Poll

What are your favorites of these Iron Maiden songs?

Strange World
11 (4.5%)
Innocent Exile
5 (2.1%)
Twilight Zone
4 (1.7%)
Invaders
14 (5.8%)
The Prisoner
25 (10.3%)
Die With Your Boots On
17 (7%)
Sun and Steel
6 (2.5%)
The Duellists
11 (4.5%)
Sea of Madness
23 (9.5%)
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner
14 (5.8%)
The Prophecy
13 (5.4%)
Run Silent Run Deep
6 (2.5%)
Judas Be My Guide
12 (5%)
Look For the Truth
3 (1.2%)
The Unbeliever
6 (2.5%)
Lightning Strikes Twice
4 (1.7%)
The Educated Fool
5 (2.1%)
The Fallen Angel
11 (4.5%)
Montsegur
17 (7%)
New Frontier
2 (0.8%)
The Pilgrim
4 (1.7%)
Out of the Shadows
4 (1.7%)
Mother of Mercy
8 (3.3%)
The Alchemist
6 (2.5%)
When the River Runs Deep
6 (2.5%)
The Man Of Sorrows
5 (2.1%)

Total Members Voted: 36

Author Topic: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Senjutsu  (Read 183509 times)

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Online TAC

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Watching Live At The Rainbow right now. It's amazing how much Steve reminds me of Pete Way. You can tell how much of an influence he was on Steve.

Edit: Just a few more thoughts on this. I haven't watched that in ages, so thank you, Mosh for inspiring me to do so.

First off...Clive Burr. He was fantastic. He really was. Being that Wrathchild from this video was my first and most impressionable experience with Iron Maiden, I distinctly remember thinking that the drummer is always smiling. How great is that? He really seemed like a great guy.

For such a young band, the musicianship is off the charts. Iron Maiden was just better than their peers. They just were. They sure as hell had the look, the image, the identity, but above it all, they had the chops.
« Last Edit: May 13, 2017, 06:36:25 PM by TAC »
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline Grappler

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Every once in a while, I get an urge to hear Dianno-era Maiden.  I definitely prefer Bruce's versions of these songs, but a few years ago, I binged on the debut and Killers and came away with a new appreciation for them.  The debut has so many classic songs, it's just amazing. 

Online wolfking

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I haven't listened to the debut in a long long time, but it's wonderful, raw, full of energy and just great songs all round.  Strange World is such an underrated forgotten Maiden tune, it's beautiful.  Charlotte the Harlot I thought was always undervalued also.
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Online wolfking

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I'm listening to the debut right now, and it's one of the best sounding debuts from a band from that era.  Prowler has so much energy on here and gets things going.  Sanctuary is nicely placed even though it wasn't on the original.  I'm use to Remember Tomorrow being faster, but it has a brilliant atmosphere here.

Listening to Steve's bass on every second of this is an absolute pleasure to listen to.  Running Free I was never really a fan of, but it's fine here.  Phantom is brilliant of course and Transylvania has so much energy and power.  Davey really rips all over this album.

Strange World is a fucking classic, so underrated.  Dennis Strattons intro solo here is a Maiden highlight.  Don't know why the band never got this one out.  Would have been a brilliant addition to any set to change things up a little.  Charlotte is a great song, Dave did good here.  Love the moody middle section before it builds up to the solos.  The title track is hit or miss, but it is what it is.
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Offline cramx3

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Agreed about Strange World, such an awesome and different sounding IM tune.

Offline JayOctavarium

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This is a thing! YES!

Following.

I still kick myself. I saw maiden in 2010 when DT opened for them. At that time I knew the "hits"... and my buddies and I all left 3 songs into Maiden's set, due to the fact that the show was going to be 80% material we didn't know.

6 months later started really listening to  Maiden. Fell in love with the post reunion material. 




