Def Leppard

THERE HAVE BEEN a lot of landmark performances at Donington over the past 30 years, but perhaps none as emotional as when Def Leppard returned to a British stage for the first time since drummer Rick Allen had lost his arm in a road accident at the end of 1983.

This was the day when Leppard were transformed from bloated rich pariahs- as many over here still saw them- into heroes.

To put this into perspective,Leppard were still nearly a year from being ready to release the Hysteria album, but had become so fed up with the studio delays they decided to blow off a few cobwebs with selected European festival appearances . But it was at Donington that everythingfell into place.

Sheffield's finest took to the vast stage after Warlock, Bad News and Motorhead, with the rain pouring and the crowd impatient for the Scorpions and headliner Ozzy. Not exactly the setting for a triumphant homecoming.

However, there was a visible rapport between band and crowd as Leppard launched into Stagefright, led in a Phil Collen guitar intro. What followed was an explosion of powerful, melodic anthems, with the quintet blasting through some of their best loved songs: Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop), Another Hit & Run, Photograph and Let It Go.

They also found time to preview two songs from Hysteria, namely Love And Affection and Run Riot, although it was hard to get any impression of the way this might sound on record. And the main set ended with a Rock Of Ages medley, featuring snippets from Zeppelin's Whole Lotta Love and The Who's My Generation, plus a rousing Wasted.

But it was the encore that made this so specia;. A cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival's Travellin' Band, it featured a brief Rick Allen solo, before Joe Elliot walked back out and simply said, "Ladies and gentlemen, Rick Allen on the drums". The response was so massive, so hearfelt, it took even the leppard guys by surprise. There were definitely tears in the eyes and lumps in the throat as a somewhat overwhelmed Rick acknowledged the ovation.

In later years, Joe Elliot has revealed that the decision to introduce the drummer was a spur-of-the-moment reaction, and not planned. But it was the perfect way to seal Leppard's rehabilitation with British fans.

Doubtless many who cheered that day had jeered the band at the Reading Festival six years earlier- the vegaries of popularity, eh?