Def Leppard’s hit “Rock of Ages” from 1983’s breakout album Pyromania started out with these lyrics:
Alright, I got something to say
Yeah, its better to burn out, Yeah, than fade away
Of course, Def Leppard was only referencing the Neil Young song “Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black) which also said, “It’s better to burn out/Than to fade away.” The cry of burnout out before fading away became a bit of a slogan for rockers, including Nirvana lead singer Kurt Cobain, who quoted that in his suicide note.
However, Def Leppard managed to stay hot all these years, despite hardships and turmoil.
The Pyromania album (I bought the CD and managed to wear the lettering off of it from so much play) thrust Def Leppard into the rock n’ roll limelight in the early 80s. Def Leppard formed in 1979 when most of the members were still in their teens. Barely into their twenties when they hit the big time, Def Leppard, like many rock n’ roll bands, went through their excess stage. The band was known for entertaining groupies and some in the band fell prey to the lure of drugs and alcohol. Guitarist Steve Clark was in and out of rehab before dying in 1991 due to a mixture of prescription drugs and alcohol.
But before Steve’s death, the band had to deal with another type of tragedy which is rarely seen in rock bands. Drummer Rick Allen was just 21 years old when he was involved in car wreck in which the seat belt severed his left arm. As a drummer, this was surely a career ending accident, but Simmons built a custom electronic drum kit for Allen and that band saw even more success with the release of their next album Hysteria.
The grunge craze of the 90s didn’t prevent Def Leppard from releasing Adrenalize in 1992 (it reached #1 on both the U.S. and the U.K. charts). The band release Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits 1980-1995 in 1995 and it sold over 8 million copies worldwide. They were featured in a 1998 VH1 “Behind the Music” episode, which covered the band’s success and tragedies. They were inaugural inductees in to the “VH1 Rock Honors” along with Queen, Kiss, and Judas Priest.
The band released Songs from the Sparkle Lounge in April 2008, which reached #5 on the Billboard 200 charts. A tour kicked off in the U.S. right before the album was released and this month, the band is touring the U.K.
Although fame found them at very early ages, the most of the members of Def Leppard have managed to avoid the “fade away” title while the band still tops the charts with hits.