Atlantic City, NJ - Media Reviews

Def Leppard tops bill at rocking show By Scott Cronick

After Ace Frehley, Edgar Winter and Rick Derringer rocked the House of Blues Thursday night, '70s and '80s nostalgia weekend continued Friday night at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa with a triple bill of REO Speedwagon, Styx and Def Leppard.

Before Borgata came to town, these three acts would easily headline on their own. In other words, the fans got their money's worth on Friday night.

The sold-out concert may have been the biggest arsenal of hits released on Atlantic City in one night. Of the 33 songs performed throughout the evening, not only were 23 of them hits, they were absolute smashes. Instead of unnecessarily prolonging the night with obscurities, openers Styx and REO both played tight 50-minute sets - mostly full of Top 10 charters.

After a commendable quick set change, Def Leppard took the stage for a 17-song performance that had the crowd standing throughout. With a great light show and three large video screens behind the band plus two more on the side, the production was top notch, but a tad too loud.

Seeing a Def Leppard concert is like attending a giant '80s singalong. Nearly every song is a rock anthem, including the opener "Rocket," "Armageddon It," "Pour Some Sugar On Me" and "Animal." Def Leppard's setlist mostly features songs that ruled the charts at one time or another, including "Let's Get Rocked," "Foolin'," "Bringin' On the Heartbreak," "Photograph" and "Hysteria." But the band did pull out some tunes for diehard fans, including "Mirror Mirror," an acoustic version of "Two Steps Behind" and the instrumental "Switch 625," which showed off the fine abilities of guitarists Vivian Campbell and Phil Collen, who has one of the coolest guitars on the planet, imprinted with Bela Legosi's image.

Def Leppard even played its new single, "Nine Lives," off the band's forthcoming album, "Songs from the Sparkle Lounge." While not an instant classic, it is a solid tune.

Lead singer Joe Elliott remains a great frontman despite the fact that his voice sometimes can't hit the notes it used to. He really struggled on "Rock of Ages" and "Love Bites." Luckily, the band's abundance of flawless harmonies covered some of the singer's deficiencies.

The promoter who put this tour together knew what he was doing. All three acts seemed very appreciated by the crowd, a concert rarity.

By Press Of Atlantic City 2008.

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