62: We Never Shall Fall

62. "United" by Judas Priest [Video: United.]

I used to use this song to pump (clap) myself up.

I credit this song for my most successful year of church basketball in high school. I used to listen to this song before leaving the house every time we had a game my senior year. And, we had a kick-butt year of churchball! So, of course, I credit this song for its ability to get me pumped up.

(I'm sure our kick-butt year of churchball had nothing to do with the fact we had a senior-laden team and we were crushing a bunch of sophomores and freshmen. It's all because of Judas Priest!)

[Side note: Even though it is spelled "Judas Priest," the name of this group was pronounced, at least in Southeast Idaho, as "Judast Priest."]

I never actually owned this song. I had to listen to "United" on a cassette I had recorded off of the radio. Ah, the halcyon innocent days of music piracy! And, oh how I hated disc jockeys who would talk over the end of songs, or talk too long over the beginning of songs.

Of course, I couldn't have owned anything by this band back in those days, because I would not have been allowed to have anything named "Judas Priest" in the house. ("Judast Priest, either.)

As I think about those old recorded-off-the-radio cassettes, most of the songs on them were pretty mainstream. This ("United") was one of the few songs I didn't end up having on regular store-bought cassettes, records or cds.


Now, for a somewhat off-topic ramble:

I'm remembering one other song that I never owned in any other form besides the recorded-off-the-radio cassette. In the darkest reaches of my memory, I recall a song by a group from Preston, Idaho named Ace. I couldn't remember the name of the song, only that the group's name was Ace and that they were from Preston, Idaho.

But then, through the magic of Google, YouTube, and the internets, I found the song! (Sort of.) The song was called "Doing the Best That We Can," and I found a shoddy cover of it by some other band, named either Camden or Millington, from some kind of church dance. And you know, it's still a pretty good song. Here's the link: Doing the Best That We Can. (Yes, it's a crappy video, but if you can picture the song being played by actual talented musicians, it's a pretty good song.)

COMING UP NEXT: Meanwhile, back in the Hall of Justice….