Does anyone have or know of footage from this tour that has the inflatable spaceships that hung from the ceiling?
I've yet to see any evidence that they actually existed. But I know I saw them. That was my second Maiden concert.
The "Run to the Hills" bio has a really good section about this and I'd be happy to type it out when we get to 1990, but the basic idea is that Adrian wasn't into the direction of the material (stripped-down) and also he wasn't given enough time to write for the album as Steve pushed the recording timeline up. He wasn't sure if he wanted to stay in the band or not and they basically made up his mind for him. They used to call H "Willie Orwonthe" because he never made up his mind about stuff. It was a joke, of course, but when it came to not being happy about the band's direction and not being able to decide what he wanted...unfortunately they made the call. I'm just glad they were able to correct the mistake by bringing him back in '99. @The Hermit I'd never thought about what you said, but yeah, it's crazy for the band to lose Adrian, Bruce, Martin & Derek all within a span of 3 years.
Wasted Years I really miss Bruce's writing contributions on Somewhere in Time - and this is his only Maiden album where he didn't write anything (he wrote for NOB, but couldn't get credited legally because of issues with Samson). I love that Adrian stepped up and filled the void by writing 3 songs from the album, including both of the singles. We'd already known that Adrian could write some damn good music (2 Minutes, The Prisoner), but this is his first set of lyrics since Urchin. Heh, this song is a slight bit better than She's a Roller. Wasted Years - it's catchy and it rocks. The opening riff makes you take notice and the song doesn't let up until it's done. Adrian wrote some good lyrics here and the solo is his best one yet. I really love the way he ends the solo and extends it past the vocal line. As @GodShifter noted, Steve does some fantastic bass work here too. His tone is great and there are so many creative fills throughout. The song is 5 minutes long, but it feels a lot shorter. It packs a huge punch. As much as I love the "swicheroo" version (thank you @SammyJoe !), I don't think any live performance has ever come close to the studio version. It's a perfectly written song and I love it. Video thoughts: The footage of them just jamming in a rehearsal room is so freaking cool! It's something we never see, just them playing for themselves. I mean, yeah, it's still a performance, but they're so much more relaxed. This is my favorite video they've ever done. I think it's because they're not trying to hard. Usually there's either a weird concept, or they're miming in front of a fake audience, or in later years it's some computer animated crap. This is just our boys jamming interspersed with a bunch of Eddies and a 5-minute "history of IM". Love it! The part where the Eddie Heads flash by right before the solo is absurdly cool. I remember pausing so many times during this video to see every picture perfectly. I loved seeing the few artworks that I'd never seen before because they were on shirts or Xmas cards or something. Great video.
I don't have much to add to the "Wasted Years" discussion. It's one of their best and certainly the best single. The opening riff is beastly. The song just explodes as the verse begins "From the coast of gold" and never lets up. Curious if anyone knows the story of the lyrics? I thought I remember hearing Bruce talk about this song on MTV back in the 80's. How he woke up in a hotel room completely hung over. He started thinking how he had a brain "that used to work" and decided to change up his life to be more productive. The interview, as I remember it, seemed to insinuate that Bruce wrote the lyrics. Is that correct?
Wasted Years IMO is their best single, such a great track and so much better than the garbage which earned them the #1 spot in the UK.
