Sony's
The Essential Judas Priest collection is the perfect middle ground for those who found 2004's four-disc
Metalogy box a bit too daunting. Each and every one of the 34 tracks is indispensable, chronicling the group's rise from
Queen-worshipping debutantes to revolutionary
metal gods. It's often the case that when career retrospectives take a non-linear approach to their sequencing, the resulting play list becomes a mess of clashing recording techniques and jarring style changes, but
Priest has always held true to its vision, experimenting early on with the
New Wave of British Heavy Metal in ways that seamlessly bridged the gap between their
Gull and
Columbia years. From the opening avatar scream of 2005's comeback single
"Judas Rising" to the introductory guitar swells of
Screaming for Vengeance's
"The Hellion/Electric Eye" -- no live cuts or
Tim "Ripper" Owens-era tracks were included -- this is one compilation that's worthy of its moniker. ~ James Christopher Monger
![Plastic Ono Band [Deluxe Edition]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0602507354497_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "Plastic Ono Band [Deluxe Edition]")
![Iron Fist [40th Anniversary Edition]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/4050538694055_p0_v2_s90x140.jpg "Iron Fist [40th Anniversary Edition]")
