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Photograph
Photograph cover
Single by Def Leppard
Album Pyromania
Released January 1983
Genre(s) Hard Rock
Length 04:07
Label(s) Universal Music Group
BMG Publishing
Sony Music Publishing
Songwriter(s) Joe Elliott, Richard Savage, Rick Allen, Joe Elliott, Peter Andrew Willis, Robert John Lange, Stephen Maynard Clark
Producer(s) Robert John Lange
Pyromania chronology
Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)
(1)
Vibrations
(2)
Stagefright
(3)

"Photograph" is a song performed by English hard rock band Def Leppard and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange. It is the lead single from the band's third studio album, Pyromania (1983). Their lead vocalist Joe Elliott has described the song as generally about "something you can't ever get your hands on".[1] When released as a single it reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top Tracks chart, where it stayed for six weeks, and No. 12 on the Pop Singles chart.[2] In 2006 the song was used in promotional adverts for the DVD release of Blades of Glory. In 2009 it was named the 13th greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1.[3] It was also listed as the No. 17 greatest song of the past 25 years by VH1.[4]

In 2008, they performed the song with country pop singer Taylor Swift on CMT Crossroads. The performance was nominated for both Wide Open Country Video of the Year and CMT Performance of the Year at the 2009 CMT Music Awards.

In 2013, the song was featured in the Grand Theft Auto V video game, on the Los Santos Rock Radio station. It was also featured in the DLC release of Rock Band 3, in 2011.

Music video[]

There are two slightly different versions of the music video. The uncensored version shows a knife scene at the beginning, and on the censored version of the video, it is almost the same except the knife scene is replaced with a stationary black cat among other minor bits removed.[Citation needed] There are several appearances of a look alike impersonating Marilyn Monroe in the video, as the song is actually about the star and lead singer Joe Elliott's declaration that he does not just "want [her] photograph" but that is all he has of her, and he must admire her from afar.

The music video was directed by David Mallet and was shot on 2 December 1982 (bassist Rick Savage's 22nd birthday), in Battersea, London, England. It featured the video debut of their co-lead guitarist Phil Collen.

Live performances[]

"Photograph" has been performed at every Def Leppard concert tour since its release. The song is traditionally the final song of the concert, often used during the encore (as well as fellow Pyromania track Rock of Ages). During these performances, Elliott attempts to rile the crowd into singing along by saying "Come on, sing it" before the first chorus. "Photograph", however, is harsh on the singer's vocals (especially as time wears on) due to the song's high notes.

Personnel[]

  • Joe Elliott – lead vocals
  • Steve Clark – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Pete Willis – rhythm guitar
  • Phil Collen – guitar solo, additional rhythm guitar, backing vocals
  • Rick Savage – bass guitar, backing vocals
  • Rick Allen – drums, backing vocals
  • Thomas Dolby – keyboards
  1. Joe Elliott: We Didn't Start the Fire. Archived from the original on 2013-10-17. Retrieved on April 2, 2012.
  2. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications), page 170.
  3. spreadit.org music. Archived from the original on 12 February 2009. Retrieved on February 7, 2009.
  4. VH1's 100 Greatest Songs (February 11, 2009). Retrieved on March 13, 2012.

External Links[]

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