No-one, not even Bon Jovi, can convey the joy and the pain of the human condition better than Def Leppard. Their tenth album 'X' is an emotional minefield. One minute you're feeling wistful and sad because of tearstained ballads like 'Long Way To Go', the next you're plunging headfirst into a world of eroticism and fantasy thanks to hard rock bangers like 'Four Letter Word' and 'Girl Like You'.
Never one to rest on his creative laurels, singer Joe Elliott even tries his hand at rapping on the amazing, disco-tinged 'Gravity'. Def Leppard improve with age: they lost their guitarist through drugs, their drummer had his arm amputated and, even though they're all in their 40s, they've just made the best rock album since Andrew WK's 'I Get Wet'.
XI
Andy Capper
5
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