http://www.classicrockrevisited.com/Rick%20Allen%20of%20Def%20Lep.htm

Rick Allen
of Def Leppard

X Marks The Spot!
by Jeb Wright

We owe many thank you's to Sue Tropio, Christina Kotsamanidis & Mighty
Martin Popoff

Classic Rock Revisited recently caught up with Def Leppard drummer Rick
Allen to discuss the band's latest release X.

Rick told us that the band is on tour in the States throughout the summer
and possibly into the fall. Not content to rest on their laurels, Leppard
and Allen are busy promoting both the new songs and keeping the past alive
by dusting off classics from High n' Dry to willing audiences everywhere.

During our intervew we discussed some of Lep's legacy and talked about
Allen's recovery from losing an arm in an auto accident.  Don't miss this
compelling interview with one of rock's most distinctive drummers.

____________________________________________________________

Jeb: Def Leppard is back on tour!

Rick: We started back in November in Japan, then we did a few shows in the
States before Christmas and then went to Europe. Myself, Phil and Vivian
all live over here, so this is home for us.

Jeb: It seems that England takes Def Lep better now then they used to.

Rick: Somewhat. It is just that they have a different radio structure. It
does not seem to cater to a band like us, as it does over here.

Jeb: I heard you were selling out some big stadiums over there.

Rick: We were doing a combination of different kinds of shows. Our
hometown show was pretty big. There were over 15,000 people. We played
some theater type shows as well. It was a combination of different sized
venues.

Jeb: How is the new album doing?

Rick: It seems to be doing pretty good. We are tending to get more
promotion over in England at the moment. For instance, we made a video for
the song "Long, Long Way To Go" that is not even going to be out over
here.

Jeb: The new album shows Def Lep stretching the boundaries again. Euphoria
was more classic Def Leppard than this one is.

Rick: The whole idea was to make a record that sort of sounded like a
classic Def Leppard album with a contemporary edge to it. We really
believe that we achieved that. It is somewhat frustrating to us that the
record company has decided not to push "Long, Long Way To Go." Instead,
they are going to go with "Everyday" on rock radio.

Jeb: I noticed that you are using outside writers.

Rick: We decided that it would be an interesting collaboration for us to
work with other people and it paid off.

Jeb: How did you choose your writers?

Rick: It was just a combination of people that management or the record
company people knew.

Jeb: The writing credits show both Def Leppard members and outsiders, so I
take it you worked hands on with the writers.

Rick: That seemed like the best way to go. We got a combination of what we
wanted, the way we heard it, and also whatever their influence was.

Jeb: What is going on after the tour? Have you even thought about it?

Rick: Not really. Everybody always has songwriting in mind. Whenever we
are out on the road it is not just literally playing the shows. Everyone
is thinking about the next project.

Jeb: You grew up playing Rock N Roll. Looking back now, what perspective
do you have on that? I was buying your records and you were making them.
We are about the same age.

Rick: It was an interesting way to grow up. In a lot of ways I missed out
on a large part of my teenage years. I was with the band. We have
literally grown up together. We have gone from boys to men.

Jeb: A lot of bands can't survive that. How did you personally?

Rick: Really, just friendship. It was nothing to do with the music; it was
how we related to one and other. We still have disagreements but they are
disagreements; they don't get nasty. It is like democracy in the true
sense; everybody has a say. Democracy over in America seems to work where
some people are more equal than others.

Jeb: Is it an increasing challenge, each album, to be accepted on a large
scale? Some of the die-hard fans don't want Def Leppard to change.

Rick: I think it's a clever combination of what we deem to be moving
forward and pushing the boundaries. We still are a classic sounding Def
Leppard. We can never change the sound of Joe's voice. People always like
to hear the backing vocals the way that we use them. I think that part of
it is difficult to change. I think the die-hards are catered for, as well.

Jeb: At what time did Def Leppard, as a collective band, know that you
could take hard rock to the next level, in terms of commercial appeal and
record sales?

Rick: I think it was really when we released Pyromania. With Pyromania we
just blew the roof off the place. I woke up one day and realized that I
had a bank account! We realized that we could pretty much do anything, and
people would like it. I think, to this day, what we were doing was ahead
of its time.

Jeb: Without a doubt. There were a lot of bands at that time peaking, such
as Scorpions and Judas Priest, but what you did with that album and the
next one was to take the music in a new direction. You kept your core
audience and you grew into new ones.

Rick: I know; it's true. We have been really fortunate. I wake up everyday
and I can't believe I do this for a job.

Jeb: It seems that you guys, as a band, like to distance yourself from the
first two albums, On Through The Night and High n' Dry.

Rick: Actually, on this particular tour we are digging into a lot of the
older songs that we used to do. We are playing songs from every album.. We
are changing the set every night. I don't think we have played the same
set twice.

Jeb: In the past you stuck to a set, set list.

Rick: Yeah, pretty much; because the show was very structured. The way
that technology works these days, it is easier to change things.

Jeb: I would love to hear Viv on some of the classic Def Lep tunes.

