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DEF LEPPARD Guitarist Interviewed On Florida's 98.7 THE GATER (Audio)

August 10, 2012

On Thursday, August 9, DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen talked to the 98.7 The Gater radio station in West Palm Beach, Florida before kicking off the second leg of the "Rock Of Ages" tour with POISON and LITA FORD in Sunrise, Florida. Listen as Phil calls in from the beach and shares how Florida has been a key state in his life, from events including his wedding in West Palm Beach and how radio requests in south Florida helped launch "Pour Some Sugar On Me" back in 1987. Phil also mentions how "Hysteria"'s recent 25th anniversary might warrant adding some songs to the set lists on upcoming dates of the tour.

In a recent interview with MusicRadar.com, Collen spoke about recording "Hysteria", the multi-platinum album his band released 25 years ago. "I can remember being in the studio, what guitars we used … I think I remember what we ordered for lunch on some days," he said.

Collen said the band's goal in the studio was to fulfill producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange's vision of making a hard rock version of Michael Jackson's "Thriller". "Mutt wanted to open us up to any kind of sound, make us like a hybrid in a way, and we thought that was really exciting," he explained. "A lot of rock albums can sound thin and reedy. But listen to hip-hop albums and R&B records — they sound huge! We found that we could get a lot of crossover appeal by making the songs big and open."

Attempting to follow-up the seven-times-platinum "Pyromania", DEF LEPPARD were hard at work recording their next album by Christmas of 1984 when a tragic car accident would leave drummer Rick Allen without his left arm. It would be another two and a half years of intense work in the studio before "Hysteria" would finally be released to a long-awaiting fanbase.

"[When I heard the finished product for the first time], I thought, 'If it sells one copy and my mom's the only one that buys it, I'll be happy,'" Collen said. "It was the best thing I'd ever heard. I was completely satisfied. I was so proud and pleased. I can still listen to it and feel the same way."

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