From Asbury Park Press Newspaper AUGUST 1, 2003 PAGE X: ROCK OF AGES Joe Elliott on drummer's comeback from tragedy, new CD By Mark Voger Page X Writer The music video would never be the same after Def Leppard's clips for "Photograph" and "Rock of Ages" took MTV by storm in '83, with their innovative camera angles, lighting -- and singer JOE ELLIOTT working it in his sleeveless "union jack" shirt. But for all of Leppard's success, there was plenty of heartache. In 1984, drummer RICK ALLEN lost his left arm in a car accident. In 1991, guitarist STEVE CLARK died of a mixture of alcohol and pain killers. Nineteen years after his accident, Allen is still Leppard's drummer. His comeback from the tragedy is one of the most inspirational stories in rock. "Rick had a friend of his in Sheffield (England) design these pedals that enable him to play the snare drum with his (left) foot," Elliott says. "Basically, that's the redundant foot in rock 'n' roll, because you don't really do 'hi-hat' stiff in rock 'n' roll. "The first time we heard Rick play (after the accident) was definitely a teary-eyed moment. Not only had he actually succeeded, but he'd done it so much faster than anybody had ever given him any credit for. He was told by all the doctors it would take years. Took him four and a half months." For Leppard's most recent album "X" (Universal), the band tried a new approach: planning. Elliott explains with a chuckle that Leppard traditionally doesn't go into the studio with a game plan. "We make it up as we go along!" Elliott says. "We normally discuss what we want to do on the next record on the first day of recording the next record. We just go, 'Oh, who's got what? And where are we goin' with it?' "With this album, we actually sat down on the bus toward the 'Euphoria' tour (in 2000) and discussed what kind of record we wanted to make before we went in." The battle plan for "X," according to Elliott, was to make a record that was "unashamedly commercial." "We wanted it to be a pop record." Elliott says, "the way 'Hysteria' (1987) turned into a pop record by virtue of the six singles." To that end, Leppard decided to use three producers including ANDREAS CARLSSON (of CELINE DION and BACKSTREET BOYS fame). "There's a misconception of, 'Why are they working with this guy?'" Elliott says. "Andreas is a huge, big rock fan, massively influenced by DIO and stuff like that. "For once in our lives, we got it done on time, under budget and just the way that we expected it to sound." To keep things fresh on its current tour, Leppard changes its spots, er, set list every night. "There's at least one song from every album in the pot," Elliott promises. "It's a career retrospective, not just a 'greatest hits' with a few new ones throw in. "Somewhere along the way, we actually woke up one day and realized that we haven't got anything to prove to anybody anymore. We're just goin' out there and doin' it." ** Def Leppard and Ricky Warwick are scheduled to perform at 8 p.m. tomorrow at the PNC Bank Arts Center, Exit 116 off the Garden State Parkway, Holmdel. $27.50-$49.25. (732) 335-8698. Online: www.artscenter.com