Def Leppard’s album Songs from the Sparkle Lounge was released in April 2008.
The release marked the band’s return after a six-year hiatus between original studio albums. During that time, they primarily kept themselves busy recording their Yeah! covers album release and relentless touring.
The album is aptly titled, referencing the backstage area the band utilized during their 2007 tour to develop its collection of songs.
Joe Elliott explained how the unique “sparkle lounge” setting came about to Billboard.com:
“The crew started having a bit of fun with it, putting in sparkly lights, candles, incense — you name it. It turned into this very atmospheric little workspace.”
Welcome To The Sparkle Lounge
Clocking in at just under 40 minutes, Songs from the Sparkle Lounge featured an assortment of notably short, pop-leaning tracks not unlike Def Leppard’s previous album X, albeit with a slightly harder edge.
The album’s songwriting approach was also vastly different than most of the band’s previous releases; for the most part, songs were written by only one band member this time around.
Aside from opening track “Go” (written by Joe Elliott and Phil Collen) and “Nine Lives” (written by Joe, Phil, Rick Savage, and Tim McGraw), the album’s nine remaining tracks each had only one songwriting credit:
- “Go” (Collen, Elliott)
- “Nine Lives” (Collen, Elliott, McGraw, Savage)
- “C’mon C’mon” (Savage)
- “Love” (Savage)
- “Tomorrow” (Collen)
- “Cruise Control” (Vivian Campbell)
- “Hallucinate” (Collen)
- “Only The Good Die Young” (Vivian Campbell)
- “Bad Actress” (Elliott)
- “Come Undone” (Elliott)
- “Gotta Let It Go” (Vivian Campbell)
Even without knowing who officially wrote which track, it’s fairly easy to identify the band member behind each song: melody-infused tracks “C’mon C’mon” and “Love” had Rick Savage’s glam-rock influenced signature all over them; Joe Elliott’s “Come Undone” and “Bad Actress” showcased his distinct, harder-edged song approach (“Bad Actress” also resembled the Adrenalize era B-side “She’s Too Tough,” which Joe also wrote); Phil Collen’s unmistakable guitar-driven arrangements were on full display on “Tomorrow” and “Hallucinate” (in hindsight, the latter song sounds like a precursor to Mirror Ball‘s “It’s All About Believin’,” which Phil also penned); Vivian Campbell’s blues and psychedelic music influences came across loud and clear on tracks “Cruise Control,” “Only The Good Die Young,” and “Gotta Let It Go,” all of which he wrote.
Having only one band member receive songwriting credit shouldn’t be that surprising, as the technological times — and the band’s recording process — had evolved, especially when compared to earlier Def Leppard releases. The band was no longer cooped up in a recording studio for extended periods solely focused on creating an album together. And unlike X, outside songwriters weren’t brought in to contribute either.
Instead, each band member was able to work on song concepts at their own pace while on tour, and then bring those ideas to the “sparkle lounge” for group consideration and validation, giving true meaning to the phrase “songs from the sparkle lounge.”
Joe Elliott discussed the album’s approach in this video:
Does this mean the album is disjointed or lacks cohesion as a band effort since it consists mostly of individual song contributions? Not necessarily.
Songs from the Sparkle Lounge ultimately showcased various facets of the band and spotlighted a freestyle approach that would be taken even further on their self-titled Def Leppard album. (By the way, if you really want to indulge in Def Leppard, check out this must-read book!)
Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Lose
Songs from the Sparkle Lounge had a very respectable Top 5 album debut in the U.S., selling approximately 55,000 units in its first week. (It was a Top 10 album in the U.K.)
Lead single “Nine Lives” brought additional notoriety as a result of Def Leppard’s collaboration with Tim McGraw, but there was also a trade-off: some fans weren’t exactly thrilled about the band veering into country music territory.
Teaming up with a country superstar like McGraw undoubtedly increased awareness of the album and helped introduce Def Leppard to a broader audience, but it was still risky making “Nine Lives” the first single; it was a unique track that didn’t quite represent Songs from the Sparkle Lounge, and it wasn’t the most radio-friendly song to handle the crucial role of launching the album, not to mention reconnect Def Leppard with longtime fans.
“Nine Lives” certainly garnered attention early on, but that initial interest and curiosity was arguably more about the rock and country music collaboration and not necessarily about the song itself. Accordingly, the “Nine Lives” single didn’t even make it onto Billboard‘s Hot 100 singles chart.
The chart life of a Def Leppard album released in 2008 was unquestionably going to be shorter than Pyromania, Hysteria, and even Adrenalize. It was just a question of how much shorter it would be and what could be done to prolong its duration. By the time “C’mon C’mon” was released as the album’s second single, nearly three months after “Nine Lives,” Songs from the Sparkle Lounge‘s sales momentum was practically non-existent. The album ended up lasting on Billboard’s album chart for eight very brief weeks, never to return.
Might there have been a better strategy to market and promote the album? Potentially.
A more focused, strategic approach could arguably have made a difference, including going with arena-rocker “C’mon C’mon” as the first single, utilizing “Go” and “Tomorrow” for targeting album-oriented rock (AOR) radio stations, giving ballad “Love” a chance as a single, and so on.
“Nine Lives” still could have had its own single release at some point, just not as the launching pad for the album.
Unfortunately, “Nine Lives” was chosen to not only hype but more or less carry the album, which was impractical. That being said, sales for Songs from the Sparkle Lounge failed to even reach gold status.
Def Leppard’s Sparkle Lounge — Final Thoughts
Songs from the Sparkle Lounge isn’t likely at the very top of many fans’ lists of favorite Def Leppard albums. Nevertheless, the release provided an opportunity for the band to exercise its creative muscle, churn out new music (for themselves and longing fans), and return to touring with some fresh new songs in hand.
The album’s standout tracks still resonate — most notably “C’mon C’mon,” guitar-driven rocker “Go,” underrated gem “Tomorrow,” and the Queen-esque, emotionally charged ballad “Love.”
In the end, new music from the band will always be welcomed. And just because Songs from the Sparkle Lounge doesn’t always shine for some doesn’t mean Def Leppard’s sparkle lost any of its luster.
