Def Leppard's Joe Elliott explains why Paul Rodgers is 'one of the greatest rock vocalists' ever
He waxes lyrical about the Free and Bad Company legend
Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott has explained the key reason why he thinks Paul Rodgers is “one of the greatest rock vocalists of all time.”
Back in October 2025, Joe Elliott and Phil Collen reinvented Bad Company’s classic song ‘Seagull’ for the covers album ‘Can’t Get Enough: A Tribute to Bad Company’.
In a newly released Q&A video to promote the album, Joe was asked ‘Paul Rodgers has often been called one of the greatest rock vocalists. What have you taken from his vocal style and stage presence into your own work?’
He responded: "Paul Rodgers is indeed one of the greatest rock vocalists of all time, and the reason for that is he's not inspired by rock. He was inspired by R&B.
“If you talk to Paul Rodgers, he'll tell you that the people he grew up listening to was Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye, and he turned it into rock.
“People like me from the next generation down, we sang rock influenced by rock, so it was always gonna be more second generation.
Joe continued: “I took absolutely nothing except admiration from Paul Rodgers because I don't have anything like his voice. He's a soul singer. I'm not. I can sing a Paul Rodgers song — in fact, I've sung a couple. I did 'Little Bit of Love' by Free on (Def Leppard’s 2006 covers album) 'Yeah!'. In fact, Paul really likes our version of that.
“More recently, (we performed) 'Seagull' for this Bad Company tribute album, which is coincidentally called 'Can't Get Enough'. So massive amounts of admiration.”
Elsewhere in the video, Phil Collen also lavishes Paul Rodgers with praise, saying: "Paul Rodgers' voice, he could pretty much do anything he wanted. He's got one of those classic archetype voices that you want. He was like one of those early blues rock singers that everyone tried to emulate.
“Free were really cool when they came out, and Bad Company just pushed that even a little bit further. So, there was a coolness factor to it as well. And his voice just slayed it."
Def Leppard embark on a six-date UK tour in June and July 2026 with very special guests Extreme.
Phil Collen said when the tour was announced: “It’s a dream to be coming back to the UK in June and July next year. And to be coming back with our good friends, Extreme, is a bonus. It’s going to be an incredible night for all the fans!”
Head to Planet Rock Tickets to check ticket availability.
Def Leppard's UK tour dates with Extreme:
JUNE 2026
Belfast Belsonic, Ormeau Park – Fri 26th
Glasgow OVO Hydro – Sun 28th
Sheffield Utilita Arena – Tue 30th
JULY 2026
London The O2 – Thu 2nd
Birmingham bp pulse LIVE – Sat 4th
Manchester Co-op Live – Mon 6th
The greatest rock singers of all time, as voted by Planet Rock listeners:
50) Beth Hart
49) Sebastian Bach
Bands a member of: Skid Row, Madam X, Damnocracy, solo artist
48) Elvis Presley
47) Mike Patton
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46) Layne Staley
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45) Sammy Hagar
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44) Chester Bennington
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43) Jon Anderson
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42) Bruce Springsteen
41) David Draiman
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40) James Hetfield
Bands a member of: Metallica
39) Dave Grohl
Bands a member of: Foo Fighters (vocals, guitar); Nirvana, Them Crooked Vultures, Scream, Mondo Generator (drummer and backing vocals); Sound City Players, (vocals, guitar and drums); Probot (lead guitar, drums, bass)
38) Geddy Lee
Bands a member of: Rush, The Big Dirty Band (bass only).
37) Steve Marriott
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36) David Bowie
35) Shane Greenhall
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34) Danny Vaughn
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33) Mick Jagger
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32) Lemmy
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31) Jay Buchanan
Bands a member of: Rival Sons
30) Geoff Tate
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29) Eddie Vedder
Bands a member of: Pearl Jam, Temple of the Dog, Hovercraft, Bad Radio
28) Janis Joplin
Bands a member of: A solo artist who also performed with Big Brother and the Holding Company
27) Phil Lynott
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26) Stevie Nicks
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25) Brian Johnson
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24) Glenn Hughes
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23) Brent Smith
Bands a member of: Shinedown, Smith & Myers
22) Roger Daltrey
Bands a member of: The Who
21) Floor Jansen
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20) Meat Loaf
19) Axl Rose
Bands a member of: Guns N' Roses, Hollywood Rose, L.A. Guns
18) Steven Tyler
Bands a member of: Aerosmith, Chain Reaction
17) Noddy Holder
Bands a member of: Slade
16) Steve Perry
Bands a member of: Journey, solo artist
15) Rob Halford
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14) Ozzy Osbourne
Bands a member of: Black Sabbath, solo artist
13) Danny Bowes
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12) Lzzy Hale
Bands a member of: Halestorm, Skid Row (temporary singer)
11) Bon Scott
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10) Chris Cornell
Bands a member of: Soundgarden, Audioslave, Temple of the Dog, solo artist
9) Ian Gillan
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8) Ann Wilson
Bands a member of: Heart, solo artist
7) David Coverdale
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6) Bruce Dickinson
Bands a member of: Iron Maiden, Samson, solo artist
5) Myles Kennedy
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4) Paul Rodgers
Bands a member of: Free, Bad Company, The Firm, The Law, Queen + Paul Rodgers, solo artist
3) Robert Plant
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2) Ronnie James Dio
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1) Freddie Mercury
Bands a member of: Queen, Ibex Sour, Milk Sea