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Date Published: Friday 14 February 2003

The Southern Daily Echo
Def Leppard
by Michael Heatley

Def Leppard, now in their third decade, still love touring. MICHAEL
HEATLEY talks to lead man Joe Elliott...

When you reach your forties, living happily in bohemian, tax-friendly
Dublin, there must be a temptation to view rock'n'roll as a younger man's
game. Toiling in a recording studio and following up with months on the
road can't seem all that attractive a proposition - but Def Leppard's Joe
Elliott only once considered an alternative career.

The offer to play Sean Bean's screen brother in the film When Saturday
Comes would have given the singer - a lifelong Sheffield United fan - the
chance to tread the hallowed turf of Bramall Lane, but music came first.
"They wanted Sean Bean's younger brother," Elliott, 43, admits. "And with
all the make-up in the world it would have been a bit difficult to go back
to 24!" When his band plays Portsmouth Guildhall on February 17 we'll all
be able to judge the wisdom of his decision.

Leppard's self-confessed mission in life used to be "to make Queen albums
better than Queen did," but a whole new set of influences have since
emerged. Elliott now sees them as contemporaries of U2, Led Zeppelin and
the Stones in terms of longevity and how they want to progress. 

Bowie and the Beatles are other names that come up in Joe's conversation
time and again for their music's "organic qualities". And X, their current
and tenth release, goes even further in opening up to new influences by
using outside production and songwriting teams, including Aerosmith
collaborator Marty Fredriksen and Cheiron, the Scandinavians behind
Britney Spears and Backstreet Boys. But does it sound like Leppard? "I'm
sure there's a few fans out there who want more of the same," he shrugs of
their regular changes in direction. "But we wanted to freshen things up a
little."

With members of the band spread between Europe and the States, new songs
regularly wing their way across the globe, the result of hours spent
hunched over digital tape machines. "Nowadays," says Elliott, "you don't
need to go to a top studio to make a good record... you can do it in your
kitchen!"

The secret of Leppard's longevity is surely keeping faith with the fans
who've followed them since their first album 23 long years ago, yet adding
younger converts with their musical twists. They've evolved into Britain's
answer to Bon Jovi - a rock band who are popular entertainers.

Their own Bludgeon Riffola label operates independently of multi-national
Universal's starmaking machinery, giving them the ability to put out what
they want to. "The reason we are what we are is because we're given the
freedom to do what we do," says Elliott. "I don't think we need to prove
anything. There's no way we could be puppets the way bands like Sweet used
to be. We couldn't work in that kind of environment."

Live, of course, they'll be producing 100 per cent hard rock - with maybe
the odd acoustic interlude. Rick Allen's still powering them from the
back, having survived losing a limb in an auto accident in 1984. "He's
playing better than he did when he had two arms - than most drummers would
if they had three," explains Joe. Viv Campbell, the ex-Whitesnake man who
took over from the late, lamented Steve Clarke in 1992, fellow guitarist
Phil Collen and bassist Rick `Sav' Savage completing the team.

Def Leppard started their world tour in Japan in November, spending two
weeks in the US before heading `home' via Elliott's adopted Dublin. He
reveals they've rehearsed enough songs for this tour - at least one from
every album -
 to do a different set every night. "That will keep us from getting bored,
 as 
well as keeping it fresh for you guys. There are favourites we couldn't
leave out, but you'd be amazed how refreshing it is to play some of 'em in
a different order!"

New songs will be performed "as long as they fit. We wouldn't do a ballad
unless it's a single. If it doesn't work, it makes it uncomfortable for
both parties. The audience has more people that don't have the new album
than people who do. A new song every 30 minutes works as promotion, a new
song every five minutes doesn't."

He's happy to take on the physical aspect of touring and trained to get
down to his ideal weight ready for the tour. "We can't pretend we're 21
any more," he jokes. "We're double that age! The wear and tear on the
human body is twice as much as it was back then, but being on stage is my
favourite part of the job."

After three years away from our shores, for Leppard fans there's one
Monday that just can't come quickly enough...

 Def Leppard play Portsmouth Guildhall on February 17. Performance: 7.30pm
 
The performance is sold-out. Box office for returns: 023 9282 4355 

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