Joined a Priest Tribute, need opinion....

[Soap]

Congrats brother on the JP tribute score.
That's very cool in itself and just an added bonus to have familiar faces.
Don't think too hard on Halford/Fight song selections, most are good tunes.
Have fun.

[DonP]

Dude, call your band Steel Dragon

I don't care if you play Halford tunes or not. I'm not sure if I know any...

[Grandturk]

Kind of like doing a Sabbath cover band and playing Crazy Train - while the crowd will probably love it, because its the same crowd for either, its not a pure tribute band.

But whatever, go for it.

[wetrx95]

Agreed. This is the band who created the 'metal image' and set the standard for all those to follow. If I remember correctly, it is also one of the first bands of the very early 70's to have dual lead guitars. Respect should be given to this band and their music. I am all for Fight and Halford, but Priest is Priest.

[Ben...]

I've a nasty surprise... I'm the devil in disguise....

I'm a footstep at night.
I'm a scream of the fright.

One of my favourite all time Priest songs, by far. Was just listening to Sin After Sin lately, forgot how good some of the songs are. Let Us Prey/Call for the Priest comes to mind for me. Not to mention one of my top 3 Priest songs; Starbreaker. I listened to that song so many times when I first bought Sin After Sin on a trip while we were driving that I lost count.

Hey John, what songs are you guy playing?

Edit: how could I forget it:

Sinner Sinner Sinner SINNER!!

Double Edit: Don't forget the often overlooked song "Ram It Down". The first part of the Ram It Down album is actually pretty good, the second half not so much (In my opinion).

And don't forget creatively using Judas Priest song titles (which are suggestive as is) to make raunchy sentences.

Ex: I'll bring them Pain and Pleasure by getting my Jawbreaker Hard As Iron and then I'll Ram it Down their Love Zone and go in All Guns Blazing. (Underline depicts song title)

[horns666]

Fuck the songs!!! It will NEVER be a Judas Priest "tribute" band until John puts on the fuggin' KK Downing wig!!!

I should make a new poll on John's shiny nog with/sans KK wig! The only one permitted to having a shiny nog is screaming in the microphone.

Also, you MUST play the lame-ass hits EVERYONE but the band wants to hear.

Ex: Yours truly sportin' a mullet, sunglasses, sleeveless shirts and heavy stubble while shouting "Jump" made feel like the gayest of gays..but it paid like a mo fo!!

[horns666]

Agreed. This is the band who created the 'metal image' and set the standard for all those to follow. If I remember correctly, it is also one of the first bands of the very early 70's to have dual lead guitars. Respect should be given to this band and their music. I am all for Fight and Halford, but Priest is Priest.

Yes..Alice Cooper..Judas Priest..Thin Lizzy..then along came Maiden.

[Ben...]

KK wig all the way!

I've been going through my Priest albums on iTunes. I forgot about how good the Killing Machine album is (Hell Bent For Leather for you Americans). I also forgot about Defenders of the Faith and the amazing songs like The Sentinel and Rock Hard, Ride Free along with Halford's amazing singing in the bonus track Turn On Your Light.

[horns666]

Damn right KK wig!! I'm boycotting the band until the wig goes on!!! It is an injustice to tribute bands that dress up and in character!! You MUST be in character!!

John take you pick. If Tony joins, he's has the Tipton hair. This leaves John looking like the guy on the left!!!



Yeah!!!!!

[horns666]

Shit, now Ben has me wanting to have a late night, one man, classic Priest listening party with bong!!

I love the more obscure older stuff like Ben. I'm breaking out the Sad Wings. That's one of my all time favorite album covers..along with Sabbath Bloody Sabbath!

[85 San Dimas]

I would then ask, LOL. If the singer still "thinks" he calls the shots?
I mean it sounds like he fired all his guys and hired all of yours.

The next guy to go may be him. LOL. Just tell him you want to "raise the bar" a little. :ROTF:.

Seriously though...have fun and good luck.
P.S. Who wears the Dave Holland wig and 'stasche?

[VitaminG]

If John is going to have to don the KK wig to be "correct", does this mean we will see him in studded leather vests & gauntlets and playing a V too? I mean, you have to pay proper respect to Priest, right?

