(Eagle Eye Media)

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Attention all Priest fans – the motherload has arrived!!! Much to the delight of pure rockers everywhere, Eagle Eye Media has launched a new series chronicling the making of classic rock albums that includes such heavyweights as Metallica’s Black album, Lou Reed’s Transformer, Iron Maiden’s Number of the Beast, and Judas Priest’s epic masterpiece British Steel. Considered the band’s breakthrough album, British Steel is a stepping stone in the heavy metal as it featured both commercially viable radio singles (“Living After Midnight,” “Breaking The Law,” “You Don’t Have To Be Old To Be Wise,” “United”) and pre-Metallica freight train speed/power metal anthems that practically defined the entire genre (“Rapid Fire,” “Grinder,” “Steeler”). As an album to document, it certainly is a damn good choice. And as far as video (digital, VHS, whatever) companions to the Priest collection goes, this is a treasure trove worthy of any Priest diehard’s collection. In fact, this is really the only official Priest video that feature clips from almost every phase of their career.

Throughout the proceedings we get glimpses of Priest for the mid-‘70s (on the Old Grey Whistle Test complete with Rob Halford with long brown locks and the frontline in the flared jeans and flowing scarves), Priest in the mid-‘80s (via that killer MTV concert from the Screaming for Vengeance tour), all the way through the late-‘80s Priest…Live era (mullets and all). Sprinkled in between are clips from the videos and current interviews with the band members. You get Halford in ultra-serious mode discussing the album track by track like he’s in a roundtable chat about the Holy Koran, Glen Tipton and K.K. Downing in a rehearsal studio running through and explaining their twin guitar tactics, and interviews with producer Tom Allom regarding the technical angels the opus. In fact, the only thing missing from here are actual clips of the band in the studio at the time of the recording, most of this is either vintage concert clips and videos and current interviews with the band members. But that’s more than okay as all of it is such quality material.

In addition to the superb documentary of the making of British Steel, we get some interview outtakes of debauchery-filled road tales, Rock In Rio ‘91 live footage (“Grinder”), full videos for “Breaking The Law,” “Living After Midnight,” and “Rapid Fire,” a little drum lesson with current skinsman Scott Travis, and tons of rare photos. The live footage is definitely the coolest stuff here, by far. It’s hard to come by pre-Vengeance live footage and this DVD gives ya TV appearances and rare concert footage. This alone, is worth the price of admission folks and I highly suggest you tell your significant other you NEED this for X-Mas. A Priest fans wet dream for sure….

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