1. Stained Class 2. Screaming For Vengeance 3. Hell Bent for Leather 4. Painkiller 5. Defenders of the Faith 6. Point of Entry 7. British Steel 8. Firepower 9. Sad Wings of Destiny 10. Turbo 11. Angels of Retribution 12. Sin After Sin 13. Redeemer of Souls 14. Jugulator 15. Rocka Rolla 16. Ram It Down 17. Nostradamus 18. Demolition
Judas Priest is one of the bands that got me into music, easily in my top 10 bands ever. Here's my rankings : 1 - Painkiller 2 - Stained Class 3 - Defenders Of The Faith 4 - Sad Wings Of Destiny 5 - Screaming For Vengeance 6 - Hellbent For Leather 7 - Sin After Sin 8 - Firepower 9 - British Steel 10 - Point Of Entry 11 - Angel Of Retribution 12 - Redeemer Of Souls 13 - Rocka Rolla 14 - Turbo 15 - Ram It Down 16 - Nostradamus 17 - Jugulator 18 - Demolition
Glad to see you guys to some metal. Also glad you’re doing different videos, since if I didnt like the band of the week I only had side three to look forward to. Now I’m always looking forward to to your new videos 18. Nostradamus (haven’t bought it yet) 17. Demolition (3.5/10) 16. Ram it Down (5/10) 15. Redeemer of Souls (6.5/10) 14. Turbo (7.5/10) 13. Point of Entry (7.5/10) 12. Rocka Rolla (7.5/10) 11. British Steel (7.5/10) 10. Killing Machine (8/10) 09. Jugulator (8/10) 08. Angel of Retribution (8/10) 07. Defenders of the Faith (8/10) 06. Sad Wings of Destiny (8.5/10) 05. Sin After Sin (9.5/10) 04. Screaming for Vengeance (10/10) 03. Firepower (10/10) 02. Stained Class (10/10) 01. Painkiller (10/10)
I was really eager to see this, as Priest are one of my favourite bands and I was not disappointed. You all had picks I disagreed with, but that's what's so entertaining about this channel. I agree with Joe 100% about British Steel. It is an album I love, it would be in my top 10 Priest albums, but United and Living After Midnight always bring it down for me a bit. It's an unusual situation where I always favour the 30th anniversary live version of British Steel to the studio version. Glad to see Turbo so high on all of your lists. One of the most over-hated albums of all time. My ranking and #1 placement always change depending on my mood. Fantastic video!!!
Great vid as always, gentlemen! I haven’t really gotten into Priest before, so it was nice to hear some takes and dip my toes. Early impressions of their tentpole releases… I think I prefer the sound of Stained Class over Vengeance, Painkiller, or British Steel. Cool band. Looking forward to checking out more.
Excellent job gentlemen! Loved your commentary. And the averaged list is pretty wild this time. Never would have guessed Sin After Sin would be on top.
My JP top 10: 1) Sad Wings of Destiny 2) Screaming for Vengeance 3) Stained Class 4) Defenders of the Faith 5) Sin after Sin 6) Killing Machine 7) British Steel 8) Painkiller 9) Point of Entry 10) Rocka Rolla
Love me some Priest, they’re easily in my top 20 bands love their discography! I really don’t dislike any of their albums and love over half of their records. Album ranking below: ALBUM RANKING: 1. Painkiller (1990) - 5/5 2. Stained Class (1978) - 5/5 3. Defenders of the Faith (1984) - 5/5 4. Screaming for Vengeance (1982) - 5/5 5. Sad Wings of Destiny (1976) - 5/5 6. Sin After Sin (1977) - 5/5 7. Firepower (2018) - 5/5 8. Killing Machine (1978) - 5/5 9. British Steel (1980) - 4.5/5 10. Angel of Retribution (2005) - 4.5/5 11. Redeemer of Souls (2014) - 4.5/5 12. Ram It Down (1988) - 4.5/5 13. Point of Entry (1981) - 4/5 14. Turbo (1986) - 4/5 15. Rocka Rolla (1974) - 4/5 16. Jugulator (1997) - 3.5/5 17. Nostradamus (2008) - 3.5/5 18. Demolition (2001) - 3/5 RATING SCALE: 5.0: Excellent (Really Love It) 4.5: Great (Love It) 4.0: Very Good (Really Like It) 3.5: Good (Like It) 3.0: Decent (Slightly Like It) 2.5: Mediocre (Indifferent) 2.0: Subpar (Slightly Dislike It) 1.5: Bad (Dislike It) 1.0: Very Bad (Really Dislike It) 0.5: Awful (Hate It) Note that my 5 star albums range from excellent albums with only a few minor problems to near perfect masterpieces. Lower 5 star albums are likely a 4.5 star album on Joe and Jason’s scale and a 4.0 star on Kram’s. They are certainly less generous than me.
Oh, here’s my list of anything I’m familiar with. And it’s all 3,5 and up! 13. Angel Of Retribution 12. Turbo 11. Rocka Rolla 10. Defenders Of The Faith 9. Point Of Entry 8. Screaming For Vengeance 7. Painkiller 6. Ram It Down 5. Hell Bent For Leather/Killing Machine 4. British Steel 3. Sin After Sin 2. Sad Wings Of Destiny 1. Stained Class
1. Stained Class (1978) 5/5 2. Sad Wings of Destiny (1976) 4.5/5 3. Screaming for Vengeance (1982) 4.5/5 4. British Steel (1980) 4.5/5 5. Sin After Sin (1977) 4/5 6. Defenders of the Faith (1984) 4/5 7. Firepower (2018) 4/5 8. Rocka Rolla (1974) 3.5/5 9. Killing Machine (1978) 3.5/5 10. Painkiller (1990) 3.5/5 11. Point of Entry (1981) 3/5 12. Angel of Retribution (2005) 3/5 13. Redeemer of Souls (2014) 3/5 14. Turbo (1986) 2.5/5 15. Ram It Down (1988) 2/5 16. Jugulator (1997) 2/5 17. Nostradamus (2008) 1.5/5 18. Demolition (2001) 1.5/5 CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER: 3.5 Rocka Rolla (1974) 4.5 Sad Wings of Destiny (1976) 4.0 Sin After Sin (1977) 5.0 Stained Class (1978) 3.5 Killing Machine (1978) 4.5 British Steel (1980) 3.0 Point of Entry (1981) 4.5 Screaming for Vengeance (1982) 4.0 Defenders of the Faith (1984) 2.5 Turbo (1986) 2.0 Ram It Down (1988) 3.5 Painkiller (1990) 2.0 Jugulator (1997) 1.5 Demolition (2001) 3.0 Angel of Retribution (2005) 1.5 Nostradamus (2008) 3.0 Redeemer of Souls (2014) 4.0 Firepower (2018) They didn't invent metal, but Judas Priest captured its core aesthetic better than anyone. 1974's Rocka Rolla draws heavily upon Black Sabbath and Jethro Tull, but songs like "Run of the Mill " and "Cheater" are good enough to make you forget it. For their sophomore effort, Sad Wings of Destiny, Rob Halford puts on a singing clinic. A vocal chameleon, Halford morphs his voice to fit anything the band comes up with, be it moody ("Epitaph") or maniacal ("The Ripper.") "Dreamer Deceiver" (also from Sad Wings) shows they had a knack for the power ballad from early on. 1977's Sin After Sin further sharpens their sound- "Dissident Aggressor" leads a faster, more aggressive attack that portended thrash metal. "Beyond the Realms of Death" is the main attraction on 1978's Stained Class, but that whole LP stands up so well to repeated listens I'm tempted to call it perfect. It's where Judas Priest truly come into their own and stop sounding like their influences. Also from 1978, Killing Machine (known in America as Hell Bent For Leather) cemented their leather-and-chains image and saw their music become less cryptic/more accessible. Released in April 1980 (and spearheaded by the hits "Breaking the Law" and "Living After Midnight") British Steel was the commercial breakthrough Judas Priest had been working towards for the better part of a decade. Its follow-up, 1981's Point of Entry, tries to be an even more populist version of British Steel but, apart from a couple-three tracks, falls short. 1982's Screaming for Vengeance revives their hard-driving approach, aided by appropriately over-the-top production. That album (along with its successor, 1984's Defenders of the Faith) pushed Priest to the peak of their popularity in North America. On 1986's Turbo they take a stab at being campy, without much success. Ram It Down (1988) feels like a lost Def Leppard album (emphasis on "lost.") Things pick back up again with 1990's Painkiller, an album influenced by speed metal. Instrumentally, it's a fun LP, but the songs themselves aren't as memorable as some of Priest's previous releases. The two albums they made after Rob Halford's departure (1997's Jugulator, 2001's Demolition) are forgettable affairs. They sound more like Slayer and Pantera than they sound like Judas Priest. When Halford finally returned to the band (starting with 2005's Angel of Retribution) so did some semblance of consistency (with the exception of 2008's Nostradamus, an overlong and ponderous album.) 2018's Firepower contains some of their tightest and catchiest music in 3 decades. While I only gave Judas Priest one 5-star studio album, they'll probably slip into my "top 100 artists" list anyway based on lifetime achievement, and their reputation as a great live act. They're one of those bands whose live stuff is even better than the studio stuff. MY RATING SYSTEM: 5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs) 4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both) 4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's an essential record for this artist/style) 3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting) 3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting) 2.5 = decent (competent but uninspired - not worth revisiting) 2.0 = poor (difficult listen) 1.5 = awful (can't finish it) 1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse) ▪︎"Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that either feature iconic songs or have a highly influential sound. (Albums I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing iconic songs or being highly influential.) ▪︎I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible I don't care to differentiate anymore. ▪︎Anything I rate 3.5 stars or higher is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.
@@RostyslavLogachov I just think the best songs on Rocka Rolla are slightly better than the best ones on Painkiller. I didn't mention "One For the Road" in my comment but I love that one, too.
@@179rich My take on them is that they're a bit overrated by metalheads, but also a bit underrated by non-metalheads. (I'd consider myself a non-metalhead who dabbles in metal.)
This was a great video and a great week to prepare for. I really enjoyed listening along even to the albums I didn't enjoy. It didn't seem like 18 albums. I did know a few ahead of this but a lot were new to me too. Lots of variety in your lists and a few wild takes but it all made sense with your tastes and was a great discussion even if I didn't always agree. 18. Demolition - 1 (1.8) 17. Jugulator - 2.5 (4.8) 16. Ram It Down - 2.5 (5.3) 15. Nostradamus - 3 (5.7) 14. Rock A Rolla - 3 (6.2) 13. Point of Entry - 3.5 (7.0) 12. Angel of Retribution - 3.5 (7.1) 11. Firepower - 3.5 (7.1) 10. Redeemer of Souls - 3.5 (7.2) 9. Turbo - 3.5 (7.3) 8. Sad Wings of Destiny - 4 (7.8) 7. Stained Class - 4 (8.0) 6. Sin After Sin - 4 (8.3) 5. Killing Machine - 4.5 (8.7) 4. Screaming For Vengeance - 4.5 (9.3) 3. Defenders of the Faith - 4.5 (9.4) 2. British Steel - 5 (9.5) 1. Painkiller - 5 (9.7)
I really enjoyed this episode.It has been a long time since I have listened to Judas Priest but when they first came out I was a full blown Metal head at 18.I was first turned on to Priest with the release of Stained Class. This hit me between the eyes.I loved it.The next year in 1979 I went to a little place in Los Angles called the Santa Monica civic and saw them live.Never in my life have I ever heard a band that was that loud yet so fantastic.I know you guys didn`t review this album because it was live but my favorite Priest will always be Unleashed in the East.This is all the early great songs they put out turned up to 10.Hope you guys get a chance to listen to it.With that being said my top 5 studio are,1.Stained class,2.British Steel,3.Sin After Sin.4Sreaming for Vengeance,5.Point of Entry.I have seen Judas Priest twice in concert,both great shows.Thank you for this fine review.
I hear ya! I was late into the Judas Priest game. I first got into them while listening to the album and watching the live concert video of their 1987 Judas Priest… LIVE! That got me into their 80s songs. Listening to Judas Priest’s Unleashed in the East (Live in Budokan) got me into their 70’s songs. I have since seen Judas Priest three times (once with Ripper Owens. LOL).
