Iron Maiden | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 14 April 1980 [1] | |||
Recorded | December 1979 [2] | |||
Studio | Kingsway (London) | |||
Genre | Heavy metal | |||
Length | 37:39 | |||
Label | EMI | |||
Producer | Wil Malone | |||
Iron Maiden studio albums chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Singles from Iron Maiden | ||||
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Iron Maiden is the debut studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden,released on 14 April 1980 by EMI Records in the UK and Harvest and Capitol Records in the US. The North American version included the song "Sanctuary",released in the UK as a non-album single. In 1998,along with the rest of the band's pre-1995 releases,Iron Maiden was remastered with "Sanctuary" added in all territories. However,2014 vinyl reissues,2015 digital releases and 2018 CD reissues use the original track listing across the globe. It is the band's only album to feature guitarist Dennis Stratton.
Although Iron Maiden have since criticised the quality of the album's production,the release was met with critical and commercial success,peaking at number four on the UK Albums Chart and helping the band achieve prominence in mainland Europe.
This is the band's only album produced by Wil Malone (credited as Will Malone), [3] whom Iron Maiden have since claimed lacked interest in the project and effectively left them to produce most of the album themselves,which,according to bassist Steve Harris,was completed in just 13 days. [4] Recording took place at Kingsway Studios,west London in January 1980, [5] with the band taking time out from the 1980 Metal for Muthas Tour to complete the final mixes at Morgan Studios,northwest London in February. [6] Before the sessions with Malone,the band made two attempts in December 1979 with two different producers while still a four-piece. [5] Guy Edwards,the first,was dismissed as the band were unhappy with the "muddy" quality in his production, [5] while Andy Scott was also dismissed after insisting Harris play his bass with a pick rather than his fingers. [7] After these efforts,the band decided not to dismiss Malone as Harris described that they could "bypass him and [go] to the engineer". [7] The group criticised the quality of the production,although many fans still preferred the raw quality of the sound recording. [4] [8] [9] Although AllMusic stated that this style was "clearly drawing from elements of punk rock", [10] Harris stated that the band despised everything about punk. [11]
This was also the only studio album with guitarist Dennis Stratton,who,having been brought in as a last-minute placement,was dismissed due to "musical differences" after the band's European tour in support of Kiss. [12] Suspicions were first raised during Iron Maiden's recording,when Stratton added Wishbone Ash-esque harmony guitars and backing vocals reminiscent of Queen to "Phantom of the Opera",of which the rest of the band immediately disapproved and had removed. [13] Although Stratton stated that he was not "trying to push the band in a new direction", [13] Harris commented that it "really pointed up the difference between Den and us", [14] after which he began to notice that "Dennis was so much more into playing stuff like "Strange World" than he was "Iron Maiden" or "Prowler",because it was more slow,melodic ... when he was soloing on one of the heavier songs,it wasn't with quite the same passion". [13] [15]
The 1998 remastered album differs from the original with the addition of the song "Sanctuary",which had then been released only as a single in the UK in May 1980, [16] although it did also appear in the later US version of Iron Maiden,which was issued in August 1980. [17] The track originally appeared on the Metal for Muthas compilation, [18] but was re-recorded during the Iron Maiden sessions. [16] The re-release also features a different cover;a digital recreation by original artist Derek Riggs,with a portion of the original artwork instead being used on the disc itself.
