Before The Dawn

Album: Hell Bent For Leather (1978)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Judas Priest vocalist Rob Halford came out as gay in 1998. Speaking to the Metal Hammer Magazine Show in 2015, Halford revealed that he wrote this ballad about his very first heartbreak. "It may not be in true essence, but there's definitely some truth to the fact that that was relative to that incident," he said.
  • This is a track on Judas Priest's fifth album, which they titled Killing Machine, but was released in America as Hell Bent For Leather because of sensitivity to a recent school shooting. The group was a swirl of activity at the time, pounding it out on the road, making TV and radio appearances, and hitting the studio with any time they had left. They were big, but got even bigger - especially in America - with their next album, British Steel.

Comments: 2

  • Dan Gillespy from Courtenay BcA very nice beautiful and super cool ballad with a short electric guitar lead and very nice talented vocals.
  • Dan Gillespy from Courtenay BcA very beautiful acoustic ballad with a small electric guitar lead and very cool singing.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Melanie

MelanieSongwriter Interviews

The singer-songwriter Melanie talks about her spiritual awakening at Woodstock, "Brand New Key," and why songwriting is an art, not a craft.

Top American Idol Moments: Songs And Scandals

Top American Idol Moments: Songs And ScandalsSong Writing

Surprise exits, a catfight and some very memorable performances make our list of the most memorable Idol moments.

Brenda Russell

Brenda RussellSongwriter Interviews

Brenda talks about the inspiration that drove her to write hit songs like "Get Here" and "Piano in the Dark," and why a lack of formal music training can be a songwriter's best asset.

Janis Ian

Janis IanSongwriter Interviews

One of the first successful female singer-songwriters, Janis had her first hit in 1967 at age 15.

Billy Gould of Faith No More

Billy Gould of Faith No MoreSongwriter Interviews

Faith No More's bassist, Billy Gould, chats to us about his two new experimental projects, The Talking Book and House of Hayduk, and also shares some stories from the FNM days.

Five Rockers Who Rolled With The Devil

Five Rockers Who Rolled With The DevilSong Writing

Just how much did these monsters of rock dabble in the occult?