Painkiller (Judas Priest song)

"Painkiller" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, released in 1990; it was later released as a single on Columbia Records. It is off the band's twelfth album of the same name as the opening track. The lyrics tell the story of the Painkiller, the character featured on the cover of the album, who is a cyborg superhero who saves mankind from destruction.

"Painkiller" has become one of Judas Priest's most popular songs.

Composition
The drum intro was composed by Scott Travis in the studio initially just as a warm-up routine while the engineers were testing the drum microphones.

Guitarist Glenn Tipton said that the "Painkiller" solo is one of his favorites to perform (the other being the solo on “Beyond the Realms of Death”).

Reception
PopMatters said, "Nobody saw this song coming. Featuring a thunderous intro by new drummer Scott Travis – a colossal improvement over the technically limited Dave Holland – and highlighted by Halford’s maniacal performance, this was Priest embracing extremity without pandering, and sounding once again vital, relevant, and best of all, more powerful than ever."

In 2012, Loudwire ranked the song number two on its list of the 10 greatest Judas Priest songs. In 2019, Louder Sound ranked the song number one on its list of the 50 greatest Judas Priest songs.

Cover versions
Japanese band Babymetal performed an abridged version of the song at the 2016 Alternative Press Music Awards alongside Rob Halford, which led into another Judas Priest song, "Breaking the Law." Babymetal performed these songs later in the year during their tour supporting Red Hot Chili Peppers, with singer Su-metal performing all vocals and RHCP's Chad Smith playing drums.

Death covered the song on their 1998 album The Sound of Perseverance

Personnel
Judas Priest Additional musicians
 * Rob Halford – vocals
 * Glenn Tipton – guitar
 * K. K. Downing – guitar
 * Ian Hill – bass (credited but may not actually appear)
 * Scott Travis – drums
 * Don Airey – Minimoog bass