Welcome to another edition of From My Collection. Today, we go back in time 45 years and a day. After a few years of hard gigging, and a confusing album of psychedelic metal (Rocka Rolla), Judas Priest have finally found their footing. They were worlds away from being billed “Metal Gods”, and even from finding their own leather studded identity, but Sad Wings of Destiny was the first step in that direction. In this week’s essay, I’ll examine how Sad Wings of Destiny builds upon Judas Priest’s shaky past, while simultaneously showcasing a gleaming, metallic future.
Judas Priest’s was heavy metal’s middle child. They lay smack dab between the genre’s inception (Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, etc.) and the NWOBHM. One could say they same for UFO, but even they began recording as early as 1970, albeit in the space rock vein. Unlike UFO, who wouldn’t assume metal status until the arrival of Michael Schenker come 1973, Judas Priest was formed with the full intention of being a metal band. Despite being drenched in a fondue of blues, prog, and psych, the riffs on Priest’s debut album, Rocka Rolla, are metal. It’s metal straight from the school of Sabbath and Budgie.
As enjoyable as Priest’s worship on Rocka Rolla is, the band knew they couldn’t rely on being “Black Sabbath Jr.” or “Budgie Jr.” alone. Hence a novel idea arose. “Instead of trying to sound like *insert inspiration here*, how about we just try and sound like ourselves?” Bingo. As simple as this idea might be, it’s harder than it sounds. Most bands fall into the trap of relying too heavily on imitation when recording their debut album. Remember Rush’s self titled debut? Before becoming the pioneers of prog metal, Rush were merely a Led Zeppelin worship band. Ironically, their debut came out the same year as Rocka Rolla, but I digress.
When it came to Sad Wings of Destiny, Priest made some drastic changes (no pun intended). For one, they abandoned the big, clunky riffs of Rocka Rolla. Instead, they resorted to the “gallop riff”, or a variation of such. Made popular by bands like UFO and Nazareth, gallop riffing would soon become as much of a metal mainstay as double bass drumming and operatic vocals, big part in thanks to this album. Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing would also join forces to become the greatest guitar duo of all time. Sure twin guitars were a thing before Priest. Wishbone Ash pioneered the practice, using them to create atmosphere on their medieval themed epics. Thin Lizzy took it a step further, putting emphasis on the melody and in turn creating the finest feel good hard rock known to man. Tipton and Downing lay somewhere in between. Their guitars were simultaneously atmospheric and melodic, yet far darker than Ash and Lizzy. The sinister work heard on “The Ripper” and “Tyrant” is at least 5 years ahead of its time.
Priest had not completely abandoned their progressive leanings. They wouldn’t do so until 1978’s Killing Machine. That said, in the span of time between Rocka Rolla and Sad Wings, they learned how to utilize these prog-isms to maximum effect. Take the masterpiece “Dreamer Deceiver / Deceiver” for example. The first song in this suite is typical of 70s progressive rock. Acoustic guitar and piano serves as a backdrop to Rob Halford’s fantasy themed lyrics. Halford’s voice begins in a gentle low register, before building up to a series of operatic shrieks. It’s everything Ian Gillan and David Byron worked to achieve in the first half of the decade times 10. As a final shriek segues into “Deceiver”, the band goes straight for the jugular, unleashing their proto-NWOBHM attack. Other tracks that showcase Priest’s prog side are “Prelude”, the instrumental intro to “Tyrant”, and “Epitaph”, a piano ballad which sounds like a cross between Queen and White Album era Beatles.
The final element that makes Sad Wings of Destiny one of the quintessential metal albums is the packaging of the album itself. Heavy metal is more than just music. It’s an ethos. The imagery and presentation of the band has to be as convincing as the music itself and vice versa. When we look at the cover art for Priest’s debut, Rocka Rolla, we’d never guess they were a metal band. We’re greeted by a playful take on the Coca-Cola logo and can best assume this is some prog/psych in the vein of Camel or Gentle Giant. It’s proof that the name “Judas Priest” alone, as metal as it sounds on paper, wasn’t enough to persuade listeners. But take the “Judas Priest” name and put it in an English gothic font and that’s another story. Now slap that logo onto a painting of a fallen angel descending into hell which could pass as classical art and voila. Every time the needle drops on “Victim of Changes”, I can’t help but gaze at that cover. I imagine the fade in of Tipton and Downing’s guitars being the soundtrack to that very angel’s descent into the underworld. I’m sure I’m looking too deep into this, but a little imagination never hurt anyone.
For any other band, an album like Sad Wings of Destiny would be the highlight of their career. For Judas Priest, it was only the beginning. They’d spend the next 45 years building upon the foundation laid down by this album. Even at this age and stage in their career, they continue to outdo themselves. Their last album, Firepower, is considered to be one of the finest metal albums of the 2010s. This is no surprise. Priest doesn’t take being excellent songwriters and musicians for granted. They’re still guided by the same spirit of creativity which fueled Sad Wings of Destiny. So long as Priest lives, so shall that spirit.