Overview
After releasing only four albums over the course of a decade, Def Leppard used Retro Active to break that habit, provide a treat for diehard fans, and close the door on the "Steve Clark" era of the band. It reached platinum sales in many countries.
Although many tracks were found on single releases, some parts were re-recorded on the road during the Adrenalize tour.
Two unfinished songs from the Hysteria recording sessions, "Desert Song" and "Fractured Love", were completed exclusively for the album. "Two Steps Behind", an acoustic ballad originally recorded in electric version, was given strings by conductor Michael Kamen and included onto the Last Action Hero soundtrack. It would become the band's last Top 20 single in the US, reaching #12.
The album also had covers, Sweet's "Action" (which charted higher than the original in the UK) and Mick Ronson's "Only After Dark". Although guitarist Phil Collen had written "Miss You in a Heartbeat", it was released first on the self-titled 1991 debut by The Law, a band featuring Paul Rodgers and The Who drummer Kenney Jones.
The version of "Ride into the Sun" is not the version that appeared on The Def Leppard E.P., but rather the 1987 re-recording. It differs slightly from the version of the recording used as a B-side in the Hysteria era, though. The one used as a B-side had a Rick Allen drum solo intro, whereas this one has a piano intro.
Retro Active features a hidden (final) track: a piano/vocal version of "Miss You in a Heartbeat".
This is the first Def Leppard album to feature songs recorded with newly added guitarist Vivian Campbell.
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