Also.. I agree with the comment about Phantom. How the hell did this get put together by a metal band in 1980? So great :metal
I just don't understand what they were trying to achieve with any part of the song, either individually or as a whole. You know what? It's the Platypus of Dream Theater songs. That bill doesn't go with that tail, or that strange little furry body, or those webbed feet, and oh god why does it have venomous spurs!? And then you find out it lays eggs too. The difference is that the Platypus is somehow functional despite being a crazy mishmash or leftover animal pieces

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Offline cramx3

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Wow, you missed a great show and setlist that tour.  Glad you caught on though

Offline JayOctavarium

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The Wicker Man
Ghost of the Navigator
Wrathchild
El Dorado
Paschendale
The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
These Colours Don't Run
Blood Brothers
Wildest Dreams
No More Lies
Brave New World
Fear of the Dark
Iron Maiden
Encore:
The Number of the Beast
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Running Free

I was looking at this and going "WTF the only song i know here is Number Of The Beast!"

then a few months later I was all "FUCK ME! HALLOWED! PASCHENDALE? FEAR OF THE DARK!"
I just don't understand what they were trying to achieve with any part of the song, either individually or as a whole. You know what? It's the Platypus of Dream Theater songs. That bill doesn't go with that tail, or that strange little furry body, or those webbed feet, and oh god why does it have venomous spurs!? And then you find out it lays eggs too. The difference is that the Platypus is somehow functional despite being a crazy mishmash or leftover animal pieces

-BlobVanDam on "Scarred"

Offline MirrorMask

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That's only one of the two tours I missed since I started to go to Maiden concerts in 1998 (the other one was the summer 2003 tour, but I've seen an entire live broadcast from Rock Am Ring so that was better than nothing).

I know I'll probably be in the minority, if not on this forum surely among Maiden fans, but I would have LOVED to see a "Screw the oldies, here's the reunion era songs" kind of setlist.
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Offline cramx3

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That's only one of the two tours I missed since I started to go to Maiden concerts in 1998 (the other one was the summer 2003 tour, but I've seen an entire live broadcast from Rock Am Ring so that was better than nothing).

I know I'll probably be in the minority, if not on this forum surely among Maiden fans, but I would have LOVED to see a "Screw the oldies, here's the reunion era songs" kind of setlist.

I agree, but that setlist was probably the closest we'll ever get to that....

The Wicker Man
Ghost of the Navigator
Wrathchild
El Dorado
Paschendale
The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
These Colours Don't Run
Blood Brothers
Wildest Dreams
No More Lies
Brave New World

Screw Wrathchild, but that's an epic run of reunion era songs.  That's why this tour and setlist may have been my favorite that I've seen in person.

Offline Mosh

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Cool to see some love for the debut and Live at the Rainbow. It's really cool going from Ruskin Arms to Rainbow, seeing how much they grew in almost exactly a year. I only wish that The Early Days DVD included the entire concert. It's a great show and they must have the whole thing archived somewhere. I actually pay the most attention to Clive there, especially during Phantom. He's on fire during this show and it's cool to have his short time in the band documented this way.

You also see the band has already developed their stage presence. Dave and Steve interact with the audience quite a bit and Eddie is already a major part of the stage show. One thing that separates Maiden from a lot of other bands is that they nailed the image from the beginning. The art style, the stage designs, even the logo were all there from the beginning. It's like Steve had a master plan and stuck to it.

Phantom Of the Opera is definitely the highlight of this era. Again, it's awesome that they documented it in Live At the Rainbow. Honestly, I prefer Phantom to Hallowed and wouldn't mind if it took Hallowed's place as a staple in the set. It's a treat every time they play it. Amazing that this was one of the band's earliest songs.


Screw Wrathchild, but that's an epic run of reunion era songs.  That's why this tour and setlist may have been my favorite that I've seen in person.
Here's one for the unpopular opinions thread: putting Wrathchild there was a good choice. It sucks they had to drop BTATS (I would've gone with No More Lies or maybe BNW) but Wrathchild was a much needed energy boost after two songs that a majority of the audience were unfamiliar with. I loved that show though and I'm glad they went all out on the reunion era. Still, I prefer something like TBOS where they balance it out a bit, rather than going heavy on classics or heavy on new stuff.

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Online wolfking

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Phantom Of the Opera is definitely the highlight of this era. Again, it's awesome that they documented it in Live At the Rainbow. Honestly, I prefer Phantom to Hallowed and wouldn't mind if it took Hallowed's place as a staple in the set. It's a treat every time they play it. Amazing that this was one of the band's earliest songs.

I don't mind this idea actually.
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Offline cramx3

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Screw Wrathchild, but that's an epic run of reunion era songs.  That's why this tour and setlist may have been my favorite that I've seen in person.
Here's one for the unpopular opinions thread: putting Wrathchild there was a good choice. It sucks they had to drop BTATS (I would've gone with No More Lies or maybe BNW) but Wrathchild was a much needed energy boost after two songs that a majority of the audience were unfamiliar with. I loved that show though and I'm glad they went all out on the reunion era. Still, I prefer something like TBOS where they balance it out a bit, rather than going heavy on classics or heavy on new stuff.

