21 years later, ‘Pyromania’ is still contagious

Spencer Patterson

Friday, July 30, 2004 | 8:40 a.m.

You won't find Def Leppard's "Pyromania" among the "100 Greatest British Albums" ranked by UK music magazine Observer Music Monthly last month.

Nor will you find the disc among the "Top 100 Albums of the 1980s" compiled by Web site www.pitchforkmedia.com, a list released in late 2002.

Translation: Snobby rock critics don't dig Def Leppard. Or if they do, they don't admit it in public.

I have no such issues, however, and am not ashamed to declare my fondness for "Pyromania," an album that turned 20 years old last year.

Much of my attachment to the disc is sentimental. It was one of the first cassettes I owned, and listening to it brings me back to the carefree days of grade school.

I remember roller skating to "Photograph," trying to pull off the trademark "Joe Elliott" mid-air leg split off the diving board and desperately searching for the meaning of "Oonta Gleeben Glauten Globen" with my friends.

And I'm not alone. Anyone who grew up in the '80s has a Leppard story. One of my co-workers just informed me she once blasted "Pyromania" on a boom box on her way to watch an after-school fight.

She's a little hazy on the brawl's outcome, but she's certain "Rock of Ages" was the song playing when one of the combatants got his butt kicked.

Listening to the CD now (I upgraded after wearing out my tape), it's difficult to determine exactly what I might think if it crossed my desk for the first time today.

My head tells me I might snicker a bit. I mean, a chorus of "Ah F-F-F-Foolin" wouldn't exactly make Bob Dylan jealous.

But my heart compels me to believe otherwise. So what if the guitar solos sound dated? Who cares if some of the lyrics are a tad cringe-worthy?

It won't stop me from digging through my CD racks for "Pyromania" a few times a year, when I've had my fill of critical indie darlings and sentimental singer-songwriters.

These days, it's en vogue to dismiss any band that grew its hair out or wore torn jeans during the '80s, relegating them to some "Where Are They Now?" VH1 countdown.

In many cases -- Poison, Winger and the like -- the backlash is well deserved.

Just don't lump in the Leppard. All they ever did was pump out arena rock anthems. And damn fine roller-skating music to boot.

Artist: Def Leppard.

Title: "Pyromania."

Year of release: 1983 (Mercury Records).

Tracklisting: "Rock Rock (Till You Drop)," "Photograph," "Stagefright," "Too Late for Love," "Die Hard the Hunter," "Foolin'," "Rock of Ages," "Comin' Under Fire," "Action! Not Words," "Billy's Got a Gun."