The band's greatest commercial success came between the early 1980s and the early 1990s. Their first album, 1980's On Through the Night, reached the Top 15 in the UK but received little notice elsewhere. Their second album, 1981's High 'n' Dry, was produced by Mutt Lange, who helped them begin to define their melodic hard rock style, and the album's most popular track "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" became one of the first rock videos played on MTV in 1982, but the album only reached the Top 30 and 40 in the UK and US. Def Leppard's next studio album, Pyromania, was released in January 1983, with "Photograph" and "Rock of Ages" both topping the US Rock Tracks chart and reaching the top 20 of the Hot 100. Reaching No. 2 on the US album chart, Pyromania was certified Diamond in the US and 7× platinum in Canada and reached the top 20 in the UK but did not sell much elsewhere.
Def Leppard's fourth album, the more pop-oriented Hysteria (1987), topped the UK, US, New Zealand, Canadian, Australian and Norway charts. It also went to No. 2 in Sweden and No. 10 in Germany without any Top 50 singles in those countries. It has been certified 12× platinum for sales in the US and 13× platinum in Canada, selling over 25 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time. The album spawned six Top 20 US singles, including the US Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 "Love Bites" (went Top 10 in several other countries including No. 2 in NZ), alongside "Pour Some Sugar on Me" (US No. 2), "Hysteria", "Armageddon It" (No. 2 in NZ), "Animal" (at No. 6, the biggest UK hit), and "Rocket" (a Top 15 hit in many countries). Hysteria had four Top 10 hits in New Zealand.
Their next studio album, Adrenalize (their first following the death of guitarist Steve Clark), reached No. 1 on the UK, US, NZ, Canadian and Australian charts in 1992, while going Top 10 in Sweden and Germany. It contained several hits, including the US Rock Tracks chart-topper, "Let's Get Rocked", which became their biggest hit in several countries, including No. 2 in the UK, No. 3 in Canada and Switzerland, and the Top 20 in Sweden and Germany. The third single, "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad", was a Top 15 song in the US, UK and Canada. Adrenalize went on to sell over 8 million copies worldwide. Their 1993 album, Retro Active, contained the acoustic Top 5 North American hit "Two Steps Behind". Their greatest hits album Vault, released in 1995, featured the UK No. 2 hit "When Love & Hate Collide" and reached the Top 10 in several countries, going 5× platinum in the US. Beginning with Slang, Def Leppard released five albums between 1996 and 2008, with most usually reaching the Top 15 in several countries, including the UK, US and Canada. Their self-titled album was released in 2015 and reached the Top 10 in several countries. The band's newest studio album, Diamond Star Halos was released in May 2022 and reached the Top 10 in the US, the UK and Australia.
As one of the world's best-selling music artists, Def Leppard have sold more than 100 million records worldwide, and have two albums with RIAA diamond certification: Pyromania and Hysteria, making them one of only five rock bands with two original studio albums selling more than 10 million copies in the US. The band were ranked No. 31 in VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" and ranked No. 70 in "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Def Leppard were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019.
Studio albums
On Through the Night (1980)
High 'n' Dry (1981)
Pyromania (1983)
Hysteria (1987)
Adrenalize (1992)
Slang (1996)
Euphoria (1999)
X (2002)
Yeah! (2006)
Songs from the Sparkle Lounge (2008)
Def Leppard (2015)
Diamond Star Halos (2022)
Too Late For Love
Def Leppard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Darkness settles on the town as the children start to sing
And the lady 'cross the street she shuts out the night
There's a cast of thousands waiting
As she turns out the light
But it's too late, too late, too late
(Too late) too late for love
London boys are gazing as the girls go hand in hand
With a pocket full of innocence, their entrance is grand
And the queen of the dream stands before them all
She stretches out her hand as the curtains start to fall
But it's too late, too late, too late
Too late, too late for love
Too late, too late, it's too late, too late
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Standing by the trapdoor aware of me and you
The actor and the clown, they're waiting for their cue
And there's a lady over there, she's acting pretty cool
But when it comes to playing life
She always plays the fool
But it's too late, too late, it's too late, too late for love
Too late, it's too late, too late, too late
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh
It's a little too late
Oh, oh
Much too late
Oh, oh
You see, it's all too late
Yeah, it's too late
Too late, too late, too late
Too late for love
Too late, too late, too late
Too late
Too late, too late, too late
Too late for love
Too late, too late, too late
Def Leppard's "Too Late For Love" is a song that explores the theme of missed opportunity in love, with the imagery of a town preparing for the night's festivities bringing this to life. The opening lines, "Somewhere in the distance I hear the bells ring/Darkness settles on the town as the children start to sing," evoke the sense of anticipation, marking the beginning of the night's festivities. The lady 'cross the street is shutting out the night, perhaps symbolising the inability to engage with the excitement around her, as if shutting out opportunities for love.
