By: Adam Grant : Judas Priest

 There are very few figures in the history of music that can honestly proclaim that they had a hand in creating a style that has since been embraced by millions upon the planet.  This style is metal – it has pissed parents off for decades – and one of the leather-clad men behind it is Judas Priest front man and solo artist Rob Halford.

“Priest and probably Black Sabbath were at the forefront of inventing this style of music,” confirms Halford.  “We didn’t really have any other metal bands around us for inspiration and influence.”

 Maybe aside from God given talent, what separates a legend from someone who is simply revered for what they do, is being responsible for the creation of something un-yet witnessed by anyone.  With little to go on externally during his early days with Judas Priest, Halford largely fell back on the time he spent within choir groups and stage presentations – that he took part in throughout his scholastic years – in order to develop a vocal technique and live persona that rang of power and risk.

 Unlike their brooding cohorts in Black Sabbath that sounded about as dark as they looked, Priest would speed up the metal genre sonically, have a vocalist with a glass shattering falsetto scream and begin to dawn stage attire that centered on Halford’s appreciation for mass amounts of leather, studs and spikes.  Back in 1974, this look and sound was still curious to some, but would ultimately prove beneficial for the band, as 6 studio albums and 1 live album would be put forth to the public, paving the way for their commercial breakthrough, 1980’s “British Steel.”

“I think “British Steel” is a pretty good record to use,” recalls Halford during a recent visit to Toronto when asked about Judas Priest’s turning point.   “A lot of people when they look at Priest cite “Sad Wings of Destiny” as being a very definitive moment for the style and the metal of Priest.  After that we had “Sin After Sin,” “Stained Class,” “Killing Machine,” but by the time “British Steel” came along, the work I was doing with Priest was secured on a global, international level, which put us in the scenario now that when we go on world tours, it takes 18 months to 2 years to play to everybody, because Priest is a phenomenon around the planet.

“We worked our balls off, and we still do now,” he continues.  “We had nothing going for us, but the music – when we were in the band together, we liked each other’s company, we were making music that nobody else was doing and that’s what really started the whole metal ball rolling.”

Even though Priest got the ball rolling, they did experience their own level of turbulence.  1992 would see Halford depart the group for a number of years to explore new creative outlets.  During this span of 10+ years away from Priest, Halford would form three essentially solo projects – Fight, Two, and then Halford – and after much speculation, announce to the world that he was in fact gay.  Certainly these years away from Priest proved to be productive for Halford, if not a great way to further establish his individuality.

 By the time 2003 rolled around, Priest – in a time when modern metal was truly booming in the marketplace – re-formed with Halford for 2004’s “Angel of Retribution,” thus bringing their vocalist’s career back around full-circle.  Perhaps in celebration of this, Halford decided that 2007 would be the year to give back to his fans in the form of “Halford Metal God Essentials – Volume 1,” which happens to be a collection his solo career’s greatest highlights to date.

“You (have to) keep your head secure – you don’t let anything inflate your ego or change you as a person, which is something that I have witnessed in certain players when they hit a level,” says Halford in regard to how he has handled decades of fame and success.  “It can be very difficult to cope – that’s when you have the drama and the tragedy sometimes, so you just have to stay focused.

“When you become successful, whether you like it or not, you have to become responsible because you have a fan base that is supporting you and you answer not only to yourself, but to them,” he elaborates.  “When you’re in this arena, if you can try and remain as basically straight-forward and honest as you were when you kicked off, I think that’s a great help.  It’s a great foundation to keep your ego in check.”

For more information on Rob Halford, and to check out a couple of his tracks, please visit http://www.myspace.com/robhalford