Def Leppard's album Hysteria sold over 17 million copies, produced seven hit singles and brought worldwide superstardom to the band in 1987. After the success in America of the 1983 album Pyromania, Def Leppard went into ... more »'exile' in Dublin to begin the writing and production of their fourth album. It would be four years in the making. During this time they would try three different record producers, three different recording studios, Producer Robert 'Mutt' Lange would suffer leg injuries in a car accident, drummer Rick Allen would narrowly survive a terrible car crash but lose his left arm in the accident, and the band would be taken to the limits of their physical and emotional endurance. This program takes a track by track look at the making of the album. We speak to Joe Elliott, Rick Allen, Phil Collen, and Rick Savage who lead us through the original multitrack tapes. Joe and Phil play acoustic versions of 'Pour Some Sugar On Me' and 'Hysteria', and Sav and Phil demonstrate riffs and licks from the songs, and explain the genesis of the songwriting. Rick talks of the impact of the car accident on his life and on the band, of his determination to re-learn the drums, and of his triumphant return to performing live at the 1986 Donnington Festival. Featured songs include 'Animal', 'Rocket', 'Love Bites', 'Hysteria', 'Women', 'Armageddon It' and 'Pour Some Sugar On Me'. The program is illustrated by archive footage from Def Leppard in concert, TV performances and promotional videos, and provides a unique insight into the making of a record which dominated the charts for two years, a true Classic Album.« less
I'm a huge Def Leppard fan but the Amazon reviews and ones on here at 5/5 were huge overstatements. I lost interest and got bored with the interviews about 8 minutes in. The cuts and current vocal singing were cool but it could not bring this out of a poorly done documentary. Some interesting facts if you are a fan. I would otherwise avoid this unless you are a fan.
Movie Reviews
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M. Myers | Kansas City, KS, USA | 01/03/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is a DVD in the "Classic Albums" series, which has interviews with the band and Mutt and some other people tangentally related to the making of Hystera. This is NOT the "Hysteria" movie.
When I got this, I was pretty disappointed that Amazon mislabeled it. After watching it though I am very happy that I ended up with it and it's one of my most watched DVDs.
Strictly for music/recording nerds and Def Leppard fans, this is a well done documentary piece on what the band went through when recording Hysteria as well as the touring they did after Rick's accident. Musically it points out some of the nuances that one might miss through casual listening and some great bits which (thankfully, in some cases) never made it onto the album.
The DVD has a whole lot of Phil and Joe but Rick really shines on this too and special attention is given to Steve's contributions."
Great insight into one of the best selling album of all time
Pipo Jones | 10/02/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is a great DVD from the classic albums line. the DVD is split into 2 sections part 1 is 50 minutes (?) It goes into great detail how the band put this album together. The interviews were excellent and Steve Clark finally gets the recognition he so finely deserves (and has done for years). I think they should have had more than a 30 second interview soundbyte from Steve though. This dvd also features promo videos for different songs both live and through music video. In closing on section 1 I thought this album had the band at breaking point though it was very draining on all on them to get the results that they got.The second part about 50/51 minutes Joe and Phil take you almost track for track telling you how each song was put together. Joe and Phil also perform unplugged versions of songs from Hysteria. Overall this was a very DVD I got mine for... and I thought it was wellworth shelling out for in the end."
Interesting look at the madness of Def Leppard
Def Voorhees | Florida | 08/31/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This DVD gives a real feel of what these guys went through to make the best rock album of all time. They give Steve Clark alot of credit for this album and his contribution to the band overall. This should shut the people up who say they don't appreciate Steve Clark anymore. Pick this DVD up and watch the making of this album to the top of the charts. It is presented in widescreen with a very good picture and the sound quality is great. A very good look at the life of a band in the studio. Keep the faith. X is out now!"
How a classic album was made.
Pipo Jones | PA USA | 09/16/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When Def Leppard started to work on Hysteria, their producer "Mutt" Lange stated that what they were trying to make was a hard-rock "Thriller", as in Michael Jackson's mega-success. The album Hysteria became speaks for itself in the quality of the songs, in the record sales it achieved, and in the wide audience it was able to reach. Any fan will attest to that and even non-fans are forced to recognize that this album hit the heighest of the summits in pop-rock.
The album, however, doesn't speak of its own history and what hardships the band had to overcome in order to give birth to this classic. This DVD, which is a must for any rabid Def Lep fan, fills this gap. It tells the long and painful history of the album, discusses (albeit almost in passing) the personal drama that touched the lives of band members, and shows how the album was produced in minute detail.
Audiences looking for a video collection will not like what they see in this DVD. On the other hand, audiences interested in how great songs are born and perfected will really appreciate this documentary. In there one will find several clips of videos and live performances and even a couple of acoustic versions of songs like "Hysteria" and "Pour Some Sugar on Me" (played by Joe Elliott and Phil Collen), but that is not the best in the treasure chest. More than anything else, I enjoyed seeing a little bit of each band member's perspective on Def Leppard's music and their trajectory to a short period of super-stardom."