Thursday, 26th September 2019
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DEF LEPPARD To Release Oxford 1980 Live Album In 2020 For OTTN 40th Anniversary

Def Leppard 2019. Def Leppard 1980

Def Leppard singer Joe Elliott was interviewed for a live edition of Trunk Nation on Sirius XM radio last night in Los Angeles.

Joe spoke to Eddie Trunk for his Trunk Nation show live on SiriusXM VOLUME.

Joe talked about the Sin City Residency, setlists, Tear It Down/Songs He Doesn't Like, Mutt Lange/AC/DC, Down 'n' Outz band history, Down 'n' Outz Third Album, Solo Song Writing, Los Angeles Memories, First American Show, The Tubes/White Punks On Dope, 1979 Def Leppard Video Footage, Union Jack Shirts, Down 'n' Outz Tour 2020, Def Leppard Digital Release, 40th Anniversaries Of OTTN/HIGH 'N' DRY, Fresno 1980 Show/Setlists, Hair Metal Term, 3 High 'n' Dry Promo Videos/Pyromania, Me And My Wine Video, Not Using Tapes Live/Hysteria Cruise Story, Not Doing A Second Cruise, Exit 111 Festival, Sacramento show/ New Def Leppard Songs, Favourite Part Of The Sin City Residency/Production, USA Top Of The Pops Show In 1987, Proudest Moment Of His Career/Freddie Mercury Tribute Show, What's Left To Do In His Career, Def Leppard Song Writing and first meeting David Bowie In 1989.

Joe talked about the live album from Oxford, England in April 1980 that he first mentioned on 19th January 2018 on the Def Leppard day. He now says it will be issued in March 2020 for the 40th anniversary of 'On Through The Night'.

Joe also confirmed Def Leppard will start touring in Summer 2020 when talking about possible Down 'n' Outz UK tour dates for Spring/early Summer 2020.

He also indicated he would continue writing new Def Leppard songs during the upcoming break from touring after the last Def Leppard show of this year on 2nd November.

The Oxford show took place on 28th April 1980 at the New Theatre. And the setlist could have included the early version of 'Let It Go' titled 'When The Rain Falls' which had been played at other dates on this tour.

It was played at the 13th April show in London along with the early version of 'Lady Strange' and 'Medicine Man' which was also an early version of 'Rock! Rock!'. If included these would be released officially for the first time.

Listen to the full 1 hour 30 minute interview via the radio link below.

Also view some photos from the event.

Visit the Tour News section. For more news on future tour plans.


SiriusXM/Trunk Nation - Joe Elliott Interview Quotes

Sin City Residency/iHeartRadio Festival

"It was great. It was great fun for us because like the previous residency that we did. Well actually unlike that one where we had Ded Flatbird doing like a ton of different songs. We had to do that because what was following was in sequence one album. But what we had this time round was Ded Flatbird didn't come. We did sell the shirts. We put a shirt up. The non appearance. The tragic non appearance."

"So we just changed the set round every night within the confines of a Def Leppard set. So we opened with Die Hard The Hunter which we hadn't played. I've been trying to work this out. So somebody can help me here. I don't know whether we ever did it with Vivian before. So yes...so we haven't done Die Hard The Hunter with Viv which means we haven't played it for at least 27, maybe 30 odd years."

"So we opened with that. It's a strange song to open with but it was a great statement. And we got to do all sorts of things that we didn't do on a regular basis. Like Slang, Billy's Got A Gun, Mirror, Mirror. We did Action. Let's Go off the last album. We did a mini acoustic set where we did two songs we've never played live before. One of them being We Belong off the last album where everybody sings lead vocal. And a song called Let Me Be The One off the X album. As well as bringing back Have You Ever which we've not done in 26 years."

"So you know for us it was like it was a really cool thing to be able to go onstage thinking christ don't forget the words 'cause we hadn't done them for that long. It was always edgy and I think that's something that you might kinda. That disappears when you're on the road 'cause even though you're travelling from town to town there's a kind of a psychological OK-ness about doing the same set night after night because it's different people. Only ones that ever complain is Dorito Boy who reads about it but has never been to a gig. So all the people, you go Chicago and then you go to Detroit there might be 12 people that follow you. There's 19,000 plus that didn't. So you do the same set and it doesn't really matter."

"But when you're treading the same boards for 12 nights you yourself think I've gotta do something else. So it's just, it's easy to do."

Setlists/Die Hard The Hunter

"It was Phil's suggestion that we open with Die Hard The Hunter. And I just looked at him like he had three snake heads. You know I'm going what?!. Are you kidding me?. But then the more we rehearsed it the more I went actually this is genius you know. So there's no one person that is a genius in this band. But we come up with collective genius ideas and that was one of them."

