DEF LEPPARD – HYSTERIA LP – Nr MINT A1/B1 UK

Def Leppard – Hysteria
(Vertigo Records  1987  HYSLP1)
Matrix No’s: A1/B1 – UK Pressing

Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
(there are some surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality)

Sleeve in Nr MINT condition
– original hype sticker top right – some slight wear to edges/corners
Inner Sleeve in Nr MINT condition

Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the new wave of British heavy metal movement. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Savage (bass guitar, backing vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), and Vivian Campbell (guitar, backing vocals). This is the band’s longest-standing line-up.

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 “Mutt” Lange, who helped them begin to define their style, and the album’s standout track “Bringin’ On the Heartbreak” became one of the first rock videos played on MTV in 1982. The band’s next studio album, Pyromania in January 1983, with “Photograph” and “Rock of Ages” as the lead singles, turned Def Leppard into a household name. In the U.S., Pyromania was certified Diamond (10× Platinum). In 2003, the album ranked number 384 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Def Leppard’s fourth album Hysteria, released in August 1987, topped the UK and U.S. 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 U.S. and has gone on to sell over 25 million copies worldwide. The album spawned seven hit singles, including the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 number one “Love Bites”, alongside “Pour Some Sugar on Me”, “Hysteria”, “Armageddon It”, “Animal”, “Rocket”, and “Women”. Their next studio album, Adrenalize (the first following the death of guitarist Steve Clark), reached number one in the UK and U.S. charts in 1992, and contained several hits, including “Let’s Get Rocked” and “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad”. Their 1993 album, Retro Active, contained the acoustic hit song “Two Steps Behind”, while their greatest-hits album Vault, released in 1995, featured the UK hit “When Love & Hate Collide”.

As one of the world’s best-selling music artists, Def Leppard have sold more than 100 million records worldwide, and have two albums with RIAA Diamond certification, Pyromania and Hysteria. They are one of only five rock bands with two original studio albums selling over 10 million copies in the U.S. The band were ranked No. 31 in VH1’s “100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock” and ranked No. 70 in “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”.

Hysteria is the fourth studio album by English hard rock band Def Leppard, released on 3 August 1987 through Mercury Records and reissued on 1 January 2000. It is the band’s best-selling album to date, selling over 25 million copies worldwide, including 12 million in the US, and spawning seven hit singles. The album charted at #1 on both the Billboard 200 and the UK Albums Chart.

Hysteria was produced by Robert John “Mutt” Lange. The title of the album was thought up by drummer Rick Allen, referring to his 1984 auto accident and the ensuing worldwide media coverage surrounding it. It is also the last album to feature guitarist Steve Clark before his death, although songs co-written by him would appear in the band’s next album, Adrenalize.

The album is the follow-up to the band’s 1983 breakthrough Pyromania. Hysteria’s creation took over three years and was plagued by delays, including the aftermath of the 31 December 1984 car accident that cost drummer Rick Allen his left arm. Subsequent to the album’s release, Def Leppard published a book entitled Animal Instinct: The Def Leppard Story, written by Rolling Stone magazine Senior Editor David Fricke, on the three-year recording process of Hysteria and the tough times the band endured through the mid-1980s.

Hysteria has earned critical acclaim from a number of sources. In 1988 Q magazine readers voted it as the 98th Greatest Album of All Time, while in 2004, the album was ranked at #464 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Clocking in at 62 and a half minutes, the album was, at the time, one of the longest albums ever issued on a single vinyl record.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Steve Clark, Phil Collen, Joe Elliott, Mutt Lange and Rick Savage.

Personnel

• Joe Elliott – lead vocals
• Phil Collen – guitars
• Steve Clark – guitars
• Rick Savage – bass guitar
• Rick Allen – drums

Additional personnel

• The Bankrupt Brothers (another joking reference to Def Leppard themselves & Mutt Lange) – backing vocals
• Philip Nicholas – Fairlight programming

Production

• Robert John “Mutt” Lange – producer
• Nigel Green – engineer, assistant engineer, mixing
• Erwin Musper – engineer
• Ronald Prent – engineer
• Mike Shipley – mixing
• Bob Ludwig – mastering
• Howie Weinberg – mastering
• Ross Halfin – photography
• Laurie Lewis – photography
• Mark Flannery – tape operator

Artwork design

• Andie Airfix @ Satori