According to an interview with Badlands bassist Greg Chaisson, who was living and working in Phoenix at the time, he got a call from Keeler asking him if he was watching the Larry Holmes/Jerry Cooney fight on Pay Per View, broadcast in the summer of 1982.Īfter Chaisson confirmed he was in fact watching the bout, Keeler asked him if he could drop by either Mr. During his early days in Phoenix, Halford became good pals with Surgical Steel guitarist Jim Keeler. If someone told me that Rob could fly, I'd happily believe them without evidence. Because if we've learned anything about Rob Halford over the decades, it is that he can pretty much do anything.
Now, onto the story of how the Metal God quite literally made the local Phoenix band Surgical Steel a heavy metal sensation overnight.
