While Judas Priest made a massive impact with their 1980 album British Steel, many look to 1982’s Screaming for Vengeance as what lifted them into the stratosphere of Metal Gods. The band’s eighth studio album, behind it, Judas Priest, had nearly a decade of experience leading back to their 1974 debut, Rocka Rolla, and after it, a massively dedicated following in the North American region.
The band’s most commercially successful to that point, Screaming for Vengeance, was a juggernaut from start to finish with songs like “Electric Eye,” the title track, “Devil’s Child,” and, of course, “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming.” It was an album that found Judas Priest on a massive world tour between August 1982 and February 1983, performing to thousands of packed arenas and coliseums each night, arguably one of the most historic runs in their career. A total of one-hundred and eleven shows in total, along the journey, they took various supporting acts, including Krokus, Uriah Heep, and Iron Maiden!
A Heavy Metal lover’s dreams come true, the World Vengeance Tour also featured a set list for the ages that not only promoted Screaming for Vengeance but also highlighted earlier material such as 1976’s “Victims of Changes” and “The Ripper,” 1977’s “Sinner,” but also 1978’s “Hell Bent for Leather.” Additionally, you had standouts (which were relatively new at the time), including “Breaking The Law,” “Metal Gods,” “Living After Midnight,” and “Heading Out To The Highway” as part of the live performances.
Not to be missed; fortunately, Judas Priest had the foresight to capture the World Vengeance Tour on tape for future reference. Recognized for recording the December 12, 1982 show at Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee, this became the epic 1983 Judas Priest Live VHS and Laserdisc release before being re-released in 2006 as a DVD and UMD under the title Live Vengeance ’82.
The latter is a must-have for any Priest fan; how many are also aware that just one night prior, on December 11, 1982, Judas Priest recorded their performance in Atlanta, Georgia, at The Omni? Chances are not too much, but they did, and 2021 included the entire live recording as part of a massive forty-two CD box set called 50 Heavy Metal Years Of Music. Also, it is a collector’s piece not to be missed, but in 2025, the band is offering their fans Live In Atlanta ’82 on vinyl for the first time ever.
A standalone release apart from any sets, it is a new double LP that arrives on Record Store Day 2025 (April 12th) through Legacy Recordings. Very exciting and enticing for record collectors, live album fans, and Judas Priest fans, it is a limited edition pressing in a lovely solid red color. It includes two separate inner sleeves with fantastic The Hellion artwork on one side, song credits on the other, and an outer sleeve with an incredible collage of photos as the art.
Not just slapped together, the quality is there in terms of the product, but the sound itself is also immense. Magically capturing the entire live set and the crowd’s clamor, everything sounds potent and matches a nice vinyl presentation that transports you back in time. That is why it is highly recommended to pick a copy this Record Store Day before it is too late, with Cryptic Rock giving the vinyl release of Judas Priest’s Live In Atlanta ’82 5 out of 5 stars.
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