The song then moves onto different characters such as the London boys gazing at the girls, the queen of the dream standing before them all, and a lady acting pretty cool but always playing the fool in life. The overall message being that there are missed opportunities for love that can never be regained, and the lyrics "But it's too late, too late, too late/Too late, too late for love" emphasises this.
The chorus is repeated frequently, creating a sense of finality and the fact that the chances for love have passed, thus creating a sombre tone. Additionally, the song features the iconic sound of Def Leppard, with their classic use of guitar riffs and rhythmic drumming.
Line by Line Meaning
Somewhere in the distance I hear the bells ring
As I stand here, I can hear the bells ringing in the distance.
Darkness settles on the town as the children start to sing
As the night falls, children start singing and there's darkness all around the town.
And the lady 'cross the street she shuts out the night
A lady who lives across the street closes her windows and shuts out the darkness of the night.
There's a cast of thousands waiting As she turns out the light
There are many people waiting as she turns off the lights.
But it's too late, too late, too late
Unfortunately, it is too late to do something now.
(Too late) too late for love
It's too late to express love or do something romantic.
London boys are gazing as the girls go hand in hand
Boys from London are watching the girls holding hands and walking together.
With a pocket full of innocence, their entrance is grand
The girls have an air of innocence about them, and their arrival is grand.
And the queen of the dream stands before them all
The most desirable girl is standing before all the boys.
She stretches out her hand as the curtains start to fall
She extends her hand towards the boys as the curtains close.
Oh, oh, oh, oh
This is a musical interlude.
Standing by the trapdoor aware of me and you
Someone is standing near the trapdoor, being conscious of both of us.
The actor and the clown, they're waiting for their cue
The actor and clown are waiting for their instructions to come up and perform.
And there's a lady over there, she's acting pretty cool
There's a woman standing over there trying to act composed and cool.
But when it comes to playing life She always plays the fool
When it comes to living her life, she always makes foolish decisions.
Oh, oh, oh, oh
This is another musical interlude.
It's a little too late Oh, oh
It may be a bit too late to salvage the situation.
Much too late Oh, oh
Actually, it's too late now.
You see, it's all too late
Everything has been too late, and there's no turning back now.
Yeah, it's too late
Yes, unfortunately, it is too late.
Too late, too late, too late
Repeated emphasis that it is too late now.
Too late for love
It's too late for love now.
Too late, too late, too late
Still emphasizing that it's too late.
Too late
Yes, it's too late now.
Too late, too late, too late
Once again, stating that it's too late now.
Too late for love
It's too late for love now as well.
Too late, too late, too late
Final emphasis that it's too late.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Peter Andrew Willis, Robert John Lange, Joseph Thomas Elliott, Richard Savage, Stephen Maynard Clark, Richard John Cyril Allen
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@starlightskiestarot
"Too Late For Love"
Somewhere in the distance I hear the bells ring
Darkness settles on the town as the children start to sing
The lady 'cross the street she shuts out the night
There's a cast of thousands waiting as she turns out the light
But it's too late, too late, too late
Too late for love
Yes it's too late too late, too late
Too late for love
London boys are staring as the girls go hand in hand
With a pocket full of innocence, their entrance is grand
And the Queen of the dream stands before them all
She stretches out her hand as the curtains start to fall
Standing by the trapdoor aware of me and you
Are the actor and the clown their waiting for their cue
And there's a lady over there she's acting pretty cool
But when it comes to playing life she's always playin' the fool
@madfzr
Whos listening in 2024
@Stoich827
Just rolled one up and re-living my youth for the next few tunes! Coming Under Fire is next!
@matthewvanselow1979
🙋🏻♂️Never stopped
@user-Orpheas
Love that amazing song since 1983 .I'm 61.
@kennethpeller7411
But sure do miss Steve Clark Rip
@dinogirl1able
God
@nilsalmgren4492
I graduated high school in 87, love the days of being in your car and nobody being able to reach you. When you interacted with people, you actually talked to people. Great song, must be early based on the drummer.
@josephconyer2421
Same here, ‘87!!
These guys were just coming into their own!
Good times.
@robertsouden1388
1983
@ronh5062
Amen Brother. Class of ‘84 here this was and still is the music of our lives