Beyond the Realms of Death

According to guitarist K.K. Downing, most of the guitar parts for this song (excluding the solos) were written by Priest's drummer at the time, Les Binks. One day during the recording of Stained Class, the left-handed drummer came into the studio, picked up a guitar and came up with the riff, with the guitar turned upside down. This was to be Binks' only songwriting credit during his time with Judas Priest. The song has since become a live staple on many of the band's tours.

The lyrics, which were written by singer Rob Halford, revolve around a depressed person who has entered a nearly apathetic state of mind and finally dies, most likely by his own hand. This made the song a focal point in the famous subliminal message trial in 1990, with the prosecution (wrongfully) claiming another song on the Stained Class album, "Better By You, Better Than Me," contained hidden messages encouraging suicide, leading to the deaths of two teenage boys. In the trial, the prosecution claimed that "Beyond the Realms of Death" coerced the teens into a suicide pact, noting the lines: Keep the world with all its sin It's not fit for living in The case was dismissed, with no evidence of hidden messages found. Furthermore, the lyrics in "Beyond the Realms of Death" ask the question, "Is knowledge worth this bitter cost?" strongly suggesting an anti-suicide stance.

Rob Halford was a closeted gay man in the very heterosexual world of heavy metal, which caused him a great deal of internal conflict. In this song, he sings: I'm safe here in my mind I'm free to speak with my own kind He considers this one of his most personal lyrics. In his autobiography Confess, he states: "In 1978, the idea of being able to talk to other gay men, openly, freely, and without stigma, seemed as likely as polevaulting to Mars. I just knew: It will never bloody happen." His bandmates, and many Priest fans, suspected Halford was gay, but he didn't come out until 1998. When he did, he received a great deal of support.