I dont think that's an unpopular view and I actually agree about sneaking in an oldie for the crowd.

Offline Mosh

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #48 on: May 19, 2017, 02:21:37 PM »
Killers (1981)

Paul Di’Anno - Vocals
Dave Murray - Guitar
Adrian Smith - Guitar
Steve Harris - Bass
Clive Burr - Drums

As was common at the time, the band immediately went back into the studio after the end of their successful 1980 tour. There were two major changes that would shape the sound of Killers: The first was the previously discussed arrival of Adrian Smith on guitar, the second was the inclusion of legendary producer Martin Birch (of Deep Purple and Black Sabbath fame). With Birch at the helm, the band produced a much more polished effort in Killers.

Many of the songs on Killers predate the debut album. Wrathchild was already a live favorite and was recorded for Metal For Muthas in 1979. The Ides of March was established as a concert opener, although it often proceeded Sanctuary and was sometimes even played live instead of being played over the P.A. as an intro tape (fun fact: while the Live At the Rainbow video shows Ides of March as an intro to Wrathchild, the actual opener for that particular gig was Sanctuary).
Purgatory was actually a very old tune by Harris that was once called Floating (and was supposedly much slower). Drifter and Another Life were also songs that had already been established as live favorites. A performance of Another Life can be found on Live At the Ruskin Arms and you can see that the song hadn’t changed much by the time they recorded it. There has also been mention of a song called Innocent In Exile being performed by Steve’s old band, Smiler, but I have no idea what that old version was like.

However, the band did take time to come up with new material. Killers contains the band’s first “filler” track: Genghis Khan. The song was quickly put together in the studio. I use the term filler loosely because it certainly doesn’t come off that way. And of course the title track was a newer creation, as you can see on Live At the Rainbow with its unfinished lyrics.

The artwork for Killers features a much more recognizable version of Eddie. The backdrop is similar, another part of the London East End, but we now get a taste of Derek Riggs’ tendency to place hidden references in his artwork. If you look closely, you get a glimpse of Charlotte the Harlot undressing, as well as the outside view of the Twilight Zone single artwork close by.

Despite in some ways being a compilation of material leftover from the debut, Killers is surprising unified and coherent sounding. The lyrical themes even seem in some ways connected. The production also shows an obvious step up with Martin Birch at the helm. It’s a transitional album. The energy is still there and the production isn’t anywhere near as polished as later Birch produced albums. While the debut album showed an immense level of raw energy and perfectly captured the band’s sound up to that point, with Killers Maiden showed that they could match and even surpass the old guard of Sabbath, Purple, and Priest.

Like the debut, there are multiple versions of this album. The original UK version contained 10 songs (no Twilight Zone, which was the album’s lead single), the US versions included Twilight Zone, and the 1998 CD remaster also includes it but in a different position in the tracklist. Luckily, this would be the last time the US and UK versions of the albums differentiated.


Maiden Japan (1981)


(Cover for 1987 Venezuelan pressing. Was actually meant to be the original cover but Rod Smallwood rejected it because the band were looking to replace Paul)
Paul Di’Anno - Vocals
Dave Murray - Guitar
Adrian Smith - Guitar
Steve Harris - Bass
Clive Burr - Drums

The Killers tour saw Maiden expanding their audience by visiting many areas for the very first time, such as North America as an opener for Judas Priest. The band also toured Japan for the first time, a tour which was immortalized in this EP. Most people here will probably recognize the title as a pun on Deep Purple’s Made In Japan.

Maiden Japan is a solid recording, not as definitive as Live At the Rainbow but still a great piece of early Maiden. It also includes the only officially released live recording of Innocent Exile, so it is worth checking out for that alone.

Unfortunately, it’s not easy to come by an official copy of Maiden Japan. In fact it’s probably the least accessible Maiden release. It was only released on CD once, as part of the First Ten Years singles box set. Unfortunately, the original LP is probably easier to find than the CD. If it was up to me, Maiden would release the whole show in a fancy 2CD package with liner notes and memorabilia.



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Offline Stadler

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #49 on: May 19, 2017, 02:37:37 PM »
I would LOVE a revamped "Maiden Japan" (a pun on the Deep Purple album "Made In Japan").

