West Palm Beach, FL - Media Review Quotes

By Leslie Gray Streeter

Def Leppard's giddy two-hour set should be the standard recipe for all touring acts whose biggest hits are likely behind them: Do mostly recognizable hits so the crowd can sing along (Foolin', Animal, Armageddon It). Throw in one or two new songs (from 2002's X) to keep the accountants happy. Have cool lights. Appear to be having the time of your life. And keep those monster hits coming.

And, boy, did they bring on the hits. From early tunes like Rock of Ages to the rollicking encore, 1992's Let's Get Rocked, Elliott, guitarists Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell, bass player Rick Savage and drummer Rick Allen bit into probably every one of the band's singles in all their cheeky, slightly cheesy glory. And it rocked.

"Until next time! And there will be a next time!" Elliott yelled as the band exited. The crowd gleefully yelled back, probably mentally planning outfits for the next tour.

By Palm Beach Post 2003.

Read the full review at - palmbeachpost.com

Def Leppard @ West Palm Beach By The Dog Pound

About 8,000 fans braved two lightning storms and saw pop-metal at its finest, put on by '80s British rockers Def Leppard.

The band was on-target all night, leaving out nothing from their two-hour show. They focused mostly on their two most popular albums, Pyromania and Hysteria, which is probably as it should have been. Obviously, Def Leppard must have learned from their last tour, when they hit the Euphoria album pretty hard, leaving the core of their fans scratching their heads. This time, only a cursory glance was given to their later material, including a couple of songs, receiving little more than a lukewarm reception, from their most recent effort, 2002's pop-laden X. Devotees of their '90s efforts probably would have been disappointed.

But who cares about those people? We were all there to hear them play "Photograph," "Foolin'," "Animal," "Armageddon It," "Rock of Ages," "Bringin' on the Heartbreak" and "Pour Some Sugar on Me," just to name a few. Joe Elliott was in great form, playing with the crowd, getting them involved in much of the show. Bassist Rick Savage and drummer Rick Allen complemented this excellent performance, the latter showing no ill effects of switching back to a fully-acoustic drum kit. Guitarists Viv Campbell and Phil Collen were on top of their game, as well, showing off their brilliant axe work in a guitar duel of sorts during "Rocket," which also included a brief tribute to Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love."

The rain was at most a distraction. The party atmosphere among the 2,000 or so on the festival lawn was still there, even as some of the hardest rain fell during the last half-hour of the show. On this night, there was little that could dampen the enthusiasm (no pun intended :-) ).

By The Dog Pound 2003.

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