Judas Priest revives 'Steel'

Released in 1980, "British Steel" made Judas Priest fixtures of rock radio in the United States. (Credit: Sony Music Entertainment)

When musicians dust off a long-ago album and play it from beginning to end, an underexposed song can become an instant classic.

“Don’t Have to be Old to be Wise” rose to the occasion Monday night at the Murat Theatre, where Judas Priest performed every tune from 1980’s “British Steel” album.

Rocketing on a high-toned, polished riff that evidently foreshadowed Motley Crue’s “Looks That Kill,” “Wise” couldn’t compete with breakout singles “Breaking the Law” and “Living After Midnight” at the time — yet it was something to cherish for kids who spun “British Steel” again and again on vinyl.

Those youngsters probably weren’t girls, judging from masculine sing-alongs at the Murat.

Vocalist Rob Halford, age 57, didn’t add the winking phrase “But it helps” to the title of “Don’t Have to be Old to be Wise” because he’s consistently serious about Priest’s metal legacy.

“Our music lives forever, thanks to fans like you,” he told the rowdy, modest-sized crowd.

“British Steel” made Halford and his band mates stars in the United States, but they’re playing the album in the running order of the U.K. release, meaning “Rapid Fire” opened the show instead of “Breaking the Law.”

“Metal Gods” arrived in the No. 2 slot instead of No. 3, allowing Halford to mock the song’s encroaching machines by walking robotically and shoveling coal into a phantom furnace while Glenn Tipton choreographed each dip of his guitar.

Sporting tattoos on each side of his head and a studded denim vest over a leather jacket, Halford pronounced the evening as the “world premiere of British Steel Live.” The show served as an amped-up dress rehearsal for Priest’s summer tour, which begins Wednesday in a Missouri basketball arena with Whitesnake on board as the opening act.

Monday’s performance began at 7:50 p.m. and a relieved Halford said, “We made it,” when the nine songs of “British Steel” concluded 40 minutes later.

The novelty then shifted from a landmark album to a cozy venue. In the context of the 2,400-capacity Murat, audience members saw old-school green lasers bounce around the room, the evolution of Halford’s leather-and-chrome costume changes and occasional moments when bass player Ian Hill appeared to be winded.

Tipton and KK Downing lived up to their reputation as twin towers of guitar. The basic story is that Tipton shreds and Downing plays blues-based solos, but Downing bucked assumptions with the unhinged assault of 1976 nugget “Victim of Changes.”

Halford commanded attention throughout, sometimes for delivering blood-curdling screams and sometimes for reading lyrics from a video monitor.

He had everyone’s eyes when he rolled onstage atop a customized “British Steel” motorcycle to sing encore number “Freewheel Burning.”

The song’s simplistic, direct and entirely effective lyrics convey the one-dimensional charm of Judas Priest: “We don’t accept defeat; we never will retreat; we blaze with scorching heat.”

Add a comment