Current members
Bruce Dickinson - lead vocals
Dave Murray - lead & rhythm guitars
Adrian Smith - lead & rhythm guitars
Janick Gers - lead & rhythm guitars(1990–present)
Steve Harris - bass
Nicko McBrain - drums(1983–present)
Iron Maiden are from east London. The band were formed in 1975 by bassist Steve Harris, formerly a member of Gypsy's Kiss and Smiler. Iron Maiden are one of the most successful and influential bands in the heavy metal genre, having sold over 80 million albums worldwide.
Iron Maiden were formed on Christmas Day 1975, by bassist Steve Harris, shortly after he left his previous group, Smiler. Harris attributes the band name to a movie adaptation of The Man in the Iron Mask, which he saw around that time, and so the group was christened after the 19th century torture device.
Steve Harris and guitarist Dave Murray, remain the longest-surviving members of Iron Maiden to this day.
A chance meeting at the Red Lion pub in Leytonstone evolved into a successful audition for vocalist Paul Di'Anno.
Iron Maiden's eponymous 1980 release, Iron Maiden, made number 4 in the UK Albums Chart in its first week of release,and the group became one of the leading proponents of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement.. In addition to the title track, the album includes other early favourites such as "Running Free", "Transylvania", "Phantom of the Opera", and "Sanctuary.
In 1981, Maiden released their second album, titled Killers. This new album contained many tracks that had been written prior to the release of the debut album, but were considered surplus. With songs already shaped on the road well in advance, only two new tracks were written for the album; "Prodigal Son", and "Murders in the Rue Morgue". Fan favourites included "Wrathchild", but the band would also write songs with literary significance; "Murders in the Rue Morgue" is based on the short story by Edgar Allan Poe.
By 1981, Paul Di'Anno was demonstrating increasingly self-destructive behaviour, particularly through cocaine usage. His performances began to suffer, just as the band was beginning to achieve large-scale success in America. At the end of 1981 the band fired Di'Anno and began to seek a new vocalist.
Bruce Dickinson, previously of Samson auditioned for Iron Maiden in September 1981 and joined the band shortly afterwards. He then went out on the road with the band on a small headlining tour. In anticipation of the band's forthcoming album, the band played "Children of the Damned", "Run to the Hills", "22 Acacia Avenue" and "The Prisoner" at select venues, introducing fans to the sound that the band was progressing towards.
Dickinson's recorded debut with Iron Maiden was 1982's The Number of the Beast, an album that claimed the band their first ever UK Albums Chart number 1 record nd additionally became a Top Ten hit in many other countries.
In late 1982, drummer Clive Burr left the band due to personal and tour schedule problems. He was replaced by Nicko McBrain, previously of French band Trust. Shortly afterwards, in 1983, the band released Piece of Mind.
Following the success of Piece of Mind, the band released Powerslave on September 9, 1984. The album featured fan-favourites "2 Minutes to Midnight", "Aces High", and "Rime of the Ancient Mariner", the latter based on Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem of the same name and running over 13 minutes in length. "Back in the Village" followed up on an earlier hit "The Prisoner", both based on the television show starring Patrick McGoohan.
The experimentation on Somewhere in Time led to a more refined follow-up, Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, in 1988. Adding to Iron Maiden's experimentation, it was a concept album featuring a story about a mythical child who possessed clairvoyant powers. For the first time, the band used keyboards on a recording, as opposed to guitar synthesisers on the previous release
In 1989, after touring with Iron Maiden, guitarist Adrian Smith released a solo album with his band ASAP entitled Silver and Gold. In 1990, vocalist Bruce Dickinson launched a solo career with former Gillan guitarist Janick Gers, releasing Tattooed Millionaire. The band had spent 1989 off, and Dickinson took this time to work on the album. Though seen as good creations at the time, these solo albums would eventually inspire both band members to leave later on.
Soon after work on a new album began, Adrian Smith decided to leave. Bruce Dickinson's solo project guitarist Janick Gers was chosen to replace Smith the first new member in seven years. When Dickinson left Maiden in 1993, he would later regroup with Smith.
The band auditioned hundreds of vocalists, both unknown and famous. They finally chose Blaze Bayley in 1994, formerly of Wolfsbane. Bayley had an altogether different vocal style to his predecessor, which ultimately received a mixed reception among fans.
After a two year hiatus (and three year hiatus from recording - a record for the band at the time) Iron Maiden returned in 1995. Releasing The X Factor, the band faced their lowest chart position since 1981 for an album in the UK (debuting at number 8). Chief songwriter Harris was experiencing personal problems at the time with the break-up of his marriage, and many feel the album's sound is a reflection of this.
In February 1999, Bayley left the band by mutual consent. At the same time, the band shocked their fans when they announced that both Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith were rejoining the band, and that Janick Gers would remain. Iron Maiden now had three guitarists and a hugely successful reunion tour followed. This tour also supported the band's newly released computer game Ed Hunter.
In 2005, the band announced a tour to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the release of their first album, Iron Maiden, and the 30th anniversary of their formation. The tour also was in support of the 2004 DVD entitled The Early Days and as such during the tour they only played material from their first four albums. As part of the celebration of their early days, the "Number of the Beast" single was re-released, which went straight to number 3 in the UK Singles Chart.
In Autumn 2006, Iron Maiden released A Matter of Life and Death.
A successful North American and European tour followed, during which they played the album in its entirety, a first for the band. The band have announced that a live album recorded from this tour will be released.
On his BBC 6 Music radio show, Bruce Dickinson announced an Australian tour in 2008, informally confirming a show at Melbourne.Nicko McBrain has also stated that the tour begins in January and will be on a large scale. Iron Maiden have confirmed a show in Melbourne on their next 2008 tour, called the "Somewhere Back In Time World Tour". The setlist for the tour will consist of hits from their early years, with a specific focus on the Powerslave era for set design.
Discography
• Iron Maiden (1980)
• Killers (1981)
• The Number of the Beast (1982)
• Piece of Mind (1983)
• Powerslave (1984)
• Somewhere in Time (1986)
• Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988)
• No Prayer for the Dying (1990)
• Fear of the Dark (1992)
• The X Factor (1995)
• Virtual XI (1998)
• Brave New World (2000)
• Dance of Death (2003)
• A Matter of Life and Death (2006)
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