JUDAS PRIEST’S ‘EPITAPH’ EUROPEAN TOUR FINALE FILMED FOR DVD RELEASE

It didn’t exactly start off the smoothest, with longtime guitarist K.K. Downing bowing out of the band and unclear talk about this being a “farewell tour,” but Judas Priest‘s performances for their ‘Epitaph’ album have been some of the most vital shows in years.

The group wrapped the final date of the ‘Epitaph’ tour through Europe this past Saturday (May 26) in London, and if this is farewell, they will have a lasting document. The group brought a professional film crew along to the Hammersmith Apollo to shoot the final show for a proposed DVD release next year. In addition to Judas Priest’s hits, the evening also included covers of Joan Baez’s ‘Diamonds and Rust’ and Fleetwood Mac’s ‘The Green Manalishi (With the Two Pronged Crown).’

The addition of Richie Faulkner on guitar revitalized the band, and as for talk of this being a goodbye, guitarist Glenn Tipton would later clarify, “We don’t plan on retiring. We’ve said that this is our last world tour. It takes a chunk out of your life — 18 months. We won’t be doing any more world tours as such and in my parts of the world, it will be the last time people get a chance to see us.”

Tipton also added that they plan to incorporate Faulkner into the writing process, and there’s always the possibility of doing a string of dates here and there. But their days of massive, months-long treks are over.

Judas Priest in London — Set List:
1. ‘Rapid Fire’
2. ‘Metal Gods’
3. ‘Heading Out to the Highway’
4. ‘Judas Rising’
5. ‘Starbreaker’
6. ‘Victim of Changes’
7. ‘Never Satisfied’
8. ‘Diamonds & Rust’
9. ‘Prophecy’
10. ‘Night Crawler’
11. ‘Turbo Lover’
12. ‘Beyond the Realms of Death’
13. ‘The Sentinel’
14. ‘Blood Red Skies’
15. ‘The Green Manalishi (With the Two Pronged Crown)’
16. ‘Breaking the Law’
17. ‘Drum Solo’
18. ‘Painkiller’
19. ‘The Hellion/Electric Eye’
20. ‘Hell Bent for Leather’
21. ‘You’ve Got Another Thing Coming’
22. ‘Living After Midnight’

Loudwire.com