Rob Halford takes blame for 'ridiculous' Judas Priest four-piece move
He slams his own 'insane' decision
Rob Halford says he was personally responsible for the widely derided decision to streamline Judas Priest down to a four-piece band last month.
Judas Priest fans around the globe were flabbergasted when they announced on 10th January they were touring as “even more powerful, relentless four-piece heavy metal band” once their 50 Heavy Metal Years tour resumes in March.
Producer and touring guitarist Andy Sneap said at the time that Judas Priest’s move to oust him from the live shows was “incredibly disappointing”, before the metal legends made a swift U-turn and confirmed they will carry on as a five-piece.
Speaking for the first time about the short-lived idea, Rob Halford told Billboard it had absolutely nothing to do with his Judas Priest band mates Ian Hill, Glenn Tipton, Scott Travis and Richie Faulkner.
Taking the blame for the “ridiculous” decision, Halford said: “That all came from me, it didn’t come from the band.
“Of course, that blew up in my face, didn’t it? To have done something like a four-piece now would’ve been just not right, ridiculous, insane, crazy, off my rocker, have a cup of tea and relax.
“It’s kind of water under the bridge now. I think my heart was in the right place, but I’m not the first musician to have a crazy idea.”
Elsewhere in the Billboard interview, Halford was asked about his thoughts on Neil Young removing his music from Spotify in protest at ‘fake’ vaccine information spread on the Joe Rogan podcast.
Very diplomatic in his response, Halford replied: “I applaud Neil Young for standing up for what he believes in so strongly. I think each of us are dealing with the circumstances of this drama as we see fit.
“I don’t believe in sending out misinformation or disinformation about something that has taken so many lives when the scientific facts speak for themselves.
“Everybody has an opinion — did (Neil Young) do the right thing? Did he do the wrong thing? You know what? Your opinion doesn’t matter. He did the right thing for him.”
Earlier this week, Judas Priest were named among the 17 acts on the shortlist for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2022. It’s the third time they’ve made the ballot.
As always, the Rock Hall lists individual band members on the ballot and Judas Priest are listed as Rob Halford, Ian Hill, Glenn Tipton and Scott Travis, plus former members K.K. Downing, Les Binks and the late Dave Holland.
The final artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022 will be revealed in May and the ceremony will take place in the autumn.