I'm pretty sure he was saying it was the first thrash metal he listened to

Imo, this was more inspirational than actually metal.

I'm not knockin you or Priest, but I would bet tons of money that ROB Halford would disagree with this statement.

yeah i suspect that anyone saying sabbath arent as metal as priest is forgetting that NWOBHM stuff isnt the only metal.

Are you saying kill em all is the first thrash metal album?

Oh, on re-reading his post I see that's the case. Sorry about that.

No, just the first thrash Metallica released I actually don't really know about first thrash metal album.

After skimming wikipedia, it seems Kill 'Em All is a good contender for that title. It was the first album by the "Big Four" - Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax. Since they are widely accepted as the pioneers among thrash metal I'd say Kill 'Em All is the first thrash metal album. Any thoughts?

Well, KK Downing, the dude in my avatar, has been quoted as saying that Priest was the first real metal band.

Of course Sabbath falls into the category of metal. I love Sabbath. But their music is more bluesy and doomy than the traditional metal that I believe Priest founded. This is most definitely the case with the landmark album Sad Wings of Destiny. That is more metal than any album that existed up to that point.

Yeah, I can see that. Good point. But if we fast forward a year, we start hearing stuff like Paranoid, War Pigs, Iron Man, Electric Funeral. Hard to ignore those songs as metal. Still close to a decade before Priest.

Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath, no argument to be had

Yeah I have to go with Black Sabbath too. They're really the first band/album I can call straight-up "heavy metal," without having to qualify it. Other things prior to them have heavy metal qualities, but that's not quite the same as being out-and-out heavy metal.

And with all due respect to K.K. Downing and Priest, if he made that statement then he's wrong with regard to Priest being the first metal band. The term was used for other bands prior to JP, so it's kind of like Columbus "discovering" America. But in any case take it from the man:

Oh and all hail Halford btw

Yeah, Priest got harder & faster in later stuff.

I agree with all that. I heard Halford in an interview back in the early 80s when he said something like this quote. Priest probably sped things up and made their stuff more heavy and fast than Sabbath in the 80s, but I think early Sabbath has to be considered the first heavy metal stuff. So whatever was the first song released from their first album is likely to be the answer imo.

Arguments can be made for Hendrix stuff & Helter Skelter, but I dont know if you can really call that heavy metal.

This whole subject is really subjective, but its interesting to hear other opinions.

According to my mom Hendrix is metal...

I'm surprised only one person in this entire thread thus far even mentioned Summertime Blues.

Blue Cheer's version is my pick as first metal song.

On a sidenote...even though their studio recordings might not do them enough justice, The Who might be the heaviest band of all time...saw them live this year and I can honestly say, it was a heavier concert than the Tool show I saw on the 10,000 Days tour, and I thought nothing would top that.

Whenever I listen to Live at Leeds (in my top 5 of all time fwiw), it never fails to amaze me how much heavier songs like Substitute were when played live.

My favourite early metal performance, ainec.

I am over 50 years old. Priest and company take a very back seat to "first".

Summertime Blues if not metal. Not even close, imo. It is rock, which I guess inspired metal, but if Summertime Blues is metal then so is Buddy Holly.

ok whatever, so Priest invented "speed metal" with Exciter on Sin After Sin. We can disagree who is the most "metal" ( I vote Priest), but when it comes to being a precursor to thrash and speed metal, Priest is the band that influenced a generation. I can't really argue against Sabbath being the first (Priest did actually form around 1969 with Al Atkins). But if we talk about the fastest and heaviest band to emerge in that period, I vote for Priest. They have the most in common with what is understood as "heavy metal" music. Sabbath is metal, but not in the same way.

I can kind of agree with what you are saying but as far as talking about influences on speed, thrash and the doom etc that also came along you could argue Sabbath were as influentil if not more so on the likes of Saint Vitus and the european thrash scene. Although for me the likes of Venom and Motorhead are bigger influences on the 80's thrash scene than either bands mentioned. Priest only redeeming themselves after that time with Painkiller.

I assume this is referring to the Who doing Summertime Blues.

Monterey Pop

Even so, it is not metal. The Who is a great, great band but they are not a metal band. If anything they are a huge pre-punk influence.

I was not talking about The Who's rendition of Summertime Blues. Even at its loudest/heaviest, it isn't metal, I know that.

I was talking about Blue Cheer.

Arguably just as big of an influence on the progressive rock scene as well; A Quick One and Tommy set the groundwork for a slew of 70s concept albums.

After the Beatles, they might be the most important band in rock history.

^^pre metal imo

Metal -> Black Sabbath