Leppard are far from done issuing rarities.

The CD Collection Volume 2 is absolutely a valuable purchase for any Leppard fan looking to add the B-sides and EPs to their collections.  It’s not 100% complete, but it does cover most of the bases.  You’ll still want to track down a deluxe edition of Slang, and perhaps some CD singles if you have to have things like all the edit versions.  You may have noticed that things like cover versions haven’t popped up too much; you’ll understand why when we get to The CD Collection Volume 3.

4/5 stars

Next though, Joe Elliott and Phil Collen blow off some steam in their Bowie cover band / Mick Ronson tribute, The Cybernauts.  We’ll take a close look at two discs:  Cybernauts Live and The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts before the Leppard story continues!

Previous:  

  1. The Early Years Disc One – On Through the Night 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early Years Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC Recordings 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your Face DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3

Next:

26. Cybernauts – Live