Def Leppard

The band has stated that they are very satisfied with this album, and that in many ways they wish it had been the follow-up to Hysteria. Other bands Evanescence has been compared to include Lacuna Coil, Nightwish and Within Temptation, all of which also employ the use of female vocals. X, Def Leppard's tenth album, was released in 2002. On many music-related news articles, the band is often compared to nu-metal band Linkin Park, but many fans find this comparison unfair because it is based almost solely on their hit single "Bring Me to Life." Much of their other music, they say, sounds very different. Next came the album Euphoria in 1999. Critics have accused Evanescence of being "wannabe" goth rockers, but really just pop. Lee, however, dismisses these claims as mere "labels" and refuses to categorize and (to paraphrase) put in a box the band's music since she believes Evanescence has a unique sound unlike any other. He collaborated in the songwriting for Slang, which was released in 1996. The piano plays a significant role in the majority of the band's music.

Vivian Campbell had previously been in Sweet Savage, Dio, Whitesnake, Trinity, Riverdogs, and Shadow King. Many say that the band is goth rock, which is true in certain respects. Certainly, many of its songs focus on life's negative moments and darker themes such as lost love, loneliness and death. In 1992, guitarist Vivian Campbell joined Def Leppard. More widely known softer songs include "My Immortal," "Everybody's Fool" and "Imaginary," which to an extent, can be categorized as pop. Retroactive was followed by the release of Vault 1995, Def Leppard's Greatest Hits, which sold 3.5 million copies. While there are the heavier songs it is generally known for such as "Going Under," "Bring Me to Life" and "Whisper," they only really constitute a minority of all the songs by the band. Some of this album's songs were written as B-sides for Hysteria singles. Evanescence fits roughly into the generic genre of rock, but in fact sounds quite different among its arsenal of songs.

Retroactive was released in 1993 and is a collection of songs which, although not new, were either rare or never previously released. Eventually it was Terry Balsamo, from Cold who joined the band in Moody's place. It was also nominated for Best Video of the Year at the 1992 9th MTV Video Music Awards. However, it did not have the longevity of their previous albums, and in retrospect many fans consider it one of their weakest albums. Former Limp Bizkit guitarist Wes Borland had been mentioned as a replacement for Moody and Lee described him as a friend, suggesting they may write together on their next record. It remained there for five weeks, selling six million copies, and the first single, "Let's Get Rocked," was on MTV's video countdown for a long time. In an interview several months later [1] (http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/01/08/1073437399128.html), Lee said "we'd gotten to a point that if something didn't change, we wouldn't have been able to make a second record." Since, Lee has said it was almost a relief that he left because of tensions. The album entered the US charts at number 1. To this day, he has not fully explained the reason for his leave.

Adrenalize was finally released in 1992, the only album recorded by Leppard as a four-piece (Elliott, Collen, Savage, and Allen). In October 2003, Moody left the band abruptly in the middle of a European tour. After Hysteria 's release, internal problems (including the death of guitarist Steve Clark from a drug and alcohol overdose on January 8, 1991) resulted in a long delay before the follow-up. When the band finally did make an appearance, they became one of the most popular acts in the area. Much of Leppard's success in the 1980s is credited to their producer, Robert John 'Mutt' Lange, who was considered by the band to be its sixth member. However, a song of theirs entitled "Understanding" found its way onto local music charts, and demand for a live show increased. The seventh and last single to be released from this album was Rocket in early 1989 (see 1989 in music). For some time they were unable to find other musicians to play with, and did not have the funds to pay for professional assistance, thus they were unable to play live shows.

The album included a total of six Top 20 singles. They discovered they shared a love of Jimi Hendrix and Björk, and they began to write songs together. Album sales were slow until the fourth single, "Pour Some Sugar On Me", became a hit. The two met at a youth camp in Arkansas, where Moody heard Lee playing Meat Loaf songs on the piano. The first released single, Women, was not very successful. The group was founded by Lee and former lead guitarist Ben Moody. Leppard's next album, Hysteria, (yet again produced by Lange), was released in 1987 (see 1987 in music). In response, Lee encouraged fans to download the band's older songs from the internet during an interview.

He then worked with Simmons to design a custom electronic drum kit. Only 2500 copies of this record were ever made, and it is thus not generally available in record stores. He practiced drumming with pillows, and realized that he could use his legs to do some of the percussive work previously done with his arms. However, Lee herself does not consider the record to be an actual album; rather, she considers it merely a bundle of demo songs (some of which she says are not done properly) that was sent to record companies. While recovering in the hospital from his accident, Rick was committed to continuing his role as Def Leppard's drummer. In fact, the recording of "My Immortal" found on Fallen can also be found on Origin, minus a handful of additional instrumental accompaniments. The period after the album's success, however, was difficult: on December 31, 1984, Rick Allen lost his left arm in a car crash in which his Corvette veered off the road into a concrete wall. Not atypically, Origin and the EPs contain demo versions of some of the songs on their first major-label album.

Aided by the singles "Photograph", "Rock of Ages", and "Foolin'", Pyromania sold six million copies in 1983 & 84. Their first record, Origin (released in 2000), is relatively unknown, and previously released EPs in 1998 and 1999 are even less known, though highly sought after by collectors. Lange was again the producer. It was included in the soundtrack for the action movie Daredevil and garnered recognition for the band at the Grammy Awards of 2004: The single was awarded Best Hard Rock Performance, and Evanescence was awarded Best New Artist. This personnel change took place during the recording of their next release, Pyromania (January 20, 1983). Evanescence's debut single "Bring Me to Life" was a global hit for the band and reached #5 on the American Billboard Hot 100. Pete Willis later recorded with the bands Gogmagog and Roadhouse. The band's lead singer Amy Lee has insisted the band is not Christian and does not intend to send a Christian message, even though she is in fact a Christian herself.

