Courtesy of Joe Elliott/UMeDef Leppard frontman Joe Elliott pays tribute to his late friend and musical hero, one-time David Bowie and Mott the Hoople guitarist Mick “Ronno” Ronson, in a new video for the singer’s recent cover of Ronson’s 1975 solo tune “This Is for You.”
The clip features newly shot scenes of Elliott lip-synching to the introspective song while strumming an acoustic guitar, interspersed with archival footage of Ronson, some showing him performing alongside Joe.
“I had an opportunity on a day off on tour to shoot a video…it just seemed rude not to!” explains Elliott. “This video is my gift to the memory of Mick Ronson who gave me so much in my youth and then later on when we got to know each other.” Watch the clip now at Def Leppard’s official YouTube channel.
Elliott recorded his rendition of “This Is for You” especially for the soundtrack to the 2017 documentary Beside Bowie: The Mick Ronson Story. The album, which was released this past June, also featured several solo Ronson tunes, as well as songs featuring Mick by Bowie, Elton John and Ian Hunter.
Ronson’s version of “This Is for You,” a song written by former New Seekers singer Laurie Heath, appeared on his 1975 album Play Don’t Worry.
Joe became a fan of Mick thanks to Ronson’s work on Bowie’s classic 1972 album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Elliott later struck up a friendship with Ronson and the two performed together, along with members of Queen and other stars, at the historic 1992 Freddie Mercury tribute concert at London’s Wembley Stadium. Joe also contributed vocals to Ronson’s posthumous 1994 album, Heaven and Hull. Mick died in April 1993 at age 46 of liver cancer.
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