“The motivation for being an artist or in a band or a musician is very different from what it was when I started. Music is much more segregated now, Collen said, and he doesn’t see the same thing driving today’s new artists in the age of Instagram and Facebook as did Def Leppard when it was a young, hungry band out of Sheffield, England. It’s a different scene now from the days when MTV would play such a diverse slate of artists as The Go-Go's, Michael Jackson, Billy Idol, Prince and Def Leppard in the same hour. That was kind of like the golden age of excess and everything.” I think that’s the reason, because (of) all that hard work in the ’80s. "The fact that we’re still allowed to create and still be artistic I find amazing. The guitarist has said he’ll probably take treatments for the rest of his life. Campbell was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2013. Guitarist and songwriter Steve Clark died in 1991 of alcohol poisoning. Allen lost his left arm in a car accident in 1984. It’s like, ‘Wow, why wouldn’t you want to do that?’ That doesn’t get old.”ĭef Leppard’s personal tragedies over the decades are well documented. People say, ‘Don’t you ever get tired? Is it a chore? Is it boring?’ Are you kidding? To have people singing back songs you spent a good amount of time writing and recording and then they’re singing back at you. “It’s why you get in a band in the first place, to play live in front of people. “It’s, to me, the easiest part of the whole thing - once you stay fit and healthy and that,” he said of touring. That adjustment in lifestyle is one of the things that has allowed Def Leppard to still tour as heavily as it does, said Collen, who hasn’t had a drink in 30 years. I think there’s a lot more professionalism, a lot more integrity.” “It’s a little different than say back in the ’80s. “So yeah, I guess if that’s hanging out with other bands, we definitely do that,” Collen said, laughing. He recounts a story about how they had so much fun playing together his daughter wet her pants.
The last time Def Leppard toured with Poison in 2012, Collen's daughter and DeVille’s son, both 3 or 4 at the time, became fast friends out on the road. The hard partying of the heyday has given way to things like workouts, family time and side projects.Ĭollen is producing Tesla’s new album, due out at year’s end. The thought of all those rock stars backstage together during the height of ’80s excess conjures up a far different image than the one you’re likely to find today. RELATED: Meet the kid who stole the Green Day show RELATED: Our Journey band singer reviews Journey's show at Resch It’s not a bunch of fake musicians pretending to be something else like karaoke-style.” I think that’s why a lot of people really dig this kind of package. There’s not a lot of integrity and not a lot of sticking together for the right reasons. “You don’t really see that much these days. And Poison, it’s the same four guys,” Collen said. Tesla took a hiatus and is back with its original members except for one person. It’s not like the lead singer or the drummer from some band with a bunch of strangers in there just going back out on tour. “All three bands, it’s the original members. Def Leppard is out with Poison, touring with its original lineup for the first time in more than five years, and Tesla.
The sing-alongs to such monster arena hits as “Rock of Ages,” “Pour Some Sugar on Me,” “Photograph” and “Let’s Get Rocked,” the vintage Union Jack T-shirts and at least a couple of guys still hoisting lighters are inevitable whenever the band hits the road, but there’s something special about this tour, Collen said. for 11 years, so that’s going to be smokin’ hot,” Collen said. When they return to the Resch Center on April 19 for their third trip to that venue, the cold won’t be a problem.
It was 1992 - the same year the “Adrenalize” album debuted at the top of the charts - and the British rockers played back-to-back shows to 11,000-plus at Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena. After 35 years of touring all over the globe with Def Leppard, it’s a wonder guitarist Phil Collen can recall ever even being in Green Bay, much less a specific show.