Italy! We are playing the Mediolanum Forum in Milan on 19 June with our friends Whitesnake. Tickets on sale tomorrow 25 October at 10am CET here: https://bit.ly/2PnQf0w
Just announced! We’re returning to Donington Park to headline Download Festival 2019. Tickets are on sale 25 October at https://downloadfestival.co.uk/tickets/
Def Leppard’s Phil Collen looks back at their hit Hysteria single Love Bites and admits that when it hit the top of the charts they’d never played it together in the same room
Def Leppard had never played Love Bites together in the same room when it hit the top of the charts back in 1988, says guitarist Phil Collen.
The song was just one of seven smash hit singles from 1987’s Hysteria – and was their only track to make it to no.1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
But in a new interview with Spotify’s Under Cover podcast, Collen says they struggled to pull the song together following its release as they had recorded it piecemeal in the years before the album’s release.
He says: “We’d never played Love Bites together when we released it. It was a studio song. We did bits and pieces here, and the next year we did some in another studio and tracked crazy vocals.
“We release it and it goes to no.1 on Billboard and we’ve never played it – our only no.1 Billboard single.
“Pour Some Sugar On Me was no.2, Armageddon It was two, we’ve had top 10s and all that. This was no.1 and we didn’t know how to play it. It was a real struggle playing guitar and singing at the same time – there’s so many vocals on it, but we finally got it.”
He says: “We did a covers album called Yeah! and we made a point to not do Beatles, Stones or Zeppelin – the run of the mill stuff. When this session came up, what was really interesting was that everyone was going, ‘Maybe be could do an Eagles song or an Abba song.’
Closing out a banner 2018, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame® nominees Def Leppard reveal a string of upcoming releases. The group assemble a brand new greatest hits collection entitled The Story So Far – The Best Of, arriving in stores and online November 30, 2018. It will be available in multiple configurations: a 2-CD set comprised of 35 tracks, 1-CD comprised of 17 tracks, 2LP vinyl, and digital. Among a blockbuster tracklisting loaded with timeless smashes, all four versions feature three new songs, including the official recording of the band’s recent fan favorite Depeche Mode cover “Personal Jesus,” “Rock On (Remix),” and the original holiday song “We All Need Christmas.” As a bonus for collectors, the first pressing vinyl copies of The Story So Far feature an exclusive 7” single of “Personal Jesus” and “We All Need Christmas.” See full tacklisting below.
The pre-order just went live today, and it unlocks an instant grat download of “Personal Jesus.” Rolling Stone claimed it “features a little more of the group’s signature giant vocals…and to great effect.” Essential for newcomers and longtime fans alike, The Story So Far plays out like the ultimate Def Leppard set upheld by stadium-size hits.
Additionally, Def Leppard is sharing a brand new Christmas single titled “We All Need Christmas”. A delicate acoustic ballad, the track proves fireside-ready with its uplifting, hopeful spirit and sense of seasonal soul.
Listen to “We All Need Christmas” HERE and stay on the lookout for the music video’s debut soon 🎄
Next up on November 30, Def Leppard will release Hysteria: The Singles, a new limited edition, 10-disc vinyl box set featuring all of the 7” singles from the multi-platinum album Hysteria, which celebrated its 30th anniversary last year. Hysteria: The Singles features repressed versions of all eight 7-inch vinyl singles for Hysteria including their Top-5 hits “Pour Some Sugar On Me,” “Animal,” “Love Bites,” “Hysteria,” “Rocket” and “Armageddon It.” Two bonus singles, “Excitable”/”Run Riot” (Album Version) and “Love and Affection”/”Don’t Shoot The Shotgun” (Album Version), are only available in this box set.
Housed in a box with a lift-off lid, Hysteria: The Singles features new cover art made up of all 10 of the single’s sleeves, including the special Spanish “Animal” single, plus a booklet with a full band discography and an introduction written by Joe Elliott.
Get Hysteria: The Singles vinyl singles box set HERE
Everything sets the stage for what promises to be an even bigger 2019. Be on the lookout for more from Def Leppard soon.
