Judas Priest is a hugely influential heavy metal band formed in 1969 in Birmingham, England. Often called just Priest, the band's classic line-up consists of vocalist Rob Halford, the guitar duet of K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton and Ian Hill on bass duties.
Judas Priest One of the originators of heavy metal, with Rob Halford's lead vocals notable for their high-pitched screams, they also feature an innovative two-lead-guitar sound and are particularly noted for their complex guitar duets courtesy of K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton.
K.K. Downing and Ian Hill knew each other since their early childhoods, as they lived nearby, attended the same nursery and school in West Bromwich. They became closer friends in their early teens, when they shared similar musical interests (Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Cream, the Yardbirds) and learned to play instruments. In 1970, after a local ensemble named Judas Priest (after Bob Dylan's song "The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest" from the John Wesley Harding album) broke up, the band's singer, Al Atkins, approached Downing and Hill and proposed that they form a band using his former band's name.
With Downing as leader, the band moved from their original bluesy tunes towards heavy rock and what would later come to be defined as early heavy metal. This trio played around Birmingham and the surrounding areas with various drummers until 1974, sometimes opening for bands such as Budgie, Thin Lizzy and Trapeze. Eventually, financial difficulties and problems with their management, Tony Iommi's company, IMA, led to the departure of Alan Atkins and drummer Alan Moore.
At the time, Ian Hill was dating a woman from nearby town Walsall who suggested her brother, Bob Halford[2], be considered as a singer. Halford joined the band, bringing drummer John Hinch from his previous band, Hiroshima. This line-up toured in the UK, often supporting Budgie, and even headlined in some shows in Norway and Germany.
Before the band entered the studio to record their first album, the record company suggested the band add another musician. As Downing was reluctant to add a keyboard player or horn player, he chose to add another lead guitarist, Glenn Tipton, from the Stafford-based Flying Hat Band. Tipton reworked existing material and took over as main song writer. In August 1974, the band debuted with the single "Rocka Rolla", before releasing an album of the same name a month later.
There were technical problems during the recording which led to poor sound quality. Producer Rodger Bain, whose CV included Black Sabbath's first three albums as well as Budgie's first album, dominated the production of the album and made decisions with which the band did not agree [3] Bain also chose to leave fan favorites from the band's live performances, such as "Tyrant", "Genocide", and "The Ripper", off the album. He cut the song "Caviar and Meths" from a 10-minute song down to a 2-minute instrumental.
Judas Priest, c. 1977. (left to right) Hill, Downing, Halford & TiptonWith their next album, recorded during January and February of 1976, the band participated more in the production and chose the producers. The result, Sad Wings of Destiny (1976), included a variety of old material, including the aforementioned stage favorites and the epic "Victim of Changes". This song combined "Whiskey Woman", a stage classic since the era of the first Judas Priest (Al Atkins' band) and "Red Light Lady" brought by Halford from his previous group, Hiroshima. This album and a strong 1975 performance at the Reading Festival helped to build their fanbase.
The next album, 1977's Sin After Sin used session drummer Simon Phillips while Les (James Leslie) Binks supported the tour. 1978's Stained Class and Killing Machine (released in America as Hell Bent for Leather) were also supported by Les Binks. Binks, credited with writing the very powerful "Beyond the Realms of Death", was a very technically skilled drummer. Binks also played on Unleashed in the East which was recorded live in Japan during the Killing Machine tour. Killing Machine had shorter songs that had more commercial appeal while still retaining their heavy metal punch.
Following the release of Killing Machine, and the live release from the supporting tour, entitled Unleashed in the East. It was the first of many Judas Priest albums to go Platinum. At the time, there was some criticism of the bands' use of studio-enhancements and overdubbing in what was marketed as a live album. Nonetheless, many early Priest classics are recorded here, such as "Victim of Changes", "Tyrant", "Genocide", and "The Ripper".
After Les Binks quit, in part because of the band's direction, the band replaced him with Dave Holland, formerly from the band Trapeze. With this line-up, Judas Priest recorded six studio and one live album which garnered different degrees of critical and financial success. Overall, the band has sold in excess of 30 million albums globally.
