Monday, 20th March 2023
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DEF LEPPARD's Drastic Symphonies Album Features 58 Extra Musicians

Def Leppard 2023. Def Leppard 2023

Def Leppard's new album Drastic Symphonies album features up to 58 musicians from The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

The new album Drastic Symphonies will be released on Friday 19th May.

The album will feature 16 classic Def Leppard songs reworked and reimagined with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios in London.

The first single 'Animal' was released to digital and streaming services on the same day as the announcement - listen below.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London that was started in 1946 by the English conductor Sir Thomas Beecham.

They mostly perform at Cardogan Hall and the Royal Albert Hall in London.

58 Musicians

The cover artwork and packaging photos released of the album so far show one credits page which lists 58 members of the RPO who appear on the album.

Clearly the largest number of musicians to appear on any Def Leppard album.

See the full breakdown of the RPO members below by instrument.

The band are listed on the same page and only one page of credits is shown by Amazon and other retailers.

It's possible more musicians are listed on a separate page as the RPO site also lists other members for Tuba, Percussion and Harp.

That would take the list to over 60 which of course the five Def Leppard members already do.

Mutt Lange and Steve Clark are not shown on this credits page but were listed on the Animal single credits.

This is probably because, as you can hear, the lead vocal and backing vocals are clearly taken from the 1987 original with new strings added, which explains their credits as performers, backing vocalists and Mutt as a producer.


Recording Date March 2022

The Japanese product descriptions reveal the live session by the RPO happened on 22nd March 2022.

Read many of the band quotes about the album so far below.


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).


Def Leppard 2023.


Drastic Symphonies - Musician Album Credits

Def Leppard

  • Joe Elliott - Lead Vocals.
  • Phil Collen - Lead Guitar / Backing Vocals.
  • Rick Savage - Bass / Backing Vocals.
  • Vivian Campbell - Lead Guitar / Backing Vocals.
  • Rick Allen - Drums.

Def Leppard 2023. Def Leppard 2023

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

First Violins - (12)

  • Duncan Riddell.
  • Tamás András.
  • Shana Douglas.
  • Esther Kim.
  • Eriko Nagayama.
  • Melissa Reiner

Listed on her website as having played on recordings/live performances by David Lee Roth, Chris Cornell, Rod Stewart, Adele, Taylor Swift, Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey and many more.

  • Andrew Klee.
  • Kay Chappell.
  • Anthony Protheroe.
  • Erik Chapman.
  • Sophie Mather.
  • Rosemary Wainwright.

Second Violins - (10)

  • Andrew Storey.
  • Elen Hâf Rideal.
  • Jennifer Christie.
  • Charlotte Ansbergs.
  • Jennifer Andras.
  • Peter Graham.
  • Manuel Porta.
  • Charles Nolan.
  • Victoria Lyon.
  • Ingrid Button.

Violas - (8)

  • Rachel Roberts.
  • Liz Varlow.
  • Ugne Tiškutė.
  • Chian Lim.
  • Jonathan Hallett.
  • Triona Milne.
  • Clive Howard.
  • Rebecca Gould.

Cellos - (8)

  • Richard Harwood.
  • Jonathan Ayling.
  • Chantal Webster.
  • Roberto Sorrentino.
  • Jean-Baptiste Toselli.
  • William Heggart.
  • Naomi Watts.
  • Emma Black.

Double Basses - (4)

  • David Gordon.
  • Benjamin Cunningham .
  • Mark O'Leary.
  • Laurence Ungless.

Flutes - (2)

  • Harry Winstanley.
  • Holly Melia.

Oboe - (1)

  • Timothy Watts.

Clarinets - (2)

  • Katherine Lacy.
  • Sonia Sielaff.

Bassoon - (1)

  • Richard Ion.

French Horns - (4)

  • Alexander Edmundson.
  • Jonathan Bareham
  • John Davy.
  • Oliver Johnson.

Trumpets - (3)

  • Richard Blake.
  • Mike Allen .
  • Adam Wright.

Trombones - (2)

  • Matthew Gee.
  • Simon Baker.

Bass Trombone - (1)

  • Josh Cirtina .

View a full list of current RPO members at - rpo.co.uk which also has videos of some musicians introducing themselves.


Animal (feat. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - Song Credits

  • Producer - Ronan McHugh/Nick Patrick
  • Mixer - Ronan McHugh
  • Main Artist - Def Leppard
  • Featured Artist - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
  • Vocals - Joe Elliott
  • Background Vocalist - Phil Collen
  • Guitar - Phil Collen
  • Background Vocalist - Rick Savage
  • Bass Guitar - Rick Savage
  • Background Vocalist - Stephen Maynard Clark
  • Guitar - Stephen Maynard Clark
  • Background Vocalist - Rick Allen
  • Drums - Rick Allen
  • Studio Personnel - Ronan McHugh
  • Background Vocalist - Robert John "Mutt" Lange
  • Producer - Robert John "Mutt" Lange
  • Mastering Engineer - Joe LaPorta
  • Studio Personnel - Joe LaPorta
  • Engineer - Simon Rhodes
  • Studio Personnel - Simon Rhodes
  • Main Artist - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
  • Orchestra - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
  • Main Artist - Robert Ziegler
  • Conductor - Robert Ziegler
  • Main Artist - Ian Maclay
  • Orchestra Contractor - Ian Maclay
  • Associated Performer - Ian Maclay
  • String Arranger - Eric Gorfain
  • Associated Performer - Eric Gorfain

The Joe Elliott Show Quotes 18th March 2023

Joe Elliott on Album Session

"And before that absolutely brand new-ish Def Leppard."