Phil Collen, former guitarist from the band Girl, replaced Pete Willis who was fired on July 11, 1982 due to alcoholism. The initial labeling of the band as Christian stirred much controversy, until Christian stores eventually took Fallen off the shelves. From it, "Bringin' on the Heartbreak"'s video was one of the first "metal" videos played on MTV video. "Tourniquet", for example, is about suicide and redemption, with lyrics like "Am I too lost to be saved? My God, my tourniquet, return to me salvation." It should be noted however, that the song was a cover, written by members of Rocky Gray's previous band, Soul Embraced. High 'N' Dry (1981 in music) was their first album to be produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Originally considered by many to be part of the Christian rock scene — and for a short time promoted in Christian stores — the band has distanced itself from such categorization, even though Fallen (2003), their first major-label release, had some religious themes. Their major label debut was On through the Night (1980 in music).
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They signed to Mercury Records. Past Band members:. Rick Allen was added as the permanent drummer, to replace Kenning. Evanescence is a rock band from Little Rock, Arkansas, consisting of:. They began playing locally and soon added Steve Clark before recording the underground hit "Getcha Rocks Off" for Bludgeon Riffola, their own label. Everybody's Fool, Modern rock tracks, peaked at #36. Elliott had thought of the name Deaf Leopard in school and the band changed the name to Def Leppard based on the way Led Zeppelin spelled their name. My Immortal, Top 40 tracks, peaked at #2.

Rick Savage (bass), Pete Willis (guitars) and Tony Kenning (drums) formed the band in 1977 in Sheffield (see 1977 in music). Joe Elliott joined as the vocalist, and brought the name of the band with him, originally they were called Atomic Mass. My Immortal, Top 40 mainstream, peaked at #2. Def Leppard are a band from Sheffield, England, that emerged in the late 1970s as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. My Immortal, Adult Top 40 Recurrents, reached #1. 2003 "Long Long Way to Go" #40 UK. My Immortal, Hot 100, peaked at #7. 2002 "Now" #23 UK. My Immortal, Canadian singles chart, reached #1.

1999 "Promises" #38 US. My Immortal, Adult Top 40, reached #1. 1996 "All I Want Is Everything" #38 UK. My Immortal, Adult contemporary, peaked at #19. 1996 "Work It Out" #22 UK. Going Under, Canadian singles chart, peaked at #14. 1996 "Slang" #17 UK. Going Under, Modern rock tracks, peaked at #5.

1995 "When Love and Hate Collide" #2 UK. Going Under, Mainstream rock tracks, peaked at #26. 1994 "Action" #14 UK. Bring Me To Life, Adult Top 40 Recurrents, reached #1. 1993 "Miss You in a Heartbeat" #39 US. Bring Me To Life, Canadian singles chart, peaked at #3. 1993 "Two Steps Behind" #32 UK, #12 US. Bring Me To Life, Top 40 tracks, reached #1.

1993 "Tonight" #34 UK. Bring Me To Life, Top 40 mainstream, reached #1. 1993 "Heaven Is" #13 UK. Bring Me To Life, Hot 100, peaked at #5. 1992 "Stand Up (Kick Love into Motion)" #34 US. Bring Me To Life, Modern rock tracks, reached #1. 1992 "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad" #16 UK, #12 US. Bring Me To Life, Mainstream rock tracks, peaked at #11.

1992 "Make Love Like a Man" #12 UK, #36 US. Bring Me To Life, Adult Top 40, peaked at #4. 1992 "Let's Get Rocked" #2 UK, #15 US. Anywhere But Home (2004). 1989 "Rocket" #15 UK, #12 US. Fallen (includes 'My Immortal' (Band Version)) (2004). 1988 "Love Bites" #11 UK, #1 US. Fallen (2003).

1988 "Armageddon It" #20 UK, #3 US. Origin (2000). 1987 "Hysteria" #26 UK, #10 US. Sound Asleep EP. 1987 "Pour Some Sugar on Me" #18 UK, #2 US. Evanescence EP. 1987 "Animal" #6 UK, #19 US. David Hodges - Keyboards (left December 2002).

1987 "Women" #80 US. Ben Moody - Lead guitar (co-founder - left October 2003). 1983 "Rock of Ages" #16 US. Terry Balsamo - Guitar (replacement for co-founder Ben Moody). 1983 "Photograph" #12 US. William Boyd - Bass. 1983 "Foolin'" #28 US. Rocky Gray - Drums.

Rock Of Ages - The Definitive Collection (2005). John LeCompt - Guitar. The Best of Def Leppard (2004). Amy Lee - Vocals and Piano (co-founder). X (2002) #14 UK, #11 US. Euphoria (1999)#11 UK, #11 US.

Slang (1996) #5 UK, #14 US. Vault: Def Leppard's Greatest Hits 1980-1995 (1995) #3 UK, #15 US. Retro Active (1993) #6 UK, #9 US. Adrenalize (1992) #1 UK, #1 US.

Hysteria (1987) #1 UK, #1 US. Pyromania (1983) #18 UK, #2 US. High 'N' Dry (1981) #26 UK, #38 US. On through the Night (1980) #15 UK, #51 US.