In 1980, the band released British Steel. The songs were shorter and had more mainstream radio hooks, but retained the heavy metal feel. Tracks such as "United", "Breaking the Law", and "Living After Midnight" were frequently played on the radio. The next release, 1981's Point of Entry, followed the same formula, but critics generally panned it. However, the tour in support was successful, with new songs such as "Solar Angels" and "Heading Out to the Highway".
The 1982 album Screaming for Vengeance featured the song "You've Got Another Thing Comin'", which garnered strong US radio airplay. Songs such as "Electric Eye" and "Riding on the Wind" also appeared off this album, and proved to be popular live tracks. "(Take These) Chains" (by Bob Halligan, Jr.), an uncharacteristic ballad, was released as a single and received heavy airplay. This album went two times Platinum.
Defenders of the Faith was released in 1984. Even though it was more progressive than their earlier efforts, some critics dubbed it as "Screaming for Vengeance II", due to its musical likeness to the previous album.
On July 13th, 1985, Judas Priest was - apart from Black Sabbath - the only metal band to perform at the Live Aid event. The band played at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Their setlist was "Living After Midnight", "The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)" and "(You've Got) Another Thing Comin'".
Turbo was released in 1986, during the glam metal era. To keep up with the times, Priest adopted a more colourful look and gave their music a more poppy feel by adding synthesisers. The album also went Platinum and had a successful tour in support, but some critics argued the album was a sellout. A live album recorded on the tour, titled Priest... Live!, was released the next year, offering fans live tracks from the 1980s era. The video documentary Heavy Metal Parking Lot was created by Jeff Krulik and John Heyn in 1986. It documents the heavy metal fans waiting on May 31, 1986 for a Judas Priest concert (with special guests Dokken) at the Capital Centre (later renamed US Airways Arena) in Landover, Maryland.
In 1988, Ram it Down was released, featuring several reworked songs left over from Turbo, in addition to new songs. A reviewer has called Ram it Down a "stylistic confusion" of "cornball metal" that resulted from the band's "...attempt to rid themselves of the high tech synthesiser approach...and return to the traditional metal of their fading glory days." The reviewer argued the album showed "...how far behind they were lagging...the thrashers they helped influence" in earlier years. As well, in the late 1980s, longtime drummer Dave Holland left the band.
In 1990, the Painkiller album used a new drummer, Scott Travis (formerly from Racer X). This comeback album dropped the 1980s-style synthesisers for all of the songs except a ballad entitled "A Touch of Evil." The tour used bands such as Pantera, Megadeth and Sepultura as opening bands, and culminated in the Rock in Rio performance in Brazil in front of 100,000+ music fans.
Part of the Judas Priest stage show often featured Rob Halford riding onstage on a Harley-Davidson motorbike, dressed in motorcycle leathers and sunglasses. In a Toronto show in 1991, Halford was seriously injured as he rode on stage, when he collided with a drum riser that was hidden behind clouds of dry ice mist. Although the show was delayed, he performed the entire set before going to hospital. Hill later noted "he must have been in agony". He later claimed the accident helped to prompt his departure from the band. For nearly five years, Priest remained in the shadows, with no release to top Painkiller.
Ken McKenna in the trialIn summer 1990, the band was involved in a civil action that alleged they were responsible for the suicide attempts in 1985 of 20-year old James Vance and 19-year old Ray Belknap in Reno, Nevada, USA. On December 23, 1985 Vance and Belknap got intoxicated then went to a playground at a Lutheran church in Reno. Belknap shot a 12 gauge shotgun under his chin, dying instantly, and Vance followed, but survived with a severely disfigured face. He died three years later after a suicidal overdose of painkillers.
The mens' parents and their legal team, headed by Nevada attorney Ken McKenna, alleged that a subliminal message of "do it" had been included in the Judas Priest song "Better By You, Better Than Me" from the Stained Class album (actually a cover of a Spooky Tooth number). They alleged the command in the song triggered the suicide attempt. The suit was eventually dismissed. One of the defense witnesses, Dr Timothy E. Moore, wrote an article for Skeptical Inquirer chronicling the trial.
The trial was covered in the 1991 documentary Dream Deceivers: The Story Behind James Vance Vs. Judas Priest. In the documentary Halford commented that, if they wanted to insert subliminal commands in their music, killing their fans would be counterproductive and they would prefer to insert the command "Buy more of our records". Regarding the prosecution's assertions that the statement "do it" was a command to commit suicide, Halford pointed out "do it" had no direct message.
