DEF LEPPARD Singer Says MTLEY CRE Is 'Living On Past Reputation'

October 14, 2011

DEF LEPPARD singer Joe Elliott spoke to DailyRecord.co.uk about his band's upcoming U.K. tour with MTLEY CRE.

According to Joe, parents needn't bother locking up their daughters despite the reputations of MTLEY CRE rockers such as Tommy Lee and former heroin addict Nikki Sixx.

"Because of a documentary where you see someone throwing a telly out the window of a hotel, people get the impression that is what we all do," Joe said. "You talk to Nikki. He has been clean since he was toe-tagged once in the '80s. He's a far more sensible character these days. He has his own radio show here in the States and has had me on the show a couple of times. His stories are similar to mine. He dresses like Nikki Sixx with the warpaint on. But without trying to blow their image, they are living on past reputation and I don't mean that in a bad way."

MTLEY CRE guitarist Mick Mars is still a member of the band despite his ongoing battle with ankylosing spondylitis, a chronic, inflammatory form of arthritis affecting the spine and pelvis. Diagnosed when he was 17 years old, he underwent a hip-replacement seven years ago.

"MTLEY CRE have all had their issues," Joe admitted. "I'm not suggesting they are teetotal but Mick Mars has been pretty ill for a long time and just to get him onstage is probably an effort. He is hardly likely to be propping the bar up until three in the morning after a gig. What their reputation is now is what they do onstage and how they present their show, and that is what CRE are good at. Those guys were more known for their antics than their music and I think, eventually, that started to annoy them.

"We used to get riled when people called us a hair metal band. If that's true, then so are LED ZEPPELIN. It's a ridiculously stupid, lazy term by people who can't be bothered listening to the music because they are fans of REM or Tom Waits. We've put up with that all our lives.

"When it comes to bands like MTLEY CRE and us and this is not me bitching I have been asked about having a beef with the English press. I said that the only people who get into the Hall Of Fame are the Tom Pettys and Bruce Springsteens. They don't want us or BLACK SABBATH in there because it is seen to be dirty. It is just a game and you fall foul of it sometimes."

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