Steve Clark

Stephen Maynard Clark (23 April 1960 – 8 January 1991) was an English musician, co-lead guitarist for the British hard rock band Def Leppard up until his death in 1991 due to a combination of alcohol and multiple prescription drugs. In 2007 Clark was ranked #11 on Classic Rock Magazine's "100 Wildest Guitar Heroes".. Blabbermouth.net

Biography

Childhood and adolescence

Steve Clark was born and raised in Hillsborough, the north-western suburb of Sheffield, England. From an early age he showed an interest in music — at the age of six, his mother took him to a concert to see The Shadows perform. At eleven, he asked his father, a taxi driver, for a guitar, and his father gave him one, on the condition that Steve would learn to play.

Clark primarily used Gibson guitars during his time with Def Leppard. He occasionally used other guitars, such as a Fender Stratocaster in the "Love Bites" video. This Fender Strat was given to Steve by Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page.

Career with Def Leppard

Before joining Def Leppard in 1978, Clark played cover songs with his small band, Electric Chicken, in Sheffield. Around that time, he met Pete Willis (Def Leppard's original guitarist/founder). Clark asked for a spot in the band and joined Def Leppard in January 1978. According to Joe Elliott in Behind the Music, Clark auditioned for Def Leppard by playing all of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" without accompaniment.<ref name =...
Read More