In popular culture, comedian Bill Hicks referred to the case in his stand-up routines, asking "What musician wants his audience dead?" He performed an apocryphal sketch in a British accent mimicking Judas Priest being sick of their immense wealth, power, and fame and coming up with the subliminal message as a solution to their problems. Comedian Denis Leary also commented on the trial on his album No Cure For Cancer, saying heavy metal bands should put more subliminal messages in their records: "Kill the band, kill your parents, then kill yourself". Jay Leno also made fun of the trial.
The trial is still referenced by people inside and outside of the music community. The Bloodhound Gang song "Lift Your Head Up High" includes an extended reference to the Subliminal Message trial, which parodies the concept of playing a song backwards to extract hidden messages. As well, the Mr. Show episode "The Return of the Curse of the Creature's Ghost" has a sketch in which a fictional band "Titannica" is sued by a fan who tries to commit suicide after listening to their hit song "Try Suicide".
After the end of the Painkiller tour in 1991, Halford left Judas Priest. In September 1991, there were indications of internal tensions within the band. Halford went on to form a street-style thrash metal group named Fight in the summer of 1993 with Scott Travis on drums for the recording sessions. He formed this band due to his desire to explore new musical territory, but due to contractual obligations, he left Judas Priest in 1993.
Halford collaborated with Judas Priest in the release of a compilation album entitled Metal Works '73-'93 to commemorate their 20th anniversary. He also appeared in a video by the same title, documenting their history, in which his departure from the band was officially announced later that year.
In a 1998 interview on MTV, Halford also revealed his homosexuality, but it came as little surprise to fans as rumours had been circulating for over five years. Halford's former bandmates in Priest stated they were previously aware of his sexual orientation.
Tim "Ripper" Owens, who had previously sung in a Judas Priest tribute band called British Steel, was hired in 1996 as Judas Priest's new singer. This line up released two albums, Jugulator and Demolition as well as two live double-albums - '98 Live Meltdown and Live in London, the latter of which had a live DVD counterpart. Jugulator sold relatively well but Demolition did not sit well with fans or mainstream alike; most believed Ripper could not be a true replacement for Halford's vocal abilities.
Owens' move from fan and weekend tribute band singer to frontman for the actual band was the inspiration for the film Rock Star. Because the film's content bore only a tangential resemblance to Owens's actual history with the band, Judas Priest later moved to disassociate themselves from the film. The film (starring Mark Wahlberg) was a critical and commercial flop, though the fictional band portrayed in the film -Steel Dragon - achieved a cult status among some heavy metal and Judas Priest fans.
On August 15, 2002 PETA, an animal rights group, sent the band's management a request to stop wearing leather onstage. It was even reported that they asked the band to change the name of their Hell Bent for Leather album to Hell Bent for Pleather. Judas Priest responded that they wear artificial leather, but PETA still protested that this could encourage listeners to wear real leather.
After almost twelve years apart, as well as an ever-growing demand for a reunion, Judas Priest and original lead vocalist Rob Halford announced they would reunite in July 2003, to coincide with the release of the Metalogy box set. They did a live concert tour in Europe in 2004, and co-headlined the 2004 Ozzfest, being named as the "premier act" by almost all U.S. media coverage of the event.
A new studio album, Angel of Retribution, was released on 1 March 2005 (U.S.) on Sony Music/Epic Records to critical and commercial success. A global tour in support of the album ensued, and was hugely successful. Judas Priest and "Ripper" Owens parted amicably, with Owens joining American heavy metal band Iced Earth as the lead singer to record the album The Glorious Burden, released in 2004 and its follow-up Framing Armageddon (Something Wicked Part 1) in 2007 by SPV Records. Ripper left Iced Earth in December 2007 to head his current band called Beyond Fear, whose self-titled debut was release in May 2006, also by SPV Records.
As for the band Halford, writing for the fourth release was cut off. However, after the Retribution tour in June 2006, Halford announced he would create his own record company, entitled Metal God Entertainment, where he would release all his solo material under his own control. In November 2006 he remastered his back catalog and released it exclusively through Apple's iTunes Store. Two new songs allegedly set for the fourth release, "Forgotten Generation" and "Drop Out", were released through iTunes as well.