Rick: It is cool. We literally do the whole first side of High n' Dry. The
fans love it. We throw it out right in the beginning. It is really fun. We
are delving into the past. I think we play the songs better now than when
we were young and naive. We were just playing the way we thought they
should go. Now, I really believe that we do them a lot better.

Jeb: How does Viv change the dynamics of the band?

Rick: He has got a great sense of melody and a lot of soul. He is a great
singer, but above all he is a great soccer player.

Jeb: Do I remember hearing about Def Leppard and Iron Maiden playing each
other in soccer years ago?

Rick: We did. I can't remember whether we won or lost. They had a pretty
good team. We won one and we lost one, so I think it was even at the end
of the day. Steve Harris came along to the show, when we played in London.

Jeb: Does your fan reaction still get to you, after all of the years that
have gone by?

Rick: Absolutely. Who wouldn't want that?

Jeb: What is left for Def Leppard to conquer? You have either been on top
or survived everything that can be thrown at a band. Are you just playing
for fun now?

Rick: We really enjoy doing what we do. The other thing is that we have
been asked to play in countries where we have never played before. They
want us to go to the former Eastern Block; that should be really
interesting.

Jeb: How much credit does Mutt Lange get for taking you from being a
successful hard rock band to being superstars?

Rick: I think he redefined our sound and allowed us to produce a sound
that was easier to crossover between different radio formats. It allowed
us to attract the girls along to the show and we still had enough
credibility, in terms of our guitar sound, for the guys to want to come
along as well.

Jeb: How good a depiction did VH1 do with your movie?

Rick: I think they did a really good job, given that they had so much
information to cram into such a short amount of time. I think they got the
main points right. Like any movie or TV presentation that you see, there
is a certain amount of artistic license. I think, generally, it was really
good.

Jeb: As Pyromania catapulted Def Leppard to new heights you had your
accident.

Rick: Yeah, I know. It was an interesting time for me, as you can imagine.
We just wanted to carry on. The guys really gave me time to recover and to
do what I needed to do to get better.

Jeb: As a human being, you were not only trying to stay in the band as a
drummer, but you were having to deal with the emotional side of it. It had
to be hell.

Rick: I tended to put that to one side. I don't think I really dealt with
the mental aspects of what I was going through, until quite a bit later.
It was not until after I got back with the band, and started playing again
that I dealt with it. The band was really my main focus. It was not until
quite a few years after that, I started to deal with the mental aspects at
all.

Jeb: Was the band a good distraction?

Rick: They were always there for me. It was like having my best buds out
with me. If I needed to talk about something, there was always someone who
I could bounce my concerns or ideas off of.

Jeb: Do you consider yourself to be as big an inspiration as other people
do?

Rick: I can only believe what people say that they think I am. Believe me,
that becomes a two way street. Just the other day, I went to visit this
guy named Derrick, who lives outside of Cleveland. In June, he stepped
into a power line while he was standing on a cherry picker. 7000 volts
went through his body. It blew his hands and his scalp off. The guy is in
a mess. I went to see him and he is looking up to me. At the same time, I
am in awe of the progress that this guy has made. Believe me, it is a two
way street. I have the Raven Drum Foundation as well, which is basically
bringing ancient wisdom, doing workshops and just trying to empower
people.

Jeb: When you came up with the new drum set... it was more than one guy
wasn't it?

Rick: At first, it was just one guy. It was a friend of mine who came into
the hospital to see me. I had a piece of foam at the end of my bed and he
saw that I was tapping my feet on it. He had the realization that he could
build pedals based on the movements I was making. We built a very simple
drum kit. It was very basic but it worked. Other companies got involved
and we worked with each other, instead of against each other.

Jeb: How big a thrill was it for you personally when you finally got it
right?

Rick: To this day, it is really still a learning curve. It gets better and
better every night. I discover new things about my playing all the time.
The biggest testimony is when you take it out to an audience and you get a
reaction from an audience. The culmination of all my emotions was when we
did the Donnington gig. It was really immense. I had 50,000 people behind
me. My folks were there and my brother was there. The whole band was
behind me. They all really wanted me to succeed; the crowd included.

Jeb: The flip side to that must have been the negative emotions that came
out later and became ugly.

Rick: I think that is a natural process of elimination. It all percolates
to the surface.

Jeb: The emotional low for Def Leppard had to be losing a comrade to drugs
and booze.

Rick: I don't think it matters whether it is a band member or a friend, as
much as it is to just lose a young person and to realize that you are not
going to grow old with them. It is just devastating.

Jeb: Did that wake you guys up, or did you have your heads on better?

Rick: Everybody has been through various addictions and this that and the
other, but I don't think anybody had it as bad as Steve. Seeing your best
friend die is a bit of a wake up call.

Jeb: On a lighter note, whose idea was it to play in the round?

Rick: To be honest, it was our management company. They had seen Frank
Sinatra play in the round. We wanted to see if we could make it work, in
that particular setting, with a rock band. It really was cool. We were
playing to four front rows.

Jeb: I doubt Sinatra had the same activities going on under the round.

Rick: One never knows, does one? Boys will be boys.