Def Leppard, Journey Extend Tour

Def Leppard and Journey have announced that their concert tour will be extended. Tickets for the fall leg are scheduled to go on-sale this week with dates that will keep them on the road through November. The bands have teamed up with ILoveAllAccess.com to offer a variety of VIP ticket packages. For more information, visit www.defleppard.com and www.journeymusic.com or and follow the links.

The tour’s initial leg kicked off at Camden, NJ’s Tweeter Center on June 23, 2006 and was scheduled to last until the end of August. A second leg is currently underway, and will conclude September 23, 2006 in Boston, MA. The bands take a rest before starting the final leg October 11, 2006 in Fresno, CA. More concert dates scheduled in November will be announced in the coming weeks.

Def Leppard’s covers' album YEAH! was released on May 23, 2006. The album, a tribute to the band’s musical heroes of the late 60’s and 70’s, was called “Great fun… their collective taste is what raises this album above the spate of recent covers collections” by USA Today, while the San Francisco Chronicle said “CD of the year? No, CD of the century!” The release of the album coincided with television performances on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno and Live With Regis & Kelly, as well as VH1’s first ever Rock Honors award shows.

With more than 65 million albums sold worldwide, Def Leppard (seen photo left) is Joe Elliott (vocals), Vivian Campbell (guitar), Phil Collen (guitar), Rick “Sav” Savage (bass) and Rick Allen (drums). Def Leppard has also been honored in the U.S. by the RIAA with two Diamond Awards for their albums HYSTERIA and PYROMANIA. The Diamond Award recognizes sales of over 10 million, a feat not many bands and only a handful of British artists have been able to achieve (The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Elton John, Eric Clapton).

Journey's legacy has spanned over 30 years with 19 U.S. releases, most recently GENERATIONS (Sanctuary Records, 2005). Four albums landed in the Top Ten of Billboard's "Top 200 Albums" chart, including 1981’s ESCAPE which reached #1. Overall they’ve sold over 75 million albums worldwide making them the 29th best-selling music group of all time. They were honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame last year.

The band was founded in 1973 in San Francisco by Santana members Neal Schon and Gregg Rolie, with the assistance of Ross Valory, George Tickner and Prairie Prince. The current line-up—which has been together since 1998--includes Neal Schon (guitar), Ross Valory (bass), Jonathan Cain (keyboards), Steve Augeri (vocals) and Deen Castronovo (drums).

As previously announced, due to a chronic throat infection, Journey’s lead singer, Steve Augeri, had been forced to leave the tour early July. Jeff Scott Soto, who has previously performed with Journey guitarist Neal Schon, assumed the band’s lead singer duties starting with the July 7, 2006 show in Bristow, VA. Steve Augeri’s condition continues to be closely monitored by his physician to determine when he may be able to rejoin the tour.

From the Critics:

“…both bands put on great shows. The crowd was a testament to that. If you looked around, you saw all ages, from kids to folks who must have been in their late 40s. Good showmanship, an arsenal of recognizable songs and strong musicianship always attracts a huge crowd. The allure's a no-brainer...Def Leppard and Journey delivered fist-pumping, sing-till-you're-hoarse material.”

--Mario Tarradell, Dallas Morning News, July 31, 2006


“And the fans, from teens to couples with their kids, still sang along to every word of Leppard’s ‘Foolin’’ and Journey’s ‘Wheel In The Sky’ and cheered for every guitar solo like it was 1984 all over again. But beyond the songs, the reason for this concert’s success was that both bands played their sizable catalog of hits with verve and brisk enthusiasm. Unlike many summer package shows, this show featured two bands that were almost perfectly matched in terms of popularity in their salad days, backlog of hits and current performing ability…Could (Jeff Scott) Soto cut it? Yes. And then some.”

--Dave Ferman, Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, July 31, 2006


“Both quintets were trim and tight, more than capable of delivering their sets with an energy similar to their heydays.”

--Gary Graff, The Oakland Press (Detroit, MI), July 25, 2006


“For the 10,500 fans who were at the Montage, Journey and Def Leppard proved one thing on Friday night—no matter who plays first or last, with enormous catalogs of hits, this co-headlining bill is sure to leave everyone satisfied.”

--Ryan O’Malley, Sunday Dispatch (Scranton, PA), July 2, 2006


“Don’t even think that the bands Def Leppard and Journey are no longer viable music groups because a sold-out crowd at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, outside of Houston, would prove you wrong. Both bands delivered CO-headlining sets Sunday (July 30) night full of the hits that made the standing room only crowd flick their Bics and scream like teenagers all over again.”

--Tommy Mann Jr., The Orange Leader (Orange, TX),
August 1, 2006


“So what made this line-up, with seats topping out at $75, the surprise hot ticket of the summer? Nostalgic hits and tight players who are still on top of their game decades after they peaked.”

-- The Charlotte Observer

Here are the current tour dates, including those confirmed for October and November:

Tue 8/22 Phoenix, AZ Cricket Pavilion NOW
Wed 8/23 Chula Vista, CA Coors Amphitheatre NOW
Fri 8/25 Concord, CA Sleep Train Pav at Concord NOW
Sat 8/26 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre NOW
Sun 8/27 Sacramento, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre NOW
Wed 8/30 Portland, OR Clark County Amphitheatre NOW
Thu 8/31 Seattle, WA White River Amphitheatre NOW
Sat 9/2 Boise, ID The Idaho Center NOW
Sun 9/3 Reno, NV Events Center NOW
Wed 9/6 Kansas City, KS Verizon Wireless Amp NOW
Thu 9/7 Ames, IA Hilton Coliseum NOW
Sat 9/9 Milwaukee, WI Marcus Amphitheatre NOW
Sun 9/10 Columbus, OH Germain Amphitheatre NOW
Tue 9/12 Cleveland, OH Blossom Music Center NOW
Wed 9/13 Pittsburgh, PA Post Gazette Pavilion NOW
Fri 9/15 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center NOW
Sat 9/16 Saratoga Springs, NY Saratoga PAC NOW
Tue 9/19 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun NOW
Wed 9/20 Buffalo, NY Darien Lakes NOW
Fri 9/22 Atlantic City, NJ Borgata Hotel & Casino NOW
Sat 9/23 Boston, MA Tweeter Center NOW
Wed 10/11 Fresno, CA Save Mart Center Sat 8/19
Fri 10/13 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl Sun 8/27
Sat 10/14 San Bernardino, CA Hyundai Pavilion Sun 8/27
Mon 10/16 Albuquerque, NM Journal Pavilion Sat 9/9
Tue 10/17 Loveland, CO Budweiser Events Center Sat 9/9
Thu 10/19 Oklahoma City, OK Ford Center Sat 8/19
Sat 10/21 Fargo, ND Fargo Dome Sat 9/16
Sun 10/22 Omaha, NE Qwest Center Sat 9/16
Tue 10/24 Grand Rapids, MI Van Andel Arena Sat 9/23
Wed 10/25 Green Bay, WI Resch Center Sat 9/23
Fri 10/27 Moline, IL The Mark Sat 9/23
Sat 10/28 Bloomington, IL US Cellular Coliseum Sat 9/23
Mon 10/30 Little Rock, AR Alltel Arena Sat 9/23
Wed 11/1 Birmingham, AL Verizon Music Center Sat 8/26

* All dates subject to change.

For more information www.defleppard.com and www.journeymusic.com.