"Let me explain!."

"Originally a hit for us in July of 1987. Just before the album Hysteria was released."

"Our first ever Top Ten UK single Animal."

"Reimagined for the album Drastic Symphonies which is due out on the 19th of May."

"16 reimagined songs and it's not just the greatest hits folks."

"It's all sorts of deep tracks. There's things like Love and Kings Of The World also like Paper Sun."

"And Turn To Dust originally on the Slang album."

"It's a very different record."

"And we took basically our most symphonic songs that we could, because we were gonna be working with an orchestra."

"The wonderful Royal London Philharmonic."

"Recorded live in Abbey Road Studios. What an experience that was to create. Wonderful stuff."

"Hope you like it when it finally comes out."

"There's just a little taster for ya."

"The reimagined version of the song Animal."


Def Leppard 2023. Def Leppard 2023

Def Leppard Drastic Symphonies - Press Quotes 16th March 2023

Joe Elliott

"Def Leppard has always enjoyed veering off the expected path - working with the likes of Tim McGraw, Taylor Swift & Alison Krauss for example."

"So, when the offer to revisit some of our back catalogue with the Royal Philharmonic was presented to us, to a man we all jumped at it."

"Although we’re far from the first band to ever do this, working directly with an orchestra at Abbey Road on some of our more orchestrated songs seemed too good of an opportunity to pass up."


Phil Collen

"When the offer of doing an orchestral album with the RPO was suggested we were honoured. But we didn’t just want an orchestra plonked over our previous recordings."

"We decided to create something special where we would have something classic but present it in a brand-new way that would involve making everything work in the context of ‘Drastic Symphonies’."

"Recording new parts, remixing previous sounds, taking some of our instruments out so the orchestra could breathe and literally making a new album."

" It was an amazingly inspirational process culminating in the live recording of the RPO at Abbey Road studios in London. An absolute team effort that took a good part of a year."

"It’s a new Def Leppard album, it’s a greatest hits plus album, with some rarely heard songs, it’s a live RPO album and we think it’s perfect. We’re so proud of how ‘Drastic Symphonies’ turned out and can’t wait to share it to the world."


Def Leppard 2023.


New Single - Animal (feat. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra)

01 - Animal - 4:03 - Amazon - (MP3)


  • Producer - Def Leppard/Ronan McHugh/Nick Patrick
  • Mixer - Ronan McHugh
  • Release Date - 16th March 2023


Buy 'Drastic Symphonies' Online


Drastic Symphonies (feat. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - Tracklisting

  • 01 - Turn To Dust - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 5:29
  • 02 - Paper Sun - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 5:33
  • 03 - Animal - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 4:03
  • 04 - Pour Some Sugar On Me (Stripped Version) - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 5:26
  • 05 - Hysteria - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 5:56
  • 06 - Love Bites - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 6:41
  • 07 - Goodbye For Good This Time - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 4:26
  • 08 - Love - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 3:55
  • 09 - Gods Of War - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 6:45
  • 10 - Angels (Can't Help You Now) - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 4:58
  • 11 - Bringin' On The Heartbreak - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 4:33
  • 12 - Switch 625 - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 3:04
  • 13 - Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 4:55 - (Bonus Track)
  • 14 - Too Late For Love - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 5:37
  • 15 - When Love & Hate Collide - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - 4:16
  • 16 - Kings Of The World - (Def Leppard with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra - 6:19
  • Producer - Def Leppard/Ronan McHugh/Nick Patrick
  • Mixer - Ronan McHugh
  • Record Label - Universal Music Recordings/Bludgeon Riffola
  • Total Time - 82 mins
  • Release Date - 19th May 2023

Def Leppard (with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) - Drastic Symphonies - SHM-CD 1CD Version (Japan)

Def Leppard Drastic Symphonies - Product Description (Translated)

"Co-starring work with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, one of London's leading orchestras."

"London's leading orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and Def Leppard have teamed up to dramatically reconstruct the songs Def Leppard has released in the past, making it more spectacular and lively than ever."

"In this work, not only Def Leppard's super famous songs, but also the original tape sound sources of hidden masterpieces are played with the performance of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra."

"New vocals and guitars have also been added, which complement the beautiful orchestral arrangements. There are also several passages in which Joe Elliott sings a duet with his younger self."

"The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra recorded at Abbey Road Studios on March 22, 2022. The album was produced by Def Leppard, Ronan McHugh, and Nick Patrick (producers of the album with Elvis, Roy Orbison, The Beach Boys, Buddy Holly and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and other orchestras)."

"Arranged by Eric Goffen (Neil Diamond, Ryan Adams, Christina Aguilera)"


Def Leppard 2023.

Def Leppard / Latest Release


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Related News - JOE ELLIOTT On DEF LEPPARD's DRASTIC SYMPHONIES ABBEY ROAD Live Recording Session

Related News - DEF LEPPARD's DRASTIC SYMPHONIES Album Tracklistings/Version Details

Related News - JOE ELLIOTT On DEF LEPPARD's DRASTIC SYMPHONIES Album/Live Residency Orchestra Shows

Related News - DEF LEPPARD To Release DRASTIC SYMPHONIES Album On 19th May/Animal Out Now

Related News - JOE ELLIOTT To Make DEF LEPPARD Announcement On BBC Radio 2 Tomorrow

Related News - DEF LEPPARD's PHIL COLLEN Teases Big Announcement For This Summer At SXSW


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