A couple of days ago I downloaded Def Leppard's High 'n' Dry, a record I haven't heard since I owned it on vinyl in the early 1980s.
The Leppard went on to major heights of suckitude with their later work, but at this stage they were still an interesting young pop-metal band, stationed at the crossroads between the heavy blues of AC/DC and the more straightforward metal sound of an Iron Maiden (although never even close to that hard). Unfortunately, they got involved with "Mutt" Lange and I suspect he is the reason they ended up writing horrific songs like "Pour Some Sugar on Me."
I also wonder how much of the change in the band's direction was the result of the departure of Pete Willis.
So how does the record hold up after 20 years without listening to it?
The first side is pretty darned good. Let It Go, Another Hit and Run and High 'n' Dry are solid songs. The latter two have an interesting blend of straight up blues-rock riffs from the AC/DC playbook and more interesting harmonic ideas. It's that second part that saves them from being just a poor man's AC/DC and it is what makes their first hit, Bringin' on the Heartbreak better than your average power ballad. My favorite part of the record is the instrumental, Switch 625, that follows.
Side two, on the other hand, is not so hot. One definitely gets the feeling that they were running out of material. Some people seem to think Lady Strange is a great song, but it doesn't do much for me. One bummer on the iTunes version of the record is that you don't get the infinite repeat of "No no no" on the runout groove from the vinyl version. Then again, I rarely listened all the way through, so maybe that's not that big a deal.
Still, that first side shows a band that might have grown into something pretty good, once they grew up a little.
Oh well. If I am writing about Def Leppard, I clearly have little to say today.
3 comments:
Jackson and I are early DL fans from back in the days prior to the M. Lange suckiness that followed this record. I pretty much like the whole record. I would also agree that Phil Collen(sp?) was the catalyst for the slide into drivel, as much as the departure of Willis.
I saw these guys many, many times on this tour since I followed the Blizzard of Oz tour to many venues selling my bootleg concert shirts. At least every other show Pete would be so wasted that he'd fall over into his backline amp stacks. It was awesome!!!
If he's playing what I think he's playing, it's a shame because he's got a lot of the Angus thing going on with his vibrato.
It's a really nice sound they have on these songs. What a shame they turned to crap.
I could swear that I blogged this truly awesome record. I searched my blog, and the only reference I could find was when I put it on an essentials list. Alas, it's their only really good record.
http://thiskids.blogspot.com/2005/07/what-is-best-in-life-when-this.html
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