25-04-2025
Judas Priest's Decades-Old Live Album Is Finally A Chart Success
Judas Priest's Live in Atlanta '82 debuts at No. 13 on the U.K.'s Rock & Metal Albums chart, giving ... More the band its second new win of 2025. English singer Rob Halford, of the English heavy metal band Judas Priest, sings on stage during the 1982 World Vengeance tour at the Cobo Arena in Detroit, Michigan, September 25, 1982. (Photo by)
Judas Priest has been busy in 2025 — not necessarily with brand new music, but by digging into the vault and offering fans what they've been craving: vintage material that still sounds as powerful today as it did decades ago. The legendary metal act is back on the charts in the United Kingdom at the moment with Live in Atlanta '82, a release that was recorded more than 40 years ago, as its title suggests.
Judas Priest returns to the Official Rock & Metal Albums chart in the U.K. with Live in Atlanta '82. The project blasts onto the ranking at No. 13 on the genre-specific roster that only tracks the bestselling titles in rock and metal across the nation.
Including Live in Atlanta '82, Judas Priest now claims 16 total appearances on the Official Rock & Metal Albums chart. It's the band's second new win of 2025 alone. Just a few months back in February, Rocka Rolla reentered the conversation when it was reissued and made available again. That full-length originally arrived in 1974, and while it wasn't new by any stretch, it was new to the U.K.-based list, as fans of the group sent it to No. 7, though it did disappear just one frame after arriving inside the top 10.
Like many of the titles that launch this week in the U.K., Live in Atlanta '82 is a Record Store Day exclusive. The performance was recorded on December 11, 1982, during a stop on the band's World Vengeance Tour. The music had previously only been available on CD as part of the 50 Heavy Metal Years of Music box set, which limited access for some fans. Now, for the first time, the concert has been issued as a standalone release.
This week's Official Rock & Metal Albums chart is absolutely packed. An incredible 15 new titles debut, which makes any appearance — even one outside the top 10 — feel like a win. Live in Atlanta '82 lands at No. 13, and yet it is still the ninth-highest arrival of the bunch. Judas Priest trails genre peers like Yes, Motörhead, and Black Sabbath, as well as a somewhat surprising name: Post Malone.
