Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen spoke to ABC’s Good Morning America about his recovery journey after he was assaulted after a show in Fort Lauderdale in March.
Allen, 59, told GMA that he was “totally blindsided” by the attack, explaining, “I heard a couple of steps and then I just saw this [flash] and the next thing I knew was I was on the ground. I landed on my backside… hit my head on the pavement.”
Allen, who lost his left arm in a car crash in 1984, added, “I don’t think he knew who I was, but he must have seen that I wasn’t a threat because, you know, I’ve only got one arm.”
Police arrested Max Hartley, a 19-year-old from Ohio, shortly after he allegedly attacked the drummer and a woman who tried to interfere in the incident, nearby the site of the attack at the Four Seasons in Fort Lauderdale, on March 13.
Hartley was charged with two counts of battery and four counts of criminal mischief, according to a police report. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Allen’s wife, Lauren Monroe, to whom he’s been married since 2003, helped him recover. Allen told GMA, “I immediately just went to that place of just feeling grateful for the fact that I have an amazing wife and an incredible family and I just started thanking a higher power for the fact that I’m still here.”
Def Leppard kicks off the U.K./European leg of their Stadium tour on Monday, and Allen’s ready.
“I know that I’m not going to be playing music in a band forever,” said Allen. “But while I am, I plan on making as many people happy as I possibly can. And this is my time. This is my opportunity.”
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