Classic Rock Bottom

Artist: Def Leppard

Genre: Rock

Country Of Origin: Britain

Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Member: No

Album: Hysteria

Producer: Robert John "Mutt" Lange/Def Leppard

RJ's Top 5 Tunes: 1. Hysteria...2. Love And Affection...3. Love Bites...4. Excitable...5. Gods Of War

Disclaimer:  All "facts" come from wikipedia.com unless otherwise noted.

Disclaimer #2:  I'm on an 80's kick for the next 10 weeks.  I'm covering an 80's album from each year of the 80's decade, though not in chronological order.  Some of these may be well known to me, some may not be.  But they were all pretty big sellers that left a mark. Out of these ten, I actually had to purchase two of them to feature them here.  I think Scott and Jon are along for the 80's ride as well, maybe.

We have reached 1987.  And this week's AOTW was huge.  So huge that the band decided to release 7 singles.  More on that later...

  • Hysteria is the fourth studio album for Def Leppard.
  • It reached number one in the U.S. and the U.K.
  • Hysteria has been certified 12 X Platinum by the RIAA.
  • Seven singles were released from the album with six of those cracking the Top 40 in the U.S. (Women #80, Animal #19, Pour Some Sugar On Me #2, Hysteria #10, Armageddon It #3, Love Bites #1 and Rocket #12).
  • Love Bites would turn out to be DL's only number one hit in the U.S.
  • Hysteria was the first DL album after drummer Rick Allen's arm was severed in an accident and would also be the last to feature guitarist Steve Clark.
  • Jim Steinman of Meat Loaf fame was brought in at one point to produce the album after Mutt Lange dropped out.  That didn't work out and eventually Lange returned to produce the album.

So what do I think of this album today.  Truthfully, it was difficult to listen to all the way through.  Although I loved it back then, it's no longer a Def Leppard album that I reach for. It was just too overplayed, over produced, over everything.  It's one of those albums that I'll be okay with never, ever hearing again.  I still dig the band, just not this album.

1. Women

2. Rocket 

3. Animal

4. Love Bites

5. Pour Some Sugar On Me

6. Armageddon It

7. Gods Of War

8. Don't Shoot Shotgun

9. Run Riot

10. Hysteria

11. Excitable

12. Love And Affection

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Easily one of the best releases in the 80's, and still it's only the third best Leppard-release.

When I bought it on the release-date, I was a bit dissapointed in the first 3 tracks, but then the tracks got better and better, and the album got better and better for each listening. For a long while, maybe until around the middle or the end of the 90's, I had the album in my top 10 of all time. Now it sounds dated, much more than the other two great DL-releases.

My favorite tracks was always the first 3 tracks on side 2, starting with "Gods Of War".

This album and The Joshua Tree were the first cd's I ever bought, even though I already had bought them on vinyl.

Deep breath.....

Ok. I bought this album when it came out. The first single ("Women") was, and still is, a kick ass song. Thought there was some talk about how the song didn't chart as well as expected and there was a fear that the album was going to be a bust? Could be wrong about that, but there was that long layover between albums.

Anyway, other than "Women" the next song that really grabbed me was "Pour Some Sugar On Me". I played that over and over again. Thought it was awesome. Then. Not now. 

They really lost me with the ballads and the lack of hard rock. Previous albums were wall-to-wall hard rock. Why not on this one? Back then I really liked the production, not so much now. Too sterile. 

Now, I did mostly like this album back then, except that it was too damn long to fit onto a 90 min cassette. I wanted an album on each side, but this was over an hour long and I didn't have anything that would fit on the second side, minus the songs on this album. This really pissed me off because I basically wasted a good chunk of tape just for this album. I think I have that tape still!

Now I am so damn tired of this album. I haven't heard it in its entirety since the 80's. This is the only studio album from DL that I don't have on CD, and that isn't going to change. 

Side two is much better than side one, minus the title track. Probably because those songs weren't overplayed. Yet, I still don't like those songs much either, with the exception of "Gods Of War" maybe. 

Thanks for posting Rjhog, but I'm like you on this album. I don't ever have to listen to this again and I'll be happy!  

I remember seeing this on the New Release shelf of my favorite record store and I didn't even know they had a new release coming out since it had been so long between Pyromania and Hysteria.  If memory serves me correctly (and it usually does) this didn't sell well for little while, it went unnoticed.

Women didn't exactly light the charts on fire (as evidenced by the #80 chart position) and I didn't give this much thought until I heard Animal and then I stopped and took it all in.  I still love the title track, the beat, the rhythm and lead guitar work on it still gets to me in a cool way.

Pour Some Sugar On Me is way overplayed but its cool to see live and watch the female reactions in the crowd, some interesting dancing takes place ...  I digress...

Ultimately RJ is right, overplayed and overproduced, its the perfect 80's musical time capsule!  And worthy of being in my collection, but rarely played anymore...  Still if they ever do a Deluxe Edition I'll have it before Jon...

There already is a deluxe edition you twit!

So, I'm guessing you do have it which is well before I'll ever have it!

I have no problem with this album. I enjoyed the hell out of it when it was released, still love it now.

I was, and still am, sorta "backwards" from everybody else on this record. Just did not like it back when it first came out, and did n't start liking it until I finally bought it on CD....because I found it used and cheap. So, now, I like it much better than back then. I've had it on CD for a few years. Did not like it back then because, as everyone has noted, it just did n't rock like earlier Def Lep albums.

Now, I enjoy it more when I spin it...although it is in "light rotation". And I'll say again...I have great respect for all the guys in this band, who waited until Rick Allen was able to get back to playing, overcoming his handicap. They could have easily said "sorry dude, but we got move on with a new drummer"...but they did n't, and I will always respect them greatly for that.

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