[ Def Leppard UK - Past News 2: Jan-Apr 2002 ]
[April 19th] - Queen DVD Update
Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert : update by the Official Queen website
"As previously announced the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert DVD is set to be issued in May, subject to final approval by the band members. It includes the second half of the show, fan and official photo montages, a documentary on the show, rehearsal footage, Mercury Phoenix Trust and Spirit Of Africa areas, plus a Queen Online section."
So judging by that I doubt that the sets before the main show including Lep will be on it. But they should feature in the backstage bits.
[April 11th] - Joe's Message to fans
Joe Elliott gave a msg to people attending the DVD Release party on Sunday 7th at Slim Jim Phantom's Cat Club in Los Angeles. Here is a copy of the letter;
"Joe: "Evenin' everyone!!!!! I hope H.H. is looking after you all. None of us were expecting anyone to celebrate the release of our DVDs as they are after all, re-releases of our old videos albeit with the little seen "Slang" & "Euphoria" videos included, so it's very flattering to know that someone has taken the time to organise a "do" on our behalf. We are finishing off the new album, so unfortunately I can't join you for what I hope is a cool trip down memory lane, just the thing to re-remind people that we're about to do it all again with the new album coming out real soon. Have a great night, have a drink for me & remember Steve Clark ....he would have loved tonight!!!" (Thanks to Tom).
[April 7th] - Archive Concert on UK Radio/Net
(Thursday 11th April 10pm - 12am: Dream Ticket Show)
Lep will be the headline band on BBC 6 Music's daily 2 hour Archive Concerts show. This station is a new Digital and Internet only station and is best listened to on the latest Realone player (see real.com)
This show features about 5 acts doing 2 or 3 live songs and then a Headline band for around 45 mins. Lep will probably be on at about 11:15pm GMT. I'm pretty sure the show will be Don Valley '93 but could also be the 1979 show or Reading 1980 (see Tour History and TV/Radio sections for details)
Here's a link to the 6 Music page that might feature up to 5 streaming tracks before and after the broadcast date: [link inactive]
[April 6th] - Queen DVD
On April 20th the Ten Anniversary of the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert that took place in London at Wembley Stadium, a DVD will be released by Queen's record company to mark this occasion. The concert was previously only available video. The DVD will feature lots of behind the scenes footage including the rehearsals (which BTW are featured on Metallica's 'Year and a Half in the Life...' videos).
The DVD will have other features such as fan submitted photos of the day and other things. There is no final details as yet but the plan is to have it out on the 20th. This is also the first in a series of Queen DVD releases planned for this year.
[April 3rd] - Def Satellite
BBC 6 Music the new Digital Station launched in the UK last month played a rare Lep BBC Session track today from October 1979. "Satellite" was played on the Liz Kershaw show at around 1:30pm. This was originally broadcast on The Friday Rock Show (see TV/Radio!). This is the third time Lep have been played on this new station. Bruce Dickinson played Let it Go on his first Rock Show (as requested by me - via email) and Animal has been played too. Why is this news? well Lep hardly ever get airplay here.
This station is pretty cool and they play lots of rare session songs and archive concerts like Van Halen, Bon Jovi, Lep, U2, etc Not to mention a Rock Show hosted by Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden) which is very good.
[March 21st] - Classic Albums - Hysteria DVD in June
The Classic Albums - Hysteria Region 2 (PAL) DVD has been given a release date of the 3rd of June at Play.com. This site normally only gives dates when a release is being finalised. They put the 2 DVD packages up only 3 weeks before release with the correct dates so I think this is pretty definite. BTW they do free postage and very good prices/delivery.
I have checked the UK TV listings up to April 3rd and haven't seen a date given for the Metallica Black album episode which a UK mag said would be shown this month. Looks likely though that both that show and Hysteria will be shown on ITV in the UK very soon. The Metallica DVD is came out last year and contains a lot of bonus footage not shown on TV so this DVD should be well worth getting: Def DVD
[March 9th] - Joe on US Radio
Yesterday at around 9AM PT(USA) Joe phoned into the Mark and Brian Show in California on the KLOS 95.5 Radio Station. Apparently they talked a bit about "X". Joe told them that there was "a little more" recording to do and it should be mixed in mid-April.
This kind of ties in with recent rumours from someone who met Vivian in LA when he told them that he and Phil were going back to Dublin to do a couple more songs and that the CD would definitely be out by this summer (although that rumour suggested mixing would be in February). (Thanks to Cat).
[March 8th] - Leps Get Popped
UK TV show Top Of The Pops 2 (TOTP2) is showing the ONLY 4-man line-up performance ever by Def Leppard for "Let's Get Rocked" on March 12th at 7:05PM GMT on UK Channel BBC2. This was first shown in early March 1992 before Vivian joined the band, even though it is a mimed performance with only Joe singing Live.
For those outside the UK this show is an extra show now showing twice a week and shows archive performances from the regular TOTP show. This is the second time they have shown LGR and the fourth time in total Lep have appeared.
During each performance there is a little bit of Trivia shown at the bottom of the screen like a band members birthday etc. I guess it will be exactly 10 years to the week soon that LGR came out. I think that's why they are showing it.Last shown in 1999. Well worth watching if only for Joe's hair.
[ITV Classic Albums in March/April?
ITV in the UK are showing the Classic Albums episode for Metallica's "Black" album in March. Therefore maybe the "Hysteria" episode will get shown later this month or in April but unlike Metallica the shows for Judas Priest & Iron Maiden were put on Channel 5 instead (less high profile Channel).
[March 7th] - Def Leppard go "X"-rated - new album finished?.
News story from UK Magazine;
Def Leppard have completed their tenth album, likely to be titled 'X'. Among the collaborators were Pete Woodroffe, Marti Fredericksen, Andreas Carlson and Per Alderheim.
Leppard singer Joe Elliott will also be producing a solo album for his friend Ricky Warwick of The Almighty later this year. Warwick told Classic Rock
the project would "have a Replacements/Steve Earle/Tom Petty-type vibe".
[Joe & Ricky Warwick Update]
Exert from Jan 11th News Update - "Ricky Warwick has recently signed a deal with Peer Music and will be recording a solo album sometime in the Spring with Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott and Ronan McHugh (Wilt, The Almighty and Def Leppard) producing and engineering. The album will be recorded in Joe's Garage Studios in Dublin."
[February 25th] - Ultimate Albums Pyromania: March 10th
Sunday 10th March 12pm - 1pm Ultimate Albums: Def Leppard "Pyromania" (PS Check the Credits..)
[February 13th] - Joe: Wanted Dead or Alive
As reported last year Joe attended Bon Jovi's gig on 10th June 2001 in Dublin at the RDS which was a great show according to Jovi fans and lasted over 2hrs 45mins.
A quick shot of Joe talking with drummer Tico Torres
backstage was featured in the first 20 secs of the new live video for the classic 'Wanted Dead or Alive' taken from the 'One Wild Night' live CD.
The picture above is taken from that video which had a limited release last July. The video also featured Anastascia, Ronan Keating & Arnold Schwarzenegger aswell as live footage from various shows - Bon Jovi Dublin Fan Pics
[February 8th] - Def Lep on UK TV
(Sunday 10th Feb 8pm - 9pm) VH1 Presents the 80’s)
Part of the 80’s weekend: Focuses on the changing face of Heavy Metal in to more pop orientated metal. Interviews include Brett Michaels, Scott Ian & Slash. Possible Lep clips.
(Monday 11th Feb 6pm - 7pm) VH1 Sounds of the City Sheffield:)
Tour around Sheffield with videos including Pulp, ABC, Def Leppard, Joe Cocker, Human League etc.
[February 5th] - Awards for my Site
I'm proud to say my site has been awarded a Golden Website Award by the I.W.A.M.D
(International Association of Webmasters and Designers). Thanks to I.W.A.M.D.
Also my site was last weeks Fansite of The Week: at Rock Rage.com. [Thanks to both Rockrage & the I.W.A.M.D.]
[February 3rd] - Lep in Stephen King
Well since Stephen King has just announced he's retiring I thought I'd share this little bit of trivia with those who don't know about it. In his collection book "Nightmares & Dreamscapes" from 1993. The band are mentioned twice in the 7th story called "Chattery Teeth". Sav is known to read his work. Here are two snippets:
Page 199: "As he raised them, Hogan noticed the hand-lettered tattoo on the kid’s left bicep: DEF LEPPARD 4-EVER."
Page 212: "The Def Leppard tattoo ebbed and flowed with each flex of his impoverished bicep, making Hogan think of the way the words on Myra’s tee-shirt: NEVADA IS GOD’S COUNTRY - rippled when she moved."
© Hodder & Stoughton Ltd 1993.
[January 26th] - DVD releases update
The release of the DVD's in Europe has now been confirmed on the Defnet mailing list as happening soon after the USA/CANADA Region 1 releases. This is obviously good news and there is now no need (if you were planning to) to spend extra money buying the R1 version when you can have the R2 very soon. The releases have now been scheduled for late Feb/early March in USA and then Canada. The dates originally given were probably due to the Music websites needing to know dates to post on their sites and may have been the reason for all the confusion. Hopefuly now the DVD's will come out everywhere and we can all enjoy them.
[January 9th] - Joe on Almighty Side Project
The Almighty's Rick Warwick called the Hammer yesterday afternoon to inform us of a little project he has planned for later this year.
"I've signed a deal with Peer Music to make a solo album," reveals the guitarist / vocalist. "I will have to fit it in around what The Almighty are doing, but it's something I've wanted to do for some time now and it should happen towards the end of this year."
The album will be produced by none other than Def Leppard vocalist Joe Elliott, a friend and neighbour of Warwick's in Ireland, who also contributed to The Almighty's recent album, 'Psycho Narco'.
The Leps singer has also co-written some of the material. Warwick was unable to reveal any song titles at this early stage, but he did state that the music is likely to "have a Replacements / Steve Earle / Tom Petty kinda vibe." [© Metal Hammer 2002.]
[Album Title/DVD Release dates]
DL.com has confirmed the title of the album as "X" but it isn't final.
Also I have spotted the Australian Region 4 DVD's for sale with a release of 6th Feb.
Still no word of the Region 2 discs!!.