Main

:|: Singers
:|: Guitarists
:|: Bassists
:|: Drummers
:|: Pianists
_____________________

Bookmark This Site

Rock & Roll Top 10 Lists

About AxeMojo.com

At five, Rick Allen was playing drums on his mom’s pots and pans.  At ten, his parents got fed up of hearing such noise so they dug into their savings account and got him a drum kit, provided he pay for half of it himself.

Five years later, at the tender age of 15, on November 28, 1978, he was hired as the drummer of Def Leppard, replacing Frank Noon, who had himself replaced original band drummer Tony Kenning.

In September of 1979, the group opened for Sammy Hagar and in October and November, played support for AC/DC.  In 1980 and 1981, they released their first two albums before releasing the hit Pyromania in 1983.  s

Allen made his debut on Leppard's 1980 album On Through the Night and made his presence felt. The drummer's heavy and busy style was unique enough and had firmly established him as a force to be reckoned with. While his style was more subdued on the ensuing High 'n' Dry, one thing was sure, with Allen behind the drums, Leppard was one of the bright spots to emerge out of the British metal scene, forming the New Wave of British Metal along with Iron Maiden.

Pyromania went on to be a hit in 1983, but on December 31, 1984, everything changed for Allen as his Corvette Stingray swerved off the road and crashed into a wall, severing Allen's left arm. Doctors tried to reattach it but infection had set in and they had to re-amputate. 

While Allen lost his arm, undeterred, he rejoined the band, using an electronic drum kit with a unique foot pedal which allowed him to play just as before. He made a comeback on 1987's Hysteria, arguably one of the most successful music albums of all time with over 15 million copies. 

After taking a five year break, the band came back in 1992 and hasn’t stopped since. 

Date of birth: November 1, 1963

Copyright

:|: Def Leppard's Official Site

Free Music :|: Free Video Clips

INTERESTED IN WRITING ON MUSIC AND COVERING BANDS?
EMAIL US