Iron Maiden
"Scream for me"
Leaders of the NWOBHM movement who rely on their strong song structure, trademark subjects and forms, and incredible calculating business minds and are one of the most commercially successful bands of all time
Who-How-When: Steve Harris (bass) formed the band in London in 1975 and over a period of years built the lineup of Dave Murray (guitar), Paul Di'Anno (vocals), Clive Burr (drums) and Adrian Smith (guitar).
Breakthrough: In 1978 an early lineup recorded three demo tracks, The Soundhouse Tapes, and sold all 5000 copies in weeks. But it was 1981's The Number of the Beast, with new vocalist Bruce Dickinson, which defined the Maiden sound.
Highest High: After becoming increasingly more experimental the band released Seventh Son of a Seventh Son in 1988, something of a concept album which courted enough commerciality to become a worldwide success.
Lowest Low: Dickinson left in 1993 and the band hired ex-Wolfsbane singer Blaze Bayley as replacement. He was the unfortunate victim of illness, accidents and allergies which limited his creative input; and the fans didn't accept him, mainly due to his having a much more limited vocal range than Dickinson. After falling to new lows in ticket sales Harris persuaded Dickinson to return in 1999.
That was then... Maiden have carefully re-packaged themselves for the new millennium, matching a tour consisting entirely of new songs (from 2006's A Matter of Life and Death) with one consisting entirely of classics (Somewhere Back in Time).
Encore: During the recording of The Number of The Beast, Maiden's producer Martin Birch crashed his car and the repair bill was £666. Becoming freaked at the number of supernatural coincidences during production, Birch opted to pay £670 instead.