Along with Kiss, Queen, and Def Leppard, Judas Priest were the inaugural inductees into the "VH1 Rock Honors." The ceremony took place May 25, 2006 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and first aired on May 31, 2006. Their presentation was preceded by the band Godsmack performing a medley of "Electric Eye"/"Victim of Changes"/"Hell Bent for Leather", and Priest themselves played "Breaking the Law", "The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)" and "You've Got Another Thing Comin'", before which Halford rode a Harley onstage. On April 6, 2006, the Associated Press announced the event by saying "the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame looks to be getting some competition."
Judas Priest headlined the Sweden Rock Festival in June 2008.In a June 2006 interview with MTV.com, frontman Rob Halford said in regards to the group's upcoming concept album about the legendary 16th century French prophet Nostradamus, "Nostradamus is all about metal, isn't he? He was an alchemist as well as a seer — a person of extraordinary talent. He had an amazing life that was full of trial and tribulation and joy and sorrow. He's a very human character and a world-famous individual. You can take his name and translate it into any language and everybody knows about him, and that's important because we're dealing with a worldwide audience."
In addition to digging new lyrical ground for the band, the album will contain musical elements which might surprise their fans. "It's going to have a lot of depth", Halford said. "There'll be a lot of symphonic elements. We might orchestrate it, without it being overblown. There may be a massive choir at parts and keyboards will be featured more prominently, whereas they've always been in the background before."
In addition to this, in a February 2007 interview with Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles, K.K. Downing revealed they have recorded a total of 18 tracks, with a length of over 90 minutes. He notes there is not much he would like to cut down, so it will likely be a double-CD release, their first full-length LP to do so. He adds that Rob Halford's vocal tracks are currently being laid down, and the rhythm will most likely follow suit. Downing also reveals the current orchestrations are MIDI converters, and he does not know if an outside orchestra will be used.
Judas Priest announced, via their website, on November 22, 2007 that they would go on tour promoting their Nostradamus-themed album. The tour opened in Helsinki, Finland on June 3, 2008 and is scheduled to go through Europe, North America and Australia, closing in South Korea on September 21.
On April 10, 2008, Blabbermouth.net reported that Nostradamus would be released in Germany on June 13, 2008, Europe on June 16th and a day later in the United States.
In the 2000s, Priest has become known to a new generation thanks to their music being included on the soundtracks of several popular video games. The 2006 PC and Xbox 360 video game, Prey and the PlayStation 2 2005 console games Guitar Hero and RoadKill include "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" on their soundtrack, as does 2002's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, which features the song on rock station V-Rock. In the prequel, 2006's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, V-Rock features the song "Electric Eye". RoadKill also includes "Heading Out to the Highway", back-to-back with the aforementioned song on its classic rock pseudo-radio station.
Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, also features "Electric Eye", including its intro, "The Hellion". The 2001 PlayStation 2 video game, Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec features "Turbo Lover" on the game's soundtrack. Its sequel Gran Turismo 4 features "Freewheel Burning". The song "Breaking the Law" is also featured on the soundtrack to the 2006 PC, PS2 and Xbox game Scarface: The World is Yours. Additionally, Harmonix announced on April 18, 2008 that the first full-album available for download for the very popular video game Rock Band would be Judas Priest's Screaming for Vengeance. The album became available on April 22 for Xbox 360and April 24 for Playstation 3.
Current members
Rob Halford - lead vocals (1973-1993, 2003-present)
K. K. Downing - guitar, backing vocals (1970-present)
Glenn Tipton - guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1974-present)
Ian Hill - bass guitar (1970-present)
Scott Travis - drums, percussion (1989-present)
Former members
Al Atkins - vocals (1970-1973)
John Ellis - drums (1970)
Chris Campbell - drums (1971-1973)
Alan Moore - drums (1971, 1975-1976)
John Hinch - drums (1973-1975)
Les Binks - drums (1977-1979)
Dave Holland - drums (1979-1989)
Tim "Ripper" Owens - vocals (1996-2003)
Official Website: http://www.judaspriest.com/
Listen To Judas Priest Music!
Watch Judas Priest Video!
