Screaming for Vengeance

Screaming for Vengeance is the eighth studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, released on 17 July 1982 by Columbia Records. Considered the band's commercial breakthrough, it has been certified double platinum in the United States and platinum in Canada. Screaming for Vengeance spawned the hit single "You've Got Another Thing Comin'", which became one of the band's signature songs and a perennial radio favourite.

Screaming for Vengeance
Cover art by Doug Johnson
Studio album by Judas Priest
Released	17 July 1982
Recorded	January–May 1982
Studio	Ibiza Sound Studios, Ibiza, Spain Beejay Studios, Miami, Florida, US
Genre	Heavy metal
Length	38:42
Label	Columbia
Producer	Tom Allom
Judas Priest chronology
Point of Entry (1981) Screaming for Vengeance (1982) Defenders of the Faith (1984)
Singles from Screaming for Vengeance
"You've Got Another Thing Comin'" Released: August 1982 "(Take These) Chains" Released: October 1982 "Electric Eye" Released: 1983

Recording and release

Screaming for Vengeance was recorded at Ibiza Sound Studios, Ibiza, Spain (during this period, it was commonplace for UK-based musicians to record in continental Europe for tax purposes) mixing and overdubs were done at Beejay Recording Studios and Bayshore Recording Studios in Coconut Grove, Florida. Stylistically, Screaming for Vengeance showcased a harder, heavier sound than British Steel and saw the band quickly reverse direction back into straight heavy rock after the melodically styled direction of Point of Entry. The album also marks the first time a Priest drummer played on more than 2 Judas Priest albums, with Dave Holland having also played on British Steel and Point of Entry.

The album's most commercially successful track, the single "You've Got Another Thing Comin'", was a last-minute addition. According to guitarist K. K. Downing, "We were quite happy with the album, but decided late on that we could add one more song. I know we had some of the parts, but we set about completing "Another Thing Comin'" during the mixing sessions at Bee Jay studios. It came together quite quickly, and I seem to remember that we all had a good feeling about it, as it did sound like a good driving song and possibly a good radio track."[1] Rob Halford expressed surprise at the song's success, saying "that track was buried. Normally the tracks you think are going to do stuff are at the front end of the release. But our friends at Sony said, 'We're going to go for this song.' And we didn't really know what was going on. But then the feedback was coming over: 'Hey, the record's buzzing in this town and that town', and it just took off."[2]

Screaming for Vengeance was released on 17 July 1982, with a remastered CD version released in May 2001. The track "Fight for Your Life", recorded during the Screaming for Vengeance sessions, was left off the album but finally saw the light of day as a bonus track on the 2001 remastered version of the 1978 album Killing Machine. As of the album's 30th anniversary in 2012, it remains the top-selling release of Judas Priest's career.[1] To celebrate the album's 30th anniversary, a remastered CD with bonus 1982 live tracks and a bonus DVD of the band's performance from the 1983 US Festival were released. The most recent remaster was released in late 2017 as part of the Sony We Are Vinyl series, on vinyl and digital download only.

Tour

The World Vengeance Tour began shortly after the album's release in July 1982 and focused on North America during the summer and fall, Priest not performing in Europe until December 1983. This emphasis on US audiences was in order to establish a solid commercial foothold there, and in particular because "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" became a major hit. That and "Electric Eye" became live setlist staples and some of the band's most performed songs. "Devil's Child" has also been performed on various tours between 1982 and 2008, and "Riding on the Wind", "Bloodstone" and the title track have also been in the setlist on various tours. For comparison, "Fever" was only played at the first two 1982 shows, "(Take These) Chains" only appeared in the setlist in 2019, while “Pain and Pleasure” and the short instrumental “The Hellion” have never been performed live.[3] The 30th-anniversary release of the album in 2012 came with a DVD of a live show recorded in May 1983 at the US Festival in California on the last date of the Screaming For Vengeance Tour. During the US tour to support the album in 1982, Judas Priest were supported by bands such as Iron Maiden, Krokus, and Uriah Heep.

