Def Leppard enjoyed fantastic success throughout the Eighties with their albums 'Pyromania' and 'Hysteria' breaking all sales records. They were the Sheffield metal fans who became international stars and are still one of Britain's proudest rock exports. But what does singer Joe Elliott think of the decade in which his band grew and grew?
Says Joe: "I don't judge things on numbers. Somebody just asked me what I expect from the Nineties. I said 'Nothing much!' There's not going to be a big difference between now and December next year, or the year after that, right? But there will be a big difference between now and maybe 1993. I dunno. If I could predict what was going to happen in the future I'd be a...er, I'd have more money than Howard Hughes. I would just say I think things are going to keep going the way they are and progressing. There will be some kind of fashion turn where bands like us go ut of fashion, then come back in again. Things always chop and change. Maybe flares will come back in again. I dunno. When I look back at the Eighties I think musically it was a good ten years. But nor particularly for England. For us it was, and Iron Maiden. But other than us and Maiden absolute zilch came out of England in terms of rock'n'roll, as far as I'm concerned, that was significant enough to break through anywhere. I'm not saying bands like Shy...and er...FM...aren't good. But they weren't good enough to become Big League. Dare have come close and maybe they still wil break through. But there is something MISSING somewhere. There's no Who or Stones or Kinks coming through anymore.
Really, when you look at it, America has taken over. You've got yer Bon Jovis, yer Poisons, bands like Motley Crue. They have all been accepted in Britain. That's great but I just wish there were a few more English bands kicking bands like us up the ass! We are quite prepared to carry the flag as long as we have to."
Did Joe have an explanation for this mysterious state of affairs?
"I don't know what it is. Maybe there is a lack of get up and go? Maybe there is just a downright lack of talent. Or it could possibly be due to lack of management. I don't know. But look, it's as simple as this. You put a cassette, if it's good enough, in an envelope and post it to an American management company. If you're good they're ring you up the next day. The thing is, the management want bands. When we started, our EP that we made, somehow ended up in New York. Cliff heard it, he rang Mensch and said 'I want this band.' So if there is something there it'll get picked up. If there's nothing there, nobody will pick up on it. It's such a shame because there's got to be people out there. By the law of averages it must be so. And there is no lack of interest or audience for rock. We sold a quarter of a million albums, and Bon Jovi probably sold that many. Look what happens when Iron Maiden go on tour, and the crowds they can pull at Castle Donington every year.
Heavy Metal fans make very loyal audiences and they are fanatical, which is great. What they desperately need is a British band who can give the same dedication back. I think there are a few coming up now. Gun are potentially enormous and they are so YOUNG. They make us look like pensioners-and would have done even when we started out! I have seen a photograph of them and they look 15 years old. They have a lot of potential because their album is really good, and it's way better than our first album. So anything is possible. But one Dare and one Gun doesn't an English rock scene make! Not when you look at America and there are bands like Warrant selling a million albums and Winger selling two million. It's amazing when you think of a band like Warrant that we've hardly heard over here, selling a million. In the old days if you could sell a million you'd be headlining at arenas. Now you can sell a million and still not be headlining at club dates. I suppose it's because America is such a massive country...maybe it was just a fluke that in the Sixties so much brilliance came out of Britain and again in the Seventies with Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, and Wishbone Ash. And then in the Eighties...I sound like Colin off Bad News, don't I? But it's a fact. All of a sudden - the scene just dreid up."
Joe is pretty proud of his band's output during the Eighties but admits..."we still only made four records! I can remember back in 1978 when we first got together, a conversation about how funny it was that everybody always put out four studio albums and a double live album. So we thought, if we ever got a record deal, we wouldn't do that. We have stuck to it. We have put video out instead. The one thing the Eighties will be remembered for is the advent of video. In essence you've got a live album you can watch, which was never contemplated ten years ago. So ther have been a lot of good things about the Eighties and for us it was fantastic. But you talk about the English rock scene in general - well pop music was still there and then rock music came back a lot stronger and they have to play some of it on Radio One now. If Poison gets to number two anything is possible. I see Alice Cooper records in the Top Five in England I don't care if it's a pile of crap. I'll root for it. As it happens I think it's a great song, but you know what I mean. It's just good to see any kind of rock record getting into the charts. It's funny to think there are people buying Alice Cooper records now who weren't born when his 'Elected' was a hit 18 years ago. It's sixteen years since he had a song on the chart.
There's been a helluva lot of good bands come out of the Eighties, but there's only been two worth talking about from Britain. There's bound to be some kid will shout 'What about Dare!'. Well they came out this year and they've got the Nineties to look forward to. Dare and Gun will be the bands for the Nineties. But it's a shame about bands like Saxon who just didn't have any longevity. They put records out too often. If you put an album out every nine months you are gonna lose your audience!"