Def Leppard / Tesla - Bristol Hippodrome 13/09/87

Perhaps not the coolest gig to write about, but then again seeing a band of Def Leppard's stature for £5.50 in a 2,000 capacity venue is something that's going to happen again anytime soon.

Thing is I was more excited at the time in seeing Tesla - I really rated their Mechanical Resonance album. I remember thinking some of the guitar playing on it was phenomenal. This was however just before the release of a certain Appetite For Destruction and the impending shift in my musical tastes. I dare say I'd have a very different opinion now, but on the night Tesla didn't let me down and for me gave Def Leppard a mountain to climb.

This was the first UK leg of the Hysteria tour and, more importantly, the first sighting of Rick Allen since his accident. They could have made this all schmaltzy, but bar a short interlude where Joe Elliot spoke about what happened (with Allen sat on the drum riser) the band simply got on with it. As the album continued to sell and countless singles were released, they returned to the UK six months later and I saw them again - by which time they'd upgraded to Wembley Arena. Poison were supposed to support but pulled out; this was sandwiched between Motley Crue cancelling their UK tour (the infamous 'snow on the roof' excuse) and Cinderella withdrawing from a planned support slot to Judas Priest. I actually avoided buying a ticket for the latter for fear of Cinderella cancelling - a few friends didn't think lightning would strike three times and were rewarded with Bonfire instead. Ho-hum.