Great Metal Albums of 1978: Judas Priest- Stained Glass

People are probably now getting fed up with me going on about how the Gods of Rock were hard at work at their anvils to forge heavy metal back in 1978. However, when I think back and listen to the album "Stained Glass" by Judas Priest, I remain convinced that those gods listened to this album and said, "It is good." This raw, gutsy album from Judas Priest typifies everything that is good with heavy metal. Great guitars with some cool solos, a strong rhythm section and all held together by the unmistakeable voice of Rob Halford. As I listen to each track now and in the past, I think it doesn't get much better than this.
Unfortunately, this album will forever be remembered for the law suit brought against the band because it was claimed that there were subliminal messages in the track "Better By You, Better Than Me," which drove two teenage boys to shoot themselves. Now, I have listened to that particular track many times and I never picked up the words "Do it" consciously or subconsciously. I believe Glen Tipton when he said in an interview that "Back in 1978, we couldn't even afford our lunch, let alone the expense it would take to put hidden messages on an album." KK Downing stated that "If we had wanted to put a subliminal message on the album, it would be "Buy more records."" My conclusion is that if the album had any hidden messages, it wouldn't have taken 12 years for anything like this to happen.

Track Listing:

1. Exciter

2. White Heat, Red Hot

3. Better By You, Better Than Me

4. Stained Glass

5. Invader

6. Saints in Hell

7. Savage

8. Beyond the Realms of Death

9. Heroes End

Judas Priest

Rob Halford- vocals

Glen Tipton- guitar

KK Downing- guitar

Ian Hill- bass

Les Binks- drums

"Stained Glass" would prove to be a great sign of things to come in heavy metal. Every track on this album radiated metal in its pure form. Go nostalgic and have a listen and you will see what I mean.

Next post: Judas Priest: Killing Machine

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