The band undertook the Iron Maiden Tour in support of the album,during which they played their first concerts in mainland Europe, [19] where they were surprised to discover how successful Iron Maiden had been outside the UK. Steve Harris commented,"The prestige of doing so well in the UK had turned into a sort of word-of-mouth thing,and we'd turn up in places like Leiden,in Holland,places we'd never even heard of,and they'd have these massive banners waiting for us with 'Iron Maiden Go Over The Top' written on them and all this. It was unreal." [20]
"Running Free" was released as a single on 8 February 1980,reaching No. 34 in the UK Singles Chart. The band also performed the song on the UK TV show Top of the Pops ,refusing the usual tradition for artists to mime and thus becoming the first group to perform live on the show since The Who in 1972. [21] Vocalist Paul Di'Anno,who wrote the song's lyrics,describes it as "a very autobiographical song,though of course I've never spent the night in an LA jail. It's about being 16 and,like it says,just running wild and running free. It comes from my days as a skinhead." [22] According to Classic Rock and Metal Hammer contributor Dave Ling,writing in the Metal for Muthas CD re-issue liner notes,"Sanctuary" was originally penned by guitarist Rob Angelo (Bob Sawyer),a member of Iron Maiden in 1977,who was paid £300 for the song's rights. [23] The "Sanctuary" single was released on 7 June 1980 and charted at No. 29, [16] with the censored cover of Eddie,the band's mascot,standing over Margaret Thatcher's body earning the band publicity in the British press. [24] Managers Rod Smallwood and Andy Taylor's management company would be named after the song. [25]
Although "Strange World" is credited solely to Harris,Paul Day,the band's original vocalist from 1975 to 1976,asserted that he also contributed to the song. [26]
"Charlotte the Harlot",their only song to have been credited to Dave Murray alone, [8] is the first of four Iron Maiden tracks about the fictional prostitute "Charlotte",although Murray states it was "based on a true story". [27] The 7-minute "Phantom of the Opera" is one of Harris's favourites and is still performed live relatively frequently. With many mood and time-changes,Harris marks it as "the first song I'd written that was a bit more proggy". [4] "Transylvania" is an instrumental piece composed by Harris,which was later covered by Iced Earth on the album Horror Show . [28]
Of all the album's songs,"Phantom of the Opera","Running Free","Sanctuary" and "Iron Maiden" are the most frequently played in the band's concert tours,with the last being played at every show since the band's inception and signalling the arrival of Eddie onstage. [29] All of the album's songs,excluding "Strange World",have been re-recorded with Bruce Dickinson on vocals,either on live albums,studio B-Sides or both. [10] "Strange World" and "Transylvania" were the only songs not played on the "Eddie Rips Up the World Tour",2005.
Four songs ("Prowler","Remember Tomorrow","Running Free" and "Iron Maiden") were covered for the 2008 tribute album Maiden Heaven:A Tribute to Iron Maiden released by Kerrang! magazine, [30] and an acoustic reinterpretation of "Prowler" was included in 2012's Across The Seventh Sea by the acoustic Iron Maiden tribute project Maiden uniteD. [31] Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich affirmed that "Remember Tomorrow" was "basically the blueprint for songs like Fade To Black and Welcome Home (Sanitarium),and some of the more epic ballady type of songs that Metallica had done later". [32]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [10] |
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 9/10 [33] |
Music Week | [34] |
Pitchfork | 7.0/10 [35] |
Record Mirror | [36] |
Sounds | [37] |
Sputnikmusic | [38] |
On its release,the album received immediate critical acclaim. Geoff Barton,in Sounds ,hailed it as "Heavy metal for the '80s,its blinding speed and rampant ferocity making most plastic heavy rock tracks from the '60s and '70s sound sloth-like and funeral-dirgey by comparison". [8] Iron Maiden spent an initial fifteen weeks on the UK chart,and a further two when it was reissued on EMI's budget subsidiary Fame in 1985. [39]
The album has continued to receive praise from reviewers. AllMusic proclaims that it "would still rank as a landmark even if the Dickinson years had never happened" and says there was "no better place to hear how both punk and prog rock informed the new wave of British heavy metal". [10] Sputnikmusic describes it as "one of the top debut albums in the world of heavy metal",containing "the raw,aggressive power [that] defines the early years of the band". [38]
Iron Maiden is one of the band's two albums listed in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (The Number of the Beast is the other). [40] In 2017,it was ranked 13th on Rolling Stone 's list of "100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time". [41]
All tracks are written by Steve Harris, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Prowler" | 3:56 | |
2. | "Remember Tomorrow" |
| 5:30 |
3. | "Running Free" |
| 3:22 |
4. | "Phantom of the Opera" | 7:02 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
5. | "Transylvania" (instrumental) | 4:09 | |
6. | "Strange World" | 5:43 | |
7. | "Charlotte the Harlot" | Dave Murray | 4:14 |
8. | "Iron Maiden" | 3:43 | |
Total length: | 37:39 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
