The “catchy song” part was the direction Def Leppard took and ran with. Whenever the On Through The Night album is brought up by an interviewer, the band dismisses it and quickly changes the subject. Practically every song on the album is a tour de force of hook laden riffs, done in a hard rock / metal way.īecause of that hard rock metal edge, like a palimpsest, the band has tried their hardest to bury On Through The Night and rewrite their own important part in hard rock history. It Don’t Matter, Answer To The Master, Satellite, It Could Be You, Wasted, Rock Brigade titles that belie their heaviness. First time you hear them the songs are in your head. The difference between this and most other debut albums is that they are performed with a professionalism well beyond their years. Here’s the most incredible thing about this video performance of that first album - singer Joe Elliott is 21, guitarists Steve Clark & Pete Willis are 20, bass player Rick Savage is 19 and drummer Rick Allen is – are you kidding me? - 16!!!! Eleven mostly blistering songs played at a frantic pace with songwriting that displays an ear for catchy and memorable songs. And that is what On Through The Night is. Within the music industry, in order for any band to get a record deal, the band must put forth only their best material. Previously in 1979, the band printed its own EP and sold an astounding 18,000 copies. They were signed on the basis of what three years of honing and craft perfection had wrought – On Through The Night. It was 1980 and Def Leppard had just been signed to a deal with Mercury Records. In fact it's on par with High and Dry, even slightly better.L-r Rick Savage, Joe Elliott, Pete Willis, Rick Allen & Steve Clark c 1980 It's starts well enough with ominous acoustic picking but even after many listens it all sounds a bit boring. A 7 minute epic is usually a chance to have a bit of fun.
Who'd o' thought? 'Overture' however lets it all down. It's groovy and fun and actually quite metal for Leppard. 'Answer to the Master' sounds like a less heavy early Metallica track. 'It Don't Matter' is another pretty fair number along the same lines as 'Wasted' only with a better chorus. 'Rocks Off' shouldn't be good but some heroic widdly bits and and almost-Maidenesque gallop saves it. It starts with wind and an english plummy narration and turns into a serious tune with an even more serious chorus. 'When the Walls Came Tumbling Down' is another excellent track. 'Satellite' is another good but no cigar track, although it is rather more sombre than the opening 2. It's a great, catchy tune that is easily re-hummable. 'It Could Be You' is where it all starts to get interesting. 'Sorrow is a Woman' is the first attempt at the power ballads they became so adept at later on in their career. These are 2 absolutely fine, rocking, cheesy tracks that will not change your life in any way. However it opens proceedings well and it's not a bad introduction to the band. It's got a nice catchy chorus but it's no masterpiece. 'Rock Brigade' is a great little song without ever being a great little song - if you get me?(?). And, briefly, it was the sound of Def Leppard. It was the sound of early Iron Maiden and the NWOBHM upstarts. A rumbling, galloping, riffy, solo -ey heavy rock sound. Today when Leppard do fun party tracks they are usually wince-inducingly apalling or the album, 'Yeah' (shudder).
It's a shame that their sound changed to the over-gleaned transatlantic shine that they peddle now, as their debut, despite not being a classic by any means, at least sounds far more honest and lots more fun. This is good ole fashioned rock and roll - 80s style.
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