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
Blogcritics	(favourable) (30th Ann.)[5]
Decibel	(mixed)[6]
Metal Storm	10/10[7]
PopMatters	7/10(30th Ann.)[8]
Martin Popoff	9/10[9]
Sputnikmusic	3.5/5[10]
Terrorizer	5/5 (30th Ann.)[11]

While 1980's British Steel has been referred to as the band's masterpiece,[12] Screaming for Vengeance was Judas Priest's breakthrough in North America. Although the band had achieved a cult following among American audiences by 1979 and could headline their own tours, they sold "relatively few" records there before Screaming for Vengeance. It was also extremely successful worldwide.

Commercial performance

Screaming for Vengeance reached No. 11 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 17 on the US Billboard 200 Pop Albums. It was certified gold by the RIAA on 29 October 1982, platinum on 18 April 1983, and 2× platinum on 16 October 2001,[13] being the band's first album to achieve the two latter awards.

Accolades

The album ranked 15th on IGN's 25 most influential metal albums. Screaming for Vengeance also came 10th on Metal-Rules.com's 100 greatest metal albums. Kerrang! listed the album at No. 46 among the "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums of All Time". In 2017, it was ranked 12th on Rolling Stone's list of "100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time".[14]

In popular culture

"You've Got Another Thing Comin'" is featured as a playable track in the video game Guitar Hero. "Electric Eye" (with the accompanying intro track "The Hellion") was playable in Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s and Guitar Hero Smash Hits. The entire album was the first album released as downloadable content for the video games Rock Band and Rock Band 2.[15]

The title song "Screaming for Vengeance" was played on the main site for the video game Brütal Legend.[16] In the game, Rob Halford voices a villain named General Lionwhyte, as well as a heroic character called the Fire Baron, modeled after his likeness. The track "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" was featured in the 2002 video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as part of the V-Rock radio station, whilst "Electric Eye" was featured on the same radio station in the 2006 prequel Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories. The song "Riding on the Wind" was featured in the 2012 video game Twisted Metal.

As well as “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’” featuring in the eleventh season’s first episode, Archer continues the running gag of Dr. Krieger’s vans with “Screaming for Van-geance” featuring in the episode “Helping Hands”

Track listing

All tracks are written by Glenn Tipton, Rob Halford and K. K. Downing, except where noted.

Side one

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Hellion" (Instrumental)	0:41
2.	"Electric Eye"	3:39
3.	"Riding on the Wind"	3:07
4.	"Bloodstone"	3:51
5.	"(Take These) Chains" (Bob Halligan, Jr.)	3:07
6.	"Pain and Pleasure"	4:17

Side two

No.	Title	Length
7.	"Screaming for Vengeance"	4:43
8.	"You've Got Another Thing Comin'"	5:09
9.	"Fever"	5:20
10.	"Devil's Child"	4:48
Total length:		38:43

2001 CD edition bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
11.	"Prisoner of Your Eyes" (recorded during the 1985 Turbo sessions)	7:12
12.	"Devil's Child" (live at Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee; 12 December 1982)	5:02
Total length:		50:57

30th Anniversary Edition bonus tracks[17]

No.	Title	Length
11.	"Electric Eye" (live at San Antonio Civic Center, San Antonio, 10 September 1982)	4:25
12.	"Riding on the Wind" (live at San Antonio Civic Center, San Antonio, 10 September 1982)	3:10
13.	"You've Got Another Thing Comin'" (live at San Antonio Civic Center, San Antonio, 10 September 1982)	7:18
14.	"Screaming for Vengeance" (live at San Antonio Civic Center, San Antonio, 10 September 1982)	4:45
15.	"Devil's Child" (live at Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee; 12 December 1982)	5:02
16.	"Prisoner of Your Eyes" (recorded during the 1985 Turbo sessions)	7:12
Total length:		70:35

30th Anniversary Edition Live DVD

All tracks are written by Glenn Tipton, Rob Halford and K. K. Downing, except where noted. All tracks were filmed and recorded at the second US Festival, Devore, San Bernardino, California, 29 May 1983. One track from the set was cut because of audio problems with the source material..