[horns666]

If John is going to have to don the KK wig to be "correct", does this mean we will see him in studded leather vests & gauntlets and playing a V too? I mean, you have to pay proper respect to Priest, right?

You got it G!!!!

Do ya think we should do a new poll?? I just wanna see John in a Jane Mansfield wig and leather S&M garb!!!

[Robert Hendrix]

Priest is Priest.. One of my all time favorite metal bands, and if you're going to pay homage to them you should pay it to them, not Fight. Would you play tunes off of the Glen Tipton album? That would be like Rainbow playing Holy Diver, just wrong... Or for that matter, a Deep Purple Tribute band doing Born Again, or Long Live Rock and Roll... I've been involved with a couple of tribute projects over the years, and have even entertained the idea of putting another one together recently, and IMO, if you're going to tribute a band, you should try to replicate their show, if they are doing a fight tune during their show nowadays (I haven't seen them live since Halford returned) then you'd probably get by with it. But you're always going to have the occasional purist asshole like me that won't care for it..

Congrats of the Priest spot dude!! I envy you.. I've done quite a few Priest songs in various cover bands over the years, but I've never done a Priest Tribute. I think you'll have a blast, I know I would..
My favorite priest tunes, hopefully you guys will play some:

Beyond The Realms of Death
The Rage
Burnin' up
Blood Red Sky
The Sentinal

[Cleveland Metal]

Yeah, it's a tribute, ummm, musically, haha... I TOTALLY see the Priest only thing. BUT... Per the singer, seems we're doing those three tunes... They're his babies now... Resurrection, Into the Pit and Life in Black... No more... Maybe they'll get a bad reaction and get canned, dunno.

Definitely a tribute, but we're not doin the look alike thing. Bad enough I now have an offer to do a Black Sabbath gig with a vocalist I've wanted to work with for 20 years and HE wants to LOOK JUST LIKE THEM. Meaning yes, wig and funny glasses for John, Basically I'll look like I did 25 years ago, and I gotta break out my SG which I'm NOT happy about. But this dude looks and sounds like Ozzy so much and I nail classic sabbath pretty friggin religiously, it's scary. We'll see... He's erratic, but I could really dig doing that a few times and it would be simple. Prolly feel like a tool with a wig tho...

Anyways back to Priest...

Our bass player looks fairly right but plays a Spector Bass, our old guitarist from Paradox Tony look "about" right for Tipton I guess, the singer is 6'3", well built and has a shaved head. My head is shaved, so is the drummer, who is ummm, black by the way, haha...

The singer is the only one the dresses even close to the part. I'm NOT wearing a blonde wig, red leather and spikes... Sorry... Nottagonnahappen...

None of us play the appropriate guitar. We play Jacksons or Charvels. And we'll be dicing up the guitar parts as neither one of us wants to permanently be KK, haha...

I can see what everyone is saying about the Fight/Halford stuff. Looks like this is what the singer wants to do is, and that's what's prolly gonna happen.

Yeah, the singer sorta calls the shots. Bassist and I are pretty much rounding up the players, but he'd really have to be ok with em to fly. We were worried about his opinion on the drummer, but he plays Travis so well, I'd quit if he wasn't in the band.

Basically, we are DEFINITELY not a Priest band without this singer. He does quite well at Halford and because of that, he's the ONLY reason I'm even picking up a guitar in a club right now.

Sick of wasting time doing mediocre renditions of shit with a lame singer. I feel like we do a decent thing with him. Otherwise, I'd just stay home or enjoy my weekends chasing tail in the bars. Last show was a serious rush playing to 350+ people and watching people 30 feet back into the crowd singing along to this stuff.

Funny thing is, I was never really a Priest fan this sorta fell in my lap as they needed a stand for KK (simple gig) and the singer nails it, I had to do it. I'm more a Black Sabbath guy when it comes to the old junk. Saw priest once in the 80s, and they were terrible. Recent shows are pretty outstanding tho.

Should be shakin well in a month or so I think.... maybe get some sound bytes up eventually....

Thanks for the input... It is well examined and will be discussed within the band assuredly.