Phil Collen

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Philip Kenneth Collen (born December 8, 1957 in Hackney, East London, England) is the lead guitarist for English rock band Def Leppard. He joined the band in 1982 following the firing of Pete Willis. Not to be confused with Phil Collins from the band Genesis ollen was born in Hackney, East London, England. Because of this region, he speaks with a Cockney accent. At the age of 16, Phil got his first guitar (a red Gibson SG), taught himself how to play, and left school to pursue a career in music. He then joined a line-up of early bands including Lucy, Tush, Dumb Blondes, and Girl. Some sources claim that Lucy's lead vocalist was Paul Meuse and that the band's bassist was Pete Webb. The band reportedly had four members. Collen had already known Joe Elliott and Steve Clark since 1981 from the London music scene and had been asked to consider joining then. However, there was no need to replace Pete Willis at the time. But when Willis was dismissed from Def Leppard, Collen wasn't formally asked to join the band. Elliott evaluated Collen's ability to play the guitar after he handed out a demo recording of "Photograph" during the band's Pyromania sessions, in hopes of performing a solo that fit in with the bands' style of music. Soon after, Collen officially joined, and his ability on the guitar impressed producer Mutt Lange and the rest of the band. He quickly bonded with fellow guitarist Steve Clark, with whom he created Def Leppard's trademark dual-guitar sound. He and Steve w

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