THE STORY SO FAR TRACKLISTING:
Disc 1
1. “Animal”
2. “Photograph”
3. “Pour Some Sugar On Me”
4. “Love Bites”
5. “Let’s Get Rocked”
6. “Armaggedon It”
7. “Foolin’”
8. “Two Steps Behind”
9. “Heaven Is”
10. “Rocket”
11. “Hysteria”
12. “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad”
13. “Make Love Like A Man”
14. “Action”
15. “When Love & Hate Collide”
16. “Rock of Ages”
17. “Personal Jesus”
Disc 2
1. “Let’s Go”
2. “Promises”
3. “Slang”
4. “Bringin’ On The Heartbreak”
5. “Rock On (Radio Remix)”
6. “Nine Lives” (feat. Tim McGraw)
7. “Work It Out”
8. “Stand Up”
9. “Dangerous”
10. “Now”
11. “Undefeated”
12. “Tonight”
13. “C’Mon C’Mon”
14. “Man Enough”
15. “No Matter What”
16. “All I Want Is Everything”
17. “It’s All About Believing”
18. “Kings Of The World”
HYSTERIA: THE SINGLES TRACKLISTING:
DISC ONE: Women / Tear It Down (US Version)
DISC TWO: Animal / I Wanna Be Your Hero (US Version)
DISC THREE: Hysteria / Ride in To the Sun (Int Version)
DISC FOUR: Pour Some Sugar on Me / Ring of Fire (US Version)
DISC FIVE: Love Bites / Billy’s Got A Gun (Live)(Int Version)
DISC SIX: Armageddon It / Release Me (Can Version)
DISC SEVEN: Rocket / Woman (Live) (US Version)
DISC EIGHT: Excitable / Run Riot (Album Version)
DISC NINE: Love and Affection / Don’t Shoot Shotgun (Album Version)
DISC TEN: Animal / Tear It Down (Spanish Artwork Version)
To be eligible for this year’s ballot, each nominee’s first single or album had to released in 1993 or earlier. Several of the nominees have appeared on previous ballots, but this is first appearance for Def Leppard, Devo, Prine, Roxy Music, Nicks and Rundgren. Radiohead and Rage Against the Machine both made their debut appearance last year in their first period of eligibility. This is the fifth appearance for Kraftwerk and LL Cool J, the fourth for the Zombies, the third for Janet Jackson and Rufus featuring Chaka Khan and the second for the Cure.
A voting pool of more than 1,000 artists, historians, journalists and members of the music industry will select the new class, and once again fans will have a chance to be a part of the process. They can vote on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s website or visit the museum in Cleveland and make a selection at an interactive kiosk.
As in recent years, the Hall of Fame has announced the individual members of each band that will be inducted. The current lineup of Def Leppard is listed along with the late Steve Clark and original guitarist Pete Willis.
The classic Roxy Music lineup of Bryan Ferry, Brian Eno, Andy Mackay, Phil Manzanera, Eddie Jobson and Paul Thompson made the cut, though none of their many bassists did. Roxy hasn’t played with Brian Eno since he left in 1973, which could lead to a historic reunion should the band get inducted.
The core Kraftwerk lineup of Karl Bartos, Wolfgang Flür, Ralf Hütter, Florian Schneider are listed, though at this point only Hütter remains in the group, setting up another possible reunion at the ceremony.
Many musicians have come and gone through the Cure over the years, but only Robert Smith, Porl Thompson, Perry Bamonte, Michael Dempsey, Simon Gallup, Lol Tolhurst, Boris Williams, Jason Cooper, Roger O’Donnell got the nod.
Rufus featuring Chaka Khan has been largely inactive since their slip in 1983. The Hall of Fame will induct Dennis Belfield, Al Ciner, Andre Fischer, Chaka Khan, Tony Maiden, Nate Morgan, Kevin Murphy, Ron Stockert, Bobby Watson should they receive enough votes.
Radiohead has had the same lineup since their formation in 1985, so it’s no great shock that Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Colin Greenwood, Ed O’Brien and Philip Selway all made the list. The big question is whether or not they’ll show up should they make it in. Last year, they booked a South American show on the evening of the induction ceremony before they learned they didn’t make the cut. Speaking toRolling Stone last year, bassist Colin Greenwood said he wasn’t sure if his bandmates would attend a Hall of Fame ceremony. “It might be me just doing bass versions of everything like, ‘Come on, you know this one!’” he said. “I’d have to play the bass part to ‘Creep’ five times.”
