In a recent appearance on SiriusXM’s ‘Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk,’ founding Judas Priest guitarist K.K. Downing recalled his experience during last year’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony.
Looking back on the event, Downing admitted he had concerns beforehand:
“I deliberated about attending the event. I’m thinking, ‘It’s a long, long way to go, ’cause I’m not exactly sure how it’s gonna all pan out.’ But both myself and Les Binks, we were delighted when we heard from the management that we were gonna be inducted. That was great.”
Despite his initial joy of being informed about his and former drummer Les Binks’s induction, Downing revealed he and Binks felt a noticeable separation from the rest of the band:
“But shortly after that, we had another e-mail saying, ‘Just to let you know that you and Les are guests of the band.’ So straight off the bat, I’m thinking, ‘Oh, here we go. This is not exactly how I thought it would go.’ And then, obviously, we were kept segregated — flights, dressing rooms, hotels, the red carpet — so it was just total segregation. And that was it.”
However, during the event, the guitarist had a positive interaction with his replacement in Judas Priest, Richie Faulkner:
“I really must give a shoutout to Richie. Richie was great. He came into the dressing room a couple of times. We had a good few laughs.”
Last year’s Rock Hall saw Judas Priest receiving the Musical Excellence Award, with artists such as Eminem, Dolly Parton, and Lionel Richie among the other honorees. During the event, Downing performed with the band for the first time since 2009.
Downing left Judas Priest in 2011, citing band conflict, management concerns, and other reasons. While he had expressed a wish to join the band’s 50th-anniversary tour, the invitation was not extended to him.
Below, you can watch Judas Priest perform ‘Breaking The Law’ with Downing and Binks during the 2022 Rock Hall event.
