Everything in life is a matter of timing, ain’t it? It goes without saying that a decision that you make at a certain point may affect your life in a great degree…for better or for worse. Tony Kenning is not an exception to the rule as he was so close in becoming part of Def Leppard’s recording history but it just wasn’t meant to happen. Yet he was so close. Kenning’s name is surely familiar to all the Def Leppard fans around the world as he was the band’s first drummer (1977-1978) but also a founding member of Atomic Mass; a band that was later morphed into the mighty Def Leppard.
What we get in this book is Kenning’s recollection of what happened back in those early days with Atomic Mass and Def Leppard but also with other bands that Kenning played with in the 80s. It’s not a book based on detailed information but it’s a very good sample of that time-period with some really cool photos as well as a narrative of the early rehearsals at the famous spoon factory and the first Leppard gigs in Sheffield. Personally, I found myself enjoying the book due to the sheer fact that it captures the youth naiveté but also the dreams of an up and coming band. Kenning’s photos of the cassette with the 1978 demo and the drum kit on which the Def Leppard EP was recorded are definite highlights!
All in all, I’d say that this is a book aimed especially to the die-hard Def Leppard fans that simply want to have them all. As I said, the book doesn’t include many details (after all, it’s only a 69-page book) but I was glad to see that Tony Kenning is totally OK with how things turned out and the fact that he’s now playing again with a Def Leppard tribute band (Shef Leppard…check them out…they are really good) is really great, too. Full circle…
