#3: "Hysteria" by Def Leppard

#3—Worth the wait.

Favorite song: Hysteria
Notable tracks: Women, Rocket, Animal, Pour Some Sugar On Me, Armageddon It, Gods of War, Don't Shoot Shotgun, Run Riot, Love and Affection
Released: 1987
Chart peak: #1 (U.S. and U.K. charts)
Popularity: 12 million copies sold U.S.; 20 million total worldwide sales

Anyone who knows me at all should have known that Def Leppard's appearance on this countdown was a matter of when and where, not if. My closest friends will also not be a bit surprised to see Hysteria the easy pick over Pyromania, their previous album, although fabulous in its own right, no question. Put simply, Def Leppard is my favorite rock band, and Hysteria is my favorite rock album. Kind of makes you wonder what's in store for the top two, doesn't it?

I became a fan when "Rock of Ages," their first major hit from Pyromania, hit heavy rotation on MTV. I even remember where I was when I first heard that song—visiting friends in Oklahoma City. I bought the album shortly afterward and wore the grooves smooth. I was too young, at least as far as my parents were concerned, to see them in concert when they came to St. Louis—my hometown is 2-1/2 hours to the south, so I had to wait.

And wait we did. First, drummer Rick Allen lost his left arm in an automobile accident that almost claimed his life. That was just the first of many successive problems that placed delay after delay in the path of their follow-up. In popular music, waiting even two years to release a follow-up to a hit on the scale Pyromania was could have spelled disaster. We had to wait four years.

It was totally worth the wait. The album spawned seven singles, all but one listed above (I hate "Love Bites" and won't listen to it at all), and cemented the band's success as one of the best bands of the eighties. They kept Allen as their drummer, one arm and all, but lost lead guitarist Steve Clark to alcoholism after their Hysteria tour. His replacement, Vivian Campbell, has been with the rest of the original lineup—singer Joe Elliott, guitarist Phil Collen, bassist Rick Savage, drummer Allen—since 1992.

I've listened to this album more times than I can count. I know every word to every song, and I can play along on my drums to each and every track. I've also seen Def Leppard perform live twice. I saw them on their Adrenalize tour in 1993 in St. Louis with fifth row seats. It was a lot like a religious experience. But it was really nothing compared to the first time I saw them.

The Hysteria tour came through St. Louis in early March 1988. I got tickets as soon as they went on sale—row T on the floor, and high school and college friend Matt Steward also bought in to the show. Concert day rolled in on the same day a major winter storm rolled through central Missouri. By the time we left Columbia that afternoon, about eight inches of snow had covered Interstate 70. Cars were spinning and sliding off the road, but I would not be deterred. We drove about 30 mph until we got ahead of the storm.

The band was just incredible. They played all the hits from Hysteria and Pyromania, as well as a few earlier ones from High and Dry. I think they covered a Led Zeppelin song for their encore. I left the old St. Louis Checkerdome in a state of absolute bliss—until we actually got outside. We couldn't find my car because the entire parking lot was covered in a foot of snow. We finally located my car, dug it out, and began the long trek back to Columbia. We rolled back onto the Mizzou campus about 3:30 a.m. I had an 8:40 a.m. class the next day that I was barely conscious for. I slept in my Hysteria concert shirt and wore it all the next day. It's in a storage box now; the seams are frayed and coming apart.

I love that the band is still together and still making great music—their most recent venue was their Viva Hysteria live show in Las Vegas. I figure it's just a matter of time until they tour again, and the next time they're in St. Louis (or nearby), if time and money align, I'll be there. Here's the video for "Hysteria," the title track for the album and my all-time favorite Def Leppard song. True love never fades or fails.