JUDAS PRIEST 'Superfan' Meets His Heroes, Vows To Continue 'Nostradamus' Listening Streak

Ohio JUDAS PRIEST fan Jim Bartek, who has listened to PRIEST's "Nostradamus" album from start to finish at least once every day for more than a year, finally got a chance to meet his heroes last night (Tuesday, July 14) backstage prior to the band's Cleveland performance at the Time-Warner Cable Amphitheater.

PRIEST manager Jayne Andrews set up a pre-show meet-and-greet for Bartek with all five members of the band: Rob Halford, K.K. Downing, Glenn Tipton, Ian Hill and Scott Travis.

"Rob knew me by name immediately when I entered the tour bus and all about my listening streak," says Bartek. "He mentioned he had read about me on the front page of the morning newspaper at the hotel.

"We sat and talked about the album for quite some time. He told me the band still plans on doing a live performance of 'Nostradamus' in its entirety but wants to take their time not to rush the production so they can do it right. He said I was a fan who understood the whole concept."

Bartek adds, "Rob really got a kick out of the part of the newspaper story that mentioned my dog listening to the album. He chuckled when the writer was talking about the 'Guinness Book Of World Records' and that the dog would be the biggest voucher!"

Ian Hill jokingly told Bartek, "You've listened to the album over a year...and survived. You are a fan!". The other guys thanked him for being a "superfan" and congratulated him on the year-long achievement.

All five members of JUDAS PRIEST signed Bartek's vinyl version of "Nostradamus" and his PRIEST jacket. They also posed for pictures.

At the end of PRIEST's set, Bartek stood on his seat, proudly holding up his signed vinyl. Halford and Tipton spotted him in the crowd and pointed to him from the stage.

Reflecting on his meeting with the band, Bartek states, "It was one of the most memorable experiences of my life! The guys were great, they all knew the story and they were all very appreciative of my love and dedication to the album. I will never forget July 14, 2009."

After returning home from the concert and a late-night stop at his favorite restaurant, Big Boy, Bartek promptly sat down on his basement couch in the wee hours of the morning with his dog Clarence (pictured below) and listened to "Nostradamus" from start to finish for the 395th straight day.

Much to the chagrin of some of Bartek's friends, family and co-workers, who were quietly hoping the streak would end if he was able to finally meet the band, the concert has seemed to have an opposite effect. "I'm re-energized!" proclaims Bartek. "Rob told me to keep the streak going. I may have to keep listening until 2010 when they do the live performance of the album!"