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Def Leppard Win Classic Rock Album Of The Year

on this day - 11th November 2016

On this day in Def Leppard history the 'Def Leppard' album won Classic Rock Album Of The Year.
The annual awards ceremony/concert took place in Tokyo, Japan for the very first time.

Def Leppard 2016.

"Well I have to say this is a fantastic surprise."


Def Leppard 2015.

This section looks at the 'Def Leppard' album winning Classic Rock Album Of The Year. The band won this award for the first time and Joe and Phil were present at the ceremony in Tokyo with Phil also performing.


"Cherish your heroes, you'll miss them when they're gone."

Def Leppard members Joe Elliott and Phil Collen accepted the Classic Rock Award in Tokyo, Japan on 11th November 2016 for the self titled studio album.

The event took place at Ryogoku Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo, Japan in front of 8,000 fans.

Joe and Phil accepted the Album Of The Year award for the self-titled Def Leppard album from veteran Japanese rock journalist Masa Ito.

The full show was broadcast in HD in Japan starting on 24th December 2016 via their version of Hulu and later in the USA on AXS TV.

Read their full acceptance speech below which was part of a seven minute segment on the show.

Watch the full video on the YouTube playlist which also includes videos of Phil performing 'Save That Goodness', 'Mistreated' and 'Modern Day Cowboy'.

Phil performed alongside Tesla's Jeff Keith, Frank Hannon and Brian Wheat plus Robert/Dean DeLeo and drummer Ray Luzier.

Joe later revealed his performance included him singing lead vocals on a cover of Stone Temple Pilot's classic 'Insterstate Love Song'.


Def Leppard 2016.


2016 Classic Rock Awards - Full Acceptance Speech

Dave Mustaine

"Our next presenter is Japan's most famous rock critic and a personal great friend of mine. Masa Ito."

Masa Ito

"The winner is Def Leppard."

Joe Elliott

"Thank you."

Phil Collen

"Thank you so much."

Def Leppard 2016. Screenshot

Joe Elliott

"Well I have to say this is a fantastic surprise. To win an award for album of the year 36 years after our first album came out. We're kind of used to the idea that these days we only win like Lifetime Achievement awards. So this is really special. I should probably thank a few people. Howard Kaufman and Mike Kobayashi our management team, The grown ups in the room. Who take care of all the business as perfect as they do. And Ronan McHugh who engineered and produced the album with us and did such a great job. Richard Smith the art guy. Ross Halfin who took all the photos."

"Geoff Barton for suggesting that we put the album out in the magazine and that was a rip roaring success. Probably one of the few magazines to ever enter a record shop. And to Brian May who did a fantastic foreword for the magazine, who's not been very well recently. So thanks very much Brian and get well soon."




Def Leppard 2016. Screenshot

Phil Collen

"We'd also like to thank Japan because when we released the album a year ago it was Number One in Japan as we toured here. So thank you to all our fans and just thanks to everyone that's been involved in it. Thank you."

Joe Elliott

"And finally. There's a lot of people here tonight that have inspired us over the years and there's a few people that have left us this year. So we'd like to dedicate this to Lemmy, to Dale Griffin from Mott The Hoople and to David Bowie. Cherish your heroes, you'll miss them when they're gone."

Phil Collen

"Thank you."

Dave Mustaine

"Once again please give a big hand to Joe Elliott and Phil Collen of Def Leppard. The winners of Album Of the Year."

Backstage Interview Quotes

Joe Elliott

"Yeah it's, well look at the gathering out there. It's the rock and roll heaven isn't it. You know I mean you've got Jimmy Page, you've got Jeff Beck, you've got Joe Perry, you've got Cheap Trick. Phil Collen playing with Delta Deep. I mean the DeLeo brothers from Stone Temple Pilots. There's just a fantastic collection of musicians and rock stars. And here, all here. You know not in London or New York. Actually Tokyo you know. So it's fantastic. It's such an unusual thing to do. That it's added an extra dimension to the whole evening."

