Judas Priest: The originators of metal. The Metal Gods. The grandfathers of thrash. The... well, you get the idea.

In 1974, this heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, along with other greats such as Black Sabbath, gave birth to the hard and heavy music we know and love today. But one such as yourself may wonder: Where do I start? How do I just dive into a band with such a large catalogue and history? Wonder no longer, for I will show you the way.

Take the easy route.

Metalogy (2004)

Often times, with bands like Judas Priest, a retrospective box set is available. Metalogy, released in 2004, is an excellent buy, with tons of classics from their back catalogue - something from every album up to Demolition (2001).

Although this is a wonderful compilation, it could be a lot to take in for a new listener. I know I have a short attention span, and if I had never heard Priest before, I'd probably drift by CD 2. It's a great way for new fans to get started, so if box sets are your thing, then I highly recommend this. However, there is one box set that I encourage you to steer away from. See "What to avoid" at the bottom of the page.

[ Metalogy (2004) ]

Track List

CD 1
1. Never Satisfied
2. Deceiver
3. Tyrant
4. Victim Of Changes (Live)
5. Diamonds & Rust (Live)**
6. Starbreaker (Live)**
7. Sinner
8. Let Us Prey
9. Dissident Aggressor
10. Exciter
11. Beyond The Realms Of Death
12. Better By You, Better Than Me
13. Invader
14. Stained Class
15. The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown) (Live)*

CD 2
1. Killing Machine
2. Evening Star
3. Take On The World
4. Delivering The Goods
5. Evil Fantasies
6. Hell Bent For Leather
7. Breaking The Law (Live)**
8. Living After Midnight
9. Rapid Fire
10. Metal Gods
11. Grinder (Live)*
12. The Rage
13. Heading Out To The Highway
14. Hot Rockin' (Live)**
15. Trouble Shooter
16. Solar Angels
17. Desert Plains
18. Hellion (Live)** / Electric Eye (Live)**
19. Screaming For Vengeance

CD 3
1. Riding On The Wind
2. Bloodstone
3. You've Got Another Thing Comin'
4. Devil's Child
5. Freewheel Burning
6. Jawbreaker
7. The Sentinel
8. Love Bites (Live)*
9. Eat Me Alive
10. Some Heads Are Gonna Roll
11. Rock Hard Ride Free
12. Night Comes Down
13. Turbo Lover
14. Private Property
15. Parental Guidance
16. Out In The Cold
17. Heart Of A Lion (demo)*

CD 4
1. Ram It Down
2. Heavy Metal
3. Come And Get It
4. Blood Red Skies
5. Painkiller
6. Between The Hammer & The Anvil
7. A Touch Of Evil
8. Metal Meltdown
9. Night Crawler
10. All Guns Blazing
11. Jugulator
12. Bloodstained
13. Machine Man
14. Feed On Me

* Denotes Previously Unreleased
** Denotes First Time On CD

Bonus DVD (Memphis, 1982):
1. Hellion/Electric Eye
2. Riding On The Wind
3. Heading Out To The Highway
4. Metal Gods
5. Bloodstone
6. Breaking The Law
7. The Sinner
8. Desert Plains
9. The Ripper
10. Diamonds And Rust
11. Devil's Child
12. Screaming For Vengeance
13. You've Got Another Thing Comin'
14. Victim Of Changes
15. Living After Midnight
16. The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)
17. Hell Bent For Leather

search eBay for Metalogy!

There is also the Metal Works (2003) compilation, but this 2 CD set isn't very thorough, and doesn't take you through the years chronologically. If you're looking for a very watered down version of Metalogy, then go for it.

[ Metal Works (1993) ]

search eBay for Metal Works!

...OR, Take it slow, one album at a time.

This is my personally preferred method of getting to know any band, because if you've purchased a box set and decide you don't like the band so much, you have now wasted your money on 4,000 songs you don't like. I recommend taking it album-by-album if you're unsure about how to start getting into Priest.

I will put these in the order which I recommend purchasing. If you like #1, buy #2. Like #2? Buy #3. You get the idea.

1. British Steel (1980)

If you can't get into this album, then I'm afraid Judas Priest is just not the band for you. This is considered to be the definitive heavy metal album, and certainly the breakout record for Priest. The band is often lumped in with the "New Wave of British Heavy Metal" (NWOBHM) bands like Iron Maiden, Def Leppard or Motorhead (all excellent bands), when in fact they came long before them. But the album's timely 1980 release was synonymous with the sudden hype over heavy metal, and the debut albums of so many 80's rock greats.

