10 Dumbest Decisions Rock Bands Have Ever Made

After fumbling around with hard rock for the first few years of the '80s, Def Leppard really started to hit the big time with Pyromania. Despite not being able to crack their home country on the first go around, songs like Photograph and Foolin were all over MTV, bringing them to the top of the hair metal spectrum. So naturally for the next project, the plan was to...strip things down?

Going into the writing process for Hysteria, Leppard were heartbroken to hear that Mutt Lange would no longer be available to work with them on the next project due to scheduling conflicts. Amid the recording sessions, Leppard's managers had the bright idea of trying to get Meat Loaf songwriter Jim Steinman in to produce, regardless of the fact that he had never been behind the producer's chair in any capacity.

Things really started to hit a wall from the first minute they got started, with Steinman initially thinking that they had nailed a take of a song before the band had done so much as tune their instruments. Although Leppard would eventually get Mutt back into the fold, they had to weather a slew of external problems as well, with Rick Allen losing his arm halfway through the production. Regardless of the powers that be, Def Leppard came through with one of the greatest records of the '80s and the crowned jewel of the pop metal era.