← Behind The Song: Classic Rock Chronicles
Behind The Song: Classic Rock Chronicles
Photograph: The Song That Started It All for Def Leppard
00:08:14
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- [00:02]
Janda
Welcome to the behind the Song podcast, taking you deeper into classic rock's most timeless tunes. Here's your host, Janda.
- [00:16]
Unknown
It was the song that really started it all for Def Leppard. A perfectly crafted hit song about an unattainable attraction Photograph flew up the charts when it was released as the lead single from pyromania in 1983, totally kicking off the band's ascent to superstardom. The Marilyn Monroe look alike in the video for the song, which was put into heavy rotation on MTV at the height of the channel's power and influence, made fans think that the song was about the iconic actress. But was it? Let's get into the story in this episode of the behind the Song podcast. If you like it, give it a thumbs up and hit. Subscribe and let us know in the comments. You you can't talk about the meteoric success of Def Leppard without talking about the crucial influence of producer Mutt Lang, who joined with Def Leppard after his phenomenal success producing ACDC's Back in Black album in 1980. He produced Def Leppard's sophomore efforts, 1981's High and Dry, a great album but still somewhat raw and not super deep in terms of singles. Lange was brought back on board to produce Pyromania, and his meticulous guidance fueled the band on their pursuit of a more Polish, radio friendly sound. Lange, known for his perfectionism and ability to sculpt massive, layered soundscapes, pushed Def Leppard to refine their songwriting and arrangements. The band, who were all around 21 or 22 at the time, really had their coming of age with the Pyromania album, with Lange urging them to slow down and to listen to Motown Records. While they were in the recording process, it was an education that paid off. One minute they were all living with their parents and the next, after Pyromania took off, they were filling arenas all over the world. It was a magical collaboration, intense and absolutely pivotal for the band to work with Lange's vision on these songs. As they got down to work and started to look for the first single, they realized they had the genesis of something with a track they'd started working on years earlier. In fact, Pete Willis, the guitarist who left the band just as the sessions for Pyromania began and was replaced by Phil Collin, can still be heard on the recording of Photograph. Willis was fired due to his drinking problem, which Lange in particular felt was affecting the recording process for the new album. So he was let go and Colin was brought on the next day. One note As a founding member, Willis was inducted into the Rock and Roll hall of Fame with the band in 2019, but he didn't attend the ceremony. Colin absolutely nailed the guitar solo on Photograph, a key component of the song, and Steve Clark provided the killer opening riff. Musically, Photograph was coming along nicely, but they still needed Lyrics Singer Joe Elliott told VH1 in 2013 that Mutt Lange had ment line all I've got is a photograph as they were working on coming up with the lyrics, to which Elliott responded by pointing out that the exact lyric was in the Ringo Star song Photograph, co written with George Harrison and released in 1973 on his album Ringo. It's a song about lost, irreplaceable love, and it was actually a pretty big hit. But when Elliot pointed all this out to Lange, Lange responded by saying that no one would notice Lyrically, Photograph deals with unattainable desire, a yearning for a person frozen in a photograph. Elliott has said that it's a photograph of something you can't ever get your hands on. Somebody that's not here. A popular myth, propelled by the Marilyn Monroe lookalike in the music video, is that the song was inspired by Monroe, but Elliott has said that's not the case. While he has admitted that there was a poster of Monroe on his wall around this time, it was more a jumping off point for the lyrics. As in, what if he can' not because they've run off with someone else, but because they're simply not here anymore. The ultimate impossible object of unfulfilled desire with no way to reach the person at all. The lyrics go like this. I'm out of luck, out of love. Got a photograph. Picture of passion killer. You're too much, you're the only one I want to touch. I see your face every time I dream on every page, every magazine so wild and free, so far from me. You're all I want. My fantasy look what you've done to this rock and roll clown. Look what you've done. It's an obsession for someone who is just out of reach, no closer ever than a picture, which is all you can hold on to. An amplified celebrity crush. In a sense, this love interest is completely wrecking the narrator, even though they've never met. And it goes on. I don't want your photograph, I don't need your photograph. All I've got is a photograph but it's not enough. I'd be your lover if you were there Put your hurt on me if you dare Such a woman you got style you make every man feel like a child you got some kind of hold on me you're all wrapped up in mystery so wild and free so far from me you're all I want my fantasy the pre chorus and chorus repeat layers of vocals and sounds in that signature pop rock muttlang style. A song about a fantasy that can't be fulfilled played perfectly by the band and Thomas Dolby, who guests on keyboards on the track. It was as irresistible to fans as the person in the Photograph was in the framework of this song. It was the cornerstone of Pyromania's success and it hasn't really lost any steam in all the years since. In fact, it crossed to the country and pop world when Def Leppard performed it on CMT Crossroads with Taylor Swift in 2008 and when they performed it with the Foo Fighters and Miley cyrus at the 2022 tribute concert in Los Angeles for the late Taylor Hawkins, who had left Cyrus a voicemail message telling her she should cover Photograph before his untimely passing. The video for the song, directed by David Mallett, showed the band as having more in common with the reigning heartthrobs at the time, Duran Duran and than say, Judas Priest. 1983 was a pretty big year for Mallet too, as he also directed David Bowie's Let's Dance music video, the all important title track for Bowie's big comeback album. The heavy rotation that Photograph received on MTV was instrumental in making the song fly up the charts. In fact, it was the first Def Leppard song to truly break into the top 20 in the US it went to number one on the billboard Top Tracks chart, where it stayed for six weeks. It also went to number 12 on the pop Singles chart. No metal or hard rock band had ever done that before. Pyromania went on to sell over 10 million copies. More than just a hit single. Photograph was a declaration of intent, signaling Def Leppard's arrival as a real force in rock music and setting the stage for their even greater triumphs to come. It remains a testament to the power of a well crafted, well performed and well recorded song, appearing in several lists as one of the very best of its kind. Not too bad for a song that was begun years before it made it to the Pyromania album with a lyric borrowed from a Ringo star hit. What does Ringo think about all that? Well, until he makes a public comment about it, which he has never done, we'll never know. So what other songs about intense crushes like this come to mind. Something to think about until next time. I'm Janda and this has been behind the song. If you liked this episode, give it a like and subscribe to the channel. Special thanks as always to Christian Lane for the music you hear on these podcast episodes. You can find me on the air at 9701 FM the Drive in Chicago and at wdrv.com on the way. Much more Classic rock and Roll.
- [08:15]
Janda
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- [08:47]
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