Def Leppard's "Women" on the radio...

[War_in_D]

Why isn't this a thing? Anyone ever hear it on their local rock and pop radio stations in the past 20 years, if ever?

I realize it wasn't a chart topper back in the day, but it was a legitimate radio. Radio everywhere seems to love and play the other six Hysteria singles to death, even that awful Rocket.

Why not give Women the occasional spin?

[dmbrocker]

I'll bet Hair Nation will play it if you ask nicely.

[HottKarl777]

This thread made me go listen to it again. What a great atmospheric song. Probably my 2nd favorite off this album after Gods of War.

[DangerZone]

Why isn't this a thing? Anyone ever hear it on their local rock and pop radio stations in the past 20 years, if ever?

I realize it wasn't a chart topper back in the day, but it was a legitimate radio. Radio everywhere seems to love and play the other six Hysteria singles to death, even that awful Rocket.

Why not give Women the occasional spin?

Never understood how ‘rocket’ made it to radio

[CrankerBait]

""Women" didn't do much in Canada. Whether in Toronto, Montreal or Ottawa, "Animal" and "Pour Some Sugar On Me" got - and, still get - tons of airplay, but you rarely heard "Women" within a few weeks of being released as a single.

[whiteowl yesterday]

like the song.
surely hair nation plays it.

[daveg]

Umm, Women almost killed that album right off the bat. Animal was an OK first single, but Women was not really played because it is not a very good song. Not sure it even charted, and the album at that point was dead.

It is played as much now as it was then....and that is not very often. I do hear it occasionally on our local classic station, and I like it cause it is refreshing to hear somthing other than the big hits.

Would have been an OK album cut, but as the second single, it was a terrible choice.

[Hair I Go Again]

I was about to post that "Animal" was actually the second single, but you learn something new every day... from Wiki:

"Women" is a song released by English rock band Def Leppard in 1987 from the album Hysteria. It was the second overall but first single of the album released in the United States.[1] The song was also released as a single in Canada, Australia, Japan, and was part of a double-A side single with "Animal" in Germany. In most other parts of the world, "Animal" was the first single released from the album.

[DonJuanDeMarco]

This thread made me go listen to it again. What a great atmospheric song. Probably my 2nd favorite off this album after Gods of War.

Atmospheric is the right word. I love both of those songs too. They really define the record. Back in '88, driving around in my Camero, I would crank those 2 songs up. Women was the first song on side one. Then I'd flip the tape over, hit rewind and Gods of War was the first song on side 2.

As for why radio never plays it... The kiss of death for FM radio is "dead space". That atmospheric feel just doesn't work as well as their bigger hits. If the DJ is only going to play one DL song it's probably not going to be Women.

[daveg]

I was about to post that "Animal" was actually the second single, but you learn something new every day... from Wiki:

"Women" is a song released by English rock band Def Leppard in 1987 from the album Hysteria. It was the second overall but first single of the album released in the United States.[1] The song was also released as a single in Canada, Australia, Japan, and was part of a double-A side single with "Animal" in Germany. In most other parts of the world, "Animal" was the first single released from the album.

Honestly, I had to look it up as well. I could have sworn Women was the first single....In Canada at least. But they were released only a month apart, and neither of them really hit big (Especially Women). So could have just been they were playing both at the same time.

[Gibsonite]

""Women" didn't do much in Canada. Whether in Toronto, Montreal or Ottawa, "Animal" and "Pour Some Sugar On Me" got - and, still get - tons of airplay, but you rarely heard "Women" within a few weeks of being released as a single.

I remember the MuchMusic VJ going on about how great the upcoming DL album was going to be and then premiering this as the lead single. First reaction was that this is crap. Little did I know how much worse the followup singles would be..

[Mister Freeze]

I was living overseas when Hysteria was released and exposed to both the American and British charts. While "Sugar" was a single in the States, "Armageddon It" was the single in the U.K., which is why they both basically had the same video.

Looking back, I don't think the record company bothered with "Women" in Europe and went with "Animal" first, which is why that region was always "one ahead" with singles compared to the U.S.

Either way, I never heard "Women" on the radio in a top-40/current hit context. It was a cool, but "just okay" song that set the album up for bigger hits to come. Van Halen sort of took the same approach a year later, releasing "Black and Blue" as a low-key first single for OU812.

[Anthrax442]

Women is a fantastic fucking song. And yes, they do play it a bit too much on Hair Nation, but honestly, I'm okay with that because it didn't get played to death in the 80s.

No idea why it wasn't a successful lead single, but I never want to hear Animal again.

[GreatWhiteSnake]

Terrible album, vapid tune...

[daveg]

. Van Halen sort of took the same approach a year later, releasing "Black and Blue" as a low-key first single for OU812.

Wow, I had to look that up.
Had no Idea that was even a single, much less the first one.

Isn't the purpose of a lead off single to be the opposite of "low key"??

[Wednesday 13 Fan]

I was about to say something wise, like maybe they got to many complaints, but if everyone else likes that dog shit album, they'll love Women.

[Mister Freeze]

. Van Halen sort of took the same approach a year later, releasing "Black and Blue" as a low-key first single for OU812.

Wow, I had to look that up.
Had no Idea that was even a single, much less the first one.

Isn't the purpose of a lead off single to be the opposite of "low key"??

I think the idea was to give rock radio a small taste of what's to come (kind of like "Women" for Def Leppard). There wasn't even a video for it, although Van Halen has an interesting history of not always making videos for singles.

"Black and Blue" went to #1 on the rock charts and even snuck into the Top-40 (#34), which kind of surprises me. 1988 was an unstoppable year for metal, though.

[alleyrulez]

I always thought that releasing "Women" as the first single was a wise move, long term. this, along with "Gods Of War", are the heaviest tracks on the album.

had they released something more radio friendly, I'm not sure I would have been in such a rush to buy the album.

[HottKarl777]

Terrible album, vapid tune...

You sir are a silly man (with nice hair)

[GreatWhiteSnake]

Terrible album, vapid tune...

You sir are a silly man (with nice hair)

Woo hoo!!

[VinceVanLane]

I was surprised to hear "God Of War" on HairNation today. It seems like they've been playing a few deeper cuts than normal. Last week I heard "Want Some, Need Some" by Poison on Hair Nation too.

[dmbrocker]

I was surprised to hear "God Of War" on HairNation today. It seems like they've been playing a few deeper cuts than normal. Last week I heard "Want Some, Need Some" by Poison on Hair Nation too.

I still remember when Hair Nation went deep enough to play Kik Tracee's "Don't Need Rules", "Bang Go the Bells", "Sleeping My Day Away", Contraband's "All the Way From Memphis", TNT's "As Far As the Eye Can See", etc. They probably still play a few of those, but I haven't bothered to check since I can pretty much listen to those in my own mp3 collection.

[War_in_D]

Women definitely was the first single released in North America, and Animal was the first single in Europe.

In North America, Women only made it to #80 on the Hot 100 chart on Billboard. Animal was the next North American single and hit the top 20.

[Ziggy Sawdust]

I like it as the album opener but doesn’t really work as a lead single- maybe if it was the final single of the album to be released instead.

[FreddyFender]

Not sure what the question is.

Women didn’t make a dent in the chart and didn’t pick up steam over the years like “Don’t Stop Believing” did. Radio doesn’t keep playing singles that flopped for decades and decades after they were released for no reason.