Breaking The Law
PainKiller
Metal Gods (Live)
Love Bites (Live)
Free Wheel Burning
Screaming For Vengeance (Live)
Electric Eye
Living After Midnight (Live)l
Revolution
The Ripper (Live)
Judas Priest One of the originators of heavy metal, with Rob Halford's lead vocals notable for their high-pitched screams, they also feature an innovative two-lead-guitar sound and are particularly noted for their complex guitar duets courtesy of K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton.
K.K. Downing and Ian Hill knew each other since their early childhoods, as they lived nearby, attended the same nursery and school in West Bromwich. They became closer friends in their early teens, when they shared similar musical interests (Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Cream, the Yardbirds) and learned to play instruments. In 1970, after a local ensemble named Judas Priest (after Bob Dylan's song "The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest" from the John Wesley Harding album) broke up, the band's singer, Al Atkins, approached Downing and Hill and proposed that they form a band using his former band's name.
With Downing as leader, the band moved from their original bluesy tunes towards heavy rock and what would later come to be defined as early heavy metal. This trio played around Birmingham and the surrounding areas with various drummers until 1974, sometimes opening for bands such as Budgie, Thin Lizzy and Trapeze. Eventually, financial difficulties and problems with their management, Tony Iommi's company, IMA, led to the departure of Alan Atkins and drummer Alan Moore.
At the time, Ian Hill was dating a woman from nearby town Walsall who suggested her brother, Bob Halford[2], be considered as a singer. Halford joined the band, bringing drummer John Hinch from his previous band, Hiroshima. This line-up toured in the UK, often supporting Budgie, and even headlined in some shows in Norway and Germany.
Before the band entered the studio to record their first album, the record company suggested the band add another musician. As Downing was reluctant to add a keyboard player or horn player, he chose to add another lead guitarist, Glenn Tipton, from the Stafford-based Flying Hat Band. Tipton reworked existing material and took over as main song writer. In August 1974, the band debuted with the single "Rocka Rolla", before releasing an album of the same name a month later.
There were technical problems during the recording which led to poor sound quality. Producer Rodger Bain, whose CV included Black Sabbath's first three albums as well as Budgie's first album, dominated the production of the album and made decisions with which the band did not agree [3] Bain also chose to leave fan favorites from the band's live performances, such as "Tyrant", "Genocide", and "The Ripper", off the album. He cut the song "Caviar and Meths" from a 10-minute song down to a 2-minute instrumental.
Judas Priest, c. 1977. (left to right) Hill, Downing, Halford & TiptonWith their next album, recorded during January and February of 1976, the band participated more in the production and chose the producers. The result, Sad Wings of Destiny (1976), included a variety of old material, including the aforementioned stage favorites and the epic "Victim of Changes". This song combined "Whiskey Woman", a stage classic since the era of the first Judas Priest (Al Atkins' band) and "Red Light Lady" brought by Halford from his previous group, Hiroshima. This album and a strong 1975 performance at the Reading Festival helped to build their fanbase.
The next album, 1977's Sin After Sin used session drummer Simon Phillips while Les (James Leslie) Binks supported the tour. 1978's Stained Class and Killing Machine (released in America as Hell Bent for Leather) were also supported by Les Binks. Binks, credited with writing the very powerful "Beyond the Realms of Death", was a very technically skilled drummer. Binks also played on Unleashed in the East which was recorded live in Japan during the Killing Machine tour. Killing Machine had shorter songs that had more commercial appeal while still retaining their heavy metal punch.
Following the release of Killing Machine, and the live release from the supporting tour, entitled Unleashed in the East. It was the first of many Judas Priest albums to go Platinum. At the time, there was some criticism of the bands' use of studio-enhancements and overdubbing in what was marketed as a live album. Nonetheless, many early Priest classics are recorded here, such as "Victim of Changes", "Tyrant", "Genocide", and "The Ripper".
After Les Binks quit, in part because of the band's direction, the band replaced him with Dave Holland, formerly from the band Trapeze. With this line-up, Judas Priest recorded six studio and one live album which garnered different degrees of critical and financial success. Overall, the band has sold in excess of 30 million albums globally.
In 1980, the band released British Steel. The songs were shorter and had more mainstream radio hooks, but retained the heavy metal feel. Tracks such as "United", "Breaking the Law", and "Living After Midnight" were frequently played on the radio. The next release, 1981's Point of Entry, followed the same formula, but critics generally panned it. However, the tour in support was successful, with new songs such as "Solar Angels" and "Heading Out to the Highway".
The 1982 album Screaming for Vengeance featured the song "You've Got Another Thing Comin'", which garnered strong US radio airplay. Songs such as "Electric Eye" and "Riding on the Wind" also appeared off this album, and proved to be popular live tracks. "(Take These) Chains" (by Bob Halligan, Jr.), an uncharacteristic ballad, was released as a single and received heavy airplay. This album went two times Platinum.
Defenders of the Faith was released in 1984. Even though it was more progressive than their earlier efforts, some critics dubbed it as "Screaming for Vengeance II", due to its musical likeness to the previous album.
On July 13th, 1985, Judas Priest was - apart from Black Sabbath - the only metal band to perform at the Live Aid event. The band played at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Their setlist was "Living After Midnight", "The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)" and "(You've Got) Another Thing Comin'".
Turbo was released in 1986, during the glam metal era. To keep up with the times, Priest adopted a more colourful look and gave their music a more poppy feel by adding synthesisers. The album also went Platinum and had a successful tour in support, but some critics argued the album was a sellout. A live album recorded on the tour, titled Priest... Live!, was released the next year, offering fans live tracks from the 1980s era. The video documentary Heavy Metal Parking Lot was created by Jeff Krulik and John Heyn in 1986. It documents the heavy metal fans waiting on May 31, 1986 for a Judas Priest concert (with special guests Dokken) at the Capital Centre (later renamed US Airways Arena) in Landover, Maryland.
In 1988, Ram it Down was released, featuring several reworked songs left over from Turbo, in addition to new songs. A reviewer has called Ram it Down a "stylistic confusion" of "cornball metal" that resulted from the band's "...attempt to rid themselves of the high tech synthesiser approach...and return to the traditional metal of their fading glory days." The reviewer argued the album showed "...how far behind they were lagging...the thrashers they helped influence" in earlier years. As well, in the late 1980s, longtime drummer Dave Holland left the band.
In 1990, the Painkiller album used a new drummer, Scott Travis (formerly from Racer X). This comeback album dropped the 1980s-style synthesisers for all of the songs except a ballad entitled "A Touch of Evil." The tour used bands such as Pantera, Megadeth and Sepultura as opening bands, and culminated in the Rock in Rio performance in Brazil in front of 100,000+ music fans.
Part of the Judas Priest stage show often featured Rob Halford riding onstage on a Harley-Davidson motorbike, dressed in motorcycle leathers and sunglasses. In a Toronto show in 1991, Halford was seriously injured as he rode on stage, when he collided with a drum riser that was hidden behind clouds of dry ice mist. Although the show was delayed, he performed the entire set before going to hospital. Hill later noted "he must have been in agony". He later claimed the accident helped to prompt his departure from the band. For nearly five years, Priest remained in the shadows, with no release to top Painkiller.
Ken McKenna in the trialIn summer 1990, the band was involved in a civil action that alleged they were responsible for the suicide attempts in 1985 of 20-year old James Vance and 19-year old Ray Belknap in Reno, Nevada, USA. On December 23, 1985 Vance and Belknap got intoxicated then went to a playground at a Lutheran church in Reno. Belknap shot a 12 gauge shotgun under his chin, dying instantly, and Vance followed, but survived with a severely disfigured face. He died three years later after a suicidal overdose of painkillers.
The mens' parents and their legal team, headed by Nevada attorney Ken McKenna, alleged that a subliminal message of "do it" had been included in the Judas Priest song "Better By You, Better Than Me" from the Stained Class album (actually a cover of a Spooky Tooth number). They alleged the command in the song triggered the suicide attempt. The suit was eventually dismissed. One of the defense witnesses, Dr Timothy E. Moore, wrote an article for Skeptical Inquirer chronicling the trial.
The trial was covered in the 1991 documentary Dream Deceivers: The Story Behind James Vance Vs. Judas Priest. In the documentary Halford commented that, if they wanted to insert subliminal commands in their music, killing their fans would be counterproductive and they would prefer to insert the command "Buy more of our records". Regarding the prosecution's assertions that the statement "do it" was a command to commit suicide, Halford pointed out "do it" had no direct message.