5. | "Transylvania" (instrumental) | 4:09 | |
6. | "Strange World" | 5:43 | |
7. | "Sanctuary" |
| 3:19 |
8. | "Charlotte the Harlot" | Murray | 4:14 |
9. | "Iron Maiden" | 3:43 | |
Total length: | 40:58 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Sanctuary" |
| 3:14 |
2. | "Burning Ambition" | 2:42 | |
3. | "Drifter" (live) | 6:04 | |
4. | "I've Got the Fire" (Montrose cover; live) | Ronnie Montrose | 3:14 |
Total length: | 15:14 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Prowler" | 3:56 | |
2. | "Sanctuary" |
| 3:16 |
3. | "Remember Tomorrow" |
| 5:29 |
4. | "Running Free" |
| 3:17 |
5. | "Phantom of the Opera" | 7:08 | |
6. | "Transylvania" (instrumental) | 4:19 | |
7. | "Strange World" | 5:32 | |
8. | "Charlotte the Harlot" | Murray | 4:13 |
9. | "Iron Maiden" | 3:36 | |
Total length: | 40:46 |
Production and performance credits are adapted from the album liner notes. [3] [42] [43]
Chart (1980) | Peak position |
---|---|
French Albums (SNEP) [44] | 10 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [45] | 36 |
UK Albums (OCC) [46] | 4 |
Chart (2006) | Peak position |
---|---|
Italian Albums (FIMI) [47] | 68 |
Chart (2009–2010) | Peak position |
---|---|
Greek Albums (IFPI) [48] | 52 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [45] | 27 |
Chart (2013) | Peak position |
---|---|
French Albums (SNEP) [49] | 98 |
Chart (2020–2021) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [50] | 31 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [51] | 34 |
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [52] | 21 |
Portuguese Albums (AFP) [53] | 40 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [54] | 5 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [55] | 51 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [56] | 38 |
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC) [57] | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada (Music Canada) [58] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
Germany (BVMI) [59] | Gold | 250,000^ |
Japan (RIAJ) [60] | Gold | 100,000 [60] |
United Kingdom (BPI) [61] | Platinum | 300,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
The Number of the Beast is the third studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 22 March 1982 in the US by Harvest and Capitol Records, and on 29 March 1982 in the UK by EMI Records. The album was their first to feature vocalist Bruce Dickinson and their last with drummer Clive Burr.
Dance of Death is the thirteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released first in Japan on 2 September and then 8 September 2003 in the rest of the world excluding North America. The album was an analogue recording.
The X Factor is the tenth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 2 October 1995 through EMI Records. CMC International released the album in North America. It is the first of two albums by the band to include Blaze Bayley, formerly of Wolfsbane, as vocalist, replacing Bruce Dickinson who left the band following their previous tour to pursue a solo career. It also saw the departure of the band's longtime producer Martin Birch, who retired shortly after the release of their previous album, Fear of the Dark (1992). The album takes a darker tone than the band's first nine releases, due to the lyrics being based on personal issues surrounding Steve Harris at the time, who was in the midst of a divorce. This is reflected in the cover artwork, which graphically depicts the band's mascot, Eddie, being vivisected by a machine.
Powerslave is the fifth studio album by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 3 September 1984 through EMI Records in Europe and its sister label Capitol Records in North America. It was re-released by Sanctuary and Columbia Records in the United States in 2002.
Somewhere in Time is the sixth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 29 September 1986 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. It was the band's first album to feature guitar synthesisers.
Killers is the second studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was first released on 16 February 1981 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and on 11 May in the United States by Harvest and Capitol Records. The album was their first with guitarist Adrian Smith, and their last with vocalist Paul Di'Anno, who was fired after problems with his stage performances arose due to his alcohol and cocaine use. Killers was also the first Iron Maiden album recorded with producer Martin Birch, who went on to produce their next eight albums until Fear of the Dark (1992).
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son is the seventh studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 11 April 1988 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. Like The Number of the Beast (1982) and later Fear of the Dark (1992), The Final Frontier (2010), and The Book of Souls (2015), the album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. The lead single "Can I Play with Madness" was also a commercial success, peaking at No. 3 in the UK Singles Chart.
Brave New World is the twelfth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 29 May 2000. It was their first studio release since the return of longtime lead singer Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith in 1999, as well as the band's first studio recording as a six-piece, as Janick Gers, who replaced Smith in 1990, remained with the band.
