Metal Conqueror Tour

The Metal Conqueror Tour was a concert tour by English heavy metal band Judas Priest in support of the album Defenders of the Faith. It ran from 20 January until 13 September 1984.

Metal Conqueror Tour

Tour by Judas Priest
Associated album	Defenders of the Faith
Start date	20 January 1984
End date	13 September 1984
No. of shows	125
Judas Priest concert chronology

Following the tour, the band took a one-year hiatus from touring, apart from a brief performance at the 1985 Live Aid concert in Philadelphia.

Recordings

Rob Halford, K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton, 3 February 1984, in San Sebastián, Spain

The 2015 release of Defenders of the Faith's 30th anniversary edition features the concert from 5 May 1984 in Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, California in its entirety. Prior to this release, select tracks from the same concert were featured as bonus tracks on the 2001 remasters of Sin After Sin, British Steel, Defenders of the Faith, Priest...Live! and Ram It Down.

Production

The stage production featured a large drum riser prop in the shape of the Metallian that adorns the Defenders of the Faith album cover. During the concert, the band members would enter the stage through the prop's mouth, or under either of its raisable legs. Halford's staple live stunt of riding a motorcycle on stage also had him emerge from under one of the legs.

Europe warm-up leg

A special pre-Defenders of the Faith mini tour took place in the United Kingdom and Germany, which went from 12 to 22 December 1983 with support act Quiet Riot. They would also perform at the Rock Pop Festival at Westfalenhallen in Dortmund on 18 December with Iron Maiden, Scorpions, Ozzy Osbourne, Def Leppard and Quiet Riot.^[1]

Setlist

"The Hellion" [Audio Intro] "Electric Eye" "Riding on the Wind" "Heading Out to the Highway" "Grinder" "Metal Gods" "Bloodstone" "Breaking the Law" "Sinner" "Desert Plains" "The Ripper" "Freewheel Burning" "Devil's Child" "Screaming for Vengeance" "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" "Victim of Changes" "Living After Midnight" [1st Encore] "The Green Manalishi" (Fleetwood Mac cover) [Second encore] "Hell Bent for Leather" [Final encore]

"The Hellion" [Audio intro] "Electric Eye" "Riding on the Wind" "Grinder" "Metal Gods" "Bloodstone" "Breaking the Law" "Sinner" "Desert Plains" "The Ripper" "Freewheel Burning" "Screaming for Vengeance" "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" "Victim of Changes" "Living After Midnight" [First encore] "The Green Manalishi" (Fleetwood Mac cover) [Second encore] "Hell Bent for Leather" [Final encore]

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue
12 December 1983	Newcastle	England	Newcastle City Hall
13 December 1983	Glasgow	Scotland	The Apollo
15 December 1983	Manchester	England	Manchester Apollo
16 December 1983	London		Hammersmith Odeon
17 December 1983
18 December 1983	Dortmund	West Germany	Westfalenhallen
20 December 1983	Leicester	England	De Montfort Hall
21 December 1983	Birmingham		Birmingham Odeon
22 December 1983

Setlist

The setlist varied throughout the tour. The European setlist consisted of:

"The Hellion" (Taped intro)

1. "Electric Eye"
2. "Riding on the Wind"
3. "Grinder"
4. "Metal Gods"
5. "Bloodstone"
6. "Breaking the Law"
7. "Sinner"
8. "Desert Plains"
9. "The Ripper"
10. "Heavy Duty" (Added on 2 February 1984)
11. "Defenders Of The Faith" (Added on 2 February 1984)
12. "Freewheel Burning"
13. "Screaming For Vengeance" (Replaced by "Some Heads Are Gonna Roll" after 28 January 1984)
14. "You've Got Another Thing Comin'"
15. "Victim of Changes"
16. "Living After Midnight"
17. "The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)" (Fleetwood Mac cover)
18. "Hell Bent for Leather"

The U.S. setlist consisted of:

