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Half a century into a career isn't normally the time to shake things up, but Judas Priest was ready to get uncomfortable early this year when the band announced it would tour as a four-piece for the first time in 48 years.
When the resulting uproar was too uncomfortable, however, the band reversed course, with frontman Rob Halford taking the blame for the idea and welcoming producer/touring guitarist Andy Sneap back into the band for its '50 Heavy Metal Years' North American tour this spring.
Speaking recently with Ultimate Classic Rock, longtime Judas Priest guitarist Glenn Tipton, (whose Parkinson's disease prevents him from touring and performing full-time) credited the fans for their appropriate outrage at the one-guitar idea.
"I think we were trying to do something that wasn't necessary," Tipton admitted. "Priest is a two-guitar band. It would have been wrong to go out with one guitar."
Tipton went on to explain that after so many years with Richie Faulkner and Sneap handling guitars, the band winced at the thought of launching a search for another live guitarist should Sneap leave the band to refocus on producing.
Halford have jumped the gun with the announcement, however, and Sneap later clarified that he had no plans to leave Judas Priest this year.
"I think it was because we didn't want to go down the path of finding a new guitar play that was capable of rising to the occasion," Tipton explained. "[But] I think it would have been wrong, in all fairness, Priest have always been known for its twin leads. ... I don't see any need to change that."
After working with Priest on its acclaimed Firepower album, Sneap joined the band's touring collective in 2018 to fill in for Tipton.
Judas Priest has North American tour dates on the books through April 13. So far Tipton is traveling with the band to most dates, making appearances onstage as his condition allows. He tells UCR that he's reveling in the deep cuts and rarities in the band's setlist, as it celebrates five decades of heavy metal.
Get all Judas Priest's tour dates here.