Judas Priest released their debut album, "Rocka Rolla". The recording captured a period when the band was developing the distinctive sound that would establish them as a major force in heavy metal several years later.
Judas Priest were cleared of liability in Reno, Nevada, in a civil case concerning the suicides of two seventeen-year-old fans who had listened to the album „Stained Class“. The victims' families claimed that the music contained subliminal messages that led to their actions and sought a total of $6.2 million.