When we were rather fab.....
It wasn't until high school that I discovered rock radio. The local station was pathetic, or at least little more than a primer with light pop and rock like ELO, Donna Summer and Billy Joel. I was leaning toward something heavier by then. Through one friend, I latched onto Rush and Supertramp; another guy got me listening to Pink Floyd and The Eagles; and yet another prompted me to try out Led Zeppelin. So I was on my way.
But tuning in to major rock music stations from Toronto (the nearest big centre to me) was the next logical step. Here, a whole new world opened up to me. And it was where I first heard artists like Thin Lizzy, Iron Maiden, Motorhead, Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult, Def Leppard, Ted Nugent, Van Halen and Aerosmith.
And one band I particularly liked at the time was Birmingham, England's pioneers of heavy metal, Judas Priest. Priest early on borrowed some of the sound and style of Black Sabbath (also from Birmingham, an iron and steel town - funny how many metal bands hail from there) and added a twist.... something bleaker and even more despairing. I won't say it was heavier than Sabbath, but there was an ingredient that set Priest apart. Perhaps in part it was the recording methods and the end result on their records. Something more steeped in doom and gloom, if that makes sense. More grim and disturbing, and definitely freakier with singer Rob Halford's frightening command of his vocal cords. Halford delivered piercing high notes (listen to The Ripper) that sent shivers up my spine.
Certainly, Priest's double whammy of impressive guitarists (Glen Tipton and K.K. Downing both stuck around for all or nearly all of the band's lengthy career) gave them a melodic edge over rivals. Those two traded searing solos seamlessly, each more than capable of blistering leads as well as locking into solid rhythms to complement his counterpart.
Cheater and Rocka Rolla were early tracks that stunned me with a lean and mean approach. With slightly later songs Victim of Changes and Tyrant, the sound was more expansive, and dripping with gothic overtones. Real horrorshow. Those two tracks plus the rest of the Sad Wings of Destiny album pushed the band into their very own genre. What Sabbath invented, Priest re-worked into their distinctive style - twin guitar attack plus Halford's superior vocal abilities. Old Rob's singing was often like a heavy metal version of Freddie Mercury, if you will. His wide vocal range allowed him to reach high-pitched, operatic notes, and he could just as easily drop down to the lower registers. All to chilling effect... kind of psychotic at times, just perfect for Priest's brand of music.
My ancient Hero Hero cassette tape, probably
now unplayable but still cool to look at
Breaking the Law and Living After Midnight were big hits off 1980's British Steel album, and that pretty much launched them into super-stardom. The albums Point of Entry, Screaming for Vengeance, and Defenders of the Faith took Priest to the next level, if they weren't already there. These discs of more sophisticated modern metal cemented Priest's place not only on 80's album charts but also in the entire realm of metal music. Their importance to the genre cannot be overemphasized.
For a period of time during the 80's I lived and breathed the Screaming for Vengeance album... The Hellion, Electric Eye, the title track, and You've Got Another Thing Comin' were all aggressive and progressive in their scope, far beyond their relatively primitive early efforts. Though I was impressed with that stuff at the time, I now look back, acknowledge its merits, but pay more attention to the band's formative years. Oldies like Rocka Rolla, Sin After Sin, and Sad Wings are the albums that display more staying power for me.
Priest was important to the genre in more ways than one. First, they did borrow a little from Sabbath initially, but with the Priest treatment, a more refined definition of heavy metal emerged. Sabbath created metal but they were never just a metal band; they were also interested in lighter, more melodic pieces that ranged from folky-classical to jazz-swing. More well-rounded perhaps. But Priest had their own vision: build a metal music machine like no other and thereby dominate and influence the entire genre... over and over again. The distinct phases of Priest's career signalled growth in the band's songwriting and technical proficiency. They truly embraced what was metal and sought to redefine it in every way possible. Not just musically, but also visually... the band took the leather and studs look to the extreme, and that became their trademark, plus it influenced every metal band that came after. Without the leather, you were light as a feather! That's my line, by the way...
Priest, through their live shows, showed the world a thing or two about spectacle and showmanship. From Halford's famous stage entrance on a motorcycle to the pyrotechnics and light-show to the choreographed moves... like that famous swinging the guitars in unison on chugging anthems like Breaking the Law. The over-the-top presentation was part of the job... these guys took their work seriously and gave the fans what they wanted, and then some.
Now gimme one for the road....
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