1. "Love Bites"
2. "Jawbreaker"
3. "Grinder"
4. "Metal Gods"
5. "Breaking the Law"
6. "Sinner"
7. "Desert Plains"
8. "Some Heads Are Gonna Roll"
9. "The Sentinel"
10. "Rock Hard, Ride Free"
11. "Night Comes Down"
12. "Electric Eye"
13. "Heavy Duty"
14. "Defenders of the Faith"
15. "Freewheel Burning"
16. "Victim of Changes"
17. "The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)" (Fleetwood Mac cover)
18. "Living After Midnight"
19. "Hell Bent for Leather"
20. "You've Got Another Thing Comin'"

"Heading Out to the Highway" was also played on 9 June.

Tour dates

The band toured with Ted Nugent and Raven on the European leg and Great White and Kick Axe on the North American leg.^[2]

On 18 June 1984, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, several riots broke out, and the crowd also brawled with venue security and arriving NYPD officers - some in full riot gear - which prompted the venue to ban Priest.^[3]

"Madison Square Garden banned us for life", recalled Glenn Tipton. "The audience went berserk and ripped all the seats out. They cost more than a quarter of a million dollars to replace. Me and Ken [KK Downing] went back there to see a tennis match which John McEnroe was playing in. We went incognito, wearing hoodies so no one would recognize us, but the ushers came up to us and said, 'Thanks for the new seats, guys.'"^[4]

