Dallas, TX - Media Reviews

Def Leppard's arena-ready rock hits Dallas By Thor Christensen

England's Def Leppard became the most popular metal band on earth in the '80s by appealing to all camps. They were gritty enough for the headbangers, sensitive enough for the ladies and catchy enough for the grandparents to sing along to.

Of course, that kind of mass appeal doesn't always translate into respect. While Metallica and AC/DC have already made it into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Def Leppard is a long shot at best.

But Def Lep's well-crafted tunes still translate well in arenas, as the band showed Monday night with a rousing concert at American Airlines Center.

The band opened on a gutsy note, playing an unfamiliar new tune, "Undefeated," and it later performed "Gods of War," a lesser-known protest song from Hysteria that prompted a bathroom-and-beer run in the audience. Both songs held their own in a set that centered on big hits such as "Rock of Ages," "Foolin'" and the power ballad "Love Bites."

All those tunes were originally produced by Mutt Lange, whose painstaking work in the studio was a key to the band's radio success. Inevitably, the sound onstage wasn't as remarkable as it is on record, but it was close enough, especially the band's tight harmonies. Frontman Joe Elliott didn't even try to hit the sky-high notes of "Photograph," but otherwise, his echo-laden wail was in fine form.

The group sported the same five guys it's had for 20 years: Elliott, strutting low-key at center stage; Rick Allen, the world's most famous one-armed drummer; poodle-haired Rick Savage on bass; and co-lead guitarists Vivian Campbell and perpetually shirtless Phil Collen, he of the sculpted pecs and flawless tan.

Campbell's simple bluesy solos usually hit the mark, especially in "Bringin' on the Heartbreak." By comparison, Collen's faster-than-thou solos felt moldy at times. Yet there was nothing remotely dated about the songs themselves. If you weren't singing or at least humming along to "Pour Some Sugar on Me," you might want to visit your nearest audiologist.

Opening act Poison was a perfect fit, since it also came to fame in the late '80s by merging pop, metal and sensitive ballads, namely "Every Rose Has Its Thorn." That song was Poison's only No. 1 single, but the one that grabbed you by the throat Monday was "Talk Dirty to Me," which may be the best song the New York Dolls never wrote.

By The Dallas Morning News 2012.

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