"Painkiller" | ||||
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Single by Judas Priest | ||||
from the album Painkiller | ||||
Released | 3 September 1990 [1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 6:06 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Chris Tsangarides | |||
Judas Priest singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Painkiller" on YouTube | ||||
Lyric video | ||||
"Painkiller" on YouTube |
"Painkiller" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest,released in 1990;it was later released as a single on Columbia Records. [2] It is off the band's twelfth album of the same name as the opening track. The lyrics tell the story of the Painkiller,the character featured on the cover of the album,who is a cyborg superhero who saves mankind from destruction.
"Painkiller" has become one of Judas Priest's most popular songs. [3] [4]
The drum intro was composed by Scott Travis in the studio initially just as a warm-up routine while the engineers were testing the drum microphones. [5]
Guitarist Glenn Tipton said that the "Painkiller" solo is one of his favorites to perform (the other being the solo on “Beyond the Realms of Death”). [6]
PopMatters said,"Nobody saw this song coming. Featuring a thunderous intro by new drummer Scott Travis –a colossal improvement over the technically limited Dave Holland –and highlighted by Halford’s maniacal performance,this was Priest embracing extremity without pandering,and sounding once again vital,relevant,and best of all,more powerful than ever." [7]
In 2012, Loudwire ranked the song number two on its list of the 10 greatest Judas Priest songs. [8] In 2019, Louder Sound ranked the song number one on its list of the 50 greatest Judas Priest songs. [9]
Japanese band Babymetal performed an abridged version of the song at the 2016 Alternative Press Music Awards alongside Rob Halford,which led into another Judas Priest song,"Breaking the Law." Babymetal performed these songs later in the year during their tour supporting Red Hot Chili Peppers,with singer Su-metal performing all vocals and RHCP's Chad Smith playing drums. [10] [11]
Judas Priest
Additional musicians
Chart (1990) | Peak position |
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UK Singles (OCC) [13] | 74 |
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Judas Priest have also been referred to as one of the pioneers of the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) movement,and are cited as a formative influence on various heavy metal subgenres,including speed metal,thrash metal,power metal,and the hard rock/glam metal scene of the 1980s. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in the latter half of the 1970s,the band had struggled with poor record production and a lack of major commercial success until 1980,when their sixth studio album British Steel brought them notable mainstream attention.
Robert John Arthur Halford is an English heavy metal singer. He is best known as the lead vocalist of Judas Priest,which was formed in 1969 and has received accolades such as the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance. He has been noted for his powerful and wide ranging operatic vocal style and trademark leather-and-studs image,both of which have become iconic in heavy metal. He has also been involved with several side projects,including Fight,Two,and Halford.
Turbo is the tenth studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest,released in the UK on 7 April 1986 by Columbia Records. The album is notable for the band's change to a commercial glam metal sound,that had them using synthesizers for the first time.
Mark Scott Travis is an American musician,best known as the drummer for the British heavy metal band Judas Priest,the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy,and the supergroup Elegant Weapons. He was also a longtime member of the American heavy metal band Racer X during their initial run and then reformation up until their 2009 breakup.
Painkiller is the twelfth studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest,released on 14 September 1990. It was the last Judas Priest album to feature long-time lead singer Rob Halford until his return for the 2005 album Angel of Retribution and the first to feature drummer Scott Travis.
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Jugulator is the thirteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest. It was released in Japan on 16 October 1997 and the rest of the world on 28 October 1997. It was their first studio album since Painkiller in 1990 and the first of two studio albums the band recorded without Rob Halford and with American lead vocalist Tim "Ripper" Owens. Jugulator is the only Judas Priest album that has never been released on any major digital media website,due to SPV falling under and going bankrupt around 2009.
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"Breaking the Law" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest,originally released on their 1980 album British Steel. The song is one of the band's better known singles,and is readily recognised by its opening guitar riff.
"You've Got Another Thing Comin'" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest. It was originally released on their 1982 album Screaming for Vengeance and released as a single later that year. In May 2006,VH1 ranked it fifth on their list of the 40 Greatest Metal Songs. It became one of Judas Priest's signature songs along with "Electric Eye" and "Breaking the Law",and a staple of the band's live performances. "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" was first performed on the opening concert of the Vengeance World Tour at the Stabler Center in Bethlehem,Pennsylvania,on 26 August 1982 and had been played a total of 673 times through the 2012 Epitaph Tour.
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