Seen Priest live over 50 times since 1986. "Unleashed in the East" is my favourite album, sums up 70`s Priest and sees, peers the future of metal to come. Relevant album by any means.
@@67heavyduty I personally believe that not including Judas Priest’s live albums in this review is sacrilege. They should include them or change the title to “Judas Priest’s STUDIO Albums Ranked Worst to Best”.
My favorite band ever!! My top 13 alone is essential stuff for me, so hard to rank for sure. 1. Stained Class 5/5 2. Screaming For Vengeance 5/5 3. Sin After Sin 5/5 4. Turbo 4.5/5 5. Defenders Of The Faith 4.5/5 6. Point Of Entry 4.5/5 7. Sad Wings Of Destiny 4.5/5 8. British Steel 4.5/5 9. Painkiller 4.5/5 10. Ram It Down 4/5 11. Killing Machine 4/5 12. Rocka Rolla 3.5/5 13. Firepower 3.5/5 14. Angel Of Retribution 3.5/5 15. Jugulator 3/5 16. Redeemer Of Souls 3/5 17. Nostradamus 2/5 18. Demolition 2/5
Happy to see this episode! Love Priest, and they have a great variety of albums that are perfect for what you do. My top 5: 1. Stained Class 2. Sin After Sin 3. British Steel 4. Painkiller 5. Defenders of the Faith I think my top 4 are basically perfect albums in distinct styles that still all manage to be distinctly Judas Priest. Defenders falls off a little bit in the second half for me but the first half is incredible.
A top 10 list by 3 gentlemen that haven't listened to a Judas Priest album all the way through. The perfect choice for a show like this. This is how real opinions come about, and how ordinary people actually hear the music
Great to see more Metal on this channel! And it's actually really cool to hear opinions from people who are not pure 'Metalheads' but are instead broader fans of music generally who enjoy some Metal. That's actually pretty rare, and refreshing. I think an Opeth ranking would be a cool journey for you guys!
@@DamnableReverend Opeth would be one of my favourite bands and once you 'embrace' it, it's part of the sound and fits in perfectly with the music (and Opeth can be a gateway for extreme metal). Many people won't embrace it though or even try to, and as much as I like Tastes Like Music I doubt they're going to go in that direction. They'd struggle with the first 9 albums and the last 4 may go as well as Porcupine Tree.
@@jasonjames6383 Oh, I hear that -- to me Opeth are not that close to Porupine Tree in sound, but it's undeniable that the colaborations with Wilson had an influence on both parties for a time. I actually interviewed Mikael back int he Blackwater park days and we spent most of the time talkinga bout prog rocka nd cracking jokes. I was already pretty inured to extreme metal when I first heard Opeth after their second album came out, but can totally see how they'd be perceiveda s a "gateway band" of sorts. A comment Kram made during this video made me think about what metal bands with large discographies would be interesting to do for a channel like Tastes like Music, where there's enough variance in the discography to keep it pretty compelling and you don't get stuck in a rut with the later albums like you do with maiden or Priest, the former being too slow and ploddinga nd long-winded and the latter just desperately trying to recapture Painkiller's glory after floundering around in late 90s/early 2000s metalland. Opeth would be one; Voivod another. The latter is a discography I'd definitely be curious to hear their takes on.
Nice rundown - enjoyed that one a lot. Point of Entry is the one Priest album that I always rate much higher than most - it's a lot of fun and sounds great.
I agree and as for sound, I think it's their best '80s studio recording and that goes for each band member's performance too. I sometimes wonder about the musical understanding of people that say it's a bad album, these are all quality songs granted some better than others, but it's certainly not bad or bland when it features amazing songs like HOttH, "Solar Angels", "Turning Circles" or "Desert Plains" then it is not a poor album with songs like that alone. I've loved it since day 1, maybe it's just one of those albums where you had to be there at the time to really get (into) it. Quite honestly, it's not that much softer than British Steel or Screaming for Vengeance several songs on all three albums easily could've been on each other, the main difference is the production making the other two sound heavier where this is smoother and less 'intrusive' sounding fitting the straightforwardness of the songs. For instance, there's actually nothing on PoE quite as 'poppy' as "Living After Midnight", "Breaking the Law" and "United". Also, SfV has its own fair share of super melodic stuff like "Take These Chains" or "Fever" yet most people will still call it a heavier album but it's really all down to the production. No two Judas Priest albums sound the same, that's part of the band's charm and interesting too considering they used the same producer on all '80s albums.
@@LarryFleetwood8675 Yeah the production is smooth yet punchy - just great sounding. Heading out to the Highway is one of their best ever openers and Solar Angels is almost proggy.
Great all hail the Priest !!!! I'll give it a go. 1. Stained Class 5/5 top 10 of my all time for me, very important album in the progression of heavy metal. 2. Painkiller 5/5 3. Defenders Of The Faith 4.5/5 4. Sad Wings Of Destiny 4.5/5 5. Screaming For Vengeance 4.5/5 6. Firepower 4.5/5 7. Hell Bent For Leather 4/5 8. Sin After Sin 3.5/5 9. British Steel 3.5/5 10. Angel Of Retribution 3/5 11. Redeemer of Souls 3/5 12. Turbo 3/5 13. Ram It Down 3/5 14. Jugulator 3/5 15. Point Of Entry 3/5 16. Rock O Rolla 3/5 17. Nostradamus 2.5/5 18. Demolition 2/5
November 24th, 1982. My first concert. Judas Priest, Screaming for Vengeance One of my all-time favorite bands. I definitely don't agree with all the picks, but as a whole, you guys really did them justice. 3. Painkiller 2. Screaming for Vengeance 1. British Steel Thank you gentlemen!
So glad you guys finally got around to ranking the mighty Judas Priest, I've been waiting for this one for a LONG time! Great point about how Glen and KK adopted their guitar playing style to the times and never stopped learning new techniques, that's one of the things that made them such amazing guitarists!
Seen Priest live over 50 times since 1986. "Unleashed in the East" is my favourite album, sums up 70`s Priest and sees, peers the future of metal to come. Relevant album by any means
@@McShaganpronouncedShaegen What is their best studio album though? Since that is a live album I wouldn’t count it even if it may be the most enjoyable or a fan favorite.
@@AndI0td763 Title of post "Judas Priest Albums Ranked From Worst to Best" is it not? I made that claim because most of the songs produced on the live album were better than the original studio versions. Plus that album is not as live as you would be led to believe. I owned Stained Class, Sad Wings and Hell Bent for Leather named so because I was living in the states, before Unleashed in the East was released. and I loved them but if it was a list of best J P songs. Every song from Unleashed in the East would outrank the original. Except for VOC and even then I'm not sure. This is not a best of album it was something original and so much more metal than the originals. Compare both versions of Diamonds and Rust. You can't! The difference is night and day. There are so few live albums that have achieved the right stand on their own merit. The only others I can think of is Frampton Comes Alive and Queen Live Killers. Now if you want my top 5 I would include Sad Wings of Destiny because I wore my 8 track and LP out. Killing Machine, Screaming for Vengeance and Pain Killer a close 2nd. Look I don't want to tell anyone that what I like is better than what they like, but to discount all the work that went into creating this piece of art that many fans love because it some how falls outside of the parameters of what you consider an album is astonishing.
My Ranking 1. Turbo (10/10) 2. Screaming for Vengance (10/10) 3. Painkiller (10/10) 4. Defenders of The Faith (10/10) 5. Sad Wings of Destiny (9'5/10) 6. Stained Class (9'5/10) 7. British Steel (9'5/10) 8. Sin After Sin (9/10) 9. Ram It Dawn (8'5/10) 10. Killing Machine (8/10) 11. Firepower (8/10) 12. Point of Entry (7'5/10) 13. Angel of Retribution (7/10) 14. Rocka Rolla (6'5/10) 15. Nostradamus (6/10) 16. Redeemer of Souls (6/10) 17. Jugulator (4/10) 18. Demolition (0'5/10) Greetings from Canary Islands (From a Big Judas Priest fan)
Perhaps my favorite artist ever with no albums that are 5 stars (best 225 albums or so of all time) for me. They sit in the lower reaches of my top 25 artists. 18. Demolition - Embarrassing coming from these guys. 2.5 stars 17. Jugulator - On one hand, if I want to hear this kind of groove metal, I’ll listen to Pantera, or, better yet, the last two Sepultura albums with max. On the other, I have to give Tipton and Downing kudos for being willing to get this heavy. 3 stars 16. Rocka Rolla - I respect the diversity in their sound, but they hadn’t achieved metal liftoff yet. 3 stars 15. Nostradamus- I rather like metal with symphonic elements, but they just drag this out a lot longer than they have to. 3.5 stars 14. Turbo - I hear the glam, and I don’t much like the glam coming from these guys. 3.5 stars 13. Ram It Down - Better than its reputation. Still needs an analgesic. 12. Redeemer of Souls - Reasonably heavy, some good material, but they definitely have albums that are in this wheelhouse but better. 4 stars 11. Ángel of Retribution- Like this one, if on the strength of “Judas Rising” if nothing else. 4 stars 10. Point of Entry - I would say I like this one quite a bit better than most do. I think it’s one of their few albums with no weak tracks, but “Desert Plains” is the only gem, which puts it below the other nine for me. 4 stars 9. Killing Machine - I think this is the most overrated of their albums among their fans, with a handful of tracks I don’t care for - cheesy - but “Delivering the Goods” and “Hell Bent for Leather” do a great job of paving the way for their next phase, and there’s enough quality here to bring it up to 4.5 stars. 8. Defenders of the Faith - I find this to be their hardest album to rank. Side one is, to me, their best side, hands down, through the entirety of their commercial phase (Killing Machine through Ram It Down), but side two is a slab of depressingly enervating cheese that I would pay good money never to hear again - embarrassment after embarrassment. But all four of the songs on side one have a shot at my songs list tomorrow. 4.5 stars 7. Firepower. All three of you underrate this one. It’s as heavy as Painkiller at times, with their best songwriting by a pretty huge margin since that album, and good variety among the tracks. 4.5 stars. 6. British Steel - This was my biggest grower in the preparations for this week. A substantial step up from Killing Machine, with “United” being the only major dud. 5. Screaming for Vengeance - Joe details how they stepped up their metal game on this one quite well. Its highs aren’t as great as side one of DOTF for me, but the only songs I don’t much care for are “Pain and Pleasure” and “Fever.” The other tracks are rock solid. 4.5 stars 4. Sad Wings of Destiny - Very hard to overstate how important this album is, and that probably bumps it up a couple of slots here. But while “Victim of Changes” is a masterpiece, I don’t think they had found their full-fledged groove yet. 4.5 stars 3. Painkiller - The most amazing reinvigoration of a band perhaps in rock history. The comments about Tipton and Downing’s improvement are spot on. However, great as it is, I find the final three tracks weaker than what came before. 4.5 stars 2. Sin After Sin - The combination of consistent quality, variety, and ground-breaking heaviness put this very close to the top of the pile. Certainly their best opener/closer combo. 4.5 stars 1. Stained Class - Even more consistently great, and rocks throughout. The blueprint for NWOBHM. 4.5 stars I take it back - Judas Priest does have a five star album for me - Unleashed in the East. Fantastic track selection, and the older the song, the more they improve it here. 2.
Where does it land 18. Demolition 2 stars 17. Jugulator 2 stars 16. Nostradamus 2.5 stars 15. Ram It Down 2.5 stars 14. Rocka Rolla 3 stars 13. Reedemer of Souls 3 stars 12. Killing Machine 3.5 stars 11. Point of Entry 3.5 stars 10. Turbo 3.5 stars 9. Angel of Retribution 3.5 stars 8. British Steel 4 stars 7. Firepower 4 stars 6. Sin After Sin 4 stars 5. Stained Class 4.5 stars 4. Screaming for Vengance 4.5 stars 3. Defenders of the Faith 4.5 stars 2. Sad Wings of Destiny 5 stars 1. Painkiller 5 stars Great video
Pretty sure Glenn wrote the vast majority of both albums, which is why it angers me when people blame Ripper for their shift in sound when he had little influence on it
Great episode - and with such a large discography, there is bound to be some differences in the rankings but I think that over all, the lists were pretty much on point. "Sin After Sin" is not my number one but in fairness it's been a long while since I listened to it, so will have to give it a listen again. I think that Joe's ranking of British Steel is too low, as I really like that album, but I do get his reasoning behind it, so can't argue too much against it even if I don't quite agree.
