Def Leppard News - Vivian Campbell Says Cancer Has Changed His Outlook On Life

Vivian Campbell Says Cancer Has Changed His Outlook On Life

Monday, 13th June 2016

Vivian Campbell 2015.
Pic by Chele Drappel

Def Leppard guitarists Vivian Campbell and Phil Collen were recently interviewed by MusicRadar and mentioned health.

Vivian and Phil both talked about the current Def Leppard studio album, its recording process/songs, other guitarists, big choruses/guitar riffs, old tour incidents, loudness of their shows, recording with Mutt Lange, guitars/equipment, Pro Tools recording, the success of Hysteria, Vivian's health, and the future for guitar music.

Vivian briefly discussed his ongoing treatment for Hodgkin's Lymphoma and says it has changed his view on live shows and his life in general.

He also referred to the sound issues which affected their UK shows in December 2015.

The interview was conducted backstage at the Cardiff, Wales show on 16th December 2015.

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

Music Radar - Vivian Campbell Interview Quotes

Viv, how has your cancer diagnosis changed your outlook?

"I was always a very positive person. My cup was always half-full. It’s now brimming. It definitely gives you an appreciation for every aspect of life. Y’know, I’ve no problem dealing with the illness itself. The hardest part has been wanting to continue to work and balancing that with my treatment."

"If I weren’t able to continue to work, I certainly would die. I know the disease would win. Now, every day is a good day. There’s no such thing as a bad show any more. If I do something wrong on stage, I don’t kill myself. Years ago, I would have gone, ‘Fuck! I screwed that up!’ Now, it’s water off a duck’s back. In the big picture, it doesn’t fucking matter."

How loud has this tour got?

"Well, we had a few complaints the other night. Not from the council, from the audience. The low-end of the PA was deafening, apparently, so we’ve had to adjust things. But this tour has been fantastic. It’s almost like people think it’s our last tour: ‘Ah, we’d better see them before they cark it!’"