Def Leppard - Adrenalize (1992)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a cassette tape, later replaced by a CD. My edition is not the 2009 Deluxe Edition.

The album opens with Joe Elliot asking "Do you wanna get rocked?" and you find yourself answering, "Hell yeah I do!" I'm guessing this album is titled "Adrenalize" because "Testosterone" would have been a little too obvious. This album takes a lot of heat because it was the highly anticipated follow-up to the multi-platinum Hysteria. It's certainly no Hysteria, but it rocks and Mutt Lange was involved, so it's good for what it is. Rolling Stone magazine says what we have here "is a seemingly unending string of energetic, hook-heavy, gosh-we-luv-'em songs about girls. A perfect Def Leppard album, in other words." Considering all the personal problems going on in the band at the time (I won't go into those here, look it up online if you're interested), it's amazing they were able to record any album, much less a good one.

Cracked.com says "there's simply no excuse for including a word in your band's name that means you can't hear sounds." Click here and scroll down to #19 for more. Funny article.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #1 (5 weeks April 18 - May 16, 1992)

Tracks: I find myself liking some of the filler as well as the hits. My favs are Let's Get Rocked, Heaven Is, Make Love Like A Man, Personal Property, I Wanna Touch U, and Tear It Down. I usually skip the power ballads Tonight and Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad. They're not necessarily bad songs, I'm just not a fan of the power ballad in general.

For more information on the brief life of the CD longbox,
go visit The Legend of the Longbox.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: The reason this release was originally purchased as a cassette tape is because my brand new '92 Ford Explorer (black, 4 door, XLT package) had a cassette player. Like all Def Leppard releases, this album was best heard in a vehicle at loud volume, driving fast with the windows down.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Tales From The Sparkle Lounge (2008)
Pyromania (1983)