"Wasted Years" is one of my all-time favorites. And I love how Bruce always has Adrian singing the chorus when they play it live. You just know this song is one of Adrian's favorites. At the time, it was definitely the catchiest Maiden single, and the video was in heavy rotation on MTV, when they used to do a daily top ten (or twenty) countdown. Funny how the video is sort of reflective of the band's career up to that point. I think it sparked some discussion and thought about Maiden being a "veteran" band now, worthy of a career overview. At the time, I remember reading an article in some non-metal publication (might've been Rolling Stone) that praised their past successes and noted that you could even sing along to their latest song. I think I've posted this before, but this is probably my favorite Maiden cover, by Ryan Adams. Prompted me to start playing the song on my acoustic, with a slightly different arrangement (mostly because I'm a terrible guitarist):
I've been looking for this video, couldn't find it...but you've sent me down a rabbit hole. I found this MTV interview with Bruce and he does mention about his "brain" at the beginning, but it's due to a hangover - Also, this news report about the "dangers of heavy metal" (LOL) where Maiden and Bruce are a primary focus: Iron Maiden TV news report 1986 One from Swedish TV: 1986 11 14 Bruce Dickinson Interview Stockholm, Sweden, Swedish TV Bruce & Nicko in Toronto going to a science museum (!) and Bruce talks about Iffy Boatrace: 1987 03 20 Bruce and Nicko Interview, Toronto, Canada Very goofy Bruce interview with Mick Wall: Iron Maiden 1987 Interview / Show (90 of 100+ Interview Series)
None of those are the interview I saw. Everything I can find says Adrian Smith wrote the entire song so I must be mis-remembering. I'm pretty sure I remember the interview correctly but perhaps, it just had nothing to do with "Wasted Years" the song.
I listened to a lot of Metal in the mid-late 80s and "Wasted Years" was the one song that my Mom liked.
Good point from someone who bought several of the formats that got it to number 1. To have had a quality Maiden single rather than possibly their worst available to get to the top would have been much better, such is life.
Wasted Years is superb. I sadly missed them playing it at the 02 last year as was their last song in the set and leaving the 02 to get to the tube station along with 20,000 other fans isn't much fun. Adrian wrote some great tunes on this album. Not my favourite track from SIT but definitely one of their best singles. A road weary tune. Quite understandable from all the touring they'd done up until this point.
I got Somewhere In Time as a Christmas gift in 1986. I had read that they were using synths on this album so there was some trepidation as I slipped the cassette into my player. I loved it. The synths were only used in certain sections to add a little texture. Caught Somewhere In Time: An epic track with a breakneck pace. Wasted Years: This could have been a hit single.
Was it not a hit single in Canada. It did well in the UK. The first brand new Iron Maiden single after I got into them. I loved it! I was never a big fan of the album though. Still a good one but I didn't like it as much as the ones before. I think I like it more now than I did then. My least favourite 80s Maiden but it says a lot that it's still great. They could do no wrong. The lyrics to Alexander The Great are very naff though. Spinal Tap would be proud.
Maiden got almost no airplay on top 40 radio in Canada or or the States. They were deemed to heavy. The videos got airplay on MTV and MuchMusic.
I always thought it was because he liked his ASAP (Adrian Smith and Project) too much and wanted to continue with them...or Maiden weren't happy about him going solo.
I don't they've had much anywhere ever! Still managed to become a massive band though, totally on their own terms and with very little media support outside of specialist heavy metal magazines and radio shows. They have every right to be proud of their achievements, fans and music.
WASTED YEARS This was the song that introduced me to Maiden, via the video on MTV. My brother and I loved all the "monsters" in it (not being aware that they were just different personae of one monster, Eddie!), and oh yeah, the song was good too. Liked the contrast of the "monsters" in color and the band in black and white. It reminded me of other videos in late 86/early 87 that were in black and white, like Deep Purple's "Bad Attitude." I have such nostalgia for this time frame. A while back (possibly "Run to the Hills") someone asked if Maiden had any other songs essentially in a minor key that went to a major for the chorus. Well, "Wasted Years" fits the bill. Basically in E minor, the chorus switches to the relative major, G major. The opening lick is one of those licks I've always been afraid to play in a guitar store (like "Sweet Child O' Mine") because employees probably hear people play/butcher it all the time--but maybe not? While Murray is my overall favorite Maiden guitarist, I have to say that Smith's solo is one of his best. Someone else mentioned a Neil Schon vibe. I'd never thought about that--but maybe so. I also get a Michael Schenker-esque vibe in terms of it being melodically strong. And again, Bruce sounds pretty darn good for a guy whose heart was not in it at the time, but I guess that's a testament to his not wanting to do stuff that sucks. I think Adrian (and they) tried to repeat the lightning-in-a-bottle magic of "Wasted Years" on the next album with "Can I Play With Madness, " but I was kind of disappointed with the latter song.