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Electric Eye"
2.	"Riding on the Wind"
3.	"Heading Out to the Highway"
4.	"Metal Gods"
5.	"Breaking the Law"
6.	"Diamonds and Rust" (Joan Baez cover)	Joan Baez
7.	"Victim of Changes"	Al Atkins, Tipton, Halford, Downing
8.	"Living After Midnight"
9.	"The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)" (Fleetwood Mac cover)	Peter Green
10.	"Screaming for Vengeance"
11.	"You've Got Another Thing Comin'"
12.	"Hell Bent for Leather"

Personnel

Judas Priest

• Rob Halford – vocals
• Glenn Tipton – guitars
• K. K. Downing – guitars
• Ian Hill – bass
• Dave Holland – drums

Production

• Produced by Tom Allom
• Engineered by Louis Austin
• Cover design by John Berg, based on a concept by Judas Priest
• Artwork by Doug Johnson
• Photography by Steve Joester

Charts

Chart (1982–2012)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[18]	81
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[19]	173
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[20]	139
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[21]	23
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[22]	26
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[23]	84
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[24]	14
UK Albums (OCC)[25]	11
US Billboard 200[26]	17

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[27]	Platinum	100,000^^
United States (RIAA)[28]	2× Platinum	2,000,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notable cover versions

• Sepultura performed a cover of the title track, "Screaming for Vengeance", on their Dante XXI album.
• Iced Earth performed a cover of the title track, "Screaming for Vengeance", on the tribute album Tribute to the Gods.
• Stratovarius performed a cover of "Bloodstone" on the album Intermission.
• Helloween performed a cover of "The Hellion" / "Electric Eye" on the single "The Time of the Oath". The cover also appears on the album Treasure Chest.
• As I Lay Dying performed a cover of "The Hellion" / "Electric-Eye" on the compilation album Decas.
• Fozzy covered "Riding on the Wind" on their debut album Fozzy.
• Abbath covered "Riding on the Wind" on their 2015 single Count the Dead.

References

1. Downing, K. K. (July 2012). "Hello to everyone!". KKDowning.net. Archived from the original on 16 December 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
2. Hart, Josh (6 September 2012). "Interview: Rob Halford on the 30th Anniversary of Judas Priest's 'Screaming for Vengeance'". Guitar World. Archived from the original on 10 September 2015. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
3. "Judas Priest Albums total". setlist.fm.
4. "Screaming for Vengeance review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 13 August 2016. Retrieved 16 August 2016.
5. Doherty, Charlie (28 September 2012). "Music Review: Judas Priest – 'Screaming for Vengeance' (Special 30th Anniversary Edition)". Blogcritics. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
6. Begrand, Adrien (10 August 2011). "Disposable Heroes: Judas Priest's "Screaming for Vengeance"". Decibel. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
7. Tombale, Pierre (15 December 2003). "Judas Priest - Screaming for Vengeance". Metal Storm. Archived from the original on 11 September 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
8. Hayes, Craig (4 October 2012). "Judas Priest - Screaming for Vengeance (Special 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
9. Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
10. Stagno, Mike (4 September 2006). "Screaming For Vengeance – Judas Priest". Sputnikmusic. Archived from the original on 11 November 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
11. Yardley, Miranda (6 September 2012). "Selected and Dissected: Judas Priest – 'Screaming For Vengeance: 30th Anniversary Edition'. Reviewed". Terrorizer. Archived from the original on 11 October 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
12. Robinson, Joe. "11 Classic Rock Artists That Shaped Heavy Metal". Ultimate Classic Rock. Archived from the original on 16 March 2013. Retrieved 18 May 2013.
13. "American album certifications – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
14. Considine, J. D. (21 June 2017). "100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media LLC. Archived from the original on 24 June 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
15. "Full Albums Arrive as Rock Band DLC". Archived from the original on 23 April 2008. Retrieved 18 April 2008.
16. "Brutal Legend". Archived from the original on 17 September 2009. Retrieved 19 January 2008.
17. Screaming For Vengeance Special 30th Anniversary Edition Archived 23 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine, JudasPriest.com. Retrieved 19 July 2012
18. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, New South Wales: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
19. "Ultratop.be – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
20. "Ultratop.be – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
21. "Officialcharts.de – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
22. "Norwegiancharts.com – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
23. "Spanishcharts.com – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
24. "Swedishcharts.com – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
25. "Judas Priest | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
26. "Judas Priest Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
27. "Canadian album certifications – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance". Music Canada.
28. "American album certifications – Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengeance". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 

External links

• Extensive album info