Full Description
In the
beginning, there was Led Zeppelin - and Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple, the
progenitors of British heavy metal, a musical form that wildly expanded the
terrain of rock in the early Seventies. And as that decade progressed, it began
to mutate, as Judas Priest fused heavy metal's intensity and dark emotion with
unbridled theatricality and the power of twin guitars. The New Wave of British
Heavy Metal was underway. Five young men from Sheffield - some of them still in
school - took that new sound and infused it with large doses of the glam they'd
grown up on - T. Rex, Queen, Davie Bowie - and blazed a trail into the
Eighties, leading NWOBHM into the new era of MTV.
Taking the name Def Leppard, they brought
unprecedented energy and innovation to every song, to every show, then
partnering with legendary producer Mutt Lange to become heavy metal's apostles
to top 40 radio - delivering an astonishing string of hit singles and
multi-platinum albums while setting new standards for arena rock.
They're
still rocking the world today, a dozen albums in, touring the world and never
resting on their laurels. Heavy metal, NWOBHM, hair metal have all come and
gone - but Def Leppard remain
