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20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not Metalogy, but the best affordable JP compilation out there, July 24, 2005
Metal Works: '73-'93(1993). Judas Priest's first official "best of" compilation.
I'll keep my opening and closing comments for this brief and to the point. Judas Priest is one of the greatest and most influential (also one of my personal favorite) British Heavy Metal bands, pioneering much of the genre's sound from the 70s-80s, and this collection shows you exactly why. They are mostly known for Halford's falshetto screams and Glenn and KK's twin guitar attack. This isn't a "greatest hits" compilation so much as it is a look at the band's favorite hand-picked songs, complete with their comments in the liner notes.
Let's look at what's here and what's missing on Metal Works:
(1974-76) Rocka Rolla and Sad Wings Of Destiny
T: NO TRACKS
C: The first album wasn't all that great to begin with, though 'Cheater' and perhaps the title cut would've been nice to see. Sad Wings on the other hand had many decent songs. Though nothing from it is on here, there is a superior live rendition of 'Victim Of Changes' found on Unleashed In The East(1979).
(1977) Sin After Sin
T: Sinner, Dissident Aggressor
C: SAS was the first good Priest album overall IMO and it sported a killer 70s hardrock production that few could immitate. These two cuts are both excellent and perfectly picked, though I do miss 'Starbreaker', 'Call To The Priest', and the cover 'Diamonds & Rust'.
(1978) Stained Class
T: Exciter, Beyond The Realms Of Death
C: Both of these songs are undoubtedly Priest classics which remain in the live set to this date, so their presence is justified. Stained Class was the first album that Priest found their sound, despite subpar production. It also sported some underrated stuff like the title track, 'Invader', 'White Heat Red Hot', and 'Savage'.
(1979) Killing Machine (aka Hell Bent For Leather in the US)
T: Delivering The Goods, HBFL, and Before The Dawn
C: Killing Machine was much more commercial, punchy, and to the point compared to earlier albums, but it ruled nonetheless and sounded like genuine Priest. Good variety of classics here, but where's the awesome cover 'Green Manalishi', 'Take On The World', and the "other" title track? (not many albums out there you can say that about!)
(1980) British Steel
T: Breakin The Law, Living After Midnight, Metal Gods, Rage
C: Mostly commercial much like KM, but Steel was arguably their most successful and well liked album by the fans. Just look at the tracklist and you'll see why it screams "classic". There is solid representation here, so I'm not complaining. Still, I would've liked to see the prototype speed metal song 'Rapid Fire' and the terribly underrated 'Grinder' here.
(1981) Point Of Entry
T: Desert Plains, Solar Angels
C: POE is very commercial like the last two albums, although missing the heavy metal edge of the albums that it's sandwiched between. Still overlooked. It's only missing 'Hot Rockin', so the rest of the selections are PERFECT. 'Heading Out To The Highway' was taken from Priest...Live!(1987) and I actually find that version to be superior to its studio counterpart.
(1982) Screaming For Vengeance
T: SFV, Electric Eye, Devil's Child, You've Got Another Thing Comin, Bloodstone
C: Arguably the most popular Priest album and also one of their best, SFV gets a whopping 5 songs compared to other albums, so the selection corresponds well with the album. I'm really glad to see the underrated 'Bloodstone' on here. 'YGATC' was of course their HUGE hit. 'Devil's Child' is a great song too, though I think it could've been replaced by the superior 'Riding On The Wind'.
(1984) Defenders Of The Faith
T: Freewheel Burning, Eat Me Alive, Night Comes Down
C: DOTF is my personal favorite and overall one of their all-time best albums, despite its panning by the critics. It's really a coin toss between this one and SFV with the fans. 'Freewheel Burning' fits perfectly, but the other songs could've been replaced by superior tracks like 'Jawbreaker', 'Rock Hard Ride Free', 'The Sentinel', and 'Some Heads Are Gonna Roll'.
(1986) Turbo
T: Turbo Lover, Wild Nights Hot & Crazy Days
C: Turbo was definitely Priest's most controversial album due to the addition of guitar synthesizers and a really slick 80s production. Still, despite the change in sound there are some real classics from this disc, and Turbo Lover proves this. I would've liked to see the masterpiece ballad 'Out In The Cold', 'Locked In', and 'Reckless' as well, but since Turbo is a much maligned album this representation works fine.
(1988) Ram It Down
T: RID, Blood Red Skies
C: If Turbo was the most controversial, then RID was their "whipping boy" and most forgotten effort. I've never understood the hatred among fans about this album. It may be lyrically goofy compared to their other stuff, but it's vastly underrated and the songs themselves were top-notch in power. These two tracks are PERFECT SELECTIONS, no questions about it. Missing classics: 'Hard As Iron', Heavy Metal', 'I'm A Rocker', and 'Love Zone' (Go ahead and laugh, I like this song).
(1990) Painkiller
T: Painkiller, Metal Meltdown, Nightcrawler, Touch Of Evil
C: Priest decided to switch gears and released one of their best and one of heavy metal's all-time greatest thrash releases. Despite their age, they play with such youthful energy and rage never seen before in Priest. All of these are great songs, though any of the other missing tracks could've fit too.
(1997-2005) Jugulator, Demolition, and Angel Of Retribution
NO TRACKS
C: This is clearly understandable since Metal Works came out before any of these albums were made (No Ripper-era albums thankfully!)
Despite some glaring track ommissions, Metal Works is certainly the best bang for your buck, better than the single-disc "Living After Midnight" collection and more affordable than the Metalogy Box Set. It's ideal for new fans, although I'd just recommend getting all their albums instead. Highly Recommended!
(BTW, I saw them live recently and they absolutely rule!)
