Tulsa, OK - Media Reviews

Rock of Ages? Def Leppard passes test without being graded on curve By Jimmie Tramel

It’s typical to walk out of a classic rock concert and say something like “those guys can still kick buttocks.”

Often, that’s wishful thinking. You don’t want to admit the old gray mare ain’t what she used to be. So you grade “mature” rockers on a curve.

Let’s not say that about Def Leppard. It’s not necessary to say it. This is a band which performs like it never stopped setting the curve.

The blokes from Def Leppard headlined a triple bill at the BOK Center and they did what they have always done, which is serve up rock confections (sugar anyone?) like the seasoned pros they are and they do it to the delight of adoring fans.

The show that Def Leppard put on Friday night could have been a show from the MTV era, when the Pyromania album caught fire and when the Hysteria album spawned six top 20 singles.

Live versions of the band’s signature songs sound remarkably similar to the recorded versions radio listeners know by heart, a feat made more impressive because Rick Allen continues to play the drums despite losing an arm in a 1984 car accident. He was rewarded with an ovation following a drum solo and responded with a thumbs-up.

Respect frontman Joe Elliott for having a stage presence on his own terms and at his own pace. He doesn’t indulge in stage calisthenics, which works just fine when the music “is” the show. He rocked sleeveless shirts back in the day, but covers up his arms with stylish jackets nowadays. He wore a cowboy hat (it’s Tulsa, you know) late in the set and the band closed with two songs (“Rock of Ages” and “Photograph”) which catapulted them into the mainstream.

Def Leppard doesn’t seem eager to burn out or fade away. A new album is due the day before Halloween and the band opened the BOK Center show with a single (“Let’s Go”) from the album. The song would not have been out of place on an album crafted during the band’s rule-the-airwaves years.

Additional Def Leppard plug: Guitarist Phil Collen penned a memoir (“Adrenalized: Life, Def Leppard, and Beyond”) which will be released three days before the new album.

Styx and Tesla have been touring with Def Leppard, but Styx recently stepped off the train and was replaced by Foreigner.

Good luck finding a weak spot in a set when you’ve got a song catalog like Foreigner. With founder Mick Jones leading the way, the band plowed through a string of hits. The crowd roar which followed an extended version of “Juke Box Hero” was about as loud as you’ll experience at the BOK Center.

As planned, members of the Bristow High School choir joined Foreigner on stage to help with background vocals on “I Wanna Know What Love Is,” a worldwide No. 1 hit in 1985. Lead singer Kelly Hansen encouraged the crowd to “make some noise” for the Bristow kids, and the request was obliged. Hansen, of course, isn’t Foreigner’s original singer, but he’s been around long enough that he must be considered a new chapter instead of just a replacement. For comparison’s sake, Justin Bieber’s career is shorter than Hansen’s tenure with Foreigner.

Tesla opened the show and had the shortest set. Bad news for grunge: If you thought you extermined hair bands with all that noise from Seattle, be aware that Tesla still does the hair force proud.

Tesla singer Jeff Keith noticed that Tesla and Tulsa are almost the same word and he rasped out songs which put the band on the map, including “Signs,” which the band covered on its “Five Man Acoustical Jam” album in 1990.

If VH1 did a mash-up of programs it had aired in the past, Friday’s concert could have been featured in “I Love the 70s, 80s and 90s.” Foreigner’s debut album came out in 1977, Def Leppard’s first album was released in 1980 and Tesla’s rookie album was unveiled in 1986.

Anybody see a Fiero parked outside the BOK Center?

By Tulsa World 2015.

Back

share this page:

---

---