JUDAS PRIEST's IAN HILL On Remixed And Remastered Version Of 'Rocka Rolla': 'It's Been A Long Time Coming'

In a new interview with John And Heidi Show's "Something You Should Know!" podcast, JUDAS PRIEST bassist Ian Hill spoke about the recently released remixed and remastered version of JUDAS PRIEST's classic debut album, 1974's "Rocka Rolla". Regarding the decision to reissue the LP, Hill said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's been a long time coming, really. Those first two albums ['Rocka Rolla' and 1976's 'Sad Wings Of Destiny'], they were with our first record company called Gull Records. They were both put together on very low budgets. They were recorded overnight because the studio time, it was cheaper back then. And things were let go really because we had time constrictions as well. I mean, the whole album was done [in] probably three, four weeks maybe, not much longer. And we finally got the rights to the songs, or Reach Music has now got the rights to the songs, so we can do something with 'em. We would've done this a lot earlier, but Gull kept the songs close to the chest. And like I say, now [that] Reach has got it, we can play around with it a little bit."

When the interviewer noted that there are a lot of moving parts that have to align in order to be able to re-release an album like "Rocka Rolla", Hill said: "When we did 'Rocka Rolla' back in '74, it was more straightforward then, but there's still a lot of people involved, from the artistic point of view, from the production point of view, and, of course, the business point of view as well. Everyone's gotta be on the same page. And like I say, after 50 years, we've finally been able to do it, and it's gonna end up with the production it should have had back then. [Producer] Tom Allom's on the case, and he's been recording the band since 1979. So, it's in a very, very safe pair of hands with him."

Asked if he remembers the making of "Rocka Rolla" like it was yesterday, Ian said: "Uh, no. There's been a hell of a lot of water under the bridge since then. [Laughs] You remember some of it — you remember the studios, obviously. Some of it sort of fades into a sort of the fog of time. Some things stand out vividly. I mean, it was the first time we actually went into a professional recording studio, so we were all sort of wide-eyed, big open mouths, in awe of… I mean, Island Studios, some of the most famous acts in the world had recorded there. And, of course, Trident, we did a part of it there. And the Olympic. We actually met [THE ROLLING STONES'] Mick Jagger and Keith Richards at the Olympic, which, for an up-and-coming band, that was an absolute bonus, absolute hoot to meet them. And things like that stand out."

The remixed and remastered version of "Rocka Rolla" was released digitally in the U.S. and Canada on September 13. The CD and vinyl versions of "Rocka Rolla - 50th Anniversary: Remixed And Remastered 1974 - 2024" will arrive on Friday, November 22.

In 1974, before the eternal metal flame was ever lit, JUDAS PRIEST — singer Rob Halford, guitarist Glenn Tipton, bassist Ian Hill, guitarist K.K. Downing and drummer John Hinch — were simply five young musicians in their 20s from the Black Country an area of working-class towns in England excited to have signed a record deal. With limited funds, the band recorded during the less expensive night shift hours. The album "Rocka Rolla" was born during these sessions, under the guidance of producer Roger Bain who was brought in by the label and who had previously produced BLACK SABBATH.

JUDAS PRIEST learnt over time how to record an album, and the experience of working in a professional recording studio helped prepare them for the next album to come, one of the most definitive and foundational heavy metal albums of all time, "Sad Wings Of Destiny". But with "Rocka Rolla", the band was not there for the mixing, the mastering process or any final approvals — they didn't have a say when it was finished or how it ultimately sounded. Although the band felt positive about how the songs sounded in the studio, they were particularly disappointed when they received a finished copy of the album in the mail to listen to for the first time.

Halford recalled: "I took the record and I put the needle onto the groove and I sat back. And I just slowly started to deflate, deflate. I was so disappointed with the way it was sounding. All of us were — we'd all worked so hard to get to this place. And now this music that we know when we play live is roaring — the heavy metal is roaring even in those early primitive days — none of that was coming out of the speakers"

The band never had a future say in "Rocka Rolla" in the intervening decades — the re-releases and early-era compilations… but that was about to change.

During JUDAS PRIEST's "50 Heavy Metal Years" tour in 2022, something remarkable was happening behind the scenes. The label that originally signed JUDAS PRIEST in 1974, Gull Records, and its owner David Howells, decided to sell the masters and publishing rights for the two albums the label owned, "Rocka Rolla" and "Sad Wings Of Destiny", and David contacted Tipton's music publisher, Michael Closter of Reach Music Publishing.

After discussing this opportunity and collaborating with JUDAS PRIEST's manager Jayne Andrews, a compelling offer from Reach Music was made to Gull Records. Terms were accepted. An acquisition agreement was prepared, and after almost 50 years from the release of these albums, Reach Music and its label Exciter Records, in partnership with JUDAS PRIEST, was now the owner of "Rocka Rolla" and "Sad Wings Of Destiny".

The first order of business was to retrieve the original multitrack tapes from storage (which miraculously still existed and kept in usable condition for all these decades) — and to begin the process of resurrecting "Rocka Rolla" from these multitrack recordings...

With the task of delving back into time and putting the tapes of "Rocka Rolla" back on the recording studio console, JUDAS PRIEST put their full faith in Tom Allom, known in the JUDAS PRIEST world for producing the iconic "British Steel" and "Screaming For Vengeance" albums, among many others.

As Allom stated: "What we did with the multitracks is quite unusual, to completely remix an album from that era, from scratch. So to clarify what we're doing, we're not adding anything musically. We're not re-recording any of the musical parts… We're remixing them, rebalancing them using the technology we have, the modern tools we have now, to sonically upgrade them, and make them sound more powerful."

The results of this remixed version are now available for posterity — the artist-approved version of "Rocka Rolla" is finally here for fans to add to their JUDAS PRIEST collection.

Halford said: "It's great to look back and see our future unfurl — from little metal acorns mighty metal oaks do grow. One small step for metal, one giant leap for metalkind — a lifelong metal journey began with these songs. This album lit the eternal metal flame — as real and fresh as ever five decades on.

He added: "I'm just thrilled… because it just goes to show you when you get an expert involved in a project, it's likely that you have a second chance. And I think that Tom Allom is giving us a second chance here with the way that a lot of the elements were lost in 'Rocka Rolla'. And it's also nice, like a really nice feeling, especially to attach it to what will be a 50th-anniversary moment. It's just a beautiful feeling."

Tipton said: "This is where it all started for us and 50 years later, we have a great re-mixed and re-mastered version of the original...and the band are still going strong!"

Hill stated: "Recorded during nighttime sessions to save costs, over a few weeks in June and July 1974, on a shoestring budget, 'Rocka Rolla' was always going to have its flaws! But walking into my local record store and seeing it on a shelf amongst all your idol's records was the proudest feeling in the world, and I thought, 'Whatever happens now, nothing can change that!' Now remixed by Tom Allom and remastered, 'Rocka Rolla' has finally got the production it deserved!"

Downing said: "At last! This! The first JUDAS PRIEST album can be listened to and enjoyed in the way it was always intended to be!"

"Rocka Rolla (50th Anniversary Remixed & Remastered)" track listing:

01. One For The Road
02. Rocka Rolla
03. Winter
04. Deep Freeze
05. Winter Retreat
06. Cheater
07. Never Satisfied
08. Run Of The Mill
09. Dying To Meet You
10. Caviar And Meths

Photo courtesy of Chipster PR & Consulting, Inc.