Date	City	Country	Venue
Europe
20 January 1984	Copenhagen	Denmark	Falkoner Center
21 January 1984	Stockholm	Sweden	Hovet
23 January 1984	Gothenburg		Scandinavium
25 January 1984	Nancy	France	Parc des Expositions
26 January 1984	Le Grand-Quevilly		Parc des Expositions de Rouen
27 January 1984	Amsterdam	Netherlands	Edenhall
28 January 1984	Brussels	Belgium	Forest National
30 January 1984	Clermont-Ferrand	France	Maison des Sports
31 January 1984
1 February 1984	Barcelona	Spain	Palau dels Esports de Barcelona
2 February 1984	Madrid		Raimundo Saporta Pavilion
3 February 1984	San Sebastián		Velódromo de Anoeta
4 February 1984	Toulouse	France	Palais des Sports
5 February 1984	Marseille		Unknown
7 February 1984	Nice		Théâtre de Verdure de Nice
8 February 1984	Grenoble		Alpexpo
9 February 1984	Lyon		Palais d'Hiver
10 February 1984	Strasbourg		Hall Tivoli
11 February 1984	Paris		Éspace Ballard
13 February 1984	Offenbach	West Germany	Stadthalle
14 February 1984	Neunkirchen am Brand		Hemmerleinhalle
15 February 1984	Kaunitz		Ostwestfalenhalle
17 February 1984	Böblingen		Sporthalle
18 February 1984	Winterthur	Switzerland	Eulachalle
19 February 1984	Munich	West Germany	Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle
20 February 1984	Eppelheim		Rhein-Neckar-Halle
21 February 1984	Düsseldorf		Mitsubishi Electric Halle
22 February 1984	Hanover		Eilenriedehalle
North America
16 March 1984	Niagara Falls	United States	Niagara Falls Convention Center
18 March 1984	Springfield		Springfield Civic Center
19 March 1984	Portland		Cumberland County Civic Center
21 March 1984	Uniondale		Nassau Coliseum
22 March 1984	New Haven		New Haven Coliseum
23 March 1984	East Rutherford		Brendan Byrne Arena
25 March 1984	Providence		Providence Civic Center
26 March 1984	Worcester		The Centrum
27 March 1984	Glens Falls		Glens Falls Civic Center
28 March 1984	Montreal	Canada	Montreal Forum
30 March 1984	Quebec City		Colisée de Québec
31 March 1984	Ottawa		Ottawa Civic Centre
2 April 1984	Toronto		Maple Leaf Gardens
3 April 1984	Rochester	United States	War Memorial Auditorium
4 April 1984	Syracuse		Onondaga War Memorial Auditorium
6 April 1984	Richfield		Richfield Coliseum
7 April 1984	Kalamazoo		Wings Event Center
9 April 1984	Pittsburgh		Pittsburgh Civic Arena
11 April 1984	Baltimore		Baltimore Civic Center
12 April 1984	Hampton		Hampton Coliseum
13 April 1984	Roanoke		Roanoke Civic Center
14 April 1984	Louisville		Louisville Gardens
16 April 1984	Knoxville		Knoxville Civic Coliseum
17 April 1984	Huntsville		Von Braun Civic Center
18 April 1984	Memphis		Mid-South Coliseum
20 April 1984	Jackson		Mississippi Coliseum
21 April 1984	BIloxi		Mississippi Coast Coliseum
22 April 1984	Baton Rouge		Riverside Centroplex
24 April 1984	Shreveport		Hirsch Memorial Coliseum
25 April 1984	Little Rock		Barton Coliseum
27 April 1984	Houston		The Summit
28 April 1984	San Antonio		HemisFair Arena
29 April 1984	Austin		Frank Erwin Center
30 April 1984	Dallas		Reunion Arena
2 May 1984	Albuquerque		Tingley Coliseum
3 May 1984	Phoenix		Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
5 May 1984	Long Beach		Long Beach Arena
6 May 1984
7 May 1984
9 May 1984	San Diego		San Diego Sports Arena
10 May 1984	Fresno		Selland Arena
12 May 1984	Sacramento		Cal Expo Amphitheatre
24 May 1984	Portland		Portland Memorial Coliseum
25 May 1984	Spokane		Spokane Coliseum
26 May 1984	Tacoma		Tacoma Dome
28 May 1984	Vancouver	Canada	Pacific Coliseum
30 May 1984	Edmonton		Northlands Coliseum
31 May 1984	Calgary		Stampede Corral
2 June 1984	Regina		Regina Agridome
4 June 1984	Winnipeg		Winnipeg Arena
6 June 1984	La Crosse	United States	La Crosse Center
7 June 1984	Ashwaubenon		Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena
9 June 1984	Madison		Dane County Coliseum
11 June 1984	Saint Paul		Saint Paul Civic Center
13 June 1984	Detroit		Joe Louis Arena
14 June 1984	Rosemont		Rosemont Horizon
16 June 1984	Landover		Capital Centre
17 June 1984
18 June 1984	New York City		Madison Square Garden
20 June 1984	Binghamton		Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena
22 June 1984	Bethlehem		Stabler Arena
23 June 1984	Philadelphia		Spectrum
26 June 1984	Greensboro		Greensboro Coliseum
27 June 1984	Charlotte		Charlotte Coliseum
28 June 1984	Atlanta		Omni Coliseum
30 June 1984	Jacksonville		Jacksonville Coliseum
1 July 1984	Pembroke Pines		Hollywood Sportatorium
3 July 1984	Lakeland		Lakeland Civic Center
6 July 1984	Johnson City		Freedom Hall Civic Center
7 July 1984	Nashville		Nashville Municipal Auditorium
9 July 1984	Trotwood		Hara Arena
10 July 1984	Indianapolis		Market Square Arena
13 July 1984	Cedar Rapids		Five Seasons Center
14 July 1984	St. Louis		Kiel Auditorium
15 July 1984	Bonner Springs		Sandstone Amphitheater
17 July 1984	Valley Center		Kansas Coliseum
18 July 1984	Norman		Lloyd Noble Center
20 July 1984	Denver		McNichols Sports Arena
21 July 1984	Casper		Casper Events Center
22 July 1984	Pueblo		State Fairgrounds
24 July 1984	Las Vegas		Thomas & Mack Center
25 July 1984	Reno		Lawlor Events Center
27 July 1984	Daly City		Cow Palace
28 July 1984
29 July 1984	Irvine		Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre
31 July 1984	Salt Lake City		Salt Palace
2 August 1984	Sioux Falls		Sioux Falls Arena
3 August 1984	Bismarck		Bismarck Civic Center
5 August 1984	East Troy		Alpine Valley Music Theatre
7 August 1984	Harrisburg		City Island
8 August 1984	Columbus		Battelle Hall
9 August 1984	Saginaw		Wendler Arena
Japan
6 September 1984	Sendai	Japan	Miyagi-ken Sports Center
7 September 1984	Tokyo		Shibuya Public Hall
8 September 1984	Nagoya		Nagoya Civic Assembly Hall
10 September 1984	Osaka		Osaka Festival Hall
11 September 1984
13 September 1984	Tokyo		Nippon Budokan