How about the full show?   Here's the setlist of the show that the EP came from:

The Ides of March (on tape)
Wrathchild
Purgatory
Sanctuary
Remember Tomorrow
Another Life  (including Clive Burr Drum Solo) 
Genghis Khan
Killers
Innocent Exile
Twilight Zone
Strange World
Murders in the Rue Morgue
Phantom of the Opera
Iron Maiden
Encore:
Running Free
Encore 2:
Transylvania
Drifter
Encore 3:
Prowler
Running Free


Offline Stadler

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #50 on: May 19, 2017, 02:38:31 PM »
I'm getting ahead of myself (and perhaps Mosh will tell us this anyway) but if you believe the scuttlebutt, where else have we heard the Maiden Japan version of "Remember Tomorrow"?

Offline cramx3

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #51 on: May 19, 2017, 02:57:43 PM »
Maiden Japan is awesome.  I had for a long time thought it was a bootleg.

I'm getting ahead of myself (and perhaps Mosh will tell us this anyway) but if you believe the scuttlebutt, where else have we heard the Maiden Japan version of "Remember Tomorrow"?

Not sure, but also getting ahead of ourselves when I say that Remember Tomorrow was the song Bruce sang for his tryouts I believe.

Offline Mosh

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #52 on: May 19, 2017, 03:26:40 PM »
I'm getting ahead of myself (and perhaps Mosh will tell us this anyway) but if you believe the scuttlebutt, where else have we heard the Maiden Japan version of "Remember Tomorrow"?
Are you referring to the b-side where they overdubbed Bruce? Not sure if I ever compared the two but I think it would be fairly easy to figure out if that's true or not.

Edit: Yea pretty sure they're the same.
« Last Edit: May 19, 2017, 03:34:42 PM by Mosh »
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Offline MirrorMask

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #53 on: May 19, 2017, 03:27:22 PM »
I'm getting ahead of myself (and perhaps Mosh will tell us this anyway) but if you believe the scuttlebutt, where else have we heard the Maiden Japan version of "Remember Tomorrow"?

Not sure, but also getting ahead of ourselves when I say that Remember Tomorrow was the song Bruce sang for his tryouts I believe.

Indeed it was one of the songs he tried out. During the Early Days tour before announcing the songs he told more or less always the same story about the song being crucial in getting him the job.

However, the band did take time to come up with new material. Killers contains the band’s first “filler” track: Genghis Khan. The song was quickly put together in the studio. I use the term filler loosely because it certainly doesn’t come off that way.

Well, you use the term correctly. If it's made up on spot just to make an album longer, it's a filler. Paranoid and You've Got Another Thing Comin' (Massive worldwide hits for Sabbath and Priest) are filler, they were written to have one more song on the album. That's the correct term for the word, whereas today it has just become standard for "I don't like this song".

About the album... not the biggest fan. Which is kinda weird 'cause there's no really an ugly song here, it's just that all in all the album doesn't grab me like the debut.

Drifter is the biggest "letdown" for me, it starts with such a GREAT intro, and then turns into a generic party song. The intro was so menacing that I was expecting a heavy, serious song but that was not the case.

Title track is probably my favorite song here, I also like Innocent Exile which is quite overlooked in their discography. And of course Murders in the Rue Morgue is another gem, I know it's such a trivial thing to be "annoyed" about but I never really liked how Bruce always sang in every chorus "Never gonna find me"... I find it such a great line in the context of the song that to repeat it every time takes away from the power of when it's finally said at the end.

Oh, and Twilight Zone is a wonderful song. Pity it didn't make the album!
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Online TAC

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #54 on: May 19, 2017, 03:34:00 PM »
My Killers CD has a spelling error.

Wratchild :metal

would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #55 on: May 19, 2017, 04:06:01 PM »
Nice one Tim.

I would love to get a copy of Maiden Japan.

Killers is an interesting album.  Very different to everything they have done IMO.  You can hear so much of that punk influence from Paul on this one.  With the direction this album was taking you can see that they never would have reached the hights that they did with Bruce.  Will have another listen to this one too, it's been a while.
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Offline Mladen

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #56 on: May 20, 2017, 04:47:40 AM »
I was never a big fan of Killers. The Ides of march and Murders in the rue morgue are fantastic. Wrathchild also kicks ass quite a bit, even though we've all got a bit sick and tired of it. And to be completely honest, my favorite track might actually be Genghis Khan - it's a brilliant energetic, complex and virtuostic instrumental, which features one of my favorite Maiden guitar harmonies at the end. Pure awesomeness.

The rest of the songs aren't bad. Luckily, I don't consider Twilight zone a part of the album, that song is awful.

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #57 on: May 21, 2017, 06:10:21 AM »
I'm gonna spin this album in the car tomorrow.  :metal
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Offline stargazer18

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #58 on: May 21, 2017, 07:21:46 AM »
Great job to the OP for including relative live albums and singles with the album discussion.

When I first started listening to Maiden in the mid-80’s I found it hard to get into this album. It’s positioned between their highly regarded debut album and, well, what many consider another highly regarded debut album! So, it didn’t get many listens. I also think the lack of appeal to me was because after getting into Maiden I found myself drawn more to the lengthy style of songs that became the norm starting with Number of the Beast. Times have changed and coming back to it I’ve found it has aged very well and find the whole disc really enjoyable. I think this album presents a different, more straightforward side to Maiden song writing that I don’t think is heard again in a complete album of songs until No Prayer for the Dying.

The Ides of March is an excellent intro to the album, presenting the listener with a well-structured instrumental built around a driving rhythm section overlaid with some tasty lead guitar riffing. You can tell right away the raw sound of the first album has been wiped away by a more polished “metal” sound.  The lead guitar charges through the middle of the song with a Steve Howe-ish “solo over everything” sound before joining up at the end with the other lead to finish the song with a double harmony and a flourish of symbols from Clive.

A driving, gritty bass signals the start of Wrathchild. This is one my favorites of the Di’Anno era and a great song to start the album with. I like the album version more than the live versions I’ve heard though Bruce covers the lyrics very well.  This was the only song I had heard off of this album so everything from here out was new to me.

The next song, Murders in the Rue Morgue, is Maiden’s homage to Poe’s classic murder mystery. The song starts slowly and quietly with the bass playing the melody for a short stretch before the rest of the band enters in. The guitars take over the lead from here and play a few more measures before whole song picks up again and Di’Anno enters in with the opening verse.  The chorus isn’t the most memorable but it fits with the song and like many of the songs on this album the lead guitar is playing something more interesting under the chorus.

Another Life to me is a straight ahead rocker with some interesting, though for Maiden, plain lead guitar action. It’s not a bad song and Di’Anno sounds pretty good on this track. Like a few other songs on this album though the lyrics are pretty weak and repetitive. At barely over 3 minutes it starts and ends before you know it.

Genghis Khan is another excellent instrumental and one that to me really rocks. This relatively short piece packs a lot of changes into its short length. Anchored by some excellent drumming by Clive and carried by some awesome lead work by Dave and Adrian. I especially like the last minute and half where the speed and frenzy of the middle section shifts to a slower, groovy beat with moaning lead guitars.

Innocent Exile is a song that sounds better than I remembered with its catchy bass and lead lines. The lyrics on this song though are also pretty weak and repetitive.  You have to let Steve, Dave, Clive and Adrian lead you though this one.

Maiden put it all together and delivered the title track fully loaded with another catchy bass / drum intro quickly filled in by some slinky, mysterious lead guitar riffing. Di’Anno enters in with some well-placed screaming to set the mood before the song takes off into the first verse. To me the beginning is the best part of this song but the lyrics are stronger than many of the other songs so help carry it. Di’Annos vocals are also pretty strong on this song.

There’s no real epic on this album and the longest song, Prodigal Son, has more of a power ballad feel than a heavy metal song.  No matter, this song rocks and has a very catchy guitar solo in the middle that can easily get stuck in your head after hearing it. Maiden could play this type of song when they wanted to.

Purgatory was the second single released and to me is a real screamer. Di’Annos vocals combined with crafty lead guitar work really carry this song.

The first single off of this album, Twilight Zone is a mid temp rock’n’roll song if Maiden ever made one. My remastered 1998 CD includes this as the second to last song though the original album did not include it. Di’Anno once again comes through with some excellent vocals and the short, barely over 2 minutes long song caters to the finicky listening habits of the radio listener – if it was ever played on the radio.

Drifter as the OP states predated this album and was a live show favorite. Knowing where Maiden would go with album closers starting with the next album, to me this song is a letdown. It’s not bad, it’s just not as strong as what was to come.

