Yeah!
A veritable jukebox of the classic rock that Def Leppard grew up on in \'60s and ’70s England, this covers album sees the multi-platinum rockers paying tribute to their (mostly British) influences with muscular covers of T. Rex, Thin Lizzy, The Sweet, and a rousing version of Mott the Hoople’s “The Golden Age of Rock \'N\' Roll.” Elsewhere, tasteful and understated takes on David Bowie’s “Drive-In Saturday” and The Kinks’ “Waterloo Sunset” dial down the bombast in favor of soulful melodies.
Def Leppard always had a streak of glam running beneath their heavy rock -- listen to "Armageddon It" or "Photograph" for proof -- so it's no surprise that when the quintet decided to record a covers album in 2006, they devoted it to the '70s glam and hard rock that inspired them to pick up their guitars and play. What does come as a surprise is that the resulting Yeah! is a sheer delight, a roaring rock & roll record that's their best album since Hysteria. Often, cover albums get bogged down in reverence or ambition, as artists either offer interpretations that are straight copies or fussy reinterpretations as they busily try to make a favorite song their own. That's not the case here. Def Leppard alternate between fairly faithful renditions of familiar classics like T. Rex's "20th Century Boy," Badfinger's "No Matter What," or David Essex's "Rock On," to subtle reinterpretations where they make seemingly difficult covers seem easy and unmistakably Def Leppard. It's true on their streamlined, muscular take on Electric Light Orchestra's swirling, psychedelic "10538 Overture," but it's most notable on their remarkable reworking of the Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset," which now sounds like a power ballad from Hysteria without ever once sounding like it's an affront to the immortal original.