In popular culture, comedian Bill Hicks referred to the case in his stand-up routines, asking "What musician wants his audience dead?" He performed an apocryphal sketch in a British accent mimicking Judas Priest being sick of their immense wealth, power, and fame and coming up with the subliminal message as a solution to their problems. Comedian Denis Leary also commented on the trial on his album No Cure For Cancer, saying heavy metal bands should put more subliminal messages in their records: "Kill the band, kill your parents, then kill yourself". Jay Leno also made fun of the trial.
The trial is still referenced by people inside and outside of the music community. The Bloodhound Gang song "Lift Your Head Up High" includes an extended reference to the Subliminal Message trial, which parodies the concept of playing a song backwards to extract hidden messages. As well, the Mr. Show episode "The Return of the Curse of the Creature's Ghost" has a sketch in which a fictional band "Titannica" is sued by a fan who tries to commit suicide after listening to their hit song "Try Suicide".
After the end of the Painkiller tour in 1991, Halford left Judas Priest. In September 1991, there were indications of internal tensions within the band. Halford went on to form a street-style thrash metal group named Fight in the summer of 1993 with Scott Travis on drums for the recording sessions. He formed this band due to his desire to explore new musical territory, but due to contractual obligations, he left Judas Priest in 1993.
Halford collaborated with Judas Priest in the release of a compilation album entitled Metal Works '73-'93 to commemorate their 20th anniversary. He also appeared in a video by the same title, documenting their history, in which his departure from the band was officially announced later that year.
In a 1998 interview on MTV, Halford also revealed his homosexuality, but it came as little surprise to fans as rumours had been circulating for over five years. Halford's former bandmates in Priest stated they were previously aware of his sexual orientation.
Tim "Ripper" Owens, who had previously sung in a Judas Priest tribute band called British Steel, was hired in 1996 as Judas Priest's new singer. This line up released two albums, Jugulator and Demolition as well as two live double-albums - '98 Live Meltdown and Live in London, the latter of which had a live DVD counterpart. Jugulator sold relatively well but Demolition did not sit well with fans or mainstream alike; most believed Ripper could not be a true replacement for Halford's vocal abilities.
Owens' move from fan and weekend tribute band singer to frontman for the actual band was the inspiration for the film Rock Star. Because the film's content bore only a tangential resemblance to Owens's actual history with the band, Judas Priest later moved to disassociate themselves from the film. The film (starring Mark Wahlberg) was a critical and commercial flop, though the fictional band portrayed in the film -Steel Dragon - achieved a cult status among some heavy metal and Judas Priest fans.
On August 15, 2002 PETA, an animal rights group, sent the band's management a request to stop wearing leather onstage. It was even reported that they asked the band to change the name of their Hell Bent for Leather album to Hell Bent for Pleather. Judas Priest responded that they wear artificial leather, but PETA still protested that this could encourage listeners to wear real leather.
After almost twelve years apart, as well as an ever-growing demand for a reunion, Judas Priest and original lead vocalist Rob Halford announced they would reunite in July 2003, to coincide with the release of the Metalogy box set. They did a live concert tour in Europe in 2004, and co-headlined the 2004 Ozzfest, being named as the "premier act" by almost all U.S. media coverage of the event.
A new studio album, Angel of Retribution, was released on 1 March 2005 (U.S.) on Sony Music/Epic Records to critical and commercial success. A global tour in support of the album ensued, and was hugely successful. Judas Priest and "Ripper" Owens parted amicably, with Owens joining American heavy metal band Iced Earth as the lead singer to record the album The Glorious Burden, released in 2004 and its follow-up Framing Armageddon (Something Wicked Part 1) in 2007 by SPV Records. Ripper left Iced Earth in December 2007 to head his current band called Beyond Fear, whose self-titled debut was release in May 2006, also by SPV Records.
As for the band Halford, writing for the fourth release was cut off. However, after the Retribution tour in June 2006, Halford announced he would create his own record company, entitled Metal God Entertainment, where he would release all his solo material under his own control. In November 2006 he remastered his back catalog and released it exclusively through Apple's iTunes Store. Two new songs allegedly set for the fourth release, "Forgotten Generation" and "Drop Out", were released through iTunes as well.