Joe's message to Japanese fans

"I'm in Tokyo for the Classic Rock Awards 2016. It's an absolute honour to be nominated and it's an even better honour to win it. It's always a pleasure to be here and we were here exactly a year ago promoting the new album and it was Number One as we played the shows. It's just great to be back and doing it here. Thank you. Domo arigato."

Phil's message to Japanese fans

"Great being here. It's been a year and we've missed it so much so we're really glad to be here. Thank you to all our fans and obviously I know it's an English magazine Classic Rock but thanks everyone for getting it sorted out. It's amazing, we're having such a great time and you'll love it because we love it."


Def Leppard 2016.


The Joe Elliott Show - 12th November 2016 Quotes

Show Intro

"Evening all and welcome to the Joe Elliott show right here on the wonderful Planet Rock. It's great to be with you once again. And what a week it has been since we were last together. I have literally just got off an aeroplane from a lightning quick trip to Tokyo in Japan where the 2016 Classic Rock Awards were held this year. Def Leppard were nominated and won Album Of The Year. And we were presented our award by the legendary actor, and sometimes guitar player, Mr. Johnny Depp. And if that doesn't give you an All Time High, then absolutely nothing ever will."

Def Leppard

"And what a collection of rock stars there were at the awards. You're looking at the likes of Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Joe Perry, Cheap Trick, the DeLeo brothers from Stone Temple Pilots. Phil Collen performed with his band Delta Deep. It really was an outstanding night. And I said at the top of the show, that song there All Time High from the latest Def Leppard album. Part of a collection of songs on an album that just won Album Of The Year. Doesn't get any better than that."

Classic Rock Awards - Photos

The Joe Elliott Show - 19th November 2016 Quotes

Show Intro

"Evening all and welcome to the Joe Elliott show right here on the wonderful Planet Rock. And I say the Joe Elliott show, but in actual fact this week it is almost the Phil Collen show because last weekend at the rock awards in Tokyo, Japan. Phil led, for most of the evening at least, one of the best house bands that you will ever hear. We're talking Ray Luzier from KoRn on drums, the DeLeo brothers from Stone Temple Pilots. Rob on bass, Dean on guitar. Tommy Hendriksen on guitar from the Alice Cooper band. Great singing, different styles because he was representing different bands, from Jeff Keith from Tesla. We had guest appearances from the likes of Richie Sambora and Orianthi. Rudolf Schenker from the Scorpions. Joe Perry from Aerosmith. Even Johnny Depp played guitar. The awards were presented brilliantly by Dave Mustaine. And let's not forget that in the building we had the big guns of Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page. But the whole evening started off with a fantastic 20 minute set by a band whose name was set in stone in Tokyo, Japan in 1979. They are Cheap Trick."

Stone Temple Pilots

"Now this is where it started getting interesting because now Phil is comfortably leading the house band. He took the guitar away from himself and just sang this one. Yes, he made a great attempt at being Weiland. This is the Stone Temple Pilots."

"And the song we heard before that was the Stone Temple Pilots from their album Purple. A song interpreted very well on the evening by Mr. Phil Collen. The track Interstate Love Song."


Def Leppard 2016.


Show Outro

"And that my friends is about it for this week. It's been a pleasure as always. It's been an extra special pleasure really to look back over something that in my lifetime. I may never see the likes of again. The great news is, for you and I, we can share this together again one day because it was filmed and no doubt it's gonna be broadcast on a TV channel somewhere near you, sometime pretty soon. So keep a look out in your local paper."

"I'm gonna leave you with this. What a wonderful thing it was to see Jimmy Page give an award. A lifetime achievement award to Jeff Beck. They've known each other for sixty years. Jeff came out, he was fronting the house band and I was so proud to be able to watch my colleague in Def Leppard, Phil Collen, play guitar with his hero on a song that meant so much to him. And hopefully all of us. This is Jeff Beck from the album Truth with Beck's Bolero. Written by Jimmy Page. What a great way to end the night. Till next week see ya!."

View the full speech and performance videos on this YouTube playlist.

Classic Rock Fan Videos 2016.


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