Deft Leppard
Deft Leppard is the only UK tribute with official recognition from Def Leppard themselves.
Deft Leppard formed in May 2005 when two friends Arron Sutton and Ashley Cooper decided it was high time somebody was brave enough to try and tribute one of the most influential bands of the 80's.
The idea was pitched to long time Def Leppard fan Mark Checkley and the core of the band was in place. "I have been a massive Leppard fan since the very early days when I saw them supporting Sammy Hagar at the Odeon, so I jumped at the chance of being in a tribute to them".
With Mark on board Ashley approached his previous band-mates Ian Stephenson, Mike Thomas and Lee Craddock who were all very much up for the idea. "I saw Def Leppard in the round in '87 and it was awesome, so I was really excited to try and recreate that kind of show" states Ian, "but I was not without my reservations also. Def Leppard don't actually have a keyboard player in their line-up! But we all felt that to be as accurate as possible to the studio Leppard sound, we needed the additional production that you can get from keyboards to help layer the guitars and create that album ambience....and well, the crowds and reactions we get show it works"
Unfortunately, due to family commitments Arron left the band in 2007. However, his replacement, Alex Wall has come into the fold and fitted like a glove. He has complemented the band with a slightly grittier edge, reminiscent of Steve Clark himself...
Having wowed crowds all over the UK and Channel Islands, Deft Leppard have firmly established themselves as one of the top rock tributes around and they continue to go from strength to strength..
