Every Judas Priest Albums Ranked Worst To Best
6. Stained Class
Sporting a funky album cover and a socially conscious title, Stained Class is commonly considered one of the all-time greats of Priest albums and a turning point for the band musically. Infamous in its own right, the record courted much controversy over the aforementioned “subliminal messaging” trial that alleged responsibility for two young men's attempted suicides; one tragically being successful.
Released in 1978 as the follow-up to Sin After Sin, Stained Class shook off the dusty vestiges of their more Prog Rock early influences and doubled down on the screaming, hell-for-leather bombast they would become most famous for. The record contained absolute beasts like Exciter and Beyond The Realms Of Death and remains the only Judas Priest record to feature songwriting credits from all five members of the band; a privilege normally reserved for only the singer and two lead guitarists.
Producer Dennis MacKay is commonly credited with the album’s success. Known at the time for his work with David Bowie and Supertramp, MacKay brought a welcome outsider’s perspective to proceedings that is likely responsible for the record’s staying power. In 2017, Stained Class was named 43rd in Rolling Stone’s ‘100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time’ and, frankly, it’s not hard to see why.