Back in the mid-’80s, the PMRC (Parents’ Music Resource Center) published a list called “The Filthy Fifteen” which consisted of the top fifteen songs they wanted banned due to objectionable lyrics suggesting violence, sex, drugs, alcohol or the occult. They petitioned for lyrics to be printed on the album jackets and no one was safe — heavy metal acts were right there alongside the pop stars. AC/DC, Madonna, MÖTLEY CRÜE, JUDAS PRIEST, Prince, W.A.S.P., MERCYFUL FATE, Vanity, DEF LEPPARD, Cyndi Lauper and TWISTED SISTER all made “The Filthy Fifteen” list. In November 1985, the RIAA (Recording Industry Association Of America) agreed to put “Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics” labels on selected releases at their own discretion.
Asked what it was like to have the JUDAS PRIEST track “Eat Me Alive” included in “The Filthy Fifteen,” the band’s lead singer, Rob Halford, told Canada’s C103 radio station: “It was kind of tough, because we got attacked for something that was completely out of order. None of us that are on that list should have been there, because when you come see a band like PRIEST or my mate Dee [Snider] from TWISTED SISTER, we wanna give you a good time, we wanna help you forget all the troubles and the worries in the world. We want you to come and enjoy yourself, have a few drinks, meet your mates, have a great metal experience, rock and roll experience. So, to be accused of that was pretty low, but we got through it and we battled on, and I think we had a win for everybody in that respect.”
Halford also talked about the way society has become, in his view, too politically correct. He said: “Well, again, I could talk forever on that subject. You know, yeah, I think we need to kind of give each other a break and kind of take a long, deep breath and let it out very slowly, because it seems the only way people can get attention in these times is to scream as loud as they possibly can and to say the most outrageous things they possibly can. So it’s a pity, really. It’s a different world from when I was growing up as a kid. But, hey, that’s the way humanity is evolving, unfortunately. And it’s not just in the States; it’s everywhere. There’s this crazy cacophony going on. But leave all that stuff to the politicians and to all the… The kind of noise that we make in metal is the best noise you can get — plain and simple.”
JUDAS PRIEST is continuing to tour in support of its latest album, “Redeemer Of Souls”, which was released in July 2014. The follow-up to 2008’s double-disc concept album “Nostradamus” was billed as a return to JUDAS PRIEST’s heavy-metal roots.
“Redeemer Of Souls” sold around 32,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 6 on The Billboard 200 chart.
Source: Blabbermouth
