Dave Piper (Photo-Blog)

Pete Willis, Rick Savage, Rick Allen, Steve Clark and Joe Elliot set out to become Rock Legends, In 84` the transformation was complete when the renamed Def Leppard had been voted bigger than the Rolling Stones by a US poll. The ride for Def Leppard has been far from incident free, in 84` Rick Allen lost his arm in tragic car accident, only to play to a emotional crowd at Donnington just 2 years later, with a 20 minute standing ovation before playing a single note. In 91` Steve Clark passed away, Vivian Campbell was to take place and put the band back on course to be one of the biggest bands in the world. After Campbell joined the albums came thick and fast. Seeing them tonight is such an honour.

Def Leppard found Whitesnake a hard act to follow, Joe had to work hard to get a reaction from a crowd seemingly exhausted by the Whitesnake set but eventually, after an hour, “Pour Some Sugar On Me” there was not a single person not singing along in a sold out NEC arena. Def Leppard had proved why they are the rock royalty they are. The whole show was slick with fast change over between bands, impressive lighting set-ups, great venue staff and the best sound I have heard in a long time, with so many outdoor festivals this year, it was quite nice to be inside while it rained down outside. I had never seen either of these bands before, but after seeing them live, you can tell why they are still around and why My Chemical Romance wont be doing sell out tours for there 30^th anniversary. Both of these Bands are made from unique and very special stuff. Tonight’s gig was a text book example of Rock and Roll at is finest. “ Here we go again” was the highlight of a flawless Whitesnake set, and of a flawless night.