Judas Priest is probably the only band I strictly only listen to their live albums. That mostly being “Unleashed in the East” (1979)and “Priest…Live” (1987). I just think there’s something great about them that they don’t really capture in the studio. Obviously there are exceptions in their discography, but for me it’s mostly the live stuff.
I think a huge bit of it is that for whatever reason on their 70s and early 80s albums they never had enough gain on the studio recordings. Live they added gain and speed.
Thanks much guys! Haven't heard all albums. Wouldn't have guessed Human League covered JP. 13 Turbo 2.5 (it IS close to a Gary Numan album!) 12. Rocka Rolla 3 11. Ram it Down 3 10. Firepower 3.5 9. Painkiller 3.5 8. Point of Entry 3.5 7. Defenders of the Faith 4 6. Sin After Sin 4 5. Stained Class 4.5 4. Killing Machine (Hell Bent for Leather) 4.5 3. Sad Wings of Destiny 4.5 2. Screaming for Vengeance 4.5 1. British Steel 4.5
Glad they're doing this too. Haven't been familiar with the last few. 70's and early 80's Priest is really solid, along with Painkiller and some of the later ones.
@@mck7646 Agreed, Priest has so many really great albums from Sad Wings to Defenders. Painkiller is my favorite though definitely in my top 5 metal albums of all time. Their post Ripper albums are great aside from Nostradamus, but even it has its great moments.
@@mck7646 Not at all, Turbo is really good and I actually love Ram It Down. Only one weak song and some of their best like the title track and Hard as Iron
I’ve enjoyed listening to this and thinking about which albums I like more than others. Here’s my ranking: 1 Painkiller 2 Sin After Sin 3. Stained Class 4. Hell Bent (killing machine) 5 Screaing for Vengeance 6 Turbo 7 British Steel 8 Defenders of the faith
3.0 Rocka Rolla (1974) 4.5 Sad Wings of Destiny (1976) 4.5 Sin After Sin (1977) 5.0 Stained Class (1978) 4.0 Killing Machine (1978) 4.5 British Steel (1980) 2.5 Point of Entry (1981) 4.5 Screaming for Vengeance (1982) 4.5 Defenders of the Faith (1984) 3.5 Turbo (1986) 4.0 Ram It Down (1988) 5.0 Painkiller (1990) 4.5 Jugulator (1997) 2.0 Demolition (2001) 4.0 Angel of Retribution (2005) 4.0 Nostradamus (2008) 2.5 Redeemer of Souls (2014) 4.0 Firepower (2018)
1. British Steel 2. Screaming for Vengeance 3. Sad Wings of Destiny 4. Painkiller 5. Stained Class 6. Killing Machine 7. Sin After Sin 8. Turbo 9. Point of Entry 10. Rocka Rolla
From the perspective of a metalhead (though priest has never been a big favorite of mine, I prefer a bunch of more modern stuff): 1. Screaming for vengeance 2. Defenders of the faith 3. Stained class 4. Painkiller 5. Sin after sin 6. British still 7. Killing machine 8. Sad wings of destiny 9. Firepower 10. Turbo 11. Angel of retribution 12. Point of entry 13. Redeemer of souls 14. Jagulator 15. Nostradamus 16. Ram it down 17. Rocka Rolla 18. Demolition
18. Jugulator (1997) 17. Demolition (2001) 16. Nostradamus (2008) 15. Rocka Rolla (1974) 14. Angel Of Retribution (2005) 13. Redeemer Of Souls (2014) 12.Ram It Down (1988) 11. Turbo (1986) 10. British Steel (1980) 9. Point Of Entry (1981) 8. Killing Machine (1978) 7. Firepower (2018) 6. Defenders Of The Faith (1984) 5. Painkiller (1990) 4. Sin After Sin (1977) 3. Stained Class (1978) 2..Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976) 1. Screaming For Vengeance (1982) Awesome band but hard to rank as I would consider many of these top 10 albums around 4-4.5 stars..
1. Painkiller (1990) 2. Stained Class (1978) 3. Defenders of The Faith (1984) 4. Sad Wings of Destiny (1976) 5. Firepower (2018) 6. Screaming for Vengeance (1982) 7. Hell Bent for Leather (1979) 8. Sin After Sin (1977) 9. British Steel (1980) 10. Angel of Retribution (2005) 11. Redeemer of Souls (2014) 12. Rocka Rolla (1974) 13. Point of Entry (1981) 14. Nostradamus (2008) 15. Ram It Down (1988) 16. Turbo (1986) 17. Jugulator (1997) 18. Demolition (2001)
As a lifelong JP fan I find your collective reviews harsh, however I appreciate the honesty of young guys who are not die hard fans. I struggle to rank every album, but I can list my top 5 and bottom 5 based solely on what albums I actually listen to 20 years later: TOP 5 - Angel (dark, clean, balanced, amazing guitar work) - Screaming (Break through) - Defenders (Dark, dramatic) - point of entry (Great album to drive to) - Demolition (Awesome heavy riffs. A remaster would change MANY people’s opinions. Old heads hate it primarily for the programming, but JP has used programming going back to 80s) BOTTOM 5 - Redeemer (Complete MESS) - Nostradamus (Boring) - Jugulator (Cool heavy ideas but collectively worse lyrics than Demolition, some songs reuse riffs and hooks with the notes and words changed) - rocka rolla (meh) - Invincible Shield (Weirdly religious, primitive repetitive forgettable riffs, desperately chasing the prog-rock fad)
Jason putting Painkiller at 12 = OUCH. But I also get it. I would rate it higher, but not as high as some Priest fans do. It *is* a bit of a bummer that they kind of struggle around trying to match up to this sound from 1990 ever since. Kram putting Stained Class so low was a bit of an OUCH surprise too. haha...i figured at least one of you would have it up at the top, and Kram is usually "my guy" when it comes to these these lists and sharing opinions, but I'm very much with Jason this week I think, aside from the Painkiller thing. Joe definitely has the "right idea", too. Screaming... is their best album of the 80s I'm usually pretty interested in the bottom picks from these lists as there tends to be diversity of opinion and it also is often stuff from discographies I haven't heard. i used to own Jugulator but never bothered with Demolition when it came out, and now I think it's pretty rare (though obviously can be found online). The Priest albums belonging at the bottom seem almost unanimous across not only you guys but the entire fanbase and beyond. My favourite is the S trilogy from the 70s. I kind of want to put it all together at the top three, but I suppose Screaming for Vengeance and Painkiller might interrupt them and altogether they would make up my top 5. Stained Class is, without a single doubt in my mind, their very best album. I don't just consider it a precursor to thrash or something: It's a monumental achievement of 70s rock and metal, full of character, personalitya nd passion. Also Les was incredible on drums. even though I'm not a guitarist I know both solo sections of "Beyond the Realms of Death" by heart. Title track is amazing. "Saints in hell" is monstrously heavy. "Savage" is great with some really smart lyrics. 'White Heat Red Hot" grooves like nobody's business. It's their real 5* album if you ask me. Strangely, I think jason is sort of right about Sad Wings' production, but it doesn't hold it back from being near the top. Actually, after Painkiller and some 2CD compilation, Rocka Rolla and Sad Wings were my earliest Priest purchases. everything you all said about Rocka Rolla being a bit of an "also ran" 70s rock album is true, but I still think it's a good album, and would probably go somewhere around my number 7 spot. "One for the Road" is a great opener with its catchy riff and odd 5/4 timing, but the album actually seems to get better as it goes on. BTW I trust Kram saying it was "run of the mill" was no accident. Very cool song though. How come they could write smart lyrics early on but just gave it up by Painkiller? Oh well.
I feel like people don't even know Priest when they continue to rank Painkiller so highly. It seems to me that its mostly a younger generation that do so. I grew up in the 70s and 80s, and to me that was their best sound, their best music. I never cared much for the Painkiller album. Too big of a shift away from their best music. Tough to say for certain what their best album is for me, since they have so much great music spread out over so many albums. But i would have to say that Screaming for Vengeance, British Steel, Sad Wings of Destiny and Sin After Sin are their best albums. Maybe Defenders of the Faith to round out their top 5 albums.
@@TastesLikeMusic that's not the opinion that myself and friends who grew up on JP had. They went from heavy metal to thrash metal. Was a big change...but i know JP did a lot of different things over the years. That sort of metal on Painkiller never appealed to me.
I've never listened to Judas Priest (or Iron Maiden) so this was a great episode to watch. I have always listened to other music and other forms of metal but I'll listen to the top picks from each and do some catching up.
Nice commentary about Turbo. I was in 9th grade when it came out. It was no big deal. It was expected for the veteran bands to try to move forward and shake things up at that time. It was the time to try. What else are you going to do?
I'm on my way to Jason's house with a copy of Painkiller and Defenders of the Faith, and we are just gonna listen to them repeatedly until he realizes how wrong he is.
Take Killing Machine and Screaming For Vengeance with you as well. My only problem with Jason is for me he’s always concentrated too much on production instead of the actual songs. Production should come second to the material, at least for me. This is still the best music channel on TH-cam imo
Great video. I've definitely come to enjoy the 70's Priest more than any other era of the band. I just love the sonic variety of the material - which after Point of Entry really disappears. I'll never understand the retroactive appreciation for Turbo. We hated it when it came out and hate it now :) The synth guitars and cheesy Twisted Sister vibe just kill any hope that record had.
Going in- 18: Nostradomus (The only Priest Album I Hate) 17: Point of Entry 16: Demolition 15: Jugulator 14: Firepower 13: Redeemer of Souls 12: Angel of Retribution 11: Ram it down 10: Turbo 9: Defenders of the Faith 8: Rocka Rolla 7: Screaming for Vengeance 6: Painkiller 5: Sin after Sin 4: British Steel 3: Sad Wings of Destiny 2: Killing Machine 1: Stained Class Always loved Priest, got to see them with Sabaton last year.
18. Jugulator 17. Demolition (last 2 are interchangeably horrible) 16. Ram it down 15. Nostradamus 14. Redeemer of souls 13. Turbo 12. Rocka Rolla 11. Firepower 10. Hell bent for leather 09. Angel of retribution 08. Screaming for vengeance 07. Painkiller 06. Point of entry 05. Sad wings of destiny 04. Sin after sin 03. British steel 02. Defenders of the faith 01. Stained class
Damn, I just got my computer fixed and I'm loading all my cd's onto it and I just ripped Unleashed in the East and I see this. Love Priest so much, thanks for doing this guys!
My top 10: 1. Stained Class 2. Sad Wings of Destiny 3. Sin After Sin 4. Screaming for Vengeance 5. Killing Machine (Hell Bent for Leather) 6. Point of Entry 7. British Steel 8. Defenders of the Faith 9. Painkiller 10. Firepower
Not even the biggest Priest fan … but Halford one of rock’s greatest musicians during their heyday. Incredibly special talent. And watch that live footage from the early 80s …. His intensity. Performing like his life was on the line. ❤
Good stuff! I like this ranking series you guys do a lot, but just curious if you've ever considered going through the albums chronologically and have each of you give the ranking that way? I feel like the videos might flow a bit better with each person giving their thoughts on the album in a row instead of kinda rehashing things as each album gets brought up 3 times Just a thought, cheers!
@@TastesLikeMusic That sounds great to me. You could all rate their albums the three of you together as you go along too (and even give your rankings if you want).
I've seen some other youtubers do that, and it can be effective... But I do think in general I preer it the way Tastes like Listography does it. I think it might be good for certain bands, maybe. That way you can really see the evolution of the artists, talk about who joined and left a band, etc. But I don't know. Maybea mix of both?
1. Screaming for Vengeance 5 2. Stained Class 5 3. Hell Bent for Leather 5 4. Defenders of the Faith 5 5. British Steel 4.5 6. Painkiller 4.5 7. Sin After Sin 4.5 8. Sad Wings of Destiny 4 9. Angel of Retribution 4 10. Turbo 3.5 11. Point of Entry 3 12. Rocka Rolla 3 13. Ram it Down 3 14. Redeemer of Souls 3 15. Firepower 3 16. Nostradamus 1.5 17. Jugulator 1.5 18. Demolition 1
Jason this is one of your best performances. The correct number one, and you corrected Kram on dreamer deceiver. If Halford had sounded that good on later albums i'd be a bigger fan.
