The following is an excerpt from the new book, Fire And Fame, penned by ex-BONFIRE bassist Joerg Deisinger and BW&BK; scribe Carl Begai. In the piece Deisinger recalls the time he shared the stage with JUDAS PRIEST during soundcheck in Birmingham, UK on the Ram It Down tour:

Delivering The Goods

The stage was lit up, Rob Halford was sitting on the drum riser, in deep conversation with Glenn Tipton, K.K. Downing and one of their stage techs. Things didn’t look like they were progressing any faster than before so I made myself comfortable on my flight case in preparation for a long wait. K.K. changed all that a minute later when he came off stage and made his way over to me.

“Excuse me, Joerg, are you familiar with any of our songs?” he asked.

I was taken completely off guard by the question but didn’t hesitate in answering. “Yeah, sure, ‘Green Manalishi’...”

Okay, it wasn’t one of their songs but it might as well have been. Years earlier I had played the living hell out of Unleashed In The East in my room and had learned to play the song note for note. ‘Green Manalishi’ had always been one of my favourites.

K.K. nodded. “Okay then, come up on stage with us. Ian couldn’t make it in time for soundcheck.”

Excuse me?!

Remember DeNiro’s legendary scene in Taxi Driver where he’s staring in the mirror talking to his reflection? “Are you talkin’ to me? Is that me you’re talkin’ to?” That’s exactly how I felt at that moment.

A minute later I was on the Powerhouse stage with K.K. and the other members of Judas Priest. It was an unbelievable feeling. There I was, 22 years old, on stage with my heroes, in the birthplace of heavy metal.

I must be fucking dreaming.

But it wasn’t a dream. With Ian Hill’s bass strapped on and the other Priest members watching me it was clear that it was real. It was an experience that wouldn’t last more than a brief moment, but I would enjoy every second of it.

K.K. came over to me and offered a warning. “I think it might be better if you come over to my side of the stage. Glenn is pretty damn loud; he’ll blow you away.”

I shook my head. “No thanks, that’s fine with me. Don’t worry.”

Turning up Ian Hill’s bass, I made eye contact with drummer Dave Holland and we counted the song in; drum roll and wham! ‘Green Manalishi’ featuring Judas Priest’s new, very temporary bassist Joerg Deisinger.

Glenn Tipton’s guitar sound hit me from behind like an avalanche, so loud that for a moment I thought I might actually be blown off stage. I can’t imagine how Ian Hill, who normally stands where I had been standing on that fateful day, has endured that all these years. He must be deaf. K.K. saw my shocked expression and laughed, motioning me to center stage where the sound was a bit more bearable. I moved closer to Rob Halford, where his crystal clear vocals and raging guitars pounded back at us through the monitors. It was an indescribable feeling to stand on that stage with the Metal Gods around me, but I absorbed the moment like a sponge.

Then it was over, seemingly as quickly as it had begun. Three minutes that I’ll remember for the rest of my life.

Go to this location for the complete excerpt (scroll down). Click here to read BW&BK; scribe Mark Gromen's review of the book. Additional reviews and quotes are available on the press page.

Signed copies of Fire And Fame are now available for purchase via PayPal here.