Def Leppard: After releasing two albums in the early eighties to mediocre sales, this English metal band hit rock stardom with the release of their third album, Pyromania, in 1983. In total, the band has released two diamond certified albums, countless singles, and headlined over a dozen tours. Along the way, the band suffered through tragedy, fluctuations in success, deadly battles with addiction, and several line-up changes. They have however, endured, and Def Leppard tour dates are scheduled internationally this spring and summer 2011.

The Sheffield, England natives formed in the late seventies and are considered the forerunners of New Wave British Heavy Metal. Through their strenuous touring efforts and energetic metal shows, Def Leppard were able to secure a major label contract with Mercury Records. Their debut album, On Through the Night, was released in 1980 to mediocre sales. However, Def Leppard were able to book tour dates at the Reading Festival and were the supporting act for AC/DC and Ted Nugent. Their touring attracted the attention of famed record producer, Mutt Lange, who produced their second album, High 'n' Dry in 1981. In spite of their talent and Lange's fame, this album also had tepid sales. Not to be outdone, the Def Leppard concert schedule saw the band opening for Ozzy, and they continued to cultivate a hard rock following throughout their prolific touring. Due to excessive drinking, the band was forced to fire their lead guitarist and replace him with Phil Collen. Sadly, this wouldn't be the only alcohol/drug related issue that the band would face.

In the end, 1983 proved to be the big year for Def Leppard. Their third album, Pyromania, was again produced by Mutt Lange and released in January. Their hard rock image and catchy songs translated well through videos, and Def Leppard band found themselves in heavy rotation on MTV. Pyromania spawned hit after hit, including "Photograph" and "Rock of Ages," and was certified diamond by the RIAA. The Def Leppard concert schedule included a major headlining tour and to top it all off, they were voted as 1984's favorite touring rock band in a Gallup poll.

Under pressure to record a hit follow-up, Def Leppard relocated to Ireland to craft the sequel entitled Hysteria. Tragedy struck later that year when drummer Rick Allen was involved in a car accident that severed his left arm. Undeterred, the bandmates decided that he would stay on as drummer with Allen finding alternate ways to keep the drums beating. After a four year recording session, Hysteria, was released in 1987 and was also certified diamond by the RIAA. The album would go on to produce seven singles on the Billboard Hot 100, and also featured the crowd favorite, "Pour Some Sugar on Me." Def Leppard booked a worldwide tour entitled "Adrenalize," which had the band on the road internationally for fifteen consecutive months.

Upon returning from the road, Def Leppard quickly hit the studio, only to encounter more setbacks and tragedy. Due to his continued dependence on alcohol, guitarist Steve Clark was granted a leave of absence from the band to get sober. Clark was later found dead in his London home in 1991 after consuming a lethal amount of drugs and alcohol. The tragedy left the bandmates shaken; however, they continued to record their fifth album Adrenalize. It was released in 1992 and was instantly successful, hitting #1 on the Billboard 200. This was the band's last runaway commercial hit. The band has continued to release more material, a total of five albums, including the most recent, Songs from the Sparkle Lounge, which was released in 2008.

During the last decade, the band has continued to tour. Def Leppard has also received one of music's greatest accolades with their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. A testament to their longevity, Def Leppard tour dates 2011 have been announced, and the band will co-headline a tour with Heart this spring and summer. Headbangers and eighties rock fans alike, don't miss out on the chance to catch these living legends in your area: use Eventful as your source for Def Leppard tour dates and concert schedule updates through 2011 and beyond.

Poison: The glam metal (or hair metal, as it has become affectionately known) revolution of the 80's has created many iconic rock bands, but none so famous as Poison. Their tour dates exposed sold-out crowds to a unique blending of rock and metal. In addition to head banging rock songs, Poison was also the master of the 80s rock ballad, with their hit "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" becoming a prime example of how it's done. Despite personal problems and conflicts within the band, the entity known as Poison has survived nearly thirty years, proving that their music and their musical drive can stand the test of time. Poison is celebrating its 25th Anniversary by joining Mötley Crüe on a number of US concert dates for 2011, introducing glam metal to a new generation and re-introducing older fans.

Poison signed to famous 80's label Enigma Records in 1986 and soon released their debut album, Look What the Cat Dragged In. The record was a huge hit for a debut album and was highly publicized on MTV, which made Poison a brand name among glam rock acts. Their followup album, Open Up and Say…Ahh!, was released in 1988 and featured some of the band's biggest hits, including "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" and "Nothin' but a Good Time." The success of the album propelled Poison from opening act on tour dates to headliner, with even bigger things to come. 1990's Flesh & Blood marked image changes for Poison; as the band moved from the 80s into the 90s, they dropped their outlandish glam style and focused on the strength of the music itself. The transition was well received by fans and critics, as it eventually went multi-platinum and produced a number of international tour dates.

Unfortunately for the band, another poison was creeping in as C.C. Deville's alcohol and cocaine abuse began to affect performances. Deville was fired and replaced by a string of guitarists, the first of which was Richie Kotzen. After attending rehab and embarking on several solo products, C.C. Deville made amends with the members of Poison and returned to the band shortly after the release of their greatest hits album. Following the promotional tour dates for the album, bootleg versions of the unfinished Crack a Smile became released on the internet. Instead of recording a new album with Deville, Poison decided to officially release the album with new tracks in 2000. The album was a huge success, with some fans calling it "The Lost Album" because of its similarities to Poison's earlier albums.