Fear of the Dark is the ninth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Released on 11 May 1992, it was their third studio release to top the UK Albums Chart, and the last to feature Bruce Dickinson as the group's lead vocalist until his return in 1999.
Piece of Mind is the fourth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 16 May 1983 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and in the United States by Capitol Records. It was the first album to feature drummer Nicko McBrain, who had recently left the band Trust and was Iron Maiden's drummer until his retirement from touring in 2024.
No Prayer for the Dying is the eighth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It is their first album to feature Janick Gers on guitar, who replaced Adrian Smith. Smith left the band during the pre-production phase, unhappy with the musical direction it was taking, and only having contributed to one song, "Hooks in You". This was the third song in the "Charlotte the Harlot" saga. Gers previously worked with singer Bruce Dickinson on his first solo album, Tattooed Millionaire, and had also worked with Ian Gillan, former Marillion singer Fish, and new wave of British heavy metal band, White Spirit.
Virtual XI is the eleventh studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 23 March 1998. It is the band's second and final album with Blaze Bayley on vocals. It also marks the first album to utilise a slightly modified logo, with the letters R, M, and N the same size as the other letters as opposed to them being extended. This goes on for the next few albums, until The Final Frontier, in 2010.
Live After Death is a live album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, originally released in October 1985 on EMI in Europe and its sister label Capitol Records in the US. It was recorded at Long Beach Arena, California and Hammersmith Odeon, London during the band's World Slavery Tour.
Edward the Great: The Greatest Hits is Iron Maiden's third "best-of album", originally released on 4 November 2002. Unlike the band's other works by the group collecting together songs from different albums, such as Best of the Beast, Edward the Great does not feature any material from the group's first two albums, which featured Paul Di'Anno as vocalist, but does include material from Blaze Bayley's five-year tenure with the band.
Rock in Rio is a live album and video by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, recorded at the Rock in Rio festival, Brazil in 2001 on the last night of the Brave New World Tour. The band played to approximately 250,000 people; the second largest crowd of their career and with the relatively recent return of lead singer Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith to the band, they recorded their fifth live release.
Ed Hunter is a greatest hits album and video game released in 1999 by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden and Synthetic Dimensions. The game objective consists of following Iron Maiden's mascot, Eddie, through various levels depicting the band's past album covers. The accompanying CDs have the group's most popular songs, as selected by fans on the band's official website.
"Running Free" is the debut single by Iron Maiden, released on 8 February 1980 on the 7" 45 rpm vinyl record format. It was written by Steve Harris and Paul Di'Anno. The song appears as the third track on the band's debut album Iron Maiden. In 1985, a live version of the song was released as the first single from Live After Death. In 1990, the original single was reissued on CD and 12" vinyl as part of The First Ten Years box, in which it was combined with the band's next single, "Sanctuary". The 1985 live single was also released as part of this box set, combined with 1985's "Run to the Hills".
"Run to the Hills" is a song by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released as their sixth single and the first from the band's third studio album, The Number of the Beast (1982). It is their first single with Bruce Dickinson as vocalist. Credited solely to the band's bassist, Steve Harris, Dickinson contributed to the song but could not be credited due to a contractual agreement with his former band Samson. "Run to the Hills" remains one of the band's most popular songs, with VH1 ranking it No. 27 on their list of the 40 Greatest Metal Songs, No. 14 on their list of the Greatest Hard Rock Songs, and Rolling Stone ranking it No. 10 on their list of the 100 greatest heavy metal songs
"Sanctuary" is the second single released by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. The single was released on 23 May 1980. Although originally issued as a non-album single, the song was added to the later US release of their debut studio record, Iron Maiden (1980). When the album was re-released in 1998, the song was added in all territories. In 1990, it was reissued on CD and 12" vinyl in The First Ten Years box set, in which it was combined with their first single, "Running Free".
"Virus" is a single from Iron Maiden, released in 1996. It is the first single since 1980's "Women in Uniform" that does not appear on any official Iron Maiden studio album. It was, however, featured as a brand new track on the band's first ever career retrospective – 1996's double-disc Best of the Beast. It is the only Iron Maiden song to be credited to both of the band's guitarists. It has never been performed live by Iron Maiden, but Blaze Bayley performed it several times in his solo career. Lyrically, the song warns of rising business and government corruption in an increasingly Internet-dependent world.
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