Every band has to start somewhere, and on this day 46 years ago, Def Leppard got their start at their humble first show in their hometown of Sheffield, England. Only 15 years later, the English rock band would make history in their South Yorkshire stomping grounds when they performed the first-ever rock show at Don Valley Stadium.
But first, Def Leppard had to cut their teeth like all the greatest musicians do—embarrassing oneself on stage at a poor-paying gig.
Def Leppard’s Humble (And Slightly Embarrassing) First Show
Def Leppard’s first real gig came at the behest (or, perhaps more accurately, ultimatum) of guitarist Steve Clark, who threatened to quit if the band didn’t book a show soon. Vocalist Joe Elliot employed a promoter named Bootleg Bill to book the band’s first real gig, who landed the band a show at the local Westfield School in Sheffield.
On the night of July 18, 1978, the band played in the school’s small auditorium and used a classroom as their green room. Although the number of people in attendance has varied, the general consensus stays around 80 to 150 teens. While a crowd that size would be enough to delight any rising band on their debut show, it also made the set’s opening moments all the more embarrassing for Clark.
As Elliot recalled in David Fricke’s The Def Leppard Story: Animal Instinct, “Just as we were about to go on, we realized we hadn’t tuned the guitars. So, we had to get one of the guys helping us bring Steve’s Marshall amp into the dressing room. He left the switch on standby.”
Once the band was tuned and ready to hit the downbeat, “Steve plugged in and walked to the front of the stage, looking brilliant in his tight jeans and long blonde hair. All ready to go into the first song, “World Beyond the Sky.” He did his windmill arm motion, just like Pete Townshend, for the big opening chord, and nothing happened. No power. Everybody in the audience was laughing. After a few seconds, we started all over again” (via Def Leppard’s website).
From High School Auditoriums to Historic Arena Performances
Despite the band’s initial hiccup, the crowd eventually warmed up to the young performers, demanding an encore at the end of their set. Def Leppard delivered, returning to perform a cover of Thin Lizzy’s “Jailbreak.” Clearly, the six-pack of liquid courage they stuffed into drummer Tony Kenning’s bass drum before the show had done its job. And just like that, the musicians were bit by the rock ‘n’ roll bug.
After hits like “Photograph” and “Pour Some Sugar On Me” catapulted the rock band into international stardom, they no longer had to worry about smuggling beer and meager payouts. They were bona fide rockstars, and in 1993, Def Leppard returned to their hometown to perform the first-ever rock concert at Don Valley Stadium. It was the band’s only UK date on their Adrenalize European tour, and over 40,000 people showed up to watch the hometown heroes perform.
“We were the first ever band to play our hometown,” Elliot recalled in a 2012 interview. “A brand new stadium in our hometown. We played to nearly 50,000 people in 1993. Playing your hometown is just an amazing feeling when you do that. It was an amazing moment, when you walk on stage, and your entire career flashes before your eyes.”
“I was pretty overwhelmed by the whole thing, I must admit,” drummer Rick Allen said of the historic show (Allen joined the band after Kenning abruptly quit months after their high school debut). “The fact that there were so many people that I knew in the audience or backstage or whatever, and they were all really rooting for us, really gave me a sense that we’d sort of made it” (via the band’s website).
Photo by ANL/Shutterstock
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