{"id":345923,"date":"2026-01-01T05:51:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-01T05:51:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/345923\/"},"modified":"2026-01-01T05:51:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-01T05:51:12","slug":"judas-priest-the-story-behind-the-song-youve-got-another-thing-comin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/345923\/","title":{"rendered":"Judas Priest: the story behind the song You\u2019ve Got Another Thing Comin\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Judas Priest<\/a> were storming the gates at the start of the 80s. The band\u2019s sixth album, British Steel<\/a> had carried the band into the Top 10 of the UK music charts (peaking at no. 4) and Top 50 (no. 34) in the US, while their look of leather and motorcycles quickly became a defining image for heavy metal<\/a> as a whole.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a decade, the 80s were phenomenal for Priest,\u201d says former guitarist KK Downing. \u201cThe 70s were all about trying to consolidate what we do, this unreal genre that needed to be etched in stone for posterity. It wasn\u2019t until the 80s that it all exploded; we came out with British Steel, went on Top Of The Pops and started to get on the radio in lots of different countries.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, British Steel\u2019s successor didn\u2019t receive as much acclaim. 1981\u2019s Point Of Entry was derided by critics who felt the band had ventured too far towards radio friendliness, while the band themselves later admitted they had buckled to label pressure to perform covers and write \u2018hits\u2019, Downing explaining: \u201cWe gave them what they wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thankfully, this being Priest in the 80s, it wasn\u2019t long before they were taking another shot at the title and 1982\u2019s Screaming For Vengeance<\/a> gave a whole new life to the band, turning them into megastars in the US, ultimately achieving double-platinum status.<\/p>\n

Judas Priest – You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’ (Official Audio) – YouTube
\n\"Judas<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

Ironically, for all the complaints about radio-friendliness that Point Of Entry had received, it was the massive singles of Screaming For Vengeance that truly helped the band get a foothold in the US. Although they had again acquiesced to feature a cover on the album, Bob Halligan Jr\u2019s (Take These) Chains, it was one of their own compositions that became a breakaway radio hit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a pretty consistent listening experience, except we did have one track on there that obviously poked out,\u201d KK admits. \u201cThat was the Bob Halligan Jr. song (Take These) Chains. Back then, record companies always pushed to have a cover version or extra songwriter appear on an album, so there would be one song that would get big radio play. But lo and behold, it actually ended up being You\u2019ve Got Another Thing Comin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the last songs written for Screaming For Vengeance, You\u2019ve Got Another Thing Comin\u2019 was envisioned to balance out the other tracks on the record. \u201cMyself and Glenn [Tipton, guitarist] were always taking stock,\u201d KK explains. \u201cLike, \u2018Is there something we can really add to the album?\u2019 Over time that could be a really up-tempo, aggressive song, or it could be a ballad, or even an anthem that would complete the whole experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Hearing a rough mix for the album, KK remembers both he and Glenn were excited, but still felt something was missing. \u201cWe were kind of happy, but still talking about that extra song that we hadn\u2019t really come up with yet,\u201d he recalls.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted something that would do a completely different job to the blood and thunder of tracks like Screaming For Vengeance and Electric Eye. We got the embryo of the idea going up to Glenn\u2019s house near Stafford and got it in our minds that we needed extra ingredients and flavours to throw into the pot that would make it more appetising for radio. Obviously it really took off!\u201d<\/p>\n

With a strutting riff from Priest\u2019s dual guitarists and a steady beat from drummer Dave Holland, KK remembers that right from the off You\u2019ve Got Another Thing Comin\u2019 felt like a great addition to the Priest canon, \u201ca real driving song \u2013 you put it in and you\u2019re off\u201d.<\/p>\n

Clearly, the band\u2019s label agreed. When Screaming For Vengeance was released in July 1982, You\u2019ve Got Another Thing Comin\u2019 was selected as its lead single, debuting on the US Billboard Hot 100 in June 1982, before achieving its peak position of no. 67 in November that same year, also reaching no. 4 on the US Mainstream Rock chart that same month.<\/p>\n

Typically, Priest weren\u2019t able to rest on their laurels; they had been booked for a US tour in August 1982 that would see them crossing the States and Canada for the remainder of the year. It was on the road they first became aware that You\u2019ve Got Another Thing Comin\u2019 was becoming a radio hit.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe kicked off our tour and the bus driver would have local stations on, we\u2019d hear it pretty much everywhere we went,\u201d KK recalls happily. \u201cIt was being played by local radio stations, played in supermarkets, shopping malls\u2026 whatever!\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Judas\n<\/p>\n

Judas Priest in 1981. From left: Glenn Tipton (guitars), KK Downing (guitars), Dave Holland (drums), Rob Halford (vocals), Ian Hill (bass). (Image credit: Richard E. Aaron\/Redferns)<\/p>\n

At that point, the closest Priest had come to radio success had been no. 12 positions in the UK for both Living After Midnight and Breaking The Law<\/a>, but this was something else entirely. Seemingly overnight, the band went from relative unknowns in the US to a Big Thing, venues having to upgrade to accommodate the swelling demand for tickets.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe became an arena band and that was just wonderful, a massive boost of confidence,\u201d KK says, beaming. \u201cWe were new kids on the block in so many ways, but we felt that we had the edge, we weren\u2019t afraid to play anywhere with anyone. We\u2019d worked hard and it was time to start to enjoy our confidence. The audience could feed on that when we came out all guns blazing and we did, every night. We\u2019re a force to be reckoned with, giving 110% and more.\u201d<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t hurt matters that Judas Priest were joined on some dates of their US tour by fellow British metal sensations Iron Maiden<\/a>, themselves riding high on the success of 1982\u2019s Number Of The Beast<\/a> and the arrival of new singer Bruce Dickinson. Both bands were headed for superstardom, and naturally there were some clashes.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a bit sticky to start with,\u201d KK says sheepishly. \u201cObviously those guys were equally very proud of themselves. But it was wonderful to have compatible bands on the bill, it really optimised what the audience wanted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fans who got to experience that got something few others ever did, or will. It was competitive and we were really fighting for the same space. We were there going, \u2018No, no, the crown\u2019s ours \u2013 you can\u2019t take it,\u2019 ha ha! But you look at the mighty Maiden now and I\u2019m extremely proud to have travelled the world with that band, at least in part.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over 40 years later, You\u2019ve Got Another Thing Comin\u2019 has seldom left the band\u2019s setlists. It has also resurfaced in pop culture numerous times, featured in everything from TV shows like Californication and Archer (with a killer \u201cScreaming For Vangeance\u201d pun, no less), to movies (Bad Teacher) and video games ranging from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Rock Band to Major League Baseball.<\/p>\n

It remains one of the band\u2019s most iconic songs, its lyrical message testament to the undefeatable spirit of Priest as they clawed their way to heavy metal stardom. It was the song that broke Priest in America and established them as worldwide heavy metal icons, a classy \u2018fuck you\u2019 to the critics who tried to write the band off after Point Of Entry \u2013 as vocalist Rob Halford himself put it, \u2018Out there is a fortune, waiting to be had\/if you think I\u2019ll let it go you’re mad… You’ve got another thing comin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn America, Screaming For Vengeance was and still is our biggest ever selling record,\u201d KK says happily. \u201cWe partied every night! We would have a hotel room and just give the details out to friends and girls, \u2018We\u2019ll see you there!\u2019 We\u2019d be working very, very hard in the day travelling and doing interviews, being pushed around basically, so we needed the wind down and our reward was to live after midnight, naturally! The whole thing was a blast, we were such a force to be reckoned with.\u201d<\/p>\n

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