Iron Maiden’s gonna get you, no matter how far!
See the blood flow, watching it shed, from up above my head!
Iron Maiden wants you, for dead!

Between the announcement of the Run For Your Lives 50th Anniversary tour and the recent death of former vocalist Paul Di’Anno, early Iron Maiden has been on the brain. Shocking, I know. it’s had me listening to those first two albums, and reminded me of just how different they are to the rest of Maiden’s catalogue. Combine that with speculation regarding the setlist for the upcoming tour, with the setlist ranging from their self titled debut to 1992’s Fear of the Dark. Maiden bassist Steve Harris hinted in the press release that there will be ‘songs they haven’t played in years and many we will likely never play again’, which isn’t shocking as the band is 5 years older than I am. This started giving me ideas, such as a ‘Worst of’ setlist*, or ‘Movies Steve Harris has watched recently’ or even a ‘1 song from every album’ set. 17 studio albums, 17 songs? So, that’s what I’m going to do!

Iron Maiden. (1980)
The self titled debut, where it all began. The sound is rough, but the energy is there, from the short and sharp Prowler, to the glam rock stomp of Running Free or the epic Phantom of the Opera. However, it wouldn’t be a Maiden set without the song of the same name, right?

Killers. (1981)
The difficult second album, this saw the arrival of guitarist Adrian Smith and producer Martin Birch, both key figures in the bands rise to glory. As for what track I’d play, it’s Wrathchild. That’s no disrespect to the likes of opening instrumental The Ides of March or the thundering title track, but that opening drum and bass of Wrathchild just fires my soul. It’s on my Maiden live bucket list, so I couldn’t not vote for it.

The Number of the Beast (1982)
And here we see the departure of Di’Anno, the arrival of Bruce Dickinson and what is thought of as the band’s glory years. True, Invaders and Gangland are a bit naff, and Total Eclipse (No, not of the heart) would have worked far better, while 22 Acacia Avenue (A sequel to Charlotte the Harlot from their debut) hasn’t aged well. But how to choose one song? Hallowed be thy Name, a tale of a condemned man on his way to the gallows, that has been in my head every work performance review I’ve ever had. The Prisoner, based off the classic series? The title track, responsible for my love of the band in the first place? Sorry, no. It’s got to be Run to the Hills. The joy it brings me, and the way I immediately bounce around and air guitar to it, it’s the winner.

Piece of Mind.
The revolving door continues, with the departure of drummer Clive Burr and the arrival of Nicko McBrain and at long last, the classic line up is complete. While it contains one of Maiden’s all time stinkers in Quest for Fire, that’s balanced by the likes of Die with your Boots On, The Trooper and the thunder of Where Eagles Dare, in which McBrain doesn’t just stake his claim to the drum seat, he seems to hit everything on the kit at once. The legend goes that he learnt the song a half second at a time, and while I’m not a drummer I can believe that. However, my choice is the albums second single, Flight Of Icarus. I’ve joked in the past that my wife hopes someday I’ll feel about her the way I do the solo in that song and I continue to be gutted that Covid got in the way of my seeing them perform it live on the Legacy of the Beast tour. Bruce had a flamethrower under each arm during parts of it. *cries*

Powerslave (1984)
Finally, an album with no change in band members! That doesn’t mean it’s perfect though, as between the instrumental Losfer Words (Big ‘Orra) and the odd choice of two songs about fencing (The Duellists and Flash of the Blade) show. But what is left is an embarrassment of riches, with the rousing boy’s own WW2 adventure of Aces High, the anti war ferocity of 2 Minutes to Midnight, the epic title track, who’s guitar solos should be studied in schools and Back in the Village, another excursion to one of Dickinson’s favourite TV shows. But my choice is avian inspired, that being The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, a song introduced when played live as ‘what not to do when your bird shits on you.’

Somewhere in Time (1986)
After an unprecedented 6 month break following the seemingly never ending World Slavery tour, and chronicled in 1985’s Live After Death, they returned to the studio determined to experiment and the result polarises to this day. Guitar synths? The purists weren’t happy, not one bit. There’s no songs from Dickinson on this one for varying reasons, it’s a product of it’s time and could be seen as a twin to Judas Priest’s Turbo, released the same year and a similar sound. As for a song choice, there’s the the epic Alexander the Great (Rhyming Aegean Sea and 334 BC is *chef kiss*), the rousing sing along of Heaven Can Wait, or the enjoy life while you can of Wasted Years, but for me it’s Stranger in a Strange Land.

Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988)
As with most concept albums, the theme doesn’t quite hang on, but Can I Play with Madness is a cracker, and still regularly played live to this day. The Evil that Men Do and the title track have the traditional Maiden gallop and epic in equal measure, but I have to choose the album opener, Moonchild. From the delicate intro, acoustic guitar mixing with Dickinson’s voice, to the way it builds and builds, finally launching with enough force to break orbit.

No Prayer For The Dying (1990)
Line up changes are back! It’s goodbye Adrian Smith and hello Janick Gers, a fine guitarist (who played on Dickinson’s solo album Tattooed Millionaire) and a back to basics approach, ie ditching the spandex for denim and leather. (It did bring us all together after all) As for a song choice, do I have to? Amidst the WW2 songs Tailgunner and Run Silent Run Deep, the televangelist satirising (Or at least trying to) Holy Smoke, and the forgettable likes of Hooks in You or The Assassin, it’s not an album I’ve gone back to in a long time. But if I have to choose, it’s the guilty pleasure shock horror schlock of Bring Your Daughter… To The Slaughter, a song that to it’s credit knocked Cliff Richard off the Christmas Number 1 in the UK that year and may it long be by applauded for doing so.

Fear of the Dark (1992)
It’s an improvement, but not by much. There’s a fair whack of Maiden by numbers (See Chains of Misery, Judas be my Guide and Fear is the Key), and I’d put money on From Here to Eternity being Steve Harris trying to write an AC/DC song, but the ferocious burst of Be Quick or Be Dead and the sombre Afraid to Shoot Strangers stand out amidst the rest. The true classic though, is that iconic title track, a regular part of the live set since then. Hearing the crowd singing along with the guitar line never fails to raise my spirits.

The X Factor (1995)
It was a long gap between albums, but not every band can immediately replace their singer. An increasingly frustrated Dickinson had jumped ship to start a solo career and was replaced by Blaze Bayley, formerly of Wolfsbane. I have a lot of sympathy for Bayley, as he was both replacing an iconic front man and had a very different voice. The denim was now dyed black, and combined with the horrific album cover of Eddie having his body torn apart, it’s all gone a bit grim. As for a song choice, it’s between Sign of the Cross, Lord of the Flies and Man on the Edge, and I plump for the gothic epic Sign.

Virtual XI (1998)
Generally considered the least of Maiden’s back catalogue, I feel it could have been improved have several tracks been shortened. By a lot. Don’t Look to the Eyes of a Stranger is a prime example of this, and while I quite enjoy The Angel and the Gambler in it’s 70’s hard rock pomp, the 4:05 music video version (Compared to the 9: 52 length original) is