Live Review: Def Leppard, Don Valley Stadium, 6th June, 1993

I've always felt that Leppard use their lighting effects to excellently enhance their material, but, with the sun refusing to set until late on in the set, the material had to take precedent and, let's be honest, the triple salvo comprised of "Too Late," "Hysteria," and "Make Love Like A Man," are hardly riot-inciting anthems. This being a return to their roots, I personally was expecting some blasts from the past. Bar Another Hit and Run and the recently revamped Tear It Down, what we get is the greatest hits, which really is an excuse for a celebration missed.

There's no arguing with the mid set-listing of "White Lightning," "Foolin'," "Animal," and "Gods Of War" even if Phil Collen and Viv Campbell exercise their soloing skills in between. Mr. Elliot then picks up his acoustic, imploring the crowd to sing along with his rendition of Springsteen's "My Hometown." Unfortunately it's a failure, forcing him prematurely back into the bosom of the band for Have You Ever. The closing segment stokes the crowd out of their increasing sun-n-beer-induced apathy by way of "Armageddon It," "Pour Some Sugar," and "Rock Of Ages."

Leppard return for the encores "Love Bites" and "Photograph," with Joe n' Rick sporting Sheffield United and Wednesday football shirts respectively. Similar to their supported sides recent cup runs this gig must be judged as...close but no cigar.

Don Valley Stadium Bill
6th June, 1993

DEF LEPPARD
Ugly Kid Joe
Thunder
Terrorvision

Joe Mackett
Riff Raff
August 1993

Revenge...?

Riff Raff was a legendary rock magazine based in London in the late 1980s and 1990s. Edited by the ultimate music biz insider, Mark Crampton, and employing such talents as Mark Blake, Jerry Ewing, Mike Harris, Paul Smith, Chris Collingwood, Alan McCrorie, Simon Robinson, Lyn Guy, Anna Marx, Nick Douglas, Marion Garden, Peter "Grunty" Grant, Joe "The Crow" Mackett, Billy "The Kluck" Kulke, and, lastest and mostest, the incredible Liddell Brothers, Mark (a.k.a. "El Perro") and Colin (a.k.a. "Der Fly"). Unfortunately, Riff Raff was just too R n' R for its own good. A genuine working class rock mag, written, edited, and translated into 16 European languages in a drug-N-Jack-D-fuelled haze, often on the back of motorbikes, with spell checking by our staff of attentive rock bimbos (chosen purely for their blondeness and big knockers), it soon fell behind more trainspotterly, nerdish, and politically correct publications like Q, Kerrang, Mojo, Metal Hammer, and Horse & Hound. This website is an archive and kind of shrine dedicated to the writing of its greatest writers, some of whom, luckily for the Rock Kosmos, still continue to write about music. This is the REVENGE of Riff Raff...Rock on!