10 Rock Albums That Were A Nightmare To Make

As the '80s started to get underway, it was clear that Def Leppard were on the verge of something great. Even though they started out as your typical hard rock act, their embrace of poppier hooks on their album High N Dry saw them crossing over to the mainstream with songs like Bringin on the Heartbreak. Not wanting to redo their older sound, Leppard's plan to outdo themselves on Pyromania put a lot of road miles on their souls.

Going into the studio again with Mutt Lange, the production genius really made the guys hunker down until everything was blended to perfection. The animosity was so bad between Pete Willis and the producer that he eventually was fired and replaced with Phil Collen. Aside from Willis' inability to cut the tracks, the others weren't much better, with vocalist Joe Elliott likening the whole experience to being in the Army.

The most stressful moment came with Rick Allen cutting the drums, where he had to focus on single hits for hours on end. Just when Allen was starting to get frustrated, Lange's response of "when I want your opinion, Rick, I'll ask you for it" sent the drummer into a fit of rage, throwing drumsticks and anything else he could at the studio glass. The hard work ended up paying off though, with Photograph and Rock of Ages becoming some of the defining rock tunes of the decade. While the road to success was never going to be easy, the borderline torturous sessions for something like this was far more than any rocker would have bargained for.