DOCUMENT TITLE: Music News Of The World - April 23, 1997

Music News Of The World
-April 23, 1997 -

Edited by Michael Goldberg

You Say It's Your Birthday: Def Leppard's Steve Clark


Today is the birthday of late Def Leppard guitarist Steve Clark,
who was born in 1960 in England. Def Leppard are best known for
marrying heavy metal style with arena-rock sensibilities, carving
a place for themselves at the core of metal's renaissance in the
mid-1980s.

Founded by guitarist Pete Willis, bassist Rick Savage and vocalist
Joe Elliott in 1977, the group played pubs until they found Clark
and a temporary drummer to record their first EP, Getcha Rocks Off.
The bandmates were barely out of their teens when they recorded 1981's
High and Dry; drummer Rick Allen was only 15 when he was hired.

Def Leppard was blessed with opening slots for AC/DC, Sammy Hagar
and Ted Nugent; their singles, like "Bringin' on the Heartbreak,"
began to see radio and MTV airplay. With 1983's Pyromania came another
string of hits like "Rock of Ages" and "Foolin'." Allen lost his
left arm in a New Year's Eve car accident, but miraculously relearned
to play his drum kit through the use of several rigged foot pedals.

The band's best-selling album, Hysteria, was released in 1987 and
scored six top twenty singles, including "Pour Some Sugar On Me,"
"Armageddon It," "Love Bites" and the title track. The record sold
14 million copies. However, that seemed to be Def Leppard's peak;
for years they didn't record, and in 1991 Clark overdosed on a mixture
of alcohol and drugs. The 1992 release of Adrenalize, with new drummer
Vivian Campbell, scored a few hits, but last year's Slang barely
charted.

Other birthdays: Paul Clifford (ex-Wonderstuff), Billy Gould (Faith
No More bassist), the late Roy Orbison and Narada Michael Walden.
-- Beth Winegarner

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