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
10 Out of 10 people agree, Metal Works! Especially Priest!, June 21, 2004
Released in 1993, Metal Works '73-'93 was the first Judas Priest compilation to be issued and was put out to commemorate Judas Priest's 30th Anniversary.For a little less than 3 decades, some of the hardest, toughest, and in-your-face metal was put out by a band called Judas Priest, whom any metalhead will instantly recognize. Being one of the few British Metal acts to hit the mainstream, along with Iron Maiden, Judas Priest still resounds firmly in Metal History, with instantly familar songs such as "You've Got Another Thing Coming" and "Breaking The Law" solidifying them as Metal Gods to be reckoned with. Before Metallica bursted into the scene in the late 80s, Judas Priest proudly carried the Speed Metal torch that by the 90's was dimmed, but their legacy has never been distinguished. So, to commerate the 30th Anniversary of Judas Priest, the members got together and chose all their favorite songs from Sin After Sin through Painkiller, and these songs you find on this collection. While this CD technically might not be a "Greatest Hits" or "Best Of" compilation, it still covers all of Judas Priest's most popular songs, so don't fret. So how does Metal Works as a retrospective for Judas Priest measure up? Well, if I must say so, pretty damn well! PROS-
-THE BEST JUDAS PRIEST COMPILATION-The Other Judas Priest compilations, Livin' After Midnight and Metalogy, each aren't as good as Metal Works. Livin' After Midnight simply isn't as expansive or complete as Metal Works, while Metalogy is way too expensive and I only recommend that to die-hard fans if you want a CD of demos.
-METAL WORKS HAS ALL OF THE BIG JUDAS PRIEST RADIO STAPLES-Casual fans will be delighted to find on Metal Works such radio staples as "You've Got Another Thing Coming", "Breaking the Law", and "Livin' After Midnight" for your listening pleasure!
-METAL WORKS HAS MANY UNDERRATED MASTERPIECES-Of all the songs on here, my favorites are the relatively obscure and well-picked songs only the band members of Judas Priest could think of. Two songs that come to mind are the phenomenal "Blood Red Skies" and "Metal Gods".
-EVERY ALBUM FROM SIN AFTER SIN TO PAINKILLER HAS REPRESENTATION-For each album during Judas Priest's "Glory Years", Metal Works takes 1-4 songs off every one of those albums and compiles them. It is very interesting to see how Judas Priest's sound differed over the years.
-NO 90'S (RIPPER) MATERIAL!- As any fan of Judas Priest will admit, all of Priest's 90's material with Tim "The Ripper" Owens in fortuneatly nowhere to be found! Thank God!
-SUPERB LINER NOTES- For every song off Metal Works, the band members of Judas Priest each give a history for every song on Metal Works, and it makes for a very informative and interesting read.
-EXCELLENT COVER DESIGN- Although this in no way affects my rating for Metal Works, like every other Judas Priest album, the Cover Design is some of the best you'll ever see! CONS(THERE AREN'T MANY)-
-NO REPRESENTATION OF JUDAS PRIEST'S FIRST TWO ALBUMS- Although I've heard Priest's Early Material wasn't all that great, I wish Metal Works would have covered it, because many people I've heard from say that the Early Stuff isn't half bad!
-WHERE'S THE "GREEN MANALISHI"?- As most fans will tell you, the "Green Manalishi" is one of the band's biggest hits, and this is the only compilation missing that little gem of a song. Oh well, you can't have every song you want.
-MORE EXPENSIVE AND HARDER TO FIND THAN LIVIN' AFTER MIDNIGHT- Although Metal Works isn't out of print, it's not that easy to find in most CD stores, and it is more expensive than Living After Midnight, which might turn some casual fans off. Overall, Metal Works '73-'93 is one of my favorite compilations, if not my favorite, and it is a glorious retrospective of Judas Priest, one of the greatest Metal bands of their time. Although not as easy to find or buy as Livin' After Midnight, Metal Works is overall the better compilation, and if you happen to find it, I suggest buying it on the spot, as you'll find no Judas Priest retrospective nearly as good as Metal Works. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! FANS OF CLASSIC ROCK, METAL, MODERN ROCK, AND MOST FANS OF ROCK IN GENERAL WOULD HIGHLY ENJOY METAL WORKS! A GOOD INTRODUCTION TO JUDAS PRIEST, BUT IF YOU LIKE METAL WORKS, GO AHEAD AND PURCHASE THEIR ALBUMS! ALSO RECOMMENDED- British Steel-Judas Priest
...And Justice For All-Metallica
The Number of the Beast-Iron Maiden
Thanks for reading!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THE COMPLETE WORKS!, May 4, 2000
Many bands release so called "best of" or "greatest hits" only for you to find that the artists last album didn't sell too well and its full of the same songs to try and give it a second push! No such thing here. This CD has had a great deal of thought and attention placed into its choice of trax, because simply this CD made me "want" to go out and buy the whole bands collection. Now I will be the first to admit (be honest) that a lot of the Priest's albums can contain one or two clangers song wise, and thats why this CD is so essential as a starting point...because simply these really are the best songs the band has to offer at this point! And the fact that its a double CD and there is not one filler track gives an indication of how great a band they truely are! My recommendation is to use this CD as a starting point to the uninitiated to find out which eras songs you like best, and then collect the whole lot in that order. I had a great deal of fun building this band's collection for myself this way! Song wise my preferences would be the "Painkiller" era and the "British Steel" and (awesome) "Stained Class" CDs contributions. Probably the best "best of" since Kiss's Double Platinum. Oh PS please come back to the fold Rob we all miss you...you are the only Metal God whose tonsils should grace songs under this bands great name!
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is one of Judas Priest's 
