Def Leppard - Hysteria

Released in 1987

Def Leppard's third album, Pyromania, raised expectations of what heavy metal could be and made melodic metal a regular part of radio airplay. Expecting any band to strike such magic twice in a row would be unreasonable. Yet strike magic twice they did; in fact Def Leppard did much more. With their fourth album, Hysteria, the band raised the bar to a level that no other pop-metal band could ever hope to reach. They achieved sheer perfection.

Few at the time believed it could actually be done since there were significant hurdles the band needed to overcome. First was a devastating injury that the drummer Rick Allen suffered in a car crash, which resulted in the amputation of an arm. The band refused to replace their longtime friend, and their loyalty was paid off for the talented Allen overcame his handicap to help create the band's defining album.

The second hurdle, though far less severe, was certainly significant. Highly prolific in the early 80's, the band hadn't released an album in four years since the release of the highly acclaimed Pyromania. It was a reasonable belief that the British crew would be rusty after such a passage of time.

Choosing any highlights from this album is nearly impossible, and anyone who grew up listening to this band would understand why. Unlike most albums, Hysteria contained no fillers. Each track sparkled with top-notch production, masterful hooks and lead singer Joe Elliott's unbeatable vocals. If such a claim sounds like hype, keep in mind that the album resulted in seven chart-topping singles. 7 out of 12. How many bands do you know of that can create so many chart toppers on just one album?

If one insisted on trying to pick out highlights the selection might look like:

But truly, picking highlights from such a solid album is akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. Why bother undertaking such a difficult task when you can sit back and enjoy all this album has to offer?

Undoubtedly there are some heavy metal fans that believe this is too commercial or soft, but that's fine since this album wasn't necessarily made to appeal to them. It's not nearly as hard as their first two albums, but since the band was heading into a pop-metal and melodic hard rock direction it wasn't ever intended to be.

Hysteria is the quintessential album for those who enjoy their metal splashed with a healthy dose of hooks and melody, and as such it receives my highest honors.

Rating: 10 stars

Track List

  • Women
  • Rocket
  • Animal
  • Love Bites
  • Pour Some Sugar on Me
  • Armageddon It
  • Gods of War
  • Don't Shoot Shotgun
  • Run Riot
  • Hysteria
  • Excitable
  • Love and Affection

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