Robert Gray of Ultimate-Guitar.com recently conducted an interview with JUDAS PRIEST singer Rob Halford. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: What prompted you to record a Christmas album in "Halford III: Winter Songs"?

Halford: Well, I'd never done it before, so that was the main reason. Where I am in my metal life, I just look for things that interest me, and try to find music that I haven't explored previously — "Winter Songs" was a chance to do that. It's that time of the year as well, being a Brit, even though this record is for everybody around the world, and for all different faiths and everything. We all like that time around December; it means a lot to a lot of people, and it certainly means a lot to me. I was able to find time to record "Winter Songs", and there you go. The album's all ready, and about to launch.

Have you heard the first two tracks, Robert?

Ultimate-Guitar.com: "Get Into the Spirit" and "We Three Kings", yeah.

Halford: "Winter Songs" is a little bit more than that, but with the first couple of tracks, I just wanted to send out a signal to metalheads that it is a record for metal fans more than anything in the world. The album goes off into some really cool, different places musically, and is a really interesting record to listen to.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Was "Winter Songs" in the works for quite some time?

Halford: No, not really. In "Winter Songs"' liner notes, it says that the album was put together over 2008 and 2009, but that doesn't mean it was a two-year project. The record was just bits and pieces like a jigsaw puzzle coming together. I've been out on the road with PRIEST for almost the last two years, so it was a case of finding time for me to record my vocals. Also, the rest of the guys in the HALFORD band had to find time in their busy schedules as well, and more importantly, we just had to find the right material. I wasn't going to record "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (laughs) — that's already been done to death. I just wanted to find songs that were not overly popular, songs that could take the right kind of treatment in the arrangements. Trying to get the right things together was just a long process, but in the end, "Winter Songs" is seven songs that have been rearranged and produced by Roy Z and myself, and then three original tracks that we've put together. I've been listening to "Winter Songs" off and on since it was finished about a month ago, and I try to listen to it with an open mind, even though it's a music project that I'm close to. I think "Winter Songs" is great, a really, really nice record — if nice is the right word. The album is just for the experience of this time of year, and is like everything you do. When people hear the music, they'll make their decision on whether they're going to like it or not, but I feel good about it. I feel really good about it.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Do you feel that people can listen to "Winter Songs" all year round then? Although the two songs I heard, "Get Into the Spirit" and "We Three Kings", are Christmas songs, you can listen to them whenever really, and they still sound really good.

Halford: Yeah. That's a cool... Yeah, why not? Some of "Winter Songs"' tracks specifically use the Christmas time reference, but there are others that don't have that. On its musical merits, there are some songs that you could enjoy at any time you wanted to enjoy them. Having said that, my specific intention was to make a record that you could enjoy at that time of the year, and enjoy year after year. That comes from my background, when you think about it. I don't write music that's disposable, or has a short shelf life so to speak. I write music that you can enjoy, and take with you wherever you go, depending on whatever mood you're in. Having said that, "Winter Songs" is a holiday release.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Is there a reason why you opted to cover lesser known tracks, as opposed to opting to cover more obvious tracks? Like, I don't know, "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" or "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" and all those type of well-known Christmas songs?

Halford: Yeah. Those songs are fun, and they're lightweight. They create a certain kind of emotion, but I wanted "Winter Songs" to just be a little bit deeper. There's a couple of cool tracks on the album, like "When Christmas Comes for Everyone". I was totally thinking of the U.K. time. There's a very exclusive British vibe that you get around Christmas, because that's what I am. I'm a Brit, and I carry that in my blood. To me, that song is a very British feeling, sounding track. Another one, called "I Don't Care If It's Christmas Night", was kind of inspired by the Chuck Berry type of experience, and the way that Chuck has written his music over the years. I just went into that frame of mind. That song tells the story of how you're struggling to get home in time to be with the family at Christmas, and you can't cos the weather's fucking shit. You get stuck in traffic, and all that kind of thing. I think that's another dilemma we all have - last minute Christmas shopping (laughs). It drives you mental. But how can I put that into a song? That's the message of that track, but some of the other material is quite big; big guitars, big drums, and big choral voices. All the other material has some very, very strong moments musically.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Were there any songs recorded for "Winter Songs", but left off the final track listing?

Halford: No. In fact, we were listening to the nine completed tracks, and I said to Roy, "We need another track. I don't like this number nine. It just feels wonky to me. I think we need another track". Roy agreed, so I picked up a guitar, and went into the studio. Half an hour later, I came up with this song which turned out to be quite strong, actually. It's called "Light of the World". We then had our ten tracks, so there was nothing left over. It was all used up. I had such a great time, and so much fun recording "Winter Songs". There was no stress, and no pressure. I had such a really cool time recording the album that I'm already thinking of maybe recording another one next year. "Volume 2". If you search, there's a lot of material out there.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: What do you feel the future holds for the HALFORD band?

Halford: PRIEST will always be the band that leads me in my life, but I still have that streak of creativity that I need to find an outlet for. That's what the HALFORD band provides me with. I don't think PRIEST could've done this Christmas'y kind of record — it wouldn't have been right, because that isn't what PRIEST is about. My solo activities allow me to do that, and anything else that I might choose to do in the future. It has to be useful, Robert. I can't just go banging out songs that I can do with PRIEST — what's the point? I need to be able to find music and songs that need a solo touch to them. I still want to explore those possibilities. The great thing about music is you can get up any day of the week, and you can find a brand new way of expressing yourself as a musician. It's a never-ending journey in that respect, when you think about it. It's just as exciting for me now in PRIEST as it was when I first started in metal, and it's just as exciting for me now with the solo ideas that I've got swirling around me. I haven't lost that passion. I'm fifty-eight, but I still have that streak of creativity in me, and determination, to keep working into the metal future.

Read the entire interview from Ultimate-Guitar.com.

"Get into the Spirit" audio stream:



"We Three Kings" audio stream: