The band's membership has seen much turnover, including a revolving cast of drummers in the 1970s and the departure of singer Rob Halford in 1992. Tim "Ripper" Owens, formerly of Winter's Bane, replaced Halford in 1996 and recorded two albums with Judas Priest, before Halford returned to the band in 2003. The current line-up consists of Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill and drummer Scott Travis. The band's best-selling album is 1982's Screaming for Vengeance, with their most commercially successful line-up featuring Ian Hill, Rob Halford, Glenn Tipton, guitarist K. K. Downing, and drummer Dave Holland. Tipton and Hill are the only two members of the band to appear on every album.
Halford's operatic vocal style and the twin guitar sound of Downing and Tipton have been a major influence on heavy metal bands. Judas Priest's image of leather, spikes, and other taboo articles of clothing were widely influential during the glam metal era of the 1980s. The Guardian referred to British Steel as the record that defines heavy metal. Despite a decline in exposure during the mid-1990s, the band has once again seen a resurgence, including worldwide tours, being inaugural inductees into the VH1 Rock Honors in 2006, receiving a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 2010, and having their songs featured in video games such as Guitar Hero and the Rock Band series. In 2022, Judas Priest were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judas_Priest
Studio albums
Rocka Rolla (1974)
Sad Wings of Destiny (1976)
Sin After Sin (1977)
Stained Class (1978)
Killing Machine (1978)
British Steel (1980)
Point of Entry (1981)
Screaming for Vengeance (1982)
Defenders of the Faith (1984)
Turbo (1986)
Ram It Down (1988)
Painkiller (1990)
Jugulator (1997)
Demolition (2001)
Angel of Retribution (2005)
Nostradamus (2008)
Redeemer of Souls (2014)
Firepower (2018)
Invincible Shield (2024)
Necromancer
Judas Priest Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Purging new graves and defiling the souls
He satiates with such vile and dark horror
Omens of dread on this night of the ghouls
Raising the dead up from the ground
Needs must be fed, sorcerers abound
Death's his guiding lights
Necromancer
Stealing afterlife
Feeding on flesh from the soil that was hallowed
Splintered the bones and regaled in his feast
Danced on the grave of the pure and the righteous
As the moonlight's expelled from the eyes of the beast
Raising the dead, blasphemy reigns
Portents of dread thrives on remains
Necromancer
Feeding from the host
Necromancer
Black unholy ghost
Necromancer
Death's his guiding lights
Necromancer
Stealing afterlife
Raising the dead, cadaver consumed
Sacraments said, bodies exhumed
Necromancer
Feeding from the host
Necromancer
Black unholy ghost
Necromancer
Death's his guiding lights
Necromancer
Stealing afterlife
Stealing afterlife
Death's his guiding lights
The lyrics to Judas Priest's "Necromancer" paint a vivid and gruesome picture of a sorcerer who raises the dead and feeds on their flesh. The song begins with the description of the necromancer as being born out of hell from the depths of Gomorrah. Gomorrah is a biblical city that was destroyed by God because of its wickedness, and the reference here emphasizes just how evil and depraved the necromancer is.
The second verse goes on to describe how the necromancer defiles graves and consumes the bodies of the dead, revelling in his dark feast. The imagery of the moonlight being expelled from the eyes of the beast adds to the eerie and ominous tone of the song. The chorus repeats the refrain of "Necromancer" and emphasizes that death is his guiding light and that he is stealing the afterlife of those he has raised from the dead.
Overall, the song is an exploration of the darker side of magic and the occult. It portrays the necromancer as a terrifying figure who has no regard for the sanctity of life or death, and who revels in his own power to control and manipulate the forces of the afterlife.
Line by Line Meaning
Born out of hell from the depths of Gomorrah
Emerging from the depths of the worst place on earth, hell,
Purging new graves and defiling the souls
Destroying new graves and desecrating the spirits of the buried,
He satiates with such vile and dark horror
He satisfies his hunger with disgusting and terrifying acts,
Omens of dread on this night of the ghouls
Signs of fear and sorrow on this night of the undead,
Raising the dead up from the ground
Bringing life back to the deceased,
Needs must be fed, sorcerers abound
The hunger must be satisfied, many sorcerers are present,
Necromancer
A person who communicates with the dead,
Death's his guiding lights
Death is the path that he follows,
Stealing afterlife
Taking the lives of the dead,
Feeding on flesh from the soil that was hallowed
Eating flesh from the ground that was once holy,
Splintered the bones and regaled in his feast
Breaking the bones and enjoying the meal,
Danced on the grave of the pure and the righteous
Celebrating above the graves of the innocent and honorable,
As the moonlight's expelled from the eyes of the beast
As the evil creature unleashes its darkness,
Raising the dead, blasphemy reigns
Bringing back the dead, sin is present,
Portents of dread thrives on remains
Signs of fear grow strong on the remains,
Feeding from the host
Eating from the source,
Black unholy ghost
Evil spirit of the dead,
Raising the dead, cadaver consumed
Bringing back the dead, consuming corpses,
Sacraments said, bodies exhumed
Saying holy words, digging up dead bodies,
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, REACH MUSIC PUBLISHING
Written by: GLENN RAYMOND TIPTON, RICHARD FAULKNER, ROBERT HALFORD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ShakyaAriyaratne34
Sometimes, you just forget that it's a nearly 70 year old man who is ripping through those vocals! Metal God for a reason🤘🏼
@andya857
A 70 year old man that has more energy than most kids .Live clean ..Safety..
@heikkijhautanen4576
No one can kill a Metal god, even the Angel of Death must be a fan :/
@jamesstrength21
It's not a 70 year old man ripping through these vocals.....please do a quick search of his age when he recorded this song before you comment false info
@ShakyaAriyaratne34
@@jamesstrength21 Okay he was 67. It was just an approximation.
@Megiddo426
@@jamesstrength21 He said "nearly 70"... So stand down and relax.
@cofi45
The boyz are still rocking. Gotta love them
@jongut9908
De donde sacan tantas canciones tan 😮 poderosas , Himnos , cuaquier otra banda , ya hubiese tirado la toalla , y viene el nuevo Album The Invensible Shields , y Panick Attack ,es un Clasico inmediato, que rayos comen , Rayos Relámpagos, y Heavy Metal ,🫡🫡🤘🤘🤘 Eternos Judas Priest.
@baz1466
This album is a masterpiece! It's extremly powerful, just like all their other albums before it
@channel5980
Redeemer Of Souls had some good songs, but the production for the guitars was terrible, it had too much filler, and Rob's voice somehow sounded worse there than in Firepower, which came out 4 years later...