JUDAS PRIEST Guitarist Talks About Reunion With ROB HALFORD

JUDAS PRIEST frontman Glenn Tipton has spoken to Billboard.com about the band's decision to reunite with singer Rob Halford after 14 years apart.

"We actually made the decision in a meeting about the British box set. We went into the meeting with no intention of discussing reformation and when we came out, we decided to do it," Tipton told Billboard.com. "It was a completely spur-of-the-moment decision. We had offers for two or three years and as you know, Rob was doing his solo thing and [PRIEST was touring] with [singer Tim] Ripper [Owens], [so] we turned them down. But then we just realized that if we didn't do it now, we'd never do it. It was that simple."

With regards to the band's set list at this summer's Ozzfest, Tipton said, "It is not really a greatest hits [tour] but it is total classic PRIEST. We felt that after 14 years, that is what people not only want but deserve. So, instead of trying to be clever, or playing long-lost numbers or things that really people didn't expect, we felt that for these summer dates, the set list should just include classic PRIEST. So, that is what we are giving them."

Looking back on what former frontman Owens provided the band, Glenn said, "We consider the Ripper years [to be] great years. We did two fantastic albums — 'Jugulator' and 'Demolition' — and it proved a lot to ourselves and to the fans, and it proved to be very interesting, a slightly different angle to the band. And it was certainly commendable from Ripper's point of view particularly, and I think [important] for the band's survival through difficult years. So, I think it does make the reunion, I suppose, more nostalgic in that sense."

JUDAS PRIEST's next album, which is completely written and recorded with only overdubs outstanding, will be out in November, with an extensive tour to follow in 2005. The guitarist said he couldn't disclose the title of the album, which will be released by Sony.