Erin Byrne

Take some of Def Leppard’s best hits, throw in some delectable deep cuts, and then fold in some beautiful arrangements from the London Philharmonic Orchestra, turn the volume up to 11, and you will have a pure delicacy for the ears. It’s a perfect blend of the fat, razor-sharp guitars the band is known for, mixed with the splendor and power of the symphony. The best examples are Love Bites, Bringing on the Heartbreak/Switch 625, Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad, and Gods of War. The only clunker for me is Pour Some Sugar on Me. For some reason someone (I’m guessing management) thought it would be a good idea to include their biggest hit in this little endeavor. And of course, it sounds ridiculous. They tried to re-vamp it into a breezy little flowery romantic duet with a female voice added, but it completely hits the mark. And sadly Too Late for Love is a bit of a letdown for me as well. Or at least the first half of it is…it does get better about three minutes in, so wait for it. But that’s okay because there are 14 other songs here that more than make up for it.