![]() It faired better for Leppard themselves, who released it as a single A-side themselves in 1993. For that band, it was a low-charting single. It was first recorded by Paul Rodgers and Kenney Jones as The Law in 1991. This is actually a piano version of a song that exists in many forms. “Miss You In a Heartbeat” (Acoustic Version). This blitz of a rocker features the screamin’ Joe voice and all the adrenaline you can handle (and was missing from Adrenalize).Ħ. The drums were re-recorded for Retro-Active but there were no other changes made. Def Leppard released their finished version on the single for “ Tonight” in 1993. From their version, you could hear the song deserved wider renown. Helix recorded this Leppard outtake themselves for 1987’s Wild in the Streets. This was Leppard’s very first acoustic song and it opened new doors for the traditionally hard rocking band.ĥ. The version on Retro-Active is the popular Kamen single mix. The second release had strings added by Michael Kamen for the Last Action Hero soundtrack, and that version was released as its own single. The first version released appeared on “Make Love Like a Man” as a purely acoustic song with no drums. As we’ll see, “Two Steps Behind” exists in a number of different versions. In fact, it was later released as a single, from this album!Ĥ. “Action” became a Leppard staple over the years, and as a rare fast/heavy rock singalong, you can hear why. Like most of the tracks on Retro-Active, the drums were re-recorded by Rick Allen in 1993. ![]() Vivian Campbell had joined the band by this time and the track features some of his guitar work. This Sweet cover originated on the 1992 “ Make Love Like a Man” CD single. “Fractured” is choppy, intense and reminiscent of the old band while still sounding like a 90s song. Both these songs sound ahead of their times and well suited to the darker moods prevalent in the early 90s. Drums were re-recorded in ’93, along with the new intro by Joe and Phil Collen. Joe’s vocals suddenly revert to the old screamin’ Elliott and it’s absolutely brilliant. You can tell the intro is of more recent vintage compared to the body of the song. A slow, heavy groove is melded with middle-eastern vibes for a dark winner.Ģ. What’s surprising about “Desert Song” is how modern it sounds even though it was originally written in 1987. Steve Clark is featured on the second guitar solo. Joe finished the words in 1993, while Phil laid down guitar overdubs and Rick Allen re-recorded the drums. A track begun during the Hysteria sessions but left unfinished without lyrics or vocals. (The printing on this 2019 CD reissue is so small, I had to pull out my original 1993 CD to read the notes.)ġ. We will take this album track by track and go over the changes made to the original B-sides. There are even two “new” songs, unfinished tracks with Steve Clark that were finally completed for this album. Everything has been reworked to some degree - everything. What’s interesting about Retro-Active is that it is not simply a compilation of rare material. In their minds they needed to “clear the decks” of old material so they could focus on the new. The grunge era was two years deep, and Leppard were about to change sonically. ![]() Guitarist Steve Clark was gone, replaced by veteran Vivian Campbell. It was intended to be the ending of an era, and the start of a new one. Tellingly, the final album called Retro-Active featured very different cover art, and a toned-down logo. Between the two albums, they had enough B-side studio material to turn into an album compilation. Like Hysteria before it, Adrenalize produced a wealth of riches in B-sides. DEF LEPPARD – Retro-Active ( CD Collection Volume 2 Disc 2) (Originally 1993, 2019 remaster)
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