Slang (album)

Infobox Album |
Name = Slang
Type = studio
Artist = Def Leppard


Released = Start date|1996|5|14
Recorded = 1994–1995 in Marbella, Spain and 1996 at Bow Lane Studios in Dublin, Ireland
Genre = Hard rock, pop rock
Length = 45:58
Label = Mercury
Producer = Pete Woodroffe and Def Leppard
Reviews =
* Allmusic rating|3|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:4rkqoarauijd~T1 link]
* "Chicago Sun-Times" rating|1.5|4Citation |last = Barron |first = John |title = Spin Control |newspaper = Chicago Sun-Times |pages = 13 |year = 1996 |date = 1996-06-02]
* "The Cincinnati Post" (D+)Citation |last = Wilson |first = Ken |title = Leppard lacking in appeal |newspaper = The Cincinnati Post |pages = Metro 20 |year = 1996 |date = 1996-06-20]
* "Rolling Stone" rating|2|5 [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/defleppard/albums/album/112673/review/5942493/slang 1996]
Last album = "Retro Active"
(1993)
This album = "Slang"
(1996)
Next album = "Euphoria"
(1999)
Misc = Singles
Name = Slang
Type = studio
Single 1 = Slang
Single 1 date = May 1996
Single 2 = Work It Out
Single 2 date = July 1996
Single 3 = All I Want Is Everything
Single 3 date = August 1996 (US), September 1996 (worldwide)
Single 4 = Breathe a Sigh
Single 4 date = November 1996

"Slang" is the sixth studio album by British hard rock band Def Leppard, released in 1996. The album marked a radical musical departure from their signature sound, and was produced by the band with Pete Woodroffe.

Overview

Between the releases of "Retro Active" and "Slang", Def Leppard endured hardships including Phil Collen's divorce, the death of Rick Savage's father and Savage's battle with Bell's Palsy, and the arrests of both Rick Allen and Joe Elliott for spousal abuse and assault, respectively. Though the band says "Adrenalize" was recorded during a bleaker time, the absence of Mutt Lange (for the first time on a Def Leppard record since 1981) made it possible for the band to show what they were really feeling.Citation |last = Ewing |first = Jerry |title = Def Leppard |newspaper = Metal Hammer |pages = 58-60 |year = 1996 |date = June 1996] Says Joe Elliott, "There was a period with Mutt where if you came out with anything slightly negative, it was 'Fuck it!' and it was gone!" Continues Phil Collen, "We've all got personal things that have happened during the recording of "Slang", and we've just ploughed on and some of it has come out on the record."

Doing without the services Mutt Lange, the band changed another habit by recording together as a band, in a townhouse in Marbella, Spain. "Slang" would feature less production in favor of a more organic sound, catalyzed by drummer Rick Allen's reversion to a semi-acoustic kit. "We'd got so sick of recording the old way. We didn't want to do it any more. We wanted the music to be more personalised and let the character of the individuals to come out," explains Rick Savage.

Songs such as "Turn to Dust" introduced sarangi and other instrumentation atypical for the band. The album's lyrical content featured a darker and more introspective turn for the most part, with lighter fare restricted to the Prince-influenced "Slang".

"Slang" was the first Def Leppard album to fail to achieve platinum sales in the US. Elsewhere, the album performed better: it placed four singles on the UK charts, and did go platinum in Canada. On the supporting tour the band performed for the first time in Southeast Asia, South Africa and South America.

A limited edition release included a 6-track bonus disc, "Acoustic in Singapore", recorded live in October 1995.

Track listing

tracklist
writing_credits = yes
title1 = Truth?
writer1 = Phil Collen, Joe Elliott, Rick Savage, Vivian Campbell
length1 = 3:00
title2 = Turn to Dust
writer2 = Collen
length2 = 4:21
title3 = Slang
writer3 = Collen, Elliott
length3 = 2:37
title4 = All I Want Is Everything
writer4 = Elliott
length4 = 5:20
title5 = Work It Out
writer5 = Campbell
length5 = 4:49
title6 = Breathe a Sigh
writer6 = Collen
length6 = 4:06
title7 = Deliver Me
writer7 = Collen, Elliott
length7 = 3:04
title8 = Gift of Flesh
writer8 = Collen
length8 = 3:48
title9 = Blood Runs Cold
writer9 = Collen, Elliott
length9 = 4:26
title10 = Where Does Love Go When It Dies
writer10 = Elliott, Collen
length10 = 4:04
title11 = Pearl of Euphoria
writer11 = Elliott, Collen, Savage
length11 = 6:21
title12 = Move with Me Slowly
note12 = Japanese edition bonus track
writer12 = Collen
length12 = 6:19

tracklist
headline = "Acoustic in Singapore" (limited edition bonus disc)
writing_credits = yes
title1 = Armageddon It
writer1 = Steve Clark, Collen, Elliott, Mutt Lange, Savage
length1 = 4:16
title2 = Two Steps Behind
writer2 = Elliott
length2 = 4:01
title3 = From the Inside
writer3 = Elliott
length3 = 3:28
title4 = Animal
writer4 = Clark, Collen, Elliott, Lange, Savage
length4 = 3:47
title5 = When Love & Hate Collide
writer5 = Elliott, Savage
length5 = 4:18
title6 = Pour Some Sugar on Me
writer6 = Clark, Collen, Elliott, Lange, Savage
length6 = 4:08

Personnel

* Rick Allen – drums, percussion
* Vivian Campbell – electric guitars, acoustic guitars, dulcimer, vocals
* Phil Collen – electric guitars, acoustic guitars, mandolin, vocals
* Joe Elliott – lead vocals, additional guitar on "Pearl of Euphoria", additional bass on "Pearl of Euphoria"
* Rick Savage – bass, acoustic guitars, synth bass, vocals

Additional musicians

* Gloria Flores – Spanish voice on "Slang"
* Ram Naravan – intro sarangi sample on "Turn to Dust"
* Craig Pruess – string and percussion arranging and conducting on "Turn to Dust"
* Av Singh – dohl on "Turn to Dust"
* Shyam Vatish – outro sarangi sample on "Turn to Dust"
* Pete Woodroffe – piano on "Blood Runs Cold", keyboard strings on "Where Does Love Go When It Dies"
* Gavyn Wright – string leader on "Turn to Dust"

Production

* Pete Woodroffe – producer, engineer, mixing
* Def Leppard – producer
* Ger McDonnell – engineer, programming on "Truth?"
* Matt Pakucko – mixing assistant
* Bob Ludwig – mastering
* Brad Buxer, Bobby Brooks – programming on "Slang" and "Breathe a Sigh"
* Hugh Drumm – programming on "Truth?"
* Jeff Murray – art direction
* Jager di Paola – design
* Cynthia Levine, Jeff Rooney – photography

Notes

References

*cite album-notes
title = Slang
albumlink = Slang (album)
bandname = Def Leppard
year = 1996
format = CD booklet
publisher = Mercury
publisherid= 314 532 486-2
location = London, England
mbid = 8f98d986-3307-4eff-b88b-7816a65c4a00
*cite web
title = Band Biography
work = DefLeppard.com
publisher = Def Leppard
url = http://www.defleppard.com/band/index.html
accessdate = 2007-12-20

External links

* [http://web.archive.org/web/19980118000713/http://www.mercuryrecords.com/artists/def_leppard/songs.html Mercury Records: Def Leppard - Behind the Songs]