On Through the Night

On Through the Night
Studio album by Def Leppard
Released 14 March 1980
Recorded December 1979
Studio Startling Studios, Ascot, Berkshire
Genre
Length 43:47
Label Vertigo (UK and Europe)
Mercury (North America)
Producer (Colonel) Tom Allom
Def Leppard chronology
The Def Leppard E.P.
(1979)		 On Through the Night
(1980)		 High 'n' Dry
(1981)
Singles from On Through the Night
  1. "Getcha Rocks Off"
    Released: September 1979 (UK only)
  2. "Wasted/Hello America"
    Released: 17 November 1979 (Europe only)
  3. "Hello America/Good Morning Freedom"
    Released: February 1980
  4. "Rock Brigade/When the Walls Came Tumbling Down"
    Released: May 1980 (US only)

On Through the Night is the debut album by English rock band Def Leppard, released in 1980. The album was produced by Tom Allom. It charted at No. 15 on the UK Albums Chart[1] and No. 51 on the Billboard 200.[2] The album features re-recorded versions of "Rocks Off" and "Overture", tracks from the band's original independently released EP, The Def Leppard E.P. Other tracks are re-recorded versions of early demos, some of which appeared on the First Strike and Warchild bootlegs. The album was certified gold by the RIAA on November 18, 1983 and platinum on 9 May 1989.[3]

"Rocks Off", "Wasted", "Hello America" and "Rock Brigade" were released as singles. However, the versions of "Rocks Off" (titled "Getcha Rocks Off") and "Wasted" that appears on the singles is a different recording from that of the LP, as is its B-side, "Hello America". The single "Getcha Rocks Off" included the songs "Ride into the Sun" and "Overture".

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Martin Popoff[5]
Rolling Stone(favourable)[6]
Sputnikmusic[7]

The album received mostly positive reviews. AllMusic's Steve Huey noted that On Through the Night "established the band as one of the leading lights of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal." Although he stated that "it may lack the detailed production and more pop-oriented songwriting of later efforts, (...) some Leppard fans prefer this sound."[4] Canadian journalist Martin Popoff praised the album for being "one of the most polished and savvy of the NWOBHM", evoking the sound of "acts like Thin Lizzy, UFO, even Queen and Mott the Hoople." For him, On Through the Night was "a welcome breath of fresh air" among the dark, "thrashy" and "punky" music coming from the UK at the time.[5] Rolling Stone's David Fricke reviewed the album favourably on the same wavelength, explaining that it "shows they not only respect their elders, they've taken cues from their New Wave peers, too." He also stated that "guitarists Pete Willis and Steve Clark shoot from the hip, packing their licks into tight, three-minute pop arrangements", and that lead singer Joe Elliot "wails wonderfully in a resonating tenor, fortified by backup harmonies and Tom Allom's battering-ram production." He concluded that the band "displays a wisdom beyond their years" in mixing melody and heaviness, coming up with an album that "is awfully impressive for a band making its vinyl debut."[6] Sputnikmusic staff review noted that the "middle-class common-man image" of the "New Wave of British Heavy Metal" movement "partially played a part in making Def Leppard one of [its] leaders". He also stated that the band's ambition "would never allow [them] to be tunnel-visioned", but he concluded that On Through the Night "can be categorized as a grower of an album since the more superficial elements that would appeal to the mainstream will initially distract some listeners from what is actually an incredibly tight musical and vocal performance."[7]

Track listing

Side one
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
1. "Rock Brigade"  Rick Savage, Steve Clark, Joe Elliott 3:09
2. "Hello America"  Savage, Clark, Elliott 3:27
3. "Sorrow Is a Woman"  Savage, Clark, Pete Willis, Elliott 3:54
4. "It Could Be You"  Willis, Elliott 2:33
5. "Satellite"  Savage, Clark, Willis, Elliott 4:28
6. "When the Walls Came Tumbling Down"  Clark, Elliott, Andrew Smith 4:44
Side two
No. TitleWriter(s) Length
7. "Wasted"  Clark, Elliott 3:45
8. "Rocks Off"  Willis, Savage, Clark, Elliott 3:42
9. "It Don't Matter"  Willis, Elliott, Clark 3:21
10. "Answer to the Master"  Willis, Clark, Savage, Elliott 3:13
11. "Overture"  Savage, Clark, Willis, Elliott 7:44

Personnel

Def Leppard

Additional musicians

Production

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
1980 UK Albums Chart[1] 15
Billboard 200 (USA)[2] 51

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
1979 "Wasted" UK Singles Chart[1] 61
1980 "Hello America" UK Singles Chart[1] 45

Certifications

Country Organization Year Sales
USA RIAA 1989 Platinum (+ 1,000,000)[3]
Canada CRIA 1991 Platinum (+ 100,000)[8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Def Leppard Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  2. 1 2 "On through the Night Billboard Albums". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  3. 1 2 "RIAA Searchable Database: search for "Def Leppard"". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  4. 1 2 Huey, Steve. "Def Leppard - On Through the Night review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  5. 1 2 Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
  6. 1 2 Fricke, David (26 June 1980). "On through the Night - Def Leppard". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Def Leppard - On Through the Night (staff review)". Sputnikmusic.com. 22 December 2008. Retrieved 4 August 2011.
  8. ↑ "Gold Platinum Search for Def Leppard". Music Canada. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
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