"I was a little concerned about it because it's got this huge two minute but in the middle where there's nothing happening for the singer and it's the first song. Which is fine when it's in the middle of the set. So I get to the bit where it all breaks down and it goes instrumental and it's like now what?. So I just go round high fiving the front row. And it worked fine. Throwing shapes and like look at my jacket."

Solo Song Writing

"I mean for the last, since '93 when you first started seeing songs written by one person in the band. Like I think like maybe the first thing that came out was Two Steps Behind. In 92/93 we had Two Steps Behind, Miss You In A Heartbeat which Phil brought to the table. I'd wrote a song called From The Inside which was on the Retro-Active album. We were starting to do that a little bit. So and on the last album I wrote We Belong and on the previous records I'd written things like Come Undone and Bad Actress and stuff like that. So we've all written songs on our own it's just that when you write a song like Bad Actress which sounds like AC/DC it's gonna be a Def Leppard song."

Down 'n' Outz Tour 2020

"Not yet no. But in fairness I haven't had time. I know this year's a no no. Early next year's tricky. There is a possibility before Leppard start next summer where we might be able to do some late Spring/Early Summer stuff. So the further away it is the more chance I've got to say don't book anything yet. These things are already booked for these guys."

"So it's like at the end of the day it's not that big a deal right now. It'll become a bigger deal later on. When I get home. When I'm finished doing this round of press and I can actually sit down with a cup of tea and get my thing out and go OK let's really get to work on this. then I can get hold of them all and say I've just spotted a window here can we book this?. And then I can get on to everybody and like the manager and say right this is the hole where we can do it."

"Chances of it being in the States is slim but you know you never say never. One day - the great thing about this project is we could do a tour or a festival two years down the road. It wouldn't matter because it's not like it's one of those kind of projects where you've missed your window. It is an ongoing thing, it's timeless. So it's not tied down to a you've got to do it now."

Def Leppard 1979. Def Leppard 1979

40th Anniversaries Of OTTN/HIGH 'N' DRY

"You can't see my eyebrows on the radio. Well, thinking about it. We've thought about it you see you've gotta plan these things ahead. We've thought about this about a year and a half ago. And there's gonna be a celebratory release. I don't know how much of this I can say right now I might be breaking protocol."

"But I will say this much. There's a...as a companion piece to On Through The Night there is a brand new just mixed live performance from the Oxford Theatre in 1980 from that tour. Which has never been heard. And it is what it is. It's warts and all. It is what it is. It's us live in 1980. You can't really, you know, we were discussing off mic weren't we about lip synching or overdubbing. You can't expect a 59 year old me to go in and clean up a 20 year old vocal. You know what I mean so it is what it is."

"But I tell you this much the band. As I said in the liner notes when you peer through the curtain of uncertainty that my voice was back in those days there is a fantastic band on stage. And Rick, the two armed Rick Allen with Sav was some rhythm section to considering he was 16 years old and Sav was 17 I think, maybe 18. And Pete and Steve were 17 and 18 years old. It was some band. You know and when you hear it it's spectacular."

"The album was about 42 minutes so when you're on stage it's about 45. So given an intro tape and a bit of talking in between that was pretty much it. We didn't even necessarily play all the album on stage. We played most of it I think."

Exit 111 Festival/Sacramento Show/New Def Leppard Songs

"That's a really weird coincidence 'cause guess what? We're on it too!. Yes we are on the 12th. the day after the Down 'n' Outz album comes out I go back into Leppard land. What a great life I have."

"Well yes we've got that show and then we're off again until the 2nd November. And we...they've revamped the arena in Sacramento. And they asked us if we'd open it, if we'd be the first band to open it. So we're doing a gig in Sacramento on November 2nd and then I'm going home."

"Probably work on some more Down 'n' Outz stuff. Write some more Leppard stuff. Put my feet up watch a lot of Winter Soccer. I'm gonna hibernate until next year."

What's Left To Do In His Career

"There's more new music coming. There's more touring and you've gotta remember one thing it's simple. We really enjoy what we do which is why we do it. Nobody's got a gun to my head saying get out on tour."



Buy 'Collection Volume 2' Online


Buy 'The Story So Far...The Best Of Def Leppard' Online

  • Amazon - (1CD Regular Edition - 17 Tracks)
  • Amazon - (2CD Deluxe Edition - 35 Tracks)
  • Amazon - (2LP Vinyl Edition)
  • Amazon - (MP3 Regular Edition - 17 Tracks)
  • Amazon - (MP3 Deluxe Edition - 35 Tracks)

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