Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford has unfolded at the second he met the mythical Dolly Parton, in addition to the not going collaboration their assembly ultimately spawned. The 2 loved singers crossed paths on the 2022 Rock And Roll Corridor Of Repute rite, the place Parton used to be inducted into the Corridor itself and Priest had been honoured with a unique Musical Excellence Award.
Close to the top of the night time, Parton invited a few of that yr’s hosts and inductees, together with Brandi Carlile, P!nk, Duran Duran’s Simon LeBon, Sheryl Crow, Annie Lennox, Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo, to return on level and sing trademark hit Jolene together with her. Halford used to be among the celebrities to participate within the wonderful spectacle, that means the Steel God were given to fulfill an established idol of his.
“Someway, instinctively, I knew we had been going to fulfill,” Rob explains in the most recent factor of Steel Hammer. “I at all times inform the tale of my mom’s grandmother, who used to be a clairvoyant, and I nonetheless suppose I’ve were given just a little of that during me, as a result of one thing went, ‘You’re going to fulfill Dolly Parton.’ Two or 3 days later, those emails come into the place of work, and Dolly’s reached out, asking, ‘Would you sing some traces on Jolene?’ You take a seat at house and move, ‘Oh my god, that is in point of fact going to occur!’ Being a homosexual man, ‘I’ve were given not anything to put on!’ I do know that she loves to sparkle and I love to sparkle, so what I wore on that night time used to be apropos.”
As overawed by means of the come upon as Halford plainly used to be, it kind of feels Parton herself used to be additionally very inspired to fulfill the heavy steel hero – no longer least on account of his spectacular facial hair.
“She is going, ‘I like your beard!’” Halford exclaims, “and he or she begins to scrub my beard! It used to be so surreal! I’m assembly this dwelling legend and he or she’s tickling my beard and going, ‘So that you’re going to sing some Jolene with me?’ I used to be simply floating.”
The next yr, Halford’s new-found friendship with Parton would level-up courtesy of an look on her rock ‘n’ roll album Rockstar, the place the 2 would duet at the monitor Bygones. Halford recorded his vocals one at a time from Parton, sending her the demos to rave critiques.
“We’re at the telephone to one another and he or she’s going, ‘Ship me the recordsdata! Ship me the recordsdata!’” he explains. “So I despatched her the recordsdata and he or she calls again and is going, ‘I like those! That is gonna be nice!’ That is Dolly Parton on speakerphone! Ha ha! She’s simply this gorgeous beacon of lifestyles. You’ll be able to inform by means of the way in which I’m talking that that is vital to me as a musician, to have had this actually once-in-a-lifetime alternative to paintings with anyone so nice.”
Judas Priest earned their absolute best ever UK album chart place ultimate week, with newest, seriously acclaimed album Invincible Protect touchdown at an outstanding Quantity Two. They’re these days on excursion in the United Kingdom, with Eu dates to observe. In the meantime, you’ll be able to learn extra from Halford in the most recent factor of Steel Hammer, out now.
