James Leslie Binks (8 August 1951 – 15 March 2025) was a Northern Irish heavy metal drummer. He is best-known for being the drummer for Judas Priest, where he was a member from 1977 to 1979. Previously working for Eric Burdon of the Animals and the funk band War, Binks was also a drummer on Deep Purple bassist Roger Glover’s album The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast (1974). . . .
Binks played for the pop band Fancy who had two U.S. hits in 1974 with a cover of Chip Taylor’s “Wild Thing”, and “Touch Me”. Fancy’s song “Feel Good” from the album Wild Thing has been sampled over one hundred times, most notably by the Beastie Boys on the song “3-Minute Rule” off their album Paul’s Boutique (1989).
Judas Priest
Through his connection to Roger Glover who had just wrapped up production of their album Sin After Sin, Binks joined the up-and-coming heavy metal act Judas Priest in March 1977 for their world tour – their first on American soil. Binks stepped into the role held briefly by noted session drummer Simon Phillips who had performed on Sin After Sin but did not wish to continue. Binks remained with Judas Priest for two and a half years, until July 1979, recording the studio albums Stained Class and Killing Machine (both 1978) and the live album Unleashed in the East (1979), all of which feature a faster thrash metal, speed metal double bass drumming approach, thus helping to develop and explore new terrain within heavy metal music, building on foundations already established by bands like Deep Purple on Fireball and Deep Purple in Rock.
Whilst with Judas Priest, he received a writing credit for the song “Beyond the Realms of Death” from the album Stained Class. Binks made a home demo of the track with friend Steve Mann of the Michael Schenker Group helping on guitar, and at a band rehearsal he picked up a guitar to show them the song. The band loved the song and vocalist Rob Halford then crafted the song’s lyrics and title.
Binks features prominently on Judas Priest’s drum-dominated “Take On the World”, released as a single in January 1979 and notable as the first Judas Priest single to chart in the UK top 40, reaching number 14. “Take on the World” was also later covered by new wave band The Human League on their 1980 tour. In 2021, the band Spoon released the single “Wild”, which sampled Les Binks’ drum patterns from “Take On the World.” The record was also remixed by Dennis Bovell, featuring the same Les Binks’ drum pattern.
Binks left the band just before the start of the North American leg of the “Killing Machine” (Hell Bent for Leather) tour. Binks said in 2017 that he left because he felt he was essentially hired as a “freelance session drummer” by the band and was never made an official member. He felt insulted when the band’s then-manager Mike Dolan suggested that he “waive his fees” (i.e. not get paid for his performance) on the live album Unleashed in the East, a RIAA-certified platinum seller.
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Binks died on 15 March 2025, at the age of 73, and his death was confirmed on 14 April. No cause of death was revealed.
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Read more of Mr. Binks’ bio here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Binks
Photo: Les Binks
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