Unleash the Beast in the East, with Priest! Priest! The name itself conjures up images of metal history, metal Gods, faith defenders, sentinels & jugulators! That run of albums from Sad Wings to Defenders is their legend really, classic albums. I saw them only once, Dublin 2009 with Testament and Megadeth. Deep into Nostradamus era.They were quite Spinal Tap in a way, but the definition of heavy metal in another. All hail the Priest!
Stained Class-Redefined what “metal” was at the time and influenced an entirely new generation of metal heads/bands with a flawless representation of an album. This album is their “Kill em’ All” equivalent. Painkiller-Redefined metal yet again over a decade later influencing yet another generation of metal heads with what is possibly the bands greatest achievement. This album is their “Master of Puppets” equivalent.
Joe ma man! You hit the nail on the head about British Steel! The Priest, although a monumentally geat band, have a boatload of compromise (sellout?) in their catalog, and this was the beginning of it all. And Les Binks was their best drummer!
18. Turbo 17. Ram it Down 16. Rocka Rolla 15. Demolition 14. Jugulator 13. Redeemer of Souls 12. Nostradamus 11. Angel of Retribution 10. Point of Entry 9. Fire Power 8. British Steel 7. Hell Bent for Leather 6. Screaming for Vengeance 5. Defenders of the Faith 4. Painkiller 3. Sin After Sin 2. Stained Class 1. Sad Wings of Destiny
here we go 18 jugulator 3 .0 stars 17 nostradamus 3.0 16 angel of retribution 3.0 15 turbo 3.0+ 14 painkiller 3.0+ 13 ram it down 3.0+ 12 point of entry 3.0+ 11 rocka rolla 3.5- 10 demolition 3.5 - 9 firepower 3.5 8 redemmer of souls 3.5 + 7 defenders of the faith 3.5 + 6 stained class 4.0 5 hell bent for leather [killing machine] 4.0 4 sin after sin 4.0+ 3 british steel 5.0 stars 2 screaming for vengance 5.0 1 sad wings of destiny 5.0 those top 3 swap all the time and will again im sure fun listen !!! lots of songs to rank Cheers!! WHO DEY !! WHO DEY!!!🐯🐯 PS usa -england tie , sorry to my matey ⚽⚽kinda!! TEE HEE
1. Stained Class 2. Painkiller 3. Screaming for Vengence 4. British Steel 5. Jugulator 6. Firepower 7. Redeemer of Souls 8. Defenders of the Faith 9. Sad Wings of Destiny 10. Killing Machine 11. Ram It Down 12. Point of Entry 13. Sin After Sin 14. Rocka Rolla 15. Angel of Retribution 16. Nostradamus 17. Demolition 18. Turbo
My all time favorite Metal band and the true definition of Heavy Metal encapsulated in an outfit. Also Firepower is far better than Jason & Kram give it credit for. The tune ‘Lone Wolf’ is one of the best Priest tunes in many years. The fact that Jason says that the last twenty minutes of the record is tired shows that he just doesn’t get it, especially ranking ‘Angel of Retribution’ higher than ‘Firepower’ is completely off the mark…also the three greatest Priest Lp’s IMHO are ‘Sad Wings of Destiny’, ‘Stained Class’ and ‘Hell Bent for Leather(Killing Machine)’ in that order with ‘Sin After Sun’ coming in a close 4th, Dissident Aggressor is one of their greatest ever, saw them play it live when they added it to their set in 2008 for the Metal Masters Tour they did with Heaven & Hell, Motörhead and Testament …Honestly one of my favorite Priest Lp’s is the live ‘Unleashed In The East’ for sheer powerful performances of the greatest tunes of their 70’s era…and props to Joe on giving Les Binks props as one of the most underrated drummers of all time, also his reverence of ‘The Rage’ which is a really great album cut, probably my favorite tune on ‘British Steel’
Just found the channel. My list would be: 1 - Sad Wings of Destiny 2 - Point of Entry 3 - Stained Class 4 - Sin After Sin 5 - Turbo 6 - Screaming for Vengeance 7 - British Steel 8 - Defenders of the Faith 9 - Invincible Shield 10 - Firepower 11 - Ram It Down 12 - Painkiller 13 - Nostradamus 14 - Hell Bent for Leather 15 - Rocka Rolla 16 - Angel of Retribution 17 - Redeemer of Souls 18 - Demolition 19 - Jugulator I really like Tim Owens' voice, but the songs on those two albums just weren't great. I started listening to Priest back in 86 when Turbo came out and now they're one of my favorite bands.
Kramzer...rainbow sucks...what?...yikes....I agree with Jason that sad wings, and sin after sin are my favourites...although hellion/electric eye might be my favourite track...diamonds and rust a close second...thanks for delivering the goods guys...cheers
I thought it was interesting that Kramzer cringed when Joey said "British Steel" #9 when he had just nominated "Sad Wings" for his #9 which is a much crazier opinion lol.. Specially when you consider he has Turbo above it. And then of course, Joey goes and make Sad Wings his #8, also below Turbo. What a troupe! Incredibly enough the only list that made a little bit of sense to me (with a few exceptions) was Jason's
Funny, as I listen to the different lists, I find myself vehemently agreeing and disagreeing with all 3 guys at different points. My list doesn't really fall in lockstep with diehard fans. Really do like a lot of the individual songs as we'll see in the songs episode. 18. Jugulator 17. Ram It Down 16. Demolition 15. Nostradamus 14. Turbo 13. Painkiller 12. Rocka Rolla 11. Point Of Entry 10. Redeemer Of Souls 9. Firepower 8. Sad Wings Of Destiny 7. Stained Class 6. Angel Of Retribution 5. Defenders Of The Faith 4. Sin After Sin 3. Hell Bent For Leather 2. Screaming For Vengeance 1. British Steel
Killing Machine is the best Judas Priest album, it has the best of everything and Evening Star is also great. At least Martin Popoff agrees with me about that album though Joe placing it at 5 was reassuring. Worst Jugulator. Most overrated is Firepower. Most underrated is Ram It Down. Jason has lost his marbles too though I like where he put Point Of Entry. Nothing wrong with it. Not that I always agree with him but Kramzer was great here.
The "coolest band name ever" can thank Bob Dylan for that("ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest"). Would go thru his discography,but I'm just too pissed the lost to Blue Oyster Cult. I had the live album and British Steel in high school,but they faded for me pretty quick. Will list a top 10 songs tomorrow
1. Stained Class 2. Sad Wings 3. Killing Machine/Hell Bent 4. Sin After Sin 5. Defenders of the Faith 6. Screaming for Vengeance 7. Painkiller 8. British Steel 9. Firepower 10. Point of Entry 11. Jugulator 12. Turbo 13. Ram It Down 14. Angel of Retribution 15. Redeemer of Souls 16. Rocka Rolla 17. Nostradamus 18. Demolition Yes I hold 70s Priest in that high regard
I discovered Judas Priest on Screaming For Vengeance. So, this is the era of Priest I prefer. I would say my top 5 is pretty solid as are my bottom 4 or 5. The middle bit can change depending on my mood. Also, my real #3 Priest album is Unleashed in the East. Worst to best: Demolition Jugulator Nostradamus Angel of Retribution Redeemer of Souls Ram It Down Point of Entry Rocka Rolla Firepower Turbo Defenders of The Faith Painkiller Sin After Sin Stained Class Killing Machine (aka Hell Bent For Leather) Sad Wings of Destiny Screaming For Vengeance British Steel
Stand by for EXCITEEEEEEEEEERRR!!!! Here’s probably the Listography Of The Year!! BRING IT ON FOR THE METAL GODS!!! (…and cut Ram It Down some slack, please. I love it!!!…)
"Take a Friend" Jason? (The Rush song you're thinking of)..........................Great episode......one of my favorite bands I've seen live (81-82)...Sad Wings and Rocka Rolla are my top 2.
I'm a defender of "Redeemer of souls ". It's not fantastic, or my favorite...but it's nutz, and it's them finding their voice again. "Halls of Valhalla" is a top 10 Judas track for me!
Y’all need to do a video with this much quality for the Beatles. If any band deserves it, it’s them. That is all I will say. I hold my peace. Get busy…
1. Stained Class
2. Screaming For Vengeance
3. Hell Bent for Leather
4. Painkiller
5. Defenders of the Faith
6. Point of Entry
7. British Steel
8. Firepower
9. Sad Wings of Destiny
10. Turbo
11. Angels of Retribution
12. Sin After Sin
13. Redeemer of Souls
14. Jugulator
15. Rocka Rolla
16. Ram It Down
17. Nostradamus
18. Demolition
Judas Priest is one of the bands that got me into music, easily in my top 10 bands ever. Here's my rankings :
1 - Painkiller
2 - Stained Class
3 - Defenders Of The Faith
4 - Sad Wings Of Destiny
5 - Screaming For Vengeance
6 - Hellbent For Leather
7 - Sin After Sin
8 - Firepower
9 - British Steel
10 - Point Of Entry
11 - Angel Of Retribution
12 - Redeemer Of Souls
13 - Rocka Rolla
14 - Turbo
15 - Ram It Down
16 - Nostradamus
17 - Jugulator
18 - Demolition
Glad to see you guys to some metal. Also glad you’re doing different videos, since if I didnt like the band of the week I only had side three to look forward to. Now I’m always looking forward to to your new videos
18. Nostradamus (haven’t bought it yet)
17. Demolition (3.5/10)
16. Ram it Down (5/10)
15. Redeemer of Souls (6.5/10)
14. Turbo (7.5/10)
13. Point of Entry (7.5/10)
12. Rocka Rolla (7.5/10)
11. British Steel (7.5/10)
10. Killing Machine (8/10)
09. Jugulator (8/10)
08. Angel of Retribution (8/10)
07. Defenders of the Faith (8/10)
06. Sad Wings of Destiny (8.5/10)
05. Sin After Sin (9.5/10)
04. Screaming for Vengeance (10/10)
03. Firepower (10/10)
02. Stained Class (10/10)
01. Painkiller (10/10)
I was really eager to see this, as Priest are one of my favourite bands and I was not disappointed.
You all had picks I disagreed with, but that's what's so entertaining about this channel.
I agree with Joe 100% about British Steel. It is an album I love, it would be in my top 10 Priest albums, but United and Living After Midnight always bring it down for me a bit. It's an unusual situation where I always favour the 30th anniversary live version of British Steel to the studio version.
Glad to see Turbo so high on all of your lists. One of the most over-hated albums of all time.
My ranking and #1 placement always change depending on my mood.
Fantastic video!!!
Excellent! It’s been a while since you chaps dug into some metal. Another amazing episode!
Great vid as always, gentlemen!
I haven’t really gotten into Priest before, so it was nice to hear some takes and dip my toes. Early impressions of their tentpole releases… I think I prefer the sound of Stained Class over Vengeance, Painkiller, or British Steel. Cool band. Looking forward to checking out more.
Excellent job gentlemen! Loved your commentary. And the averaged list is pretty wild this time. Never would have guessed Sin After Sin would be on top.
My JP top 10:
1) Sad Wings of Destiny
2) Screaming for Vengeance
3) Stained Class
4) Defenders of the Faith
5) Sin after Sin
6) Killing Machine
7) British Steel
8) Painkiller
9) Point of Entry
10) Rocka Rolla
Love me some Priest, they’re easily in my top 20 bands love their discography! I really don’t dislike any of their albums and love over half of their records. Album ranking below:
ALBUM RANKING:
1. Painkiller (1990) - 5/5
2. Stained Class (1978) - 5/5
3. Defenders of the Faith (1984) - 5/5
4. Screaming for Vengeance (1982) - 5/5
5. Sad Wings of Destiny (1976) - 5/5
6. Sin After Sin (1977) - 5/5
7. Firepower (2018) - 5/5
8. Killing Machine (1978) - 5/5
9. British Steel (1980) - 4.5/5
10. Angel of Retribution (2005) - 4.5/5
11. Redeemer of Souls (2014) - 4.5/5
12. Ram It Down (1988) - 4.5/5
13. Point of Entry (1981) - 4/5
14. Turbo (1986) - 4/5
15. Rocka Rolla (1974) - 4/5
16. Jugulator (1997) - 3.5/5
17. Nostradamus (2008) - 3.5/5
18. Demolition (2001) - 3/5
RATING SCALE:
5.0: Excellent (Really Love It)
4.5: Great (Love It)
4.0: Very Good (Really Like It)
3.5: Good (Like It)
3.0: Decent (Slightly Like It)
2.5: Mediocre (Indifferent)
2.0: Subpar (Slightly Dislike It)
1.5: Bad (Dislike It)
1.0: Very Bad (Really Dislike It)
0.5: Awful (Hate It)
Note that my 5 star albums range from excellent albums with only a few minor problems to near perfect masterpieces. Lower 5 star albums are likely a 4.5 star album on Joe and Jason’s scale and a 4.0 star on Kram’s. They are certainly less generous than me.
