# Dave Holland (drummer)
**Dave Holland** (born David Holland, 1948; died January 16, 2018) was an English rock drummer best known as the drummer of the heavy metal band [Judas Priest](https://www.edgepedia.org/judas-priest) from 1979 to 1988, the period covering the band's albums from *British Steel* (1980) to *Ram It Down* (1988)[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720). He should not be confused with the American jazz bassist of the same name[2](https://daveholland.com/about/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1948, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England (AllMusic lists Northampton as his birthplace)[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/dave-holland-mn0001811516) |
| Died | January 16, 2018, in Lugo, Spain, of liver cancer[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720) |
| Judas Priest tenure | Drums, 1979–1988[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720) |
| Studio albums with Priest | *British Steel* (1980), *Point of Entry* (1981), *Screaming for Vengeance* (1982), *Defenders of the Faith* (1984), *Turbo* (1986), *Ram It Down* (1988)[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720) |
| Earlier bands | Dorian Gray (1965), Finders Keepers (1968–1969), Trapeze[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720) |
| Departure | Walked offstage after the last date of the Ram It Down tour in October 1988 and quit[4](https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2020/12/02/judas-priest-painkiller/) |
| Conviction | Found guilty in 2004 of attempted rape and several indecent assaults involving his young music students; sentenced to 8 years in prison[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720) |
## Early career
Holland first tasted success as drummer with Pinkerton's Assorted Colours, whose single "Mirror Mirror" reached the UK Top 10 in 1966[5](https://cranberriesworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2018.04.xx-Uncut.pdf). He then played in Dorian Gray in 1965 and with Finders Keepers from 1968 to 1969, where he worked alongside bassist and vocalist Glenn Hughes; the two continued together in Trapeze[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720).
## Judas Priest, 1979–1989
Judas Priest had cycled through several drummers in the 1970s, including John Hinch, Alan Moore, Simon Phillips, and Les Binks, before Holland arrived in 1979[6](https://umdmusic.com/default.asp?Lang=English&Umd=J9568) • [7](https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/literature-and-arts/music-popular-and-jazz-biographies/judas-priest). His first album with the band was *British Steel* (1980), which took the group into the US Top 40 for the first time and, in many retrospective accounts, defined the style, sound, and image of metal[7](https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/literature-and-arts/music-popular-and-jazz-biographies/judas-priest) • [8](https://www.loudersound.com/features/judas-priest-the-making-of-british-steel). He remained through *[Point of Entry](https://www.edgepedia.org/point-of-entry)*, *Screaming for Vengeance*, *Defenders of the Faith*, *[Turbo](https://www.edgepedia.org/turbo-judas-priest-album)*, and *Ram It Down*, a stretch that included the band's first gold album in the United States (*Screaming for Vengeance*, 1982) and, by the account of one retrospective, gold- and platinum-selling albums with arena tours and regular radio play[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720) • [7](https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/literature-and-arts/music-popular-and-jazz-biographies/judas-priest) • [4](https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2020/12/02/judas-priest-painkiller/).
**Playing style.** A contemporary assessment of *British Steel* describes Holland as a skilled musician whose drumming served the music rather than calling attention to the drummer, and notes that on one song he "throws in some explosive" fills[9](https://groups.google.com/g/alt.music.judas-priest/c/4Lwhpu8HbI0). Bassist [Ian Hill](https://www.edgepedia.org/ian-hill) recalled Holland laying a "chucka-chucka" beat over the guitars on one of the songs that defined his career[10](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/judas-priest-ian-hill-life-in-10-songs-2026).
**Departure.** In October 1988, after the last date of the [Ram It Down](https://www.edgepedia.org/ram-it-down) tour, Holland walked offstage and abruptly quit[4](https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2020/12/02/judas-priest-painkiller/). In a later interview, singer [Rob Halford](https://www.edgepedia.org/rob-halford) recalled that Holland had told the band partway through the tour that the schedule had become too much for him physically and mentally; guitarist K.K. Downing added that the death of Holland's father and a long illness in the family had led him to reevaluate his priorities[11](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/judas-priest-painkiller-interview). For the 1990 album *Painkiller*, the band hired the American drummer [Scott Travis](https://www.edgepedia.org/scott-travis), the first American full-time member of Judas Priest[11](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/judas-priest-painkiller-interview).
## Later life
In 2004, Holland was found guilty of attempted rape and several indecent assaults involving his young music students and was sentenced to 8 years in prison[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720). He died of liver cancer on January 16, 2018, at the Hospital Universitario Lucus Augusti in Lugo, Spain, near the mountain town of A Fonsagrada where he was living at the time[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720).
## References
1. [Dave Holland, Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Dave_Holland/3720)
2. [About – Dave Holland (jazz bassist), daveholland.com](https://daveholland.com/about/)
3. [Dave Holland – Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/dave-holland-mn0001811516)
4. [Judas Priest – Painkiller, Decibel Magazine](https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2020/12/02/judas-priest-painkiller/)
5. [Uncut magazine obituaries compilation (PDF)](https://cranberriesworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2018.04.xx-Uncut.pdf)
6. [Judas Priest, Ultimate Music Database](https://umdmusic.com/default.asp?Lang=English&Umd=J9568)
7. [Judas Priest, Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/literature-and-arts/music-popular-and-jazz-biographies/judas-priest)
8. [Judas Priest: The making of British Steel, Louder](https://www.loudersound.com/features/judas-priest-the-making-of-british-steel)
9. [Dave Holland and "British Steel", alt.music.judas-priest](https://groups.google.com/g/alt.music.judas-priest/c/4Lwhpu8HbI0)
10. [Ian Hill on the Judas Priest songs that have defined his career, Louder](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/judas-priest-ian-hill-life-in-10-songs-2026)
11. [Judas Priest interview: Painkiller, the album that saved them, Louder](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/judas-priest-painkiller-interview)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Rock, metal, and popular-band musicians › Hard rock and glam metal › Hard rock drummers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license