I can’t help but make the connection between Maiden and Yes in terms of album cover artwork. Like Roger Dean was to Yes, Derek Riggs was to Maiden. I know that every new Maiden album came with a discussion by those who were fans but had not seen the cover asking about the artwork. This album is definitely an eye catcher and I’m sure more than one young fan left the record store empty handed after showing his / her parent the cassette tape or album cover.

I do think it’s apparent that this album had to be the end of some sorts for the band in terms of their sound. Another album like this, filled with a bunch of short (for Maiden) songs would have only moved them into a category that was soon to be populated by whole bunch of other bands.

Offline Mosh

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #59 on: May 21, 2017, 02:44:26 PM »
Cool comments everyone!

My history with Di'Anno Maiden is fairly unique. As I've mentioned before, I got into Maiden through my dad in the early 00's, so my exposure to them was entirely from his CD collection. He was more into cassettes though and only upgraded a fairly small part of his collection to CDs. In the case of Maiden, he had all the Bruce albums (minus Powerslave, more on that later). Sometime after getting to know Maiden with Bruce, I came across the one Paul Di'Anno era CD he owned. Oddly enough, it was Purgatory/Maiden Japan. By this time I was obsessed with Maiden and knew most of the Bruce albums really well. Bruce's voice was what attracted me to Maiden early on. As far as I was concerned, he was the band. So the Paul Di'Anno version of Maiden might as well have been a completely different band. It was interesting, but I didn't listen to it often.

Fast forward to 2004 when The Early Days DVD was released. This DVD blew my mind. YouTube wasn't a thing yet and I had no idea what bootlegs were, so as far as I knew the only video of Maiden that existed was on the Rock In Rio DVD and the music videos that came with the enhanced versions of the 1998 remasters. I had seen pictures of the Dortmund show in the Piece of Mind booklet, but I had no idea video of that existed. So the DVD was really a revelation (no pun intended). Anyway, obviously that DVD was really heavy on Di'Anno stuff, so it was my true introduction to that era.

It wasn't until much later that I finally got the first two albums on CD. Probably around 2009 or so, it was definitely in that long stretch between AMOLAD and TFF. In the case of the debut, I was pretty much familiar with the entire album already. Whether it was through the DVD, seeing them live, or on Rock In Rio. So hearing the album for the first time wasn't that big of a deal to me. Killers, on the other hand, was a totally different story. While I was familiar with most of it, there were a ton of songs that I had never heard before. I had no idea songs like Twilight Zone and Prodigal Son even existed. Other songs like Innocent Exile and Another Life were tunes I had definitely heard before, but I didn't know them nearly as well as anything off the debut. Murders In the Rue Morgue with Paul on vocals was also interesting to hear.

Even with that personal connection aside, I genuinely prefer Killers to the debut. To me, it's closer to the classic Maiden sound. The raw punk thing has its own charm, but I like my Maiden more refined. Martin Birch was also a huge addition. Not only is the production obviously better, but Birch was able to get a better performance out of Di'Anno than what you hear on the debut. Also Adrian Smith fit into the group like a puzzle piece. I think the debut has also suffered a little from being overplayed. It's hard to get the same excitement out of Running Free after hearing it so many times. I also don't think the band does a very good job performing most of these songs live anymore, with the exception of Phantom, Remember Tomorrow, and maybe Sanctuary. Yes Killers has Wrathchild, but that is one of the few staples that I don't get tired of. It's still good live to this day and the studio version totally slays. I know most fans are tired of it constantly appearing in the setlist, but it's so short and always brings up the energy level that I don't have a problem with it. I doubt it's keeping any more obscure songs from being played at least.

None of this is to say the debut is bad. Both are classic albums and would score an 8 or 9 out of 10 in my book. But I have to give the slight nod to Killers.
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Offline jjrock88

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #60 on: May 21, 2017, 03:48:17 PM »
Excellent write ups for these albums!!

I really like the two Paul fronted albums even though I don't listen to them a ton. I'm not a fan of punk music at all but these two albums have enough of a metal edge to where I don't mind the punk aspect. Might be somewhat similar to Motörhead and how I feel for them.

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #61 on: May 21, 2017, 03:51:00 PM »
What's cool about the DiAnno years is how accepted it is by Maiden fans as a whole, even the new fans. When bands have an original singer on a first album or two, it may get ignored because it's with "that other singer". But those albums, particularly Killers, are universally loved.

