Def Leppard takes fans back to '80s Wednesday, August 25, 1999 By James Chesna JOURNAL STAFF WRITER -------------------------- SAGINAW - When Def Leppard hit the stage and launched into "Rock, Rock Till You Drop" Tuesday night at Saginaw's Wendler Arena, an excitable crowd was only too happy to oblige the British pop metal rockers with a standing ovation. Leppard, making the second of three stops in Michigan, charged into a nearly two-hour set that was laden with hit after hit - an ample testament to how many times the band rode to the top of the charts with the success of such multimillion-selling albums as "Pyromania," "Hysteria" and "Adrenalize." Although the band got off to a shaky start, by the time singer Joe Elliott barked out "We are Def Leppard, and this is what we do" to start off a thumping version of "Women," Leppard was in full command of its chops, taking the audience back to the '80s when songs like "Rocket," "Hysteria," "Pour Some Sugar on Me," "Foolin"' and "Animal" were heavily rotated on MTV. But this was more than just a nostalgia show. The crowd was filled with as many young faces as old. As the Leps jumped into "Photograph" in the second half of the show, hands were raised in the air and the main floor bobbed up and down to drummer Rick Allen's chugging downbeats. Known for its studio alchemy - and a penchant for taking longer to complete albums than most bands stay in the limelight - Leppard brought the same kind of rich production values to Wendler's live setting. Guitarists Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell traded melodic, surgical precision leads while Elliott worked the throng to the pulse of Rick Savage's bass. Vocals blended with almost surreal harmony, especially on ballads like "Love Bites." The only drawbacks were that Campbell, a wood shredder known for his work with metal stalwarts Ronnie James Dio and Whitesnake, wasn't given a little more room to let his squawking leads breathe, and that Leppard's anthemic hard rock, best suited for larger arenas, seemed somewhat less powerful when bounced off several empty rows of seats in the upper decks. Tesla offshoots Moon Dog Mane opened the show with some raucous, barroom 12-bar rock 'n' roll, but with the exception of Tesla's "Signs," the group did little to challenge Leppard's drawing power. Copyright 1999 Michigan Live Inc.