Transcript of Joe Elliott's chat on USA Today's Website, 3/6/03 1 to 2 pm (appr) EST

VH1's Ultimate Albums: Pyromania: Def Leppard's Joe Elliott

When they went into the studio to record Pyromania, Def Leppard was just another English band with an odd name and lousy album sales. In 1983, the Leps put themselves in the hands of legendary music producer "Mutt" Lange, and almost a year and thousands of overdubs later, Pyromania was born. The result? Ten million records sold and the '80's hairband movement launched. Ultimate Albums: Pyromania airs on VH1 March 10 at 9 pm ET/8 pm CT. Talk to Def Leppard lead singer Joe Elliott about the show.

Comment from USATODAY.com Host: Hi folks: We're holding for Joe. Please stay tuned.

Pittsburgh, PA : Who came up with the cool minor key chord progression for the chorus of "Photograph"?

Joe Elliott: Photograph was kind of a hybrid of Steve and Pete Willis. In the documentary, you actually see Pete Willis playing what he thinks it was originally. It was a leftover from the High and Dry sessions. It's actually a twin guitar part, which is why so many guitarists scratch their heads when they try to learn how to play it.

Douglasville, GA : Did Mutt Lange have anything to do with the image you portrayed on your videos, or did he just stick to the music in the studio?

Joe Elliott: Nothing at all. That's not Mutt's thing. He would make comments, but he never told us what to do in our videos. We always did our own wardrobe.

Reston, VA : How much of an influence was Steve Clark on the writing for the Pyromania album?

Joe Elliott: He was as big an influence as anyone. He didn't write songs very often; he'd write riffs. Mutt, Sav, Steve and Pete would weed through the good stuff and piece it together. Steve did write things like the intro to "Die Hard the Hunter".

Austin, TX : The only thing missing from my Def Leppard collection is a live album that I can listen to on my car stereo!!! Are we ever going to see one or is there a reason why you have not released one as of late? Michael Savage, Austin, TX

Joe Elliott: Not in the immediate future, and we've been saying no for 20 years. We now have a live DVD that you can watch called In the Round - In Your Face.

Washington, DC : Joe, given the attention on Mutt Lange's production influence for Pyromania -- how has the role/relationship with your producers evolved over the years? And how has that affected the production of the upcoming album, X? Thanks! Peace, Gail.

Joe Elliott: When we worked with Mutt on High and Dry, it was done in three months, and we did it as quickly as we could. He also insisted that we do it his way. When we did Pyromania, we came to the conclusion we could make another High and Dry, or we could utilize the new technologies that had come available. He was really excited about that. He told us we could try to make an album no one else had ever made, which appealed to us. We were always turned on by Queen, for example, who took their arrangements to the extreme.

Houston, TX : I've heard that you don't like to sing Photograph anymore. Why?

Joe Elliott: Because it's bloody hard! If you listen to the song, other than the guitar solo, there's no breathing room in that song. If you're not on the top of your game, it's like trying to ice skate on Mount Everest. I love the song, but I've done it since 1983.

Comment from Joe Elliott: I understand, however, that the audience loves the song and wants it to be the flag bearer. It's like being in a relationship -- sometimes you have a falling out.

Damascus, Md : Joe, were you excited when VH1 approached you about the program? Or did you twinge and think that they had not kept up with all of the band's more recent accomplishments -- Slang, Euphoria, etc.? Thanks! Ron

Joe Elliott: On the British telly there's a series called "Classic Albums", which is almost identical to this series. They interview producers, etc. We've seen this program on telly for years, and always wanted to do it. Lo and behold, we're asked to do this for VH1 and another one for ITV in Britain. We were excited about doing something on Pyromania, because people generally only want to talk about Hysteria. I think they did a fantastic job.

Jackson, MS : Joe, it seems that hard rock music in the 80's doesn't get enough credit or respect as a musical style, but every year some one-hit wonder is acclaimed as the future of music. Why do you think that is and what did you most enjoy about the 80's? Thanks & keep on rockin' man!

Joe Elliott: It jumps generations. This is my theory: Any decade doesn't start until there's a "2" at the end of it. We were becoming the old wave in 1992, and it was the first time one generation challenged the previous generation with hatred. When grunge happened, they hated Motley, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, but the '70's were cool. Nowadays, you look at the late-night infomercials, and the '80s are becoming recognized again. The bands now are kids and mallrats from the '80s, whether System of a Down or Linkin Park. That's just the nature of the beast. When you see guys like SOAD or Lit raving about Leppard, it's interesting. If we can make slightly vital records, and we can keep a modicum of dignity in our appearance, we can get a break. Look at Aerosmith and U2.

The '80s was all about being fake. Everybody was living this non-existant lifestyle, painting over the cracks of Saddam Hussein and the ghettos and pretending everything was o.k. The younger generation pointed all this out.

Comment from Joe Elliott: Also, the '80s were experimental with regards to technology and studio stuff. That's when you had people like Madonna taking looks and records to the extremes.

Los Angeles, California : A lot of Def Leppard fans still remember and love Pete Willis. How is he? Do you guys stay in touch at all?

Joe Elliott: I spoke to Pete during the documentary, and he was skeptical of doing it. He made a mistake in 1982 and was sick of taking heat for it. He looks a lot older than I thought he would. He's damaged himself a lot over the years with his alcohol consumption, and doesn't have the metabolism to carry it off. Pete's fine now, and if I was in Sheffield I'd cross the street to shake his hand. Remember, though, I've seen him once in 20 years.

Joplin, MO : What was the true meaning behind "Pour Some Sugar on Me"?

Joe Elliott: There wasn't any meaning. That was the wonderful thing about the '80s. We were trying to write a song that was phonetically friendly. We grew up listening to David Bowie and Marc Bolan, who wrote great songs that didn't make sense. "Sugar" was just a great title. It's just an analogy for give it to me, baby. "I Want To Hold Your Hand"? Please.