Def Leppard having time of Nine Lives

Say his name quickly and you understand how Def Leppard's Phil Collen is constantly being mistaken for that other Phil Collins who sings for Genesis.

The bigger mystery is how the individual members of one of Britain's biggest selling rock bands have managed to remain virtually invisible despite selling more than 65 million records over their 30-year career.

"It's strange," the 50-year-old guitarist admits, "We're stars when we play. But then we can be completely anonymous when we're on the street.

"But I think this is one of the reasons why the band has stayed together as long as we have. No one really feels like a star, so no one plays the rock star. We all want to work hard and have a good time. We have a real working class ethic. That's what keeps us together, and keeps our heads on our shoulders."

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