Boxscore

City	Venue	Tickets sold/available	Gross revenue (Adjusted for inflation)
Springfield	Civic Center	5,300/6,000 (88%)[5]	$136,069[5]
New Haven	Coliseum	8,340/10,000 (83%)[6]	$250,534[6]
East Rutherford	Brendan Byrne Arena	17,446/17,446 (100%)[6]	$520,540[6]
Providence	Civic Center	8,687/9,826 (88%)[6]	$244,417[6]
Worcester	The Centrum	9,494/11,200 (85%)[7]	$281,747[7]
Toronto	Maple Leaf Gardens	13,081/13,081 (100%)[8]	$343,170[8]
Rochester	War Memorial Auditorium	10,200/10,200 (100%)[9]	$285,965[9]
Pittsburgh	Civic Arena	8,330/12,000 (69%)[8]	$258,337[8]
Baltimore	Civic Center	12,969/12,969 (100%)[10]	$389,002[10]
Houston	The Summit	11,898/12,600 (94%)[11]	$340,524[11]
San Antonio	HemisFair Arena	11,893/11,893 (100%)[11]	$333,338[11]
Austin	Frank Erwin Center	7,085/12,096 (59%)[12]	$193,263[12]
Dallas	Reunion Arena	13,443/13,443 (100%)[11]	$388,665[11]
Albuquerque	Tingley Coliseum	7,257/12,636 (57%)[13]	$223,817[13]
Phoenix	Veterans Memorial Coliseum	12,884/13,000 (99%)[13]	$388,644[13]
Sacramento	Cal Expo Amphitheater	10,000/10,000 (100%)[13]	$363,461[13]
Regina	Agridome	6,310/6,500 (97%)[14]	$161,750[14]
Winnipeg	Arena	12,328/12,500 (99%)[14]	$327,855[14]
Madison	Dane County Coliseum	5,425/10,000 (54%)[14]	$156,000[14]
Detroit	Joe Louis Arena	12,514/13,714 (91%)[15]	$410,774[15]
Rosemont	Horizon	12,379/12,379 (100%)[16]	$307,146[16]
Landover	Capital Center (2 shows)	16,189/31,200 (52%)[16]	$531,406[16]
New York City	Madison Square Garden	16,757/16,757 (100%)[15]	$559,956[15]
Lakeland	Civic Center	9,846/9,846 (100%)[17]	$298,106[17]
Nashville	Municipal Auditorium	6,039/9,900 (61%)[17]	$174,896[17]
Indianapolis	Market Square Arena	5,513/15,000 (37%)[17]	$144,949[17]
St. Louis	Kiel Auditorium	6,748/10,532 (64%)[17]	$193,380[17]
Bonner Springs	Sandstone Amphitheater	7,464/16,000 (47%)[18]	$186,523[18]
Denver	McNichols Sports Arena	10,011/18,553 (54%)[18]	$332,712[18]
Daly City	Cow Palace (27th)	14,500/14,500 (100%)[19]	$489,481[19]
Irvine	Meadows Amphitheater	15,000/15,000 (100%)[19]	$482,674[19]