Oh, here’s my list of anything I’m familiar with. And it’s all 3,5 and up!
13. Angel Of Retribution
12. Turbo
11. Rocka Rolla
10. Defenders Of The Faith
9. Point Of Entry
8. Screaming For Vengeance
7. Painkiller
6. Ram It Down
5. Hell Bent For Leather/Killing Machine
4. British Steel
3. Sin After Sin
2. Sad Wings Of Destiny
1. Stained Class
1. Stained Class (1978) 5/5
2. Sad Wings of Destiny (1976) 4.5/5
3. Screaming for Vengeance (1982) 4.5/5
4. British Steel (1980) 4.5/5
5. Sin After Sin (1977) 4/5
6. Defenders of the Faith (1984) 4/5
7. Firepower (2018) 4/5
8. Rocka Rolla (1974) 3.5/5
9. Killing Machine (1978) 3.5/5
10. Painkiller (1990) 3.5/5
11. Point of Entry (1981) 3/5
12. Angel of Retribution (2005) 3/5
13. Redeemer of Souls (2014) 3/5
14. Turbo (1986) 2.5/5
15. Ram It Down (1988) 2/5
16. Jugulator (1997) 2/5
17. Nostradamus (2008) 1.5/5
18. Demolition (2001) 1.5/5
CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER:
3.5 Rocka Rolla (1974)
4.5 Sad Wings of Destiny (1976)
4.0 Sin After Sin (1977)
5.0 Stained Class (1978)
3.5 Killing Machine (1978)
4.5 British Steel (1980)
3.0 Point of Entry (1981)
4.5 Screaming for Vengeance (1982)
4.0 Defenders of the Faith (1984)
2.5 Turbo (1986)
2.0 Ram It Down (1988)
3.5 Painkiller (1990)
2.0 Jugulator (1997)
1.5 Demolition (2001)
3.0 Angel of Retribution (2005)
1.5 Nostradamus (2008)
3.0 Redeemer of Souls (2014)
4.0 Firepower (2018)
They didn't invent metal, but Judas Priest captured its core aesthetic better than anyone. 1974's Rocka Rolla draws heavily upon Black Sabbath and Jethro Tull, but songs like "Run of the Mill " and "Cheater" are good enough to make you forget it. For their sophomore effort, Sad Wings of Destiny, Rob Halford puts on a singing clinic. A vocal chameleon, Halford morphs his voice to fit anything the band comes up with, be it moody ("Epitaph") or maniacal ("The Ripper.") "Dreamer Deceiver" (also from Sad Wings) shows they had a knack for the power ballad from early on. 1977's Sin After Sin further sharpens their sound- "Dissident Aggressor" leads a faster, more aggressive attack that portended thrash metal. "Beyond the Realms of Death" is the main attraction on 1978's Stained Class, but that whole LP stands up so well to repeated listens I'm tempted to call it perfect. It's where Judas Priest truly come into their own and stop sounding like their influences. Also from 1978, Killing Machine (known in America as Hell Bent For Leather) cemented their leather-and-chains image and saw their music become less cryptic/more accessible. Released in April 1980 (and spearheaded by the hits "Breaking the Law" and "Living After Midnight") British Steel was the commercial breakthrough Judas Priest had been working towards for the better part of a decade. Its follow-up, 1981's Point of Entry, tries to be an even more populist version of British Steel but, apart from a couple-three tracks, falls short. 1982's Screaming for Vengeance revives their hard-driving approach, aided by appropriately over-the-top production. That album (along with its successor, 1984's Defenders of the Faith) pushed Priest to the peak of their popularity in North America. On 1986's Turbo they take a stab at being campy, without much success. Ram It Down (1988) feels like a lost Def Leppard album (emphasis on "lost.") Things pick back up again with 1990's Painkiller, an album influenced by speed metal. Instrumentally, it's a fun LP, but the songs themselves aren't as memorable as some of Priest's previous releases. The two albums they made after Rob Halford's departure (1997's Jugulator, 2001's Demolition) are forgettable affairs. They sound more like Slayer and Pantera than they sound like Judas Priest. When Halford finally returned to the band (starting with 2005's Angel of Retribution) so did some semblance of consistency (with the exception of 2008's Nostradamus, an overlong and ponderous album.) 2018's Firepower contains some of their tightest and catchiest music in 3 decades. While I only gave Judas Priest one 5-star studio album, they'll probably slip into my "top 100 artists" list anyway based on lifetime achievement, and their reputation as a great live act. They're one of those bands whose live stuff is even better than the studio stuff.
MY RATING SYSTEM:
5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs)
4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both)
4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's an essential record for this artist/style)
3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting)
3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting)
2.5 = decent (competent but uninspired - not worth revisiting)
2.0 = poor (difficult listen)
1.5 = awful (can't finish it)
1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse)
▪︎"Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that either feature iconic songs or have a highly influential sound. (Albums I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing iconic songs or being highly influential.)
▪︎I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible I don't care to differentiate anymore.
▪︎Anything I rate 3.5 stars or higher is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.
Excellent summation of Judas Priest Whammy, thanks!
Great list, we mostly in sync here. Rocka Rolla over Painkiller that's strange though.
@@RostyslavLogachov I just think the best songs on Rocka Rolla are slightly better than the best ones on Painkiller. I didn't mention "One For the Road" in my comment but I love that one, too.
@@179rich My take on them is that they're a bit overrated by metalheads, but also a bit underrated by non-metalheads. (I'd consider myself a non-metalhead who dabbles in metal.)
@@AbbeyRoadkill1 Possible cover band names: Dabblers of the Faith, Sad Wings of Dabbler, Ram it Dabbler.
This was a great video and a great week to prepare for. I really enjoyed listening along even to the albums I didn't enjoy. It didn't seem like 18 albums. I did know a few ahead of this but a lot were new to me too.
Lots of variety in your lists and a few wild takes but it all made sense with your tastes and was a great discussion even if I didn't always agree.
18. Demolition - 1 (1.8)
17. Jugulator - 2.5 (4.8)
16. Ram It Down - 2.5 (5.3)
15. Nostradamus - 3 (5.7)
14. Rock A Rolla - 3 (6.2)
13. Point of Entry - 3.5 (7.0)
12. Angel of Retribution - 3.5 (7.1)
11. Firepower - 3.5 (7.1)
10. Redeemer of Souls - 3.5 (7.2)
9. Turbo - 3.5 (7.3)
8. Sad Wings of Destiny - 4 (7.8)
7. Stained Class - 4 (8.0)
6. Sin After Sin - 4 (8.3)
5. Killing Machine - 4.5 (8.7)
4. Screaming For Vengeance - 4.5 (9.3)
3. Defenders of the Faith - 4.5 (9.4)
2. British Steel - 5 (9.5)
1. Painkiller - 5 (9.7)
I feel like Jason's attention to the production of Screaming for Vengeance maybe inhibited him from appreciating the greatness of that album.
painkiller interesting pick my friend!!🐯🐯
I like the song "Hell is Home," which is the only thing that kept Demolition from being a 1 star album in my system. Nice list!
@@AbbeyRoadkill1 I'll be honest I remember no songs from Demolition at this point lol but I will have to go back to that song! Thanks 😊
@@179rich Maybe, but I don't think he was ever going to love it regardless. 😔
I really enjoyed this episode.It has been a long time since I have listened to Judas Priest but when they first came out I was a full blown Metal head at 18.I was first turned on to Priest with the release of Stained Class. This hit me between the eyes.I loved it.The next year in 1979 I went to a little place in Los Angles called the Santa Monica civic and saw them live.Never in my life have I ever heard a band that was that loud yet so fantastic.I know you guys didn`t review this album because it was live but my favorite Priest will always be Unleashed in the East.This is all the early great songs they put out turned up to 10.Hope you guys get a chance to listen to it.With that being said my top 5 studio are,1.Stained class,2.British Steel,3.Sin After Sin.4Sreaming for Vengeance,5.Point of Entry.I have seen Judas Priest twice in concert,both great shows.Thank you for this fine review.
I hear ya! I was late into the Judas Priest game. I first got into them while listening to the album and watching the live concert video of their 1987 Judas Priest… LIVE! That got me into their 80s songs. Listening to Judas Priest’s Unleashed in the East (Live in Budokan) got me into their 70’s songs.
I have since seen Judas Priest three times (once with Ripper Owens. LOL).
Seen Priest live over 50 times since 1986. "Unleashed in the East" is my favourite album, sums up 70`s Priest and sees, peers the future of metal to come. Relevant album by any means.
@@67heavyduty I personally believe that not including Judas Priest’s live albums in this review is sacrilege. They should include them or change the title to “Judas Priest’s STUDIO Albums Ranked Worst to Best”.
@@67heavyduty Wow.That`s a lot.
My favorite band ever!! My top 13 alone is essential stuff for me, so hard to rank for sure.
1. Stained Class 5/5
2. Screaming For Vengeance 5/5
3. Sin After Sin 5/5
4. Turbo 4.5/5
5. Defenders Of The Faith 4.5/5
6. Point Of Entry 4.5/5
7. Sad Wings Of Destiny 4.5/5
8. British Steel 4.5/5
9. Painkiller 4.5/5
10. Ram It Down 4/5
11. Killing Machine 4/5
12. Rocka Rolla 3.5/5
13. Firepower 3.5/5
14. Angel Of Retribution 3.5/5
15. Jugulator 3/5
16. Redeemer Of Souls 3/5
17. Nostradamus 2/5
18. Demolition 2/5
'Sin After Sin' is amazing. I'm really wanted to give perfect score.
@@RostyslavLogachov The last time I ranked through these it bumped up to a 5, it's a grower to get there for sure
Interesting ranking. Cool to see Turbo getting more recognition.
Happy to see this episode! Love Priest, and they have a great variety of albums that are perfect for what you do. My top 5:
1. Stained Class
2. Sin After Sin
3. British Steel
4. Painkiller
5. Defenders of the Faith
I think my top 4 are basically perfect albums in distinct styles that still all manage to be distinctly Judas Priest. Defenders falls off a little bit in the second half for me but the first half is incredible.
Seeing Painkiller at #12 was…PAINFUL 😱🤯😭 Regardless, I really enjoyed the episode. Painkiller, Defenders and Screaming are my top 3 🔥⚡️
No way. That’s the order I bought then I think. Scresmh was the last good one. The 70’s albums when I discovered them. Wow. Amazing
Jason's option on metal albums are more or less worthless. For anyone who is getting in to Judas priest don't listen to his opinion 😅
A top 10 list by 3 gentlemen that haven't listened to a Judas Priest album all the way through. The perfect choice for a show like this. This is how real opinions come about, and how ordinary people actually hear the music
Not what we said, but good try. - Joe
Great to see more Metal on this channel! And it's actually really cool to hear opinions from people who are not pure 'Metalheads' but are instead broader fans of music generally who enjoy some Metal. That's actually pretty rare, and refreshing. I think an Opeth ranking would be a cool journey for you guys!
Hopefully it'll go better than the Porcupien Tree one, if ith appens. haha
I'd love an Opeth ranking but I'm not sure they could get past the 'growls' pre-Heritage.
@@jasonjames6383 The trick is to embrace them, not to try to get past them. Know what you mean though.
@@DamnableReverend Opeth would be one of my favourite bands and once you 'embrace' it, it's part of the sound and fits in perfectly with the music (and Opeth can be a gateway for extreme metal). Many people won't embrace it though or even try to, and as much as I like Tastes Like Music I doubt they're going to go in that direction. They'd struggle with the first 9 albums and the last 4 may go as well as Porcupine Tree.
