Saturday, 28th November 2020
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24 Years Ago DEF LEPPARD Bring SLANG Show To EXETER (Photos/Reviews)

Def Leppard 1986. Exeter 1996

Def Leppard played a small club show during the Slang tour show in Exeter, England on 28th November 1996 and photos/reviews are available.

The show took place at the 700 capacity Lemon Grove club. Known locally as the "Lemmy".

This show was added to the main Slang UK/Irish tour following a "Rocking The Campus" contest for a UK University to win a small show by a big rock act.

It was sponsored by Coca Cola and Exeter University won without knowing who would be playing.

The winner was based on which campus sold the most Coca Cola products. Tickets were priced just two pounds and put on sale on 19th November 1996 with all proceeds going to local charities.

Many rare songs were played at this show including 'Turn To Dust' and 'Gift Of Flesh' which were only performed a handful of times in 1996/1997. The only known performance of 'Gift Of Flesh' in the UK.

'Billy's Got A Gun' and 'High 'N' Dry (Saturday Night)' had not been played in the UK since the first Hysteria tour in 1987.

Only HND has been played here since (October 2003 in Cambridge).

Like the 1997 club show in Buenos Aries, the Sex Pistols song 'Pretty Vacant' was played during the middle of 'Another Hit And Run'.

A rare playing of Joe Elliott's all-time favourite song 'All The Young Dudes' ended the show. Joe sang the lyrics to the second verse of LGR during the first verse causing them to start the song again. Snippets of 'Women', 'Stagefright' and Aerosmith's 'Walk this Way' were also played.

The final date of the European/UK 'Slang' tour which had begun in Oslo, Norway on 5th October.

Played after the band's two night run at Wembley Arena in London.

View some photos sent in by Andy/Jay Tomkins.


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

Visit the Album News section for more news on new music (based on band member quotes).


Exeter, England 1996 - Photo Gallery

Express & Echo - Pre-Show News

Megastars gig at Lemmy

"International megastars Def Leppard will be playing to 700 fans in Exeter just 24 hours after rocking the 10,000 capacity Wembley Arena."

"Exeter University's Lemon Grove is hosting a live concert by the globe-trotting Sheffield band - thanks to the students liking for Coca Cola."

"The university's domestic services division entered a competition to find which if the country's campuses sold most of the drinks company's products."

"Exeter came out on top and the university's reward is a visit from Def Leppard on November 28."

"Tickets priced two pounds went on sale at the city centre's Solo music store today with all proceeds going towards the Nordoff Robbins charity."

"University entertainments manager Geoffrey Campbell said: "We knew there was going to be a show through Coca Cola couple of months ago, but we didn't know who it was going to be"."

"You don't often see such a big stadium band playing such a small venue, but they must have started off playing pubs so it won't be a totally new experience for them."

"One thing is for sure, there won't be any tickets sold on the door."

Local Paper - Concert Review Quotes

Def Just rocked 'em solid

"There should, in theory, have been something faintly ridiculous about five thirtysomething stadium rockers wringing out their souls in front of 700 at the Lemmy."

"But Def Leppard, cast iron professionals that they are, sank to the occasion with gusto. Sheffield's most famous export since stainless steel came determined to make the most of this hastily-arranged charity gig."

"The light show was non-existent, the sound system was pared from 30,000 to 3,000 watts and there was no support. But the Defs arrived on stage to the backing of Queen's We Will Rock You. And it took Joe Elliott and the boys roughly 30 seconds to show this was no empty promise. I swear there were diehard fans hugging each other as the Defs launched into Everybody Wants a Piece of The Action."


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