Wrathchild is amazing live. I'm not in love with the song per se, but live, it literally takes over.

And I love Drifter.

If I had to list my Top 5 tracks from the two albums I'd go:
1. Phantom Of The Opera
2. Drifter
3. Remember Tomorrow
4. Another Life
5. Transylvania
6. Murders In The Rue Morgue
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline PowerSlave

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #62 on: May 21, 2017, 03:57:04 PM »
What's cool about the DiAnno years is how accepted it is by Maiden fans as a whole, even the new fans. When bands have an original singer on a first album or two, it may get ignored because it's with "that other singer". But those albums, particularly Killers, are universally loved.

Wrathchild is amazing live. I'm not in love with the song per se, but live, it literally takes over.

And I love Drifter.

If I had to list my Top 5 tracks from the two albums I'd go:
1. Phantom Of The Opera
2. Drifter
3. Remember Tomorrow
4. Another Life
5. Transylvania
6. Murders In The Rue Morgue

For me, Remember Tomorrow is not only a top song from that era, it's one of the top IM songs of all time. It also works incredibly well in a live setting.
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Offline jjrock88

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #63 on: May 21, 2017, 04:00:44 PM »
What's cool about the DiAnno years is how accepted it is by Maiden fans as a whole, even the new fans. When bands have an original singer on a first album or two, it may get ignored because it's with "that other singer". But those albums, particularly Killers, are universally loved.

Wrathchild is amazing live. I'm not in love with the song per se, but live, it literally takes over.

And I love Drifter.

If I had to list my Top 5 tracks from the two albums I'd go:
1. Phantom Of The Opera
2. Drifter
3. Remember Tomorrow
4. Another Life
5. Transylvania
6. Murders In The Rue Morgue

Let's go with top 6 instead!

Offline PowerSlave

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #64 on: May 21, 2017, 04:04:16 PM »
What's cool about the DiAnno years is how accepted it is by Maiden fans as a whole, even the new fans. When bands have an original singer on a first album or two, it may get ignored because it's with "that other singer". But those albums, particularly Killers, are universally loved.

Wrathchild is amazing live. I'm not in love with the song per se, but live, it literally takes over.

And I love Drifter.

If I had to list my Top 5 tracks from the two albums I'd go:
1. Phantom Of The Opera
2. Drifter
3. Remember Tomorrow
4. Another Life
5. Transylvania
6. Murders In The Rue Morgue

Let's go with top 6 instead!

It's that special new england math...  :lol
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Online TAC

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #65 on: May 21, 2017, 04:06:55 PM »
 :lol
Brady has the "deflator". DTF has the "inflator"!

Besides, every Iron Maiden list delivers a little extra!
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline PowerSlave

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #66 on: May 21, 2017, 04:10:46 PM »
:lol
Brady has the "deflator". DTF has the "inflator"!

Besides, every Iron Maiden list delivers a little extra!

If you're the inflator then you must be the guy that my ex-wife was running around on me with.
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Online TAC

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #67 on: May 21, 2017, 04:14:21 PM »
Oh, hell no.

Yikes!

I inflate lists, not women.
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline stargazer18

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #68 on: May 21, 2017, 04:45:36 PM »
I forgot that the TOS states specifically that here on DTF things are ranked, and then subsequently the rankings are ranked. Failure to properly rank means….well….you lose rank.

For the first two albums I’m breaking it up into two tiers to include all the tracks. It was more difficult than I thought and to me there isn’t an “unlistenable” track between both albums, there’s a just a handful of standout tracks that I like and so are listed as First. When we get a little further along and start to get into the early 90’s albums I’ll have to create a third, lower tier for those that I skip. Shows how strong, to me, these first two albums are.

First Tier

Prowler
Remember tomorrow
Running Free
Phantom of the Opera
Transylvania
The Ides of March / Wrathchild
Murders in the Rue Morgue
Genghis Khan
Killers
Prodigal Son
Purgatory
Twilight Zone

Second Tier
Strange World
Charlotte the Harlot
Sanctuary
Iron Maiden
Another Life
Innocent Exile
Drifter

Offline Mosh

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Re: Iron Maiden Discography Thread: Killers (1981)
« Reply #69 on: May 21, 2017, 05:01:06 PM »
Phantom
Remember Tomorrow
Killers
Murders
Purgatory
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