Stained Class is the fourth album by the British
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
group
Judas PriestJudas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, formed in 1969. Judas Priest's core line-up consists of bass player Ian Hill, vocalist Rob Halford and guitarists Glenn Tipton and K. K. Downing. The band has gone through several drummers, though Scott Travis has held the position since...
, released in February 1978. A popular album in the band's catalogue,
Stained Class showcased a more streamlined songwriting style while not compromising on the band's trademark heavy metal riffs. The production is crisper, clearer, and cleaner than any of their preceding albums. This is the only Judas Priest album to feature songwriting by all five members (one of
Ian HillIan Hill is a founding member and bassist for the Birmingham-based heavy metal band, Judas Priest.-Biography:...
's few contributions to the songwriting process for the band, and the sole contribution thereof by then-drummer
Les BinksJames Leslie Binks , better known as Les Binks, is an Northern Irish heavy metal drummer. Born in Portadown, Northern Ireland he is most notable for having been the drummer for Judas Priest.-Before Judas Priest:...
- the guitar riff for Beyond the Realms of Death).
Stained Class is the fourth album by the British
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
group
Judas PriestJudas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, formed in 1969. Judas Priest's core line-up consists of bass player Ian Hill, vocalist Rob Halford and guitarists Glenn Tipton and K. K. Downing. The band has gone through several drummers, though Scott Travis has held the position since...
, released in February 1978. A popular album in the band's catalogue,
Stained Class showcased a more streamlined songwriting style while not compromising on the band's trademark heavy metal riffs. The production is crisper, clearer, and cleaner than any of their preceding albums. This is the only Judas Priest album to feature songwriting by all five members (one of
Ian HillIan Hill is a founding member and bassist for the Birmingham-based heavy metal band, Judas Priest.-Biography:...
's few contributions to the songwriting process for the band, and the sole contribution thereof by then-drummer
Les BinksJames Leslie Binks , better known as Les Binks, is an Northern Irish heavy metal drummer. Born in Portadown, Northern Ireland he is most notable for having been the drummer for Judas Priest.-Before Judas Priest:...
- the guitar riff for Beyond the Realms of Death). Following this album the band broke its songwriting team down to
Rob HalfordRobert John Arthur Halford is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist for the heavy metal band Judas Priest. Halford has a nearly four octave vocal range, having recorded notes from D2 to B5 . He is one of the most respected singers of heavy metal and rock music with a...
, K.K. Downing and
Glenn TiptonGlenn Raymond Tipton is one of the guitarists for the British heavy metal band Judas Priest...
, with occasional contributions solely by Tipton.
The sleeve artwork, by Roslav Szaybo at CBS Records, introduced their classic logo, replacing the
Gothic ScriptBlackletter, also known as Gothic script or Gothic minuscule, was a script used throughout Western Europe from approximately 1150 to 1500. It continued to be used for the German language until the 20th century. Fraktur is a notable script of this type, and sometimes the entire group of faces is...
logo of earlier releases.
Stained Class is considered by many to be the last of the four "classic" Judas Priest albums. It was highly influential in the development of the
speed metalSpeed metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music originating in the early 1980s, rooted in the NWOBHM. It is described by the Allmusic site as "extremely fast, abrasive, and technically demanding" music...
subgenre and was the first Judas Priest album to dent the
Billboard 200The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling new music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. The album was remastered in 2001, with two bonus tracks added. In 2004, UK magazine Metal Hammer named
Stained Class the heaviest metal album of all time.
An unfortunate legacy of
Stained Class is the 1990 civil action brought against the band by the family of a teenager, James Vance, who entered a suicide pact with his friend Ray Belknap after listening to "
Better By You, Better Than Me"Better By You, Better Than Me" is a song by British heavy metal band Judas Priest. The song was originally performed by the band Spooky Tooth and written by its keyboardist Gary Wright....
" on December 23, 1985. Belknap succeeded in killing himself, and Vance was left horribly disfigured. The suit alleged that the band recorded subliminal messages on the song that said "do it". The suit was eventually dismissed.
Track listing
All songs written by
Rob HalfordRobert John Arthur Halford is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist for the heavy metal band Judas Priest. Halford has a nearly four octave vocal range, having recorded notes from D2 to B5 . He is one of the most respected singers of heavy metal and rock music with a...
and
Glenn TiptonGlenn Raymond Tipton is one of the guitarists for the British heavy metal band Judas Priest...
, and produced by Dennis Mackay except where noted.
- "Exciter" – 5:34
- "White Heat, Red Hot" (Tipton) – 4:20
- "Better By You, Better Than Me
"Better By You, Better Than Me" is a song by British heavy metal band Judas Priest. The song was originally performed by the band Spooky Tooth and written by its keyboardist Gary Wright....
" (Gary WrightGary Wright , Cresskill, New Jersey, U.S.) is an American musician, probably best known for his song, "Dream Weaver". He was the piano player on Harry Nilsson's version of "Without You". He currently resides in Palos Verdes Estates, California with wife Rose. He has two adult sons, Dorian and...
) – 3:24 (Produced by Judas Priest and James Guthrie)
- "Stained Class" – 5:19
- "Invader" (Halford, Tipton, Ian Hill
Ian Hill is a founding member and bassist for the Birmingham-based heavy metal band, Judas Priest.-Biography:...
) – 4:12
- "Saints in Hell" (Halford, K.K. Downing, Tipton) – 5:30
- "Savage" (Halford, Downing) – 3:27
- "Beyond the Realms of Death
"Beyond the Realms of Death" is the 8th song from the album Stained Class, by British heavy metal band Judas Priest.It was the only Judas Priest song co-written by the band's drummer Les Binks, and according to K.K...
" (Halford, Les BinksJames Leslie Binks , better known as Les Binks, is an Northern Irish heavy metal drummer. Born in Portadown, Northern Ireland he is most notable for having been the drummer for Judas Priest.-Before Judas Priest:...
) – 6:53
- "Heroes End" (Tipton) – 5:01
2001 Bonus Tracks
- "Fire Burns Below" (Recorded during the 1988 Ram it Down
Ram It Down was the 11th studio album recorded and released by Judas Priest, which was released in 1988. Ram It Down was remastered in 2001, with two live tracks added....
sessions) – 6:58
- "Better By You, Better Than Me" (Wright) (Live at Foundation's Forum, Los Angeles CA, September 13, 1990) – 3:40
Personnel
- Rob Halford
Robert John Arthur Halford is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist for the heavy metal band Judas Priest. Halford has a nearly four octave vocal range, having recorded notes from D2 to B5 . He is one of the most respected singers of heavy metal and rock music with a...
: lead vocals
- K.K. Downing: guitar
The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that adapts readily to a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four-, seven-, eight-, ten-, eleven-, twelve-, thirteen- and eighteen-string guitars also exist. The size and shape of the neck and the base of the guitar...
s
- Glenn Tipton
Glenn Raymond Tipton is one of the guitarists for the British heavy metal band Judas Priest...
: guitars, backing vocals
- Ian Hill
Ian Hill is a founding member and bassist for the Birmingham-based heavy metal band, Judas Priest.-Biography:...
: bass guitarThe electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum....
- Les Binks
James Leslie Binks , better known as Les Binks, is an Northern Irish heavy metal drummer. Born in Portadown, Northern Ireland he is most notable for having been the drummer for Judas Priest.-Before Judas Priest:...
: drumsA drum set is a collection of drums, cymbals and sometimes other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person . The term "drum kit" first became used in the 1700s in Britain...
Charts
Billboard (North America)
| Year |
Chart |
Position |
| 1978 |
Pop Albums |
173 |
External links