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Joe Elliott

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This article is about the lead singer of Def Leppard. For other people named Joe Elliott, seeJoe Elliott (disambiguation).

Joe Elliott
Elliott in 2018
Elliott in 2018
Background information
Birth nameJoseph Thomas Elliott
Also known asZeff
Born(1959-08-01)1 August 1959(age 65)[1]
Sheffield,Yorkshire, England
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • musician
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • keyboards
Years active1975–present
Member of
Formerly of
Websitedefleppard.com

Joseph Thomas Elliott(born 1 August 1959) is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of thehard rockbandDef Leppard.He has also been the lead singer of theDavid Bowietribute band theCybernautsand theMott the Hooplecover bandDown 'n' Outz.[2]He is one of the two original members of Def Leppard still in the band and one of the three to perform on every Def Leppard album. Elliott is known for his distinctive and wide ranging raspy singing voice.[3]

Tony Kenning suggested they change the band name to "Def Leppard"to distinguish them from contemporary punk bands likeThe Flying Lizardsandthe Boomtown Rats.The band claims that any apparent similarity of the nameLed Zeppelinto Def Leppard was unintentional.[4]

Personal life

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Elliott's first marriage was to Karla Ramdhani in 1989; they divorced in 1996. Elliott met Kristine Wunschel in 2003 while she was working on the crew for the X album tour, and they were married on 1 September 2004. Their first child, Finlay, was born in December 2009, and they are also parents to a daughter, Lyla, born July 2016.[5][6][7]He announced on SiriusXM in March 2022 that he and his wife Kristine had another daughter named Harper who was born in February 2020.

Controversies

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During a performance on 7 September 1983 in Tucson, Arizona, Elliott attempted to rile the crowd during the "Rock of Ages" crowd sing-along. He told the crowd: "Last night, we played in El Paso, that place with all the greasy Mexicans, and they made a lot more noise than that." Then, on 30 September, he apologised on an El Paso radio station for the racial slur he made while referring to the city on 7 September. The band later followed up the apology with donations to Hispanic charities.[8]

Elliott previously co-owned a Sheffield sports bar withTim Cranston,a Canadian ice hockey player for the localSteelers.[9]

In 2010, Elliott criticised the British music press, which he accused of ignoring his band and narrowing popular taste:

It's nice to walk downOxford Streetwithout being recognised but then again when music magazines write about us they take the piss because we're not as cool asJohnny Marr,who isn't as successful as us by a million miles [...] Rock's ploughed its own furrow for 30 years but still music magazines don't give rock its due [...] How many more front covers doPaul McCartneyandMorrisseyneed? Our album will sell more thanMorrissey's so why don't we get the same kind of respect? "[10]

Before a July 2019 show in Hamilton, Ontario, Elliott was recorded on video saying that the city'sFirstOntario Centre"stinks like 10,000 asses". The video surfaced in January 2020.[11]

Discography

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Elliott with Def Leppard in 2005
With Def Leppard
Main article:Def Leppard discography
WithDown 'n' Outz
  • My ReGeneration(2010)
  • The Further Adventures Of...(2014)
  • The Further Live Adventures Of...(2017)
  • This Is How We Roll(2019)
WithKings of Chaos
WithCybernauts
  • Cybernauts Live
With various artists
  • Beside Bowie: The Mick Ronson StoryVocals onAll The Young DudesandThis Is For You

References

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  1. ^Jeffrey, Laura S. (2010).Def Leppard: Arena Rock Band.Enslow Publishers.p. 16.ISBN978-0-7660-3234-7.
  2. ^Wiederhorn, Jon (14 June 2010)."Def Leppard Frontman Launches Mott the Hoople Cover Band – Noisecreep".Noisecreep.Retrieved17 June2010.
  3. ^"Standing the test of time".Tuscaloosa News.21 October 2017.
  4. ^Fricke, David. 1987. Animal Instinct: The Def Leppard Story. Zomba Books, London.ISBN0-946391-55-6.
  5. ^"Rock of Ages: Life lessons with Def Leppard's Joe Elliott".Reuters.com.12 July 2018.
  6. ^"Def Leppard Band Member Joe Elliott (Lead Vocals)".Deflepparduk.com.Leppard Tour History
  7. ^"Kristine Elliott / My Def Leppard".Mydefleppard.com.1 May 1972.Retrieved22 May2020.
  8. ^"Racial slurs | Michael Hutchence and Me".Archived fromthe originalon 10 November 2013.Retrieved16 June2013.
  9. ^"Retro: The stars of Players Café".Sheffield Star.JPIMedia.24 February 2016.Retrieved6 September2022.
  10. ^"Joe Elliot: Def Leppard don't get enough respect".Metro.20 July 2010.Retrieved2 April2013.
  11. ^"FirstOntario Centre stinks like '10,000 asses,' says Def Leppard as debate around arena continues".Cbc.ca.Retrieved18 February2020.
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