@@jasonjames6383 Oh, I hear that -- to me Opeth are not that close to Porupine Tree in sound, but it's undeniable that the colaborations with Wilson had an influence on both parties for a time. I actually interviewed Mikael back int he Blackwater park days and we spent most of the time talkinga bout prog rocka nd cracking jokes. I was already pretty inured to extreme metal when I first heard Opeth after their second album came out, but can totally see how they'd be perceiveda s a "gateway band" of sorts.
A comment Kram made during this video made me think about what metal bands with large discographies would be interesting to do for a channel like Tastes like Music, where there's enough variance in the discography to keep it pretty compelling and you don't get stuck in a rut with the later albums like you do with maiden or Priest, the former being too slow and ploddinga nd long-winded and the latter just desperately trying to recapture Painkiller's glory after floundering around in late 90s/early 2000s metalland. Opeth would be one; Voivod another. The latter is a discography I'd definitely be curious to hear their takes on.
Nice rundown - enjoyed that one a lot. Point of Entry is the one Priest album that I always rate much higher than most - it's a lot of fun and sounds great.
I use Point of Entry as a litmus test for what kind of a Priest fan someone is, definitely top 5 for me!
I love Point of entry to
I agree and as for sound, I think it's their best '80s studio recording and that goes for each band member's performance too. I sometimes wonder about the musical understanding of people that say it's a bad album, these are all quality songs granted some better than others, but it's certainly not bad or bland when it features amazing songs like HOttH, "Solar Angels", "Turning Circles" or "Desert Plains" then it is not a poor album with songs like that alone. I've loved it since day 1, maybe it's just one of those albums where you had to be there at the time to really get (into) it. Quite honestly, it's not that much softer than British Steel or Screaming for Vengeance several songs on all three albums easily could've been on each other, the main difference is the production making the other two sound heavier where this is smoother and less 'intrusive' sounding fitting the straightforwardness of the songs. For instance, there's actually nothing on PoE quite as 'poppy' as "Living After Midnight", "Breaking the Law" and "United". Also, SfV has its own fair share of super melodic stuff like "Take These Chains" or "Fever" yet most people will still call it a heavier album but it's really all down to the production. No two Judas Priest albums sound the same, that's part of the band's charm and interesting too considering they used the same producer on all '80s albums.
@@LarryFleetwood8675 Yeah the production is smooth yet punchy - just great sounding. Heading out to the Highway is one of their best ever openers and Solar Angels is almost proggy.
Great all hail the Priest !!!! I'll give it a go.
1. Stained Class 5/5 top 10 of my all time for me, very important album in the progression of heavy metal.
2. Painkiller 5/5
3. Defenders Of The Faith 4.5/5
4. Sad Wings Of Destiny 4.5/5
5. Screaming For Vengeance 4.5/5
6. Firepower 4.5/5
7. Hell Bent For Leather 4/5
8. Sin After Sin 3.5/5
9. British Steel 3.5/5
10. Angel Of Retribution 3/5
11. Redeemer of Souls 3/5
12. Turbo 3/5
13. Ram It Down 3/5
14. Jugulator 3/5
15. Point Of Entry 3/5
16. Rock O Rolla 3/5
17. Nostradamus 2.5/5
18. Demolition 2/5
Jason, I like your production input into reviews overall on TLM.
The Les Binks on drums era is the artistic peak of the band. Just my opinion.
November 24th, 1982.
My first concert.
Judas Priest, Screaming for Vengeance
One of my all-time favorite bands. I definitely don't agree with all the picks, but as a whole, you guys really did them justice.
3. Painkiller
2. Screaming for Vengeance
1. British Steel
Thank you gentlemen!
backup band was pretty good
So glad you guys finally got around to ranking the mighty Judas Priest, I've been waiting for this one for a LONG time! Great point about how Glen and KK adopted their guitar playing style to the times and never stopped learning new techniques, that's one of the things that made them such amazing guitarists!
Seen Priest live over 50 times since 1986. "Unleashed in the East" is my favourite album, sums up 70`s Priest and sees, peers the future of metal to come. Relevant album by any means
Love their live albums. The bonus disc from Turbo 30 is incredible. - Joe
Their best, always was always will be.
@@McShaganpronouncedShaegen What is their best studio album though? Since that is a live album I wouldn’t count it even if it may be the most enjoyable or a fan favorite.
@@AndI0td763 Title of post "Judas Priest Albums Ranked From Worst to Best" is it not? I made that claim because most of the songs produced on the live album were better than the original studio versions. Plus that album is not as live as you would be led to believe. I owned Stained Class, Sad Wings and Hell Bent for Leather named so because I was living in the states, before Unleashed in the East was released. and I loved them but if it was a list of best J P songs. Every song from Unleashed in the East would outrank the original. Except for VOC and even then I'm not sure. This is not a best of album it was something original and so much more metal than the originals. Compare both versions of Diamonds and Rust. You can't! The difference is night and day. There are so few live albums that have achieved the right stand on their own merit. The only others I can think of is Frampton Comes Alive and Queen Live Killers. Now if you want my top 5 I would include Sad Wings of Destiny because I wore my 8 track and LP out. Killing Machine, Screaming for Vengeance and Pain Killer a close 2nd.
Look I don't want to tell anyone that what I like is better than what they like, but to discount all the work that went into creating this piece of art that many fans love because it some how falls outside of the parameters of what you consider an album is astonishing.
Excellent video as always. Enjoying the fortnightly reviews..
18. Jugulator (1997) 1/5
17. Demolition (2001) 1.5/5
16. Nostradamus (2008) 2/5
15. Rocka Rolla (1974) 2.5/5
14. Turbo (1986) 2.5/5
13. Point Of Entry (1981) 3/5
12. Redeemer Souls (2014) 3/5
11. Ram It Down (1988) 3/5
10. Firepower (2018) 3.5/5
9. British Steel (1980) 3.5/5
8. Painkiller (1990) 3.5/5
7. Angel Of Retribution (2005) 4/5
6. Screaming For Vengeance (1982) 4/5
5. Defenders Of The Faith (1984) 4/5
4. Killing Machine (1978) 4.5/5
3. Sin After Sin (1977) 4.5/5
2. Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976) 5/5
1. Stained Class (1978) 5/5
We have the same top 2! Nice list!
Painkiller higher for me
@@JCStorm76 it was originally at #7, as high as I could go in the Judas Priest's discography.
My Ranking
1. Turbo (10/10)
2. Screaming for Vengance (10/10)
3. Painkiller (10/10)
4. Defenders of The Faith (10/10)
5. Sad Wings of Destiny (9'5/10)
6. Stained Class (9'5/10)
7. British Steel (9'5/10)
8. Sin After Sin (9/10)
9. Ram It Dawn (8'5/10)
10. Killing Machine (8/10)
11. Firepower (8/10)
12. Point of Entry (7'5/10)
13. Angel of Retribution (7/10)
14. Rocka Rolla (6'5/10)
15. Nostradamus (6/10)
16. Redeemer of Souls (6/10)
17. Jugulator (4/10)
18. Demolition (0'5/10)
Greetings from Canary Islands (From a Big Judas Priest fan)
TURBO!!! 😀🙌
Perhaps my favorite artist ever with no albums that are 5 stars (best 225 albums or so of all time) for me. They sit in the lower reaches of my top 25 artists.
18. Demolition - Embarrassing coming from these guys. 2.5 stars
17. Jugulator - On one hand, if I want to hear this kind of groove metal, I’ll listen to Pantera, or, better yet, the last two Sepultura albums with max. On the other, I have to give Tipton and Downing kudos for being willing to get this heavy. 3 stars
16. Rocka Rolla - I respect the diversity in their sound, but they hadn’t achieved metal liftoff yet. 3 stars
15. Nostradamus- I rather like metal with symphonic elements, but they just drag this out a lot longer than they have to. 3.5 stars
14. Turbo - I hear the glam, and I don’t much like the glam coming from these guys. 3.5 stars
13. Ram It Down - Better than its reputation. Still needs an analgesic.
12. Redeemer of Souls - Reasonably heavy, some good material, but they definitely have albums that are in this wheelhouse but better. 4 stars
11. Ángel of Retribution- Like this one, if on the strength of “Judas Rising” if nothing else. 4 stars
10. Point of Entry - I would say I like this one quite a bit better than most do. I think it’s one of their few albums with no weak tracks, but “Desert Plains” is the only gem, which puts it below the other nine for me. 4 stars
9. Killing Machine - I think this is the most overrated of their albums among their fans, with a handful of tracks I don’t care for - cheesy - but “Delivering the Goods” and “Hell Bent for Leather” do a great job of paving the way for their next phase, and there’s enough quality here to bring it up to 4.5 stars.
8. Defenders of the Faith - I find this to be their hardest album to rank. Side one is, to me, their best side, hands down, through the entirety of their commercial phase (Killing Machine through Ram It Down), but side two is a slab of depressingly enervating cheese that I would pay good money never to hear again - embarrassment after embarrassment. But all four of the songs on side one have a shot at my songs list tomorrow. 4.5 stars
7. Firepower. All three of you underrate this one. It’s as heavy as Painkiller at times, with their best songwriting by a pretty huge margin since that album, and good variety among the tracks. 4.5 stars.
6. British Steel - This was my biggest grower in the preparations for this week. A substantial step up from Killing Machine, with “United” being the only major dud.
5. Screaming for Vengeance - Joe details how they stepped up their metal game on this one quite well. Its highs aren’t as great as side one of DOTF for me, but the only songs I don’t much care for are “Pain and Pleasure” and “Fever.” The other tracks are rock solid. 4.5 stars
4. Sad Wings of Destiny - Very hard to overstate how important this album is, and that probably bumps it up a couple of slots here. But while “Victim of Changes” is a masterpiece, I don’t think they had found their full-fledged groove yet. 4.5 stars
3. Painkiller - The most amazing reinvigoration of a band perhaps in rock history. The comments about Tipton and Downing’s improvement are spot on. However, great as it is, I find the final three tracks weaker than what came before. 4.5 stars
2. Sin After Sin - The combination of consistent quality, variety, and ground-breaking heaviness put this very close to the top of the pile. Certainly their best opener/closer combo. 4.5 stars
1. Stained Class - Even more consistently great, and rocks throughout. The blueprint for NWOBHM. 4.5 stars
I take it back - Judas Priest does have a five star album for me - Unleashed in the East. Fantastic track selection, and the older the song, the more they improve it here.
2.
Where does it land
18. Demolition 2 stars
17. Jugulator 2 stars
16. Nostradamus 2.5 stars
15. Ram It Down 2.5 stars
14. Rocka Rolla 3 stars
13. Reedemer of Souls 3 stars
12. Killing Machine 3.5 stars
11. Point of Entry 3.5 stars
10. Turbo 3.5 stars
9. Angel of Retribution 3.5 stars
8. British Steel 4 stars
7. Firepower 4 stars
6. Sin After Sin 4 stars
5. Stained Class 4.5 stars
4. Screaming for Vengance 4.5 stars
3. Defenders of the Faith 4.5 stars
2. Sad Wings of Destiny 5 stars
1. Painkiller 5 stars
Great video
Ripper Owens did not write the lyrics on Demolition. Glenn Tipton did. As he also did so for Jugulator.
He wrote the lyrics for the Japanese Bonus Track called Say My Name.
@@Vorticy135 Right on thanks I knew there was a Priest geek out there somewhere geekier than myself.
Pretty sure Glenn wrote the vast majority of both albums, which is why it angers me when people blame Ripper for their shift in sound when he had little influence on it
@@StaticResurreXionI know they shouldn’t. I don’t know what Glenn was thinking with these two albums.
Great episode - and with such a large discography, there is bound to be some differences in the rankings but I think that over all, the lists were pretty much on point. "Sin After Sin" is not my number one but in fairness it's been a long while since I listened to it, so will have to give it a listen again. I think that Joe's ranking of British Steel is too low, as I really like that album, but I do get his reasoning behind it, so can't argue too much against it even if I don't quite agree.
Judas Priest is probably the only band I strictly only listen to their live albums. That mostly being “Unleashed in the East” (1979)and “Priest…Live” (1987). I just think there’s something great about them that they don’t really capture in the studio. Obviously there are exceptions in their discography, but for me it’s mostly the live stuff.