This the perfect example of what Priest is, and the lyrical themes show everything they're about. Though song "Living After Midnight" strays from their usual song repetoire, it is nothing less than a classic, despite the sex drugs and rock'n'roll theme attatched to it. Classic track "Breaking The Law" is radio friendly, to be sure, proving to be one of the few Judas Priest songs without a guitar solo (although more recent live versions do include an improvised shred), but no metal edge is lost, and the roots of heavy metal are perfectly clear.

[ British Steel (1980) ]

Track List*

1. Breaking The Law
2. Rapid Fire
3. Metal Gods
4. Grinder
5. United
6. Living After Midnight
7. You Don't Have To Be Old To Be Wise
8. The Rage
9. Steeler

The Remasters Bonus Tracks:
11. Red, White & Blue
12. Grinder (Live)
* (The Remasters CD also includes a completely different song order)

search eBay for British Steel!

2. Killing Machine (1978)

Also known as Hell Bent For Leather in the US, Killing Machine was the first album Judas Priest took their newly created genre to the maximum. Their leather and studs outfits would later appear in bands like Iron Maiden, and started a heavy metal trend. The album preceeding this, Stained Class (1978) was a heavy metal rocker, no doubt, but it wasn't until Killing Machine that the Judas Priest formula would be perfectly molded. This album is terribly underrated in my opinion, and deserves more US credit than it gets. It was definitely more popular in the UK, charting #34, and also #128 on the Billboard 200 Pop Albums. It generated two hit singles, "Evening Star" and "Take On The World", but every song is a hit in my mind. Whiplashing, fast-paced, guitar-wailing "Delivering The Goods" opens the bone-crunching album, while the sweat-dripping "Evil Fantasies" boldly ends the record.

[ Killing Machine & Hell Bent For Leather (1979) ]

Track List

1. Delivering The Goods
2. Rock Forever
3. Evening Star
4. Hell Bent For Leather
5. Take On The World
6. Burnin' Up
7. The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)
8. Killing Machine
9. Running Wild
10. Before The Dawn
11. Evil Fantasies

The Remasters Bonus Tracks:
12. Fight For Your Life
13. Riding On the Wind (Live)

search eBay for Killing Machine!

3. Unleashed In The East (1979)

Recorded in Tokyo, Japan (hence the album title), it is referred to as one of the greatest live albums of all time; Unleashed was an instant classic. The album showed that Priest could rock audiences live as well as in the studio. Though argued that the album is not entirely live, the subtle changes admitted to have been made are most likely for the better.

Since most US and even many UK fans weren't familiar with songs from the early albums like Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976) or Sin After Sin (1977), Unleashed gave them the opportunity to hear powerful Priest tracks like "Diamonds And Rust" (a Joan Baez cover), "Victim Of Changes" and "Tyrant", among others, which are still being played live today.

[ Unleahsed In The East (1979) ]

1. Exciter
2. Running Wild
3. Sinner
4. The Ripper
5. The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)
6. Diamonds And Rust
7. Victim Of Changes
8. Genocide
9. Tyrant

The Remasters Bonus Tracks*:
10. Rock Forever
11. Delivering The Goods
12. Hell Bent For Leather
13. Starbreaker

B-side tracks not included*:
- Beyond The Realms Of Death
(Appeared on a limited three-track EP included with initial UK pressings)
- Evil Fantasies
(Appeared as a B-side to the Living After Midnight 12" single)

* Thanks to JUDAS PRIEST INFO PAGES for this information.

search eBay for Unleashed In The East!

4. Defenders Of The Faith (1984)

With a title like that, it's got to be metal, right? This album followed Screaming For Vengeance (1982), a masterful recording similar to British Steel (1980), and truly took the band to the next level. Defenders was a step up from British Steel and Screaming and a step forward to the sound they boast today. The guitar solos are incredible, and the vocals are more impressive than ever. Opening track "Freewheel Burning" is the perfect evidence for this. It's fast, heavy and a head-banger's dream. The album's ballad-like track, "Night Comes Down", is one of their best. The band is truly in their prime.

[ Defenders Of The Faith (1984) ]

1. Freewheel Burning
2. Jawbreaker
3. Rock Hard Ride Free
4. The Sentinel
5. Love Bites
6. Eat Me Alive
7. Some Heads Are Gonna Roll
8. Night Comes Down
9. Heavy Duty
10. Defenders Of The Faith

The Remasters Bonus Tracks:
11. Turn On Your Light
12. Heavy Duty/Defenders Of The Faith (Live)

search eBay for Defenders Of The Faith!