Poison spent the next several years venturing on a number of tour dates, and in 2007 released a covers album titled Poison'd. In honor of Poison's 25th Anniversary this year, they are releasing the ultimate greatest hits compilation featuring two cd's that span 25 years and contain 35 hit songs. Poison will be celebrating their anniversary on 2011 concert dates with a few other bands celebrating milestones, including Mötley Crüe (celebrating 30 years) and the New York Dolls (celebrating 40 years). Tour dates for Poison begin on May 25, and the band will join up with Mötley Crüe and New York Dolls on June 7. The glam rock trio will cover a good portion of the US before the last tour date on August 7. Summer concert dates for 2011 mark the first time Poison and Mötley Crüe have toured together, and it might be the only time, so fans should snatch up tickets on Eventful soon.

Lita Ford: Lita Ford first came to the attention of the mass media in 1976 when her first band, The Runaways, released it's first major album. Lita was 16 but had been playing guitar for several years, having bought her first ax after seeing Black Sabbath. The Runaways toured through the United States, Europe and Japan, playing a brand of rock mixed with punk that no one had seen girls play before. While the girls had a say in much of the writing and were pioneers for today's female hard rock acts, at the time they were largely known as teenage jailbait on the run. Their outfits combined with their lyrics made them pariahs to much of the media but that didn't stop their cult following from growing. The band went through several personnel changes (Vicki Blue replaced Jackie Fox and was then replaced by Laurie McCallister....Cherie Currie also left the band, leaving Jett to take over as lead vocalist) and at the tail end of 1979, the band called it a day. Lita hooked up with Sandy and kept playing for a time while Joan Jett went on to start her successful solo career. In 1983, Lita released her first solo album with her three piece band, entitled Out For Blood. Her music was now her music, heavy metal with female attitude. In 1985, she released Dancing On The Edge and received her first Grammy nomination for "Gotta Let Go." Writing began on a third album to be called The Bride Wore Black but the album was never recorded and after a period of argument with the record label, Lita and the label parted company. In 1988, with a new record label and a new manager in Sharon Osbourne, Lita released Lita which included the hits "Kiss Me Deadly" and seminal favorite "Close My Eyes Forever." While the 90s brought "alternative," Lita relased Stiletto which included a touching tribute to her mother, "Lisa." She followed it up with Dangerous Curves in 1991 but by then, alternative had set itself in stone. Lita waited until 1995 to release Black, then returned home for a much needed period of relaxation. She and husband Jim Gillette (of Nitro fame), welcomed their first son into the world, James. When the Millienum came, Lita had released Greatest Hits Live, which included the new studio track, "Nobody's Child." In 2003, BMG Special Products released the first ever Lita Ford video collection dvd. Today, Lita and Jim are the proud parents of two sons and are enjoying their parenthood. Jim has formed a new band called Organ Donor, among other musical projects, and Lita is preparing her boys for the world. In my opinion, she may want the prepare the world for her boys. Never count Lita out....just when you think it's safe, she may just surprise you.

Bret Michaels: Bret Michaels is, if nothing else, a true survivor. He has survived a lifelong battle as an insulin dependent diabetic, a well publicized near fatal car crash in 1994 and the countless musical trends and fads of the last two decades.

“As soon as I ever start to just go through the motions I’ll quit,” confessed the 45 year old singer, songwriter, producer, director and actor in a recent interview. But there’s little chance he’ll even slow down let alone quit anytime soon. In fact, after more than 20 years in the business this award winning, multi platinum superstar’s career continues to move at warp speed.

As front man for the legendary rock band Poison, Michaels has sold 25 million records and scored an amazing 15 chartbusting Top 40 singles including “Talk Dirty to Me,” “Something to Believe In,” “Nothing But a Good Time” and the timeless #1 smash “Every Rose Has its Thorn.”

And in the new millennium Poison’s music has been featured in such big screen flicks as “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” “Grandma’s Boy” and “Deuce Bigelow-European Gigolo.” They continue to be one of the industry’s top grossing concert attractions and their 2006 “20 Years of Rock” CD was a bona fide Top 20 gold smash. Poison’s most recent CD is 2007’s “Poison’D” an album of cover songs that have influenced the band members over the years.

Michaels has also produced and written material for other artists including Stevie Nicks. He wrote and produced the song “Love’s a Hard Game to Play” which appeared on Nicks’ platinum album “Timespace: The Best Of Stevie Nicks.” More recently Michaels could be heard providing background vocals along with Phil Vassar on the Kenny Chesney/Uncle Kracker duet single “Last Night Again.”

In the mid-90s Michaels formed a film production company with actor Charlie Sheen. The partnership ultimately led to Michaels writing, directing and starring in several films including “A Letter From Death Row” which he executive co-produced with Sheen.

As an actor, Michaels has made regular appearances on such hit television shows as “Yes Dear,” “Martial Law,” and “The Chris Isaak Show.” And he has also co-hosted “Access Hollywood” and been a judge on the wildly popular “Nashville Star” program. Recently, Michaels has played for charity on “Don’t Forget the Lyrics” winning $250,000 for St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Setting his musical sights beyond Poison, Michaels released his debut solo album “Songs of Life” in 2003 followed by the rootsy, Americana flavored sophomore record “Freedom of Sound” in 2005. The current release, “Rock My World” was released in June 2008 and features a collection of Bret Michaels’ solo songs that have been featured on the “Rock Of Love” television series.

“Rock of Love with Bret Michaels” has been a enormous ratings winner for Vh1. The series has became the highest rated series on Vh1 and consistently won its time slot when aired, including multiple airings. Michaels is currently filming a third installment of the series aptly titled “Rock of Love Bus with Bret Michaels” as the singer is taking the show on the road this time.

“I would play music whether I made it or not,” Michaels told a journalist in 2002 and it’s that commitment to his art that continues to keep him at the forefront of the entertainment industry.