SLS: Triple Def

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For this week’s Song Lyric Sunday, as he tells us in his post – A Definitive List –  Jim is inviting us to play a song from the List of the 200 Definitive albums in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame which, as Wikipedia tells us, is a 2007 list of the best albums ever produced by artists or bands throughout the history of world music, according to the criteria of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM), whoever they are. Good sales performance and continuity of potential with lasting popularity are apparently adopted as criteria by both.

I have been critical on many occasions about the criteria used by the Rock and Roll Hall of Shame in choosing their inductees, many of whom have absolutely no connection with rock music, but I was pleasantly surprised when I sought this list out, as there were probably approaching 150 albums there from which I could have chosen. The usual mix of (c)rap was in there, of course, but I won’t be playing any of those – no surprise there, then! As you might expect, the list was a little biased towards the US, with several inclusions that didn’t do anything over here, but there were plenty of choices from elsewhere, including quite a few Brits.

I’m staying at home and going with one of the bands who have two albums on the list: Def Leppard, at #36 with Hysteria and at #86 with Pyromania, and am playing songs from both of them. I wouldn’t mind betting that I will be failing in my usual attempt at avoiding duplications with other SLS participants, but never mind – they are worth hearing more than once. This is the opener for today, the title track from Hysteria:

And here are the lyrics:

Out of touch, out of reach, yeahYou could try to get closer to me
I’m in love, I’m in deep, yeahHypnotized, I’m shakin’ to my knees
 
I gotta know tonightIf you’re alone tonightCan’t stop this feelin’
Can’t stop this fire
 
Oh, I get hysterical, hysteriaOh, can you feel it? (Oh, can you feel it?)Do you believe it? (Do you believe it?)It’s such a magical mysteriaWhen you get that feelin’ (when you get that feelin’)Better start believin’ (better start believin’)‘Cause it’s a miracleOh, say you will, ooh, babeHysteria when you’re near
 
Out of me, into you, yeahYou can’t hide, it’s just a one-way streetOh, I believe I’m in you, yeahOpen wide, that’s rightDream me off my feetOh, believe in me
 
I gotta know tonightIf you’re alone tonightCan’t stop this feelingCan’t stop this fire
 
Oh, I get hysterical, hysteriaOh, can you feel it? (Oh, can you feel it?)Do you believe it? (Do you believe it?)It’s such a magical mysteriaWhen you get that feelin’ (when you get that feelin’)Better start believin’ (better start believin’)‘Cause it’s a miracleOh, say you will, ooh babeHysteria when you’re near
 
C’mon
 
I gotta know tonightIf you’re alone tonightCan’t stop this feelingCan’t stop this fire
 
Oh, I get hysterical, hysteriaOh, can you feel it? (Oh, can you feel it?)Do you believe it? (Do you believe it?)It’s such a magical mysteriaWhen you get that feelin’ (when you get that feelin’)Better start believin’ (better start believin’)‘Cause it’s a miracleOh, say you will, ooh babe (oh, can you feel it?)Ooh, babe (do you believe it?)
 
Oh, I get hysterical, hysteria(When you get that feelin’) You better believe itBetter start believin’ (better start believin’)God, it’s a miracleOh, say you will, ooh babeSay you will
 
Get closer to meGet closer, baby (oh)BabyCloser (get closer)Closer (get closer)Closer to me
 
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Robert John Lange / Stephen Clark / Richard John Cyril Allen / Richard Savage / Joseph Elliott / Philip Kenneth Collen
Hysteria lyrics © Out Of Pocket Prod. Ltd.
 
Hysteria was Def Leppard’s fourth album, released in August 1987, and it topped the charts in the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. It was a phenomenal success, selling more than 20m copies worldwide, including 12m in the US (12x Platinum), 1m in Canada (Diamond), and 600k in the UK (2x platinum). Seven of its twelve tracks were released as singles: this was the fourth, in November 1987 in the UK and January 1988 in the US, and it peaked at #9 in the US and #26 in the UK. Nevertheless, it still went Silver in the UK for more than 200k sales. This was their first album since drummer Rick Allen lost his left arm in a car crash on New Year’s Eve 1984, following which the band – who were close friends – stuck by him and continued with suitable adjustments to accommodate him. That’s friendship at its best, for me. You may have noticed that the video says “long version” – that is because this is the full length song from the album, clocking in at 5’54”, which was cut down to 3’50” for the single. You get your full money’s worth with me!
 
I’m playing another from that record, which has long been a favourite album of mine. This is one of the other singles:
 
 
A target aims at a building that is expelling out flames, with the target showing a magnified view of it.

 

36 thoughts on “SLS: Triple Def”

  1. Pingback: That Was April | Take It Easy

  3. Def Leppard is a favorite of mine. My daughters had the tapes and the VHS of them all too. I think it was called Hysteria, and we watchec them on MTV. We used to joke that Joe Elliot was a relative of ours because my husband’s actual grandpa had that name too. haha 🙂

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  5. You went with one of my favorite bands today, Clive. While I’ve always liked this group over the years, I still think Pyromania was their best album. I played that LP until it was covered with scratches.

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  6. Nice choices, Clive. I have to admit I am not familiar with them as I stopped listening to what was defined rock after the 80’s. To me rock should be called something else afters the 80’s, but I digress….. 😦

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  7. A good selection today, as usual, and I agree the Hall Of Fame is heavily skewed towards the US point of view. It might not be cricket as far as their selections go, but I guess we have to bat on their pitches.

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  10. Def Leppard were among the most successful rock bands of the 1980s, having two consecutive Diamond-certified studio albums. I think they are still a group today, but I think their fan base had dwindled, however they are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Great choice today, Clive and you picked some real winners today.

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    • They were indeed, one of the few bands to achieve that. They are still going but haven’t been all that prolific: their most recent album, three years ago, made #5 here and #10 in the States, which are pretty respectable numbers. They enticed Alison Krauss away from Robert Plant to sing lead on a couple of its tracks. Glad you liked the choice, Jim 👍

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  12. Being a strong believer in synchronicity, karma, fate, etc., I’m not at all surprised you chose to feature Def Leppard today. Bill and I were jockeying the cars around the other day and the song playing on my radio was Hysteria. As I sat there waiting for Bill to finish moving his car out of the garage so I could put mine in, I said out loud to myself “Damn, I forgot how good Def Leppard is!” I also repeated that comment to Bill a few minutes later. And it’s true; I did forget and they are that good! The 80s was my time to get responsible, settle down and raise our kids; there’s a lot of really good music that happened in that time period which I either missed or forgot. Thanks for this excellent reminder of just how great Def Leppard is. Perfect start to my day!

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    • Synchronicity indeed! I’m pleased you didn’t decide to go with them too, after having had that reminder. They were a band that some looked down on, but I always thought they were better than given credit for. They’ve given us a collection of great albums. Glad you liked my choice 👍

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  14. Being a dyed in the wool hard rock/ heavy metal fan, you know this selection was right on time for me this morning. Nothing better than seeing the softer side, and that is Love Bites all the way to me. Excellent choices- brought me right back to the summer of my life.

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