5. Painkiller (1990)

The last album before Judas Priest broke up, 1990's Painkiller proved to be the heaviest and most metal album the band had released to date. It fused everything from Rocka Rolla (1974) to Ram It Down (1988) into one, neat, 10-track package. This album is quite possibly the best Judas Priest album ever released, and also one of the most popular. The title track's opening drum solo is instantly recognizable, as are the guitar riffs and ear-piercing vocals.

I chose Painkiller as #5 because #1-4 built up to this album. The band's ever-changing yet consistent sound is absolutely apparent on the record. Lyrics about leather, fictional characters, the black country, war,  and even love are present - themes which have been around since the early days.

Painkiller is ultimate Priest.

[ Painkiller (1990) ]

1. Painkiller
2. Hell Patrol
3. All Guns Blazing
4. Leather Rebel
5. Metal Meltdown
6. Night Crawler
7. Between The Hammer & The Anvil
8. A Touch Of Evil
9. Battle Hymn
10. One Shot At Glory

The Remasters Bonus Tracks:
11. Living Bad Dreams
12. Leather Rebel (Live)

search eBay for Painkiller!

Everything Else!

You now have a guide to the five most definitive Judas Priest albums - the albums that will decide whether or not Judas Priest is the band for you.

While most people can probably take these five and be set for life, some of you may be yearning for more. Judas Priest has an amazing catalogue, and plenty more excellent albums not mentioned above. So, here is a list of the band's official discography from 1974 to the present day.

Each link will take you to the most relevant eBay searches.

Rocka Rolla (1974) --  Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976) -- Sin After Sin (1977) -- Stained Class (1978) -- Killing Machine / Hell Bent For Leather (1978) -- Unleashed In The East (1979) -- British Steel (1980) -- Point Of Entry (1981) -- Screaming For Vengeance (1982) -- Defenders Of The Faith (1984) -- Turbo (1986) -- Priest... Live! (1987) -- Ram It Down (1988) -- Painkiller (1990) -- Metal Works (1993) -- Jugulator (1997) -- Live Meltdown (1998) -- Demolition (2001) -- Live In London (2003) -- Metalogy (2004) -- Angel Of Retribution (2005) -- The Essential: Judas Priest (2006)

What to avoid!

Before I start, know this: I am in no way denouncing the quality of these albums. The following albums are good in their own respects, and some I don't dislike at all. I put them in the "What to avoid!" section because this guide is about getting started on Priest, and I don't feel that these records are good ways to jump on the Priest bandwagon. That's all.

Rocka Rolla (1974)

[ Rocka Rolla (1974) ]

I love this album. It's a great rock'n'roll album and nothing to scoff at. However, it lacks the edge Priest picks up in Sad Wings of Destiny (1976). After you listen to the 5 I recommended above, I would then steer you towards this one, but until then, I feel that Rocka Rolla might give you the wrong impression.

Turbo (1986)

[ Turbo (1986) ]

This album was released around a time when synthesizers, pop-metal and poofy perms were in-style, and Judas Priest were always about going a step forward and keeping up with the times, so naturally they sufficed to the trend. It's not a bad album, in fact it's a very good album, but it's sound isn't the same as the other Priest albums, so it's not something I would recommend until you've listened to the 5 I discussed above.

The Ripper Years (1997-2003)

[ Jugulator (1997), Live Meltdown (1998), Demolition (2001), Live In London (2003) ]

Tim "Ripper" Owens was Rob Halford's replacement after he left the band in '92, so for obvious reasons, these albums are not a very good display of classic Priest. Jugulator (1997) was the first album with Owens, and it is quite a stray from Painkiller. In fact, it sounds nothing like anything you'd expect from Judas Priest. The next studio album with Owens, Demolition (2001) suffers from a similar problem, I'm afraid. It's even more unlike Judas Priest - lyrically, musically and even visually. It's not the same without Halford, and Owens seems to have influenced an overall heavier and different sound. Some diehard Priest fans like it, some don't. I for one, don't, but you can be the judge of whether or not you like it. But please, listen to the other stuff first, because you will be completely thrown by these albums - they are very different.

The Remasters (2001)

The concept is awesome and in theory, this is a wonderful idea. Unfortunately, it was executed very, very poorly. The Remasters is a box set of re-released Judas Priest albums from Sin After Sin (1977) to Painkiller (1990). Although many tracks do sound a hundred times better, there are several errors and odd mixing choices. The only benefit, really, are the never-before released tracks appearing one each on almost every album. I recommend this only to the most diehard of Priest fans, because anyone else will be wasting their money. The US version of this box set even came with box defects and incorrect liner notes! Go with Metalogy (2004) instead.

Well, there you have it.

You are now set in the right direction... and then some.

Now all you need to do is buy Angel Of Retribution (2005) and Keep the Faith!!