Def Leppard

DEF LEPPARD. English rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. The band's strongest commercial success came between the early 1980s and the early 1990s. Their 1981 album High N Dry was produced by Robert John Lange who helped them begin to define their style ; the album's stand out track "Bringin on The Heartbreak" became one of the first rock videos played on MTV in 1982. Their next studio album Pyromania in January 1983 with "Photograph" as the lead single made Def Leppard into a household name. In the US, Pyromania was certified Diamond (10× Platinum). In 2003, the album ranked No 384 on Rolling Stones Greatest albums of all time. Their fourth album Hysteria (released in August 1987) topped the UK and US album charts. As of 2009, it has reached beyond the success of Pyromania (having been certified 12× Platinum) for sales of over 12 million in the US and has sold over 25 million copies worldwide. Now one of the worlds best-selling music artists, the group have sold over 100 million records worldwide. They are ranked No 31 in VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" and ranked No. 70 in "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". They have overcome several major events over the years with the death (aged just 30 in 1991) of co-lead guitarist and principal songwriter Steve Clark from an overdose brought on by a combination of multiple prescription drugs and alcohol AND drummer Rick Allen (known as The Thunder God by fans) overcoming the amputation of his left arm in 1985 to later continuing playing.