I love the live tracks on Turbo 30 year anniversary from Kemper arena. - Joe
I think a huge bit of it is that for whatever reason on their 70s and early 80s albums they never had enough gain on the studio recordings. Live they added gain and speed.
Youre missing out
Thanks much guys! Haven't heard all albums. Wouldn't have guessed Human League covered JP.
13 Turbo 2.5 (it IS close to a Gary Numan album!)
12. Rocka Rolla 3
11. Ram it Down 3
10. Firepower 3.5
9. Painkiller 3.5
8. Point of Entry 3.5
7. Defenders of the Faith 4
6. Sin After Sin 4
5. Stained Class 4.5
4. Killing Machine (Hell Bent for Leather) 4.5
3. Sad Wings of Destiny 4.5
2. Screaming for Vengeance 4.5
1. British Steel 4.5
So glad you guys are doing Priest I look forward to hearing your thoughts!
Glad they're doing this too. Haven't been familiar with the last few. 70's and early 80's Priest is really solid, along with Painkiller and some of the later ones.
@@mck7646 Agreed, Priest has so many really great albums from Sad Wings to Defenders. Painkiller is my favorite though definitely in my top 5 metal albums of all time. Their post Ripper albums are great aside from Nostradamus, but even it has its great moments.
@@houseofclouse1509 Yeah and I like how the guys defended the later 80's stuff, definitely not as bad as many have said.
@@mck7646 Not at all, Turbo is really good and I actually love Ram It Down. Only one weak song and some of their best like the title track and Hard as Iron
I’ve enjoyed listening to this and thinking about which albums I like more than others. Here’s my ranking: 1 Painkiller 2 Sin After Sin 3. Stained Class 4. Hell Bent (killing machine) 5 Screaing for Vengeance 6 Turbo 7 British Steel 8 Defenders of the faith
3.0 Rocka Rolla (1974)
4.5 Sad Wings of Destiny (1976)
4.5 Sin After Sin (1977)
5.0 Stained Class (1978)
4.0 Killing Machine (1978)
4.5 British Steel (1980)
2.5 Point of Entry (1981)
4.5 Screaming for Vengeance (1982)
4.5 Defenders of the Faith (1984)
3.5 Turbo (1986)
4.0 Ram It Down (1988)
5.0 Painkiller (1990)
4.5 Jugulator (1997)
2.0 Demolition (2001)
4.0 Angel of Retribution (2005)
4.0 Nostradamus (2008)
2.5 Redeemer of Souls (2014)
4.0 Firepower (2018)
Point of Entry stands out in a bad way so obviously. What a weird album. - Joe
Judas Priest from 78 to 81 was the music we listened To at parties and driving . Classic metal . And Halford still had a full range from low to high
1. British Steel
2. Screaming for Vengeance
3. Sad Wings of Destiny
4. Painkiller
5. Stained Class
6. Killing Machine
7. Sin After Sin
8. Turbo
9. Point of Entry
10. Rocka Rolla
From the perspective of a metalhead (though priest has never been a big favorite of mine, I prefer a bunch of more modern stuff):
1. Screaming for vengeance
2. Defenders of the faith
3. Stained class
4. Painkiller
5. Sin after sin
6. British still
7. Killing machine
8. Sad wings of destiny
9. Firepower
10. Turbo
11. Angel of retribution
12. Point of entry
13. Redeemer of souls
14. Jagulator
15. Nostradamus
16. Ram it down
17. Rocka Rolla
18. Demolition
18. Jugulator (1997)
17. Demolition (2001)
16. Nostradamus (2008)
15. Rocka Rolla (1974)
14. Angel Of Retribution (2005)
13. Redeemer Of Souls (2014)
12.Ram It Down (1988)
11. Turbo (1986)
10. British Steel (1980)
9. Point Of Entry (1981)
8. Killing Machine (1978)
7. Firepower (2018)
6. Defenders Of The Faith (1984)
5. Painkiller (1990)
4. Sin After Sin (1977)
3. Stained Class (1978)
2..Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976)
1. Screaming For Vengeance (1982)
Awesome band but hard to rank as I would consider many of these top 10 albums around 4-4.5 stars..
1. Painkiller (1990)
2. Stained Class (1978)
3. Defenders of The Faith (1984)
4. Sad Wings of Destiny (1976)
5. Firepower (2018)
6. Screaming for Vengeance (1982)
7. Hell Bent for Leather (1979)
8. Sin After Sin (1977)
9. British Steel (1980)
10. Angel of Retribution (2005)
11. Redeemer of Souls (2014)
12. Rocka Rolla (1974)
13. Point of Entry (1981)
14. Nostradamus (2008)
15. Ram It Down (1988)
16. Turbo (1986)
17. Jugulator (1997)
18. Demolition (2001)
As a lifelong JP fan I find your collective reviews harsh, however I appreciate the honesty of young guys who are not die hard fans. I struggle to rank every album, but I can list my top 5 and bottom 5 based solely on what albums I actually listen to 20 years later:
TOP 5
- Angel (dark, clean, balanced, amazing guitar work)
- Screaming (Break through)
- Defenders (Dark, dramatic)
- point of entry (Great album to drive to)
- Demolition (Awesome heavy riffs. A remaster would change MANY people’s opinions. Old heads hate it primarily for the programming, but JP has used programming going back to 80s)
BOTTOM 5
- Redeemer (Complete MESS)
- Nostradamus (Boring)
- Jugulator (Cool heavy ideas but collectively worse lyrics than Demolition, some songs reuse riffs and hooks with the notes and words changed)
- rocka rolla (meh)
- Invincible Shield (Weirdly religious, primitive repetitive forgettable riffs, desperately chasing the prog-rock fad)
I appreciate your honesty. But I’m going to need at least 12 months to wrap my head around your list. - Joe
@@TastesLikeMusicOk next year then
1. Screaming for Vengeance (5 stars)
2. Sin After Sin (5 stars)
3. Sad Wings of Destiny (4.5 stars)
4. British Steel (4.5 stats)
5. Painkiller (4 stars)
6. Stained Class (4 stars)
7. Defenders of the Faith (4 stars)
8. Hell Bent for Leather (4 stars)
9. Redeemer of Souls (3.5 stars)
10. Point of Entry (3.5 stars)
11. Angels of Retribution (3.5 stars)
12. Turbo (3 stars)
13. Firepower (3 stars)
14. Rocka Rolla (2.5 stars)
15. Ram It Down (2.5 stars)
16. Nostradamus (2 stars)
17. Jugulator (1.5 stars)
18. Demolition ( 1 star)
Redeemer higher than Firepower? "Is it love or am I dreamin'? "
Rewatching this after a few drinks. Joe and Kramzers reaction to where Jason placed Painkiller is priceless.
Jason putting Painkiller at 12 = OUCH.
But I also get it. I would rate it higher, but not as high as some Priest fans do. It *is* a bit of a bummer that they kind of struggle around trying to match up to this sound from 1990 ever since.
Kram putting Stained Class so low was a bit of an OUCH surprise too. haha...i figured at least one of you would have it up at the top, and Kram is usually "my guy" when it comes to these these lists and sharing opinions, but I'm very much with Jason this week I think, aside from the Painkiller thing. Joe definitely has the "right idea", too. Screaming... is their best album of the 80s
I'm usually pretty interested in the bottom picks from these lists as there tends to be diversity of opinion and it also is often stuff from discographies I haven't heard. i used to own Jugulator but never bothered with Demolition when it came out, and now I think it's pretty rare (though obviously can be found online). The Priest albums belonging at the bottom seem almost unanimous across not only you guys but the entire fanbase and beyond.
My favourite is the S trilogy from the 70s. I kind of want to put it all together at the top three, but I suppose Screaming for Vengeance and Painkiller might interrupt them and altogether they would make up my top 5. Stained Class is, without a single doubt in my mind, their very best album. I don't just consider it a precursor to thrash or something: It's a monumental achievement of 70s rock and metal, full of character, personalitya nd passion. Also Les was incredible on drums. even though I'm not a guitarist I know both solo sections of "Beyond the Realms of Death" by heart. Title track is amazing. "Saints in hell" is monstrously heavy. "Savage" is great with some really smart lyrics. 'White Heat Red Hot" grooves like nobody's business. It's their real 5* album if you ask me.
Strangely, I think jason is sort of right about Sad Wings' production, but it doesn't hold it back from being near the top. Actually, after Painkiller and some 2CD compilation, Rocka Rolla and Sad Wings were my earliest Priest purchases. everything you all said about Rocka Rolla being a bit of an "also ran" 70s rock album is true, but I still think it's a good album, and would probably go somewhere around my number 7 spot. "One for the Road" is a great opener with its catchy riff and odd 5/4 timing, but the album actually seems to get better as it goes on. BTW I trust Kram saying it was "run of the mill" was no accident. Very cool song though. How come they could write smart lyrics early on but just gave it up by Painkiller? Oh well.
I feel like people don't even know Priest when they continue to rank Painkiller so highly. It seems to me that its mostly a younger generation that do so. I grew up in the 70s and 80s, and to me that was their best sound, their best music. I never cared much for the Painkiller album. Too big of a shift away from their best music.
Tough to say for certain what their best album is for me, since they have so much great music spread out over so many albums. But i would have to say that Screaming for Vengeance, British Steel, Sad Wings of Destiny and Sin After Sin are their best albums. Maybe Defenders of the Faith to round out their top 5 albums.
I don’t think Painkiller is that big of a change. - Joe
@@TastesLikeMusic that's not the opinion that myself and friends who grew up on JP had. They went from heavy metal to thrash metal. Was a big change...but i know JP did a lot of different things over the years. That sort of metal on Painkiller never appealed to me.
I've never listened to Judas Priest (or Iron Maiden) so this was a great episode to watch. I have always listened to other music and other forms of metal but I'll listen to the top picks from each and do some catching up.
Nice commentary about Turbo. I was in 9th grade when it came out. It was no big deal. It was expected for the veteran bands to try to move forward and shake things up at that time. It was the time to try. What else are you going to do?
I'm on my way to Jason's house with a copy of Painkiller and Defenders of the Faith, and we are just gonna listen to them repeatedly until he realizes how wrong he is.
Take Killing Machine and Screaming For Vengeance with you as well. My only problem with Jason is for me he’s always concentrated too much on production instead of the actual songs. Production should come second to the material, at least for me. This is still the best music channel on TH-cam imo
Great video. I've definitely come to enjoy the 70's Priest more than any other era of the band. I just love the sonic variety of the material - which after Point of Entry really disappears. I'll never understand the retroactive appreciation for Turbo. We hated it when it came out and hate it now :) The synth guitars and cheesy Twisted Sister vibe just kill any hope that record had.
Going in-
18: Nostradomus (The only Priest Album I Hate)
17: Point of Entry
16: Demolition
15: Jugulator
14: Firepower
13: Redeemer of Souls
12: Angel of Retribution
11: Ram it down
10: Turbo
9: Defenders of the Faith
8: Rocka Rolla
7: Screaming for Vengeance
6: Painkiller
5: Sin after Sin
4: British Steel
3: Sad Wings of Destiny
2: Killing Machine
1: Stained Class
Always loved Priest, got to see them with Sabaton last year.
5. Killing Machine
4. British Steel
3. Screaming for Vengeance
2. Stained Class
1. Sad Wings of Destiny
18. Jugulator
17. Demolition (last 2 are interchangeably horrible)
16. Ram it down
15. Nostradamus
14. Redeemer of souls
13. Turbo
12. Rocka Rolla
11. Firepower
10. Hell bent for leather
09. Angel of retribution
08. Screaming for vengeance
07. Painkiller
06. Point of entry
05. Sad wings of destiny
04. Sin after sin
03. British steel
02. Defenders of the faith
01. Stained class
Damn, I just got my computer fixed and I'm loading all my cd's onto it and I just ripped Unleashed in the East and I see this. Love Priest so much, thanks for doing this guys!
My top 10:
1. Stained Class
2. Sad Wings of Destiny
3. Sin After Sin
4. Screaming for Vengeance
5. Killing Machine (Hell Bent for Leather)
6. Point of Entry
7. British Steel
8. Defenders of the Faith
9. Painkiller
10. Firepower
Not even the biggest Priest fan … but Halford one of rock’s greatest musicians during their heyday. Incredibly special talent. And watch that live footage from the early 80s …. His intensity. Performing like his life was on the line. ❤
Good stuff!
I like this ranking series you guys do a lot, but just curious if you've ever considered going through the albums chronologically and have each of you give the ranking that way? I feel like the videos might flow a bit better with each person giving their thoughts on the album in a row instead of kinda rehashing things as each album gets brought up 3 times
Just a thought, cheers!
I think that's an interesting idea, but I also think the TLM guys handle this issue masterfully.
We’ve discussed that maybe for future endeavors less about ranking albums and more about going through a band’s history. - Joe
@@TastesLikeMusic That sounds great to me. You could all rate their albums the three of you together as you go along too (and even give your rankings if you want).
The ranking the way they do it now is more fun I think.
I've seen some other youtubers do that, and it can be effective...
But I do think in general I preer it the way Tastes like Listography does it.
I think it might be good for certain bands, maybe. That way you can really see the evolution of the artists, talk about who joined and left a band, etc.
But I don't know. Maybea mix of both?
Joe I agree with you completely on your British Steel take. Me and you pretty much line up perfectly on that album.
1. Screaming for Vengeance 5
2. Stained Class 5
3. Hell Bent for Leather 5
4. Defenders of the Faith 5
5. British Steel 4.5
6. Painkiller 4.5
7. Sin After Sin 4.5
8. Sad Wings of Destiny 4
9. Angel of Retribution 4
10. Turbo 3.5
11. Point of Entry 3
12. Rocka Rolla 3
13. Ram it Down 3
14. Redeemer of Souls 3
15. Firepower 3
16. Nostradamus 1.5
17. Jugulator 1.5
18. Demolition 1
Jason this is one of your best performances. The correct number one, and you corrected Kram on dreamer deceiver. If Halford had sounded that good on later albums i'd be a bigger fan.
He's got right albums in top 3, even though the scores way off.
That's absolute crazy talk.
Unleash the Beast in the East, with Priest!
Priest! The name itself conjures up images of metal history, metal Gods, faith defenders, sentinels & jugulators! That run of albums from Sad Wings to Defenders is their legend really, classic albums.
I saw them only once, Dublin 2009 with Testament and Megadeth. Deep into Nostradamus era.They were quite Spinal Tap in a way, but the definition of heavy metal in another. All hail the Priest!
I wonder where you guys would rank the new one? It’s really good
Would be my 10. - Joe
Stained Class-Redefined what “metal” was at the time and influenced an entirely new generation of metal heads/bands with a flawless representation of an album. This album is their “Kill em’ All” equivalent.
Painkiller-Redefined metal yet again over a decade later influencing yet another generation of metal heads with what is possibly the bands greatest achievement. This album is their “Master of Puppets” equivalent.
Enjoyed this, even though I'm not really a fan but their Painkiller album is amazing, so I'll be buying my first album of theirs very soon.
Larry I really recommend for me sad wings of destiny and stained class its to die for
Turbo next to sad wings, love them both but I never thought they’d ever be so close in a ranking. Rock on lads.
Joe ma man! You hit the nail on the head about British Steel! The Priest, although a monumentally geat band, have a boatload of compromise (sellout?) in their catalog, and this was the beginning of it all. And Les Binks was their best drummer!
18. Turbo
17. Ram it Down
16. Rocka Rolla
15. Demolition
14. Jugulator
13. Redeemer of Souls
12. Nostradamus
11. Angel of Retribution
10. Point of Entry
9. Fire Power
8. British Steel
7. Hell Bent for Leather
6. Screaming for Vengeance
5. Defenders of the Faith
4. Painkiller
3. Sin After Sin
2. Stained Class
1. Sad Wings of Destiny
My Top 3 JUDAS PRIEST Albums :
3. Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976)
2. Stained Class (1978)
1. Screaming For Vengeance (1982)
here we go
18 jugulator 3 .0 stars
17 nostradamus 3.0
16 angel of retribution 3.0
15 turbo 3.0+
14 painkiller 3.0+
13 ram it down 3.0+
12 point of entry 3.0+
11 rocka rolla 3.5-
10 demolition 3.5 -
9 firepower 3.5
8 redemmer of souls 3.5 +
7 defenders of the faith 3.5 +
6 stained class 4.0
5 hell bent for leather [killing machine] 4.0
4 sin after sin 4.0+
3 british steel 5.0 stars
2 screaming for vengance 5.0
1 sad wings of destiny 5.0
those top 3 swap all the time and will again im sure
fun listen !!! lots of songs to rank Cheers!! WHO DEY !! WHO DEY!!!🐯🐯
PS usa -england tie , sorry to my matey ⚽⚽kinda!! TEE HEE
Painkiller sooooo low 😭. Now your comment on my list makes more sense lol. All part of the fun!
@@Vanessa.P yes we need to keep each other on their toes lol🐯🐯
Looking forward to the video, gotta wait, at the WASP/Armored Saint 40th Anniversary show in Atlanta at the moment,,,,
Thank you guys. Love your lists.
1. Stained Class
2. Painkiller
3. Screaming for Vengence
4. British Steel
5. Jugulator
6. Firepower
7. Redeemer of Souls
8. Defenders of the Faith
9. Sad Wings of Destiny
10. Killing Machine
11. Ram It Down
12. Point of Entry
13. Sin After Sin
14. Rocka Rolla
15. Angel of Retribution
16. Nostradamus
17. Demolition
18. Turbo
Yes Jason, Sad Wings #1 !
All hear my warning
Never turn your back
On the ranker
I'm a big priest fan....
5. Firepower
4. Defenders of the Faith
3. Turbo
2. Screaming for Vengeance
1. Painkiller
My all time favorite Metal band and the true definition of Heavy Metal encapsulated in an outfit.
Also Firepower is far better than Jason & Kram give it credit for.
The tune ‘Lone Wolf’ is one of the best Priest tunes in many years. The fact that Jason says that the last twenty minutes of the record is tired shows that he just doesn’t get it, especially ranking ‘Angel of Retribution’ higher than ‘Firepower’ is completely off the mark…also the three greatest Priest Lp’s IMHO are ‘Sad Wings of Destiny’, ‘Stained Class’ and ‘Hell Bent for Leather(Killing Machine)’ in that order with ‘Sin After Sun’ coming in a close 4th, Dissident Aggressor is one of their greatest ever, saw them play it live when they added it to their set in 2008 for the Metal Masters Tour they did with Heaven & Hell, Motörhead and Testament …Honestly one of my favorite Priest Lp’s is the live ‘Unleashed In The East’ for sheer powerful performances of the greatest tunes of their 70’s era…and props to Joe on giving Les Binks props as one of the most underrated drummers of all time, also his reverence of ‘The Rage’ which is a really great album cut, probably my favorite tune on ‘British Steel’
Great episode guys. 🤘
Just found the channel. My list would be:
1 - Sad Wings of Destiny
2 - Point of Entry
3 - Stained Class
4 - Sin After Sin
5 - Turbo
6 - Screaming for Vengeance
7 - British Steel
8 - Defenders of the Faith
9 - Invincible Shield
10 - Firepower
11 - Ram It Down
12 - Painkiller
13 - Nostradamus
14 - Hell Bent for Leather
15 - Rocka Rolla
16 - Angel of Retribution
17 - Redeemer of Souls
18 - Demolition
19 - Jugulator
I really like Tim Owens' voice, but the songs on those two albums just weren't great. I started listening to Priest back in 86 when Turbo came out and now they're one of my favorite bands.
For once I have to agree with Jason. Never cared for Painkiller and it definitely marks the end of 'fun' Priest.
Fantastic show, really well done 👍
Kramzer...rainbow sucks...what?...yikes....I agree with Jason that sad wings, and sin after sin are my favourites...although hellion/electric eye might be my favourite track...diamonds and rust a close second...thanks for delivering the goods guys...cheers
I thought it was interesting that Kramzer cringed when Joey said "British Steel" #9 when he had just nominated "Sad Wings" for his #9 which is a much crazier opinion lol.. Specially when you consider he has Turbo above it. And then of course, Joey goes and make Sad Wings his #8, also below Turbo. What a troupe!
Incredibly enough the only list that made a little bit of sense to me (with a few exceptions) was Jason's
If you think the best Priest album is 3.5 stars then you’re the crazy one. - Joe
Funny, as I listen to the different lists, I find myself vehemently agreeing and disagreeing with all 3 guys at different points. My list doesn't really fall in lockstep with diehard fans. Really do like a lot of the individual songs as we'll see in the songs episode.
18. Jugulator
17. Ram It Down
16. Demolition
15. Nostradamus
14. Turbo
13. Painkiller
12. Rocka Rolla
11. Point Of Entry
10. Redeemer Of Souls
9. Firepower
8. Sad Wings Of Destiny
7. Stained Class
6. Angel Of Retribution
5. Defenders Of The Faith
4. Sin After Sin
3. Hell Bent For Leather
2. Screaming For Vengeance
1. British Steel
1. Sad Wings...
2. Rocka Rolla
3. Screaming for...
4. Sin after Sin
5. Defenders...
Killing Machine is the best Judas Priest album, it has the best of everything and Evening Star is also great. At least Martin Popoff agrees with me about that album though Joe placing it at 5 was reassuring.
Worst Jugulator.
Most overrated is Firepower.
Most underrated is Ram It Down.
Jason has lost his marbles too though I like where he put Point Of Entry. Nothing wrong with it.
Not that I always agree with him but Kramzer was great here.
The "coolest band name ever" can thank Bob Dylan for that("ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest"). Would go thru his discography,but I'm just too pissed the lost to Blue Oyster Cult. I had the live album and British Steel in high school,but they faded for me pretty quick. Will list a top 10 songs tomorrow
Love that song!
I saw priest with Ripper Owens on the demolition tour. I was like 17-18. It was awesome. He's not Halford, but they were metal gods that night.
1. Stained Class
2. Sad Wings
3. Killing Machine/Hell Bent
4. Sin After Sin
5. Defenders of the Faith
6. Screaming for Vengeance
7. Painkiller
8. British Steel
9. Firepower
10. Point of Entry
11. Jugulator
12. Turbo
13. Ram It Down
14. Angel of Retribution
15. Redeemer of Souls
16. Rocka Rolla
17. Nostradamus
18. Demolition
Yes I hold 70s Priest in that high regard
Great list! I would have Angel of Retribution higher.
I discovered Judas Priest on Screaming For Vengeance. So, this is the era of Priest I prefer. I would say my top 5 is pretty solid as are my bottom 4 or 5. The middle bit can change depending on my mood. Also, my real #3 Priest album is Unleashed in the East. Worst to best:
Demolition
Jugulator
Nostradamus
Angel of Retribution
Redeemer of Souls
Ram It Down
Point of Entry
Rocka Rolla
Firepower
Turbo
Defenders of The Faith
Painkiller
Sin After Sin
Stained Class
Killing Machine (aka Hell Bent For Leather)
Sad Wings of Destiny
Screaming For Vengeance
British Steel
🤠 PRIEST!!!!!!!!!!
That is all.
🎉 two more albums and I’ll have full ranking
Yes Jason!! RAINBOW RISING ROCKS!!!
Stand by for EXCITEEEEEEEEEERRR!!!!
Here’s probably the Listography Of The Year!!
BRING IT ON FOR THE METAL GODS!!!
(…and cut Ram It Down some slack, please. I love it!!!…)
I wish I liked Ram it Down more. For me only title track, Heavy Metal and Blood Red Skies - the rest aren't special.
And I agree with Joe on British Steel, similar list
"Take a Friend" Jason? (The Rush song you're thinking of)..........................Great episode......one of my favorite bands I've seen live (81-82)...Sad Wings and Rocka Rolla are my top 2.
Oh that could be it. Rush's "Circumstances" reminds me of JP a bit.
I'm a defender of "Redeemer of souls ". It's not fantastic, or my favorite...but it's nutz, and it's them finding their voice again. "Halls of Valhalla" is a top 10 Judas track for me!
The actor in Nightmare 2 you're talking about Kram is Marshall Bell
Y’all need to do a video with this much quality for the Beatles. If any band deserves it, it’s them. That is all I will say. I hold my peace. Get busy…
Jugulator is an extremely underrated album...
It’s my number 18 same as Kramzer, it sucks
@@JCStorm76 You're sucks. Jugulator is excellent.