About Les Binks
James Leslie Binks (6 July 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. == Life and career == === Early years === 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). The album project began as a soundtrack for an animated film based on a well-known English children's book, but a promo for the film never gained any interest, so the project was scrapped. Glover went on to release the soundtrack as a "Roger Glover and Friends" title. One of the featured vocalists, Eddie Hardin previously of The Spencer Davis Group, later released his own albums, the first of which was Eddie Hardin's Wizard's Convention (1976), which again included Binks on drums. 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.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.