ROY TRUAX ...
This one…
Turned 13 that year. Was ripe for something (anything really) that made-up for boring radio friendly noise polluting the airwaves. ’76 was a great year for… denim bell-bottoms. Starland Vocal Band, Dr. Hook, The Captain and Tennille and other glorified Holiday Inn circuit acts where inescapable!!! Not everything was utterly retching… just the VAST majority. I had heard a host of other heavy albums but none caught my attention quite like Judas Priest. A true turning point.
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RUSSELL SPEAR ...
It was the summer of 1982, when I was in between 8th and 9th grade that I got into heavy metal. I went over to a friend’s house and he said he had some records I had to hear. At the time, my two favorite bands were probably The Rolling Stones and Journey. I really hadn’t heard heavy metal. Then he put on an album that completely grabbed my interest. He played Back In Black by AC/DC. Here’s the title track:
I had never heard vocals like that before. I was hooked. Then he said “I have something even heavier you’ve gotta hear.” I asked: “How can it it be any heavier? The guy is already screaming as hard as he can.” I was thirteen years old. My friend said: “The guitar can be heavier.”
My friend proceeded to put on Ozzy Osbourne’s “Diary Of A Madman” album. This is the song I remember liking the most:
That’s what got me into heavy metal.