Along with Kiss, Queen, and Def Leppard, Judas Priest were the inaugural inductees into the "VH1 Rock Honors." The ceremony took place May 25, 2006 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and first aired on May 31, 2006. Their presentation was preceded by the band Godsmack performing a medley of "Electric Eye"/"Victim of Changes"/"Hell Bent for Leather", and Priest themselves played "Breaking the Law", "The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)" and "You've Got Another Thing Comin'", before which Halford rode a Harley onstage. On April 6, 2006, the Associated Press announced the event by saying "the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame looks to be getting some competition."
Judas Priest headlined the Sweden Rock Festival in June 2008.In a June 2006 interview with MTV.com, frontman Rob Halford said in regards to the group's upcoming concept album about the legendary 16th century French prophet Nostradamus, "Nostradamus is all about metal, isn't he? He was an alchemist as well as a seer — a person of extraordinary talent. He had an amazing life that was full of trial and tribulation and joy and sorrow. He's a very human character and a world-famous individual. You can take his name and translate it into any language and everybody knows about him, and that's important because we're dealing with a worldwide audience."
In addition to digging new lyrical ground for the band, the album will contain musical elements which might surprise their fans. "It's going to have a lot of depth", Halford said. "There'll be a lot of symphonic elements. We might orchestrate it, without it being overblown. There may be a massive choir at parts and keyboards will be featured more prominently, whereas they've always been in the background before."
In addition to this, in a February 2007 interview with Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles, K.K. Downing revealed they have recorded a total of 18 tracks, with a length of over 90 minutes. He notes there is not much he would like to cut down, so it will likely be a double-CD release, their first full-length LP to do so. He adds that Rob Halford's vocal tracks are currently being laid down, and the rhythm will most likely follow suit. Downing also reveals the current orchestrations are MIDI converters, and he does not know if an outside orchestra will be used.
Judas Priest announced, via their website, on November 22, 2007 that they would go on tour promoting their Nostradamus-themed album. The tour opened in Helsinki, Finland on June 3, 2008 and is scheduled to go through Europe, North America and Australia, closing in South Korea on September 21.
On April 10, 2008, Blabbermouth.net reported that Nostradamus would be released in Germany on June 13, 2008, Europe on June 16th and a day later in the United States.
In the 2000s, Priest has become known to a new generation thanks to their music being included on the soundtracks of several popular video games. The 2006 PC and Xbox 360 video game, Prey and the PlayStation 2 2005 console games Guitar Hero and RoadKill include "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" on their soundtrack, as does 2002's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, which features the song on rock station V-Rock. In the prequel, 2006's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, V-Rock features the song "Electric Eye". RoadKill also includes "Heading Out to the Highway", back-to-back with the aforementioned song on its classic rock pseudo-radio station.
Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, also features "Electric Eye", including its intro, "The Hellion". The 2001 PlayStation 2 video game, Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec features "Turbo Lover" on the game's soundtrack. Its sequel Gran Turismo 4 features "Freewheel Burning". The song "Breaking the Law" is also featured on the soundtrack to the 2006 PC, PS2 and Xbox game Scarface: The World is Yours. Additionally, Harmonix announced on April 18, 2008 that the first full-album available for download for the very popular video game Rock Band would be Judas Priest's Screaming for Vengeance. The album became available on April 22 for Xbox 360and April 24 for Playstation 3.
Current members
Rob Halford - lead vocals (1973-1993, 2003-present)
K. K. Downing - guitar, backing vocals (1970-present)
Glenn Tipton - guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (1974-present)
Ian Hill - bass guitar (1970-present)
Scott Travis - drums, percussion (1989-present)
Former members
Al Atkins - vocals (1970-1973)
John Ellis - drums (1970)
Chris Campbell - drums (1971-1973)
Alan Moore - drums (1971, 1975-1976)
John Hinch - drums (1973-1975)
Les Binks - drums (1977-1979)
Dave Holland - drums (1979-1989)
Tim "Ripper" Owens - vocals (1996-2003)
Official Website: http://www.judaspriest.com/
Listen To Judas Priest Music!
Watch Judas Priest Video!
Breaking The Law
PainKiller
Metal Gods (Live)
Love Bites (Live)
Free Wheel Burning
Screaming For Vengeance (Live)
Electric Eye
Living After Midnight (Live)l
Revolution
The Ripper (Live)
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