<P> Richard John Cyril "Rick" Allen (born 1 November 1963) is an English drummer who has played for the hard rock band Def Leppard since 1978 . He overcame the amputation of his left arm in 1985 and continued to play with the band, which subsequently went on to its most commercially successful phase . He is known as "The Thunder God" by fans . </P> <P> Allen started playing drums at the age of 9 . He performed in bands called Grad, Smokey Blue, Rampant, and the Johnny Kalendar Band . When Allen was 14, his mother replied on his behalf to an ad placed by a band called "Def Leppard" looking for a drummer to replace Tony Kenning ("Leppard loses skins" was the ad's headline). Later, on 1 November 1978, his fifteenth birthday, Allen joined the band . In 1979, he dropped out of school (other band members left their jobs around the same time) to concentrate on a career in music . In September 1979, they opened for Sammy Hagar at London's Hammersmith Odeon . Subsequently, Def Leppard played shows as a support act for AC / DC during October and November 1979 . Allen celebrated his 16th birthday with a performance at the Hammersmith Odeon . On 14 March 1980, the band released their first album, On Through the Night . Since their first album, Allen still continues to record and tour with the band . </P> <P> On the afternoon of 31 December 1984, Allen was involved in a car accident with his girlfriend Miriam Barendsen in the English countryside a few miles west of Sheffield . While trying to pass another car at a high speed, he lost control of his Corvette C4, which hit a dry stone wall and entered a field . He was thrown from the car because his seatbelt had been improperly fastened, causing his left arm to be severed, while his girlfriend suffered head injuries, resulting in grade 2 concussion and brain swelling, she also suffered neck and spine injuries from severe whiplash . Doctors initially reattached Allen's arm, but because of an infection, it had to be re-amputated . His right shoulder was also severely broken in the accident . </P> <P> Allen initially had doubts about continuing to play with the band, but was encouraged by the other members to continue . Allen, along with a few engineers, started to design a drum set to assist his drumming . At the time, he was still able to play some drum rhythms with one hand and use his left leg, typically for hi - hat pedals in common drum kits, to play the snare drum . Then - Status Quo drummer Jeff Rich helped and encouraged Allen during his convalescence, and designed an electronic kit Allen could play using only one arm . The Ludwig acoustic drum kit he used on earlier albums High' n' Dry and Pyromania was later given away by Def Leppard's one - time management . Electronic drum manufacturer Simmons created a kit to their specifications, and Allen made his post-accident debut in 1986 at the Monsters of Rock festival at Castle Donington . </P>

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