Iron Maiden Song By Song Thread

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Zoot Marimba, Nov 8, 2017.

  1. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group Thread Starter

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    I don't take that as a dig at Di'Anno. At all. Seriously, this is a godly vocal that most couldn't dream of pulling off. Just like how Ozzy may be my favorite Sabbath singer but Dio was still a way better singer
     
    Hermes and Cheevyjames like this.
  2. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group Thread Starter

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    Holy smokes fifty pages!
     
    CBackley and SammyJoe like this.
  3. SammyJoe

    SammyJoe Up The Irons!

    Location:
    Finland
    Ok, I have to say this now (eventhough I was gonna save it for later mention here on the forum):
    About 60 minutes ago I met Bruce Dickinson, it was during the book signing, but I still got to say few (actually 5) sentences to him, he was genuine, replied to me and looked straight to my eyes and as I showed my tattoo he marveled how great it looked and smiled to me.
    Then we shook hands and I left..
    Bruce is the best!
    Up The Irons!
     
    Hermes, CBackley, The Hud and 10 others like this.
  4. SammyJoe

    SammyJoe Up The Irons!

    Location:
    Finland
    Im gonna add comments tomorrow to ”Children Of The Damned” after work and as I have gotten back home from my tattoo artist..
     
    Zoot Marimba likes this.
  5. Cheevyjames

    Cheevyjames Forum Resident

    Location:
    Graham, NC
    So cool! I met him back in '94 and he was really nice guy. @TheGreatSouthernBrainfart has a great "meeting Bruce" story that he needs to share. I can't wait to read Bruce's book. LOL, I used to love reading Iffy Boatrace.
     
    SammyJoe and Zoot Marimba like this.
  6. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group Thread Starter

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    I'm hoping to get his book for Christmas
     
    Cheevyjames, Meyer and SammyJoe like this.
  7. Jeff Kent

    Jeff Kent Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mt. Kisco, NY
    Yep, genuinely nice guy. I met and interviewed him twice (1999 and 2000). The first time he was really jet lagged as he had just landed in NYC after a solo tour in South America. The second time he was more fresh and witty. He even recalled our first meeting and looked sheepish about it.
     
    CBackley, Zoot Marimba and SammyJoe like this.
  8. StuJM84

    StuJM84 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kent, UK
    Glad to see im back for NotB songs.

    Invaders, I wont say too much because frankly its a song that I really don't like much. For a song that opens the album, it doesn't suggest anything about how great this album is going to be. Its not awful, but theres not really anything here to really like.

    Children of the Damned is where things really kick off and the album truly starts. Dickinson is brilliant here, taking the song by the short and curlies and throwing off any concerns over him replacing Di'Anno, he has an excellent voice as he has depth and showcases everything hes going to bring to the party by cranking the vocals up to 11. Excellent stuff.
     
  9. SammyJoe

    SammyJoe Up The Irons!

    Location:
    Finland
    Hope that he will share the story here.
    Bruce’s book is great, I have already read the english-version previously and now I have to read that precious signed one, which is the Finnish-translation.
    There was huge queue in the book-signing in Helsinki today, I was among the very few first.
    There was brief interview conducted by author Tuomas Kyrö, then at the end we had surprise for Bruce (this was settled by the organizer).
    The whole store sang ”Maamme”, Finland’s national anthem for him. He was taken by that little gesture. The reason for the song was that on wednesday it’s Finland’s centenary day.

    Anyways, this was so cool and Im already waiting for the next year’s new tour..
     
  10. MusicMatt

    MusicMatt Quality over Quantity

    Location:
    California, U.S.A.
    Children of the Damned

    Paul who? Yes that's right, Bruce's first moment to truly shine is here. Absolutely killer track that builds to a satisfying ending of raw power and great energy. I've often wondered if this song was a catalyst for Metallica when they were writing Fade to Black. It was a highlight for me seeing it done live on the Book of Souls tour. Probably third favorite off the album.
     
  11. Jeff Kent

    Jeff Kent Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mt. Kisco, NY
    How cool is it that a song THIS good is only your third favorite on the album...
     
    The Hud, SammyJoe, MusicMatt and 2 others like this.
  12. Meyer

    Meyer Heavy Metal Parking Lot Resident

    Yep, Children of the Damned is the first time I get that "something's different - and it's better" vibe from Bruce-era Maiden. The first few moments, you think it's another slow-burner that could be found on the debut or Killers, but by the time Bruce sings the title chorus, you know this is a new band.
     
    SammyJoe, Zoot Marimba and MusicMatt like this.
  13. MagneticNorthpaw

    MagneticNorthpaw Senior Member

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    Guys, take it from one "KISS Song-by-Song Thread" vet to two others: Bruce's book is great. One of the most enjoyable and thoughtful musician memoirs I've read. Two Irons up!
     
  14. Here's me and my younger bro back in 83'...:eek:
    [​IMG]
     
    CBackley, Smokin Chains, 16s and 8 others like this.
  15. Big Pasi

    Big Pasi Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vaasa, Finland
    Invaders

    Looks like I'm the only one who actually likes this song... :eek:

    Children Of The Damned
    Has anyone noticed that the riff at the beginning sounds a bit same as the riff at the start of Jimi Hendrix' 1983? :hide:
    (Well, both have a bit of guitar strumming before the actual riff starts)
    Or am I only imagining this?
     
    SammyJoe and Zoot Marimba like this.
  16. rodentboy

    rodentboy New Member

    Location:
    Stockton, England
    Invaders
    A solid song but I always got the impression that it was pieced together from different ideas that don't quite fit. Harris has mentioned a few times that he writes songs in sections and usually it works, this time it feels a little clumsy to me. As mentioned earlier, the chorus does feel a little like practicing scales when you play along. Still a good listen though and I never skip it.

    Children of the Damned
    Here we get our first true taste of the Air Raid Siren (unless you heard the UK single Run to the Hills already).Bass-wise Harris plays it tasteful for the first half of the song, completely locked in with Clive, then at 2:20 goes into one of the fastest Harris gallops in the catalogue.
    A bone fide classic for me, one of their best.
     
    CBackley and Zoot Marimba like this.
  17. RichC

    RichC Forum Resident

    Location:
    Charlotte, NC
    Hey! Hopping on the thread. I didn't have much to say about the first two albums.... I like them now (especially the rawness of the debut), but when I first got into Maiden, Dickinson was THE lead singer and Paul wasn't even an afterthought. So it took me a long time to come around to appreciating his vocal style.

    I'm not sure if NOTB is the greatest Maiden record, but I'm not sure if it's not. I tend to think of every album from this one through SSOASS as one prolonged stretch of greatness. That said, "Invaders" is certainly the weakest opener of Maiden's entire classic run, and a rare miss from a band who usually knew how to blaze out of the starting gate. And honestly, you can fix the album very simply just by switching "Invaders" with the title track. There, problem solved! (Oh, and replace "Gangland" with "Total Eclipse," which should've never been a B-side in the first place.)

    I'll post thoughts on other specific tracks as I can. The album as a whole is, of course, a classic, and remarkably hard to track down on original vinyl in America. (Even years ago.) Supposedly the U.S. mastering is highly regarded. (Perhaps even more than the UK??) I actually wound up grabbing a Japanese original for a good price.... The sound might be a bit more subdued, but vinyl is dead quiet and the inclusion of "Total Eclipse" really improves the album for me. (Am I correct that only the Japanese version has this track added? We're talking vinyl not CD...)
     
    CBackley, Zoot Marimba and GodShifter like this.
  18. The Slug Man

    The Slug Man Forum Resident

    Location:
    North Carolina
    CHILDREN OF THE DAMNED

    So much better than "Invaders," it's not even funny. I can see how this tune might have been inspired by "Children of the Sea," as supposedly when they were recording the NOTB album, they listened to Sabbath's Heaven and Hell to get themselves fired up.
     
    CBackley, The Hud and Zoot Marimba like this.
  19. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group Thread Starter

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    Fitting when you think about it
     
  20. Standoffish

    Standoffish Smarter than a turkey

    Location:
    North Carolina
    Children of the Damned

    Bruce! This is where we find out Maiden is going to expand their sound - Bruce takes a very simple chorus and makes it sound epic. As others have pointed out, there's a strong Sabbath vibe in the first half of the song. Then we get Steve's gallop and the usual great solos. Love Clive's work, too.

    Awesome track.
     
    CBackley, Zoot Marimba and MusicMatt like this.
  21. PJayBe

    PJayBe Forum Resident

    No, me too!!!!
     
    Big Pasi, MusicMatt and Zoot Marimba like this.
  22. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group Thread Starter

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    The Prisoner:

    We now come to Track Three, adapted from the old BBC show The Prisoner and is the first song on which Adrian Smith receives songwriting credit. Although DJ Tommy Vance gave the band the recording of the opening, they still needed the permission of Patrick McGooghan, the leading actor. And Rod Smallwood was actually nervous for once dealing with him."Oh bloody ell, I can deal with these arseh*** rockstars, but this is a real superstar actor. I was ****ing terrified!"
    The song begins with that very intro, which sets the mood and vibe so well, as well as the story. The actual song is kicked off by Clive at :24, getting his John Bonham on, with Steve and Brothers Grimm really locking into this really cool groove, before speeding up 1:11, and really getting you pumped up, adding all these little hooks in there, with Bruce arriving at 1:28, and he really howls of desperation, exhaustion, but sheer will as well, he so owns this tune, and he has such charisma that really makes you root for him that much more, and you keep hoping he will make it out. And we must mention the cool little bass runs that aren't quite as obvious as you'd expect from Harris, but it's there. And then when the guitars start harmonizing at 3:43, and it's a low toned harmony, really nice touch, creates the buildup quite nicely, and segways smoothly into Adrian's solo at 4:17, and it's a good solo, but Dave ends up stealing the show at 4:37, just ripping it up, mmmaaaaaaannnnnnnn. The song wraps up in such a satisfying way.
    This is a great song, not only powerful and full of tension and drama, but pretty catchy too, great hooks in there, which I imagine come from Adrian. Awesome song, and I'm excited for more.
     
    CBackley, SammyJoe, rodentboy and 6 others like this.
  23. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group Thread Starter

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    Live at Hammersmith:
     
    SammyJoe, superstar19 and Soundhead like this.
  24. Zoot Marimba

    Zoot Marimba And I’m The Critic Of The Group Thread Starter

    Location:
    Savannah, Georgia
    Rock Am Ring in 2014:
     
    SammyJoe and MusicMatt like this.
  25. StuJM84

    StuJM84 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kent, UK
    I. LOVE. THIS. TRACK

    There, I said it. From the intro, Smiths guitar solo to the chorus borrowing from the series of the same name and the excellent antidote from the band on getting Patrick McGooghans permission, I just love it. If Children of the Damned showed Bruces vocal range the band had acquired, The Prisoner showed how much he can rock 'em in a way Di'Anno couldnt. The belts out the lyrics brilliantly, which can be a bit silly in places but it works fantastically. On the music side, everything goes together and culminates in Adrian Smiths excellent solo.

    If it wasn't for 3 other songs on the LP that followed, this track would get more recognition as a top album track.

    The Hammersmith '82 live version is immense, got the cd from Eddies Archive and play that quite a few times on a regular basis.
     

Share This Page

molar-endocrine