<P> Judas Priest were formed in 1969 in industrial West Bromwich , in the Black Country , by vocalist Al Atkins and bassist Brian `` Bruno '' Stapenhill , with John Perry on guitar and John `` Fezza '' Partridge on drums . Perry soon died in a road accident , and amongst the replacements the band auditioned were future Judas Priest guitarist Kenny `` K.K. '' Downing ; at the time , they turned him down in favour of 17 - year - old multi-instrumentalist Ernest Chataway , who had played with Birmingham band Black Sabbath when they were still called Earth . Stapenhill came up with the name Judas Priest from Bob Dylan 's song `` The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest '' on the album John Wesley Harding . No member of that early lineup lasted long enough to play on the band 's recordings , though several songs co-written by Atkins appeared on their first two albums . </P>
<P> Judas Priest were formed in 1969 in industrial West Bromwich , in the Black Country , by vocalist Al Atkins and bassist Brian `` Bruno '' Stapenhill , with John Perry on guitar and John `` Fezza '' Partridge on drums . Perry soon died in a road accident , and amongst the replacements the band auditioned were future Judas Priest guitarist Kenny `` K.K. '' Downing ; at the time , they turned him down in favour of 17 - year - old multi-instrumentalist Ernest Chataway , who had played with Birmingham band Black Sabbath when they were still called Earth . Stapenhill came up with the name Judas Priest from Bob Dylan 's song `` The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest '' on the album John Wesley Harding . No member of that early lineup lasted long enough to play on the band 's recordings , though several songs co-written by Atkins appeared on their first two albums . </P>
where did the band judas priest get their name
where did the band judas priest get their name
from Bob Dylan 's song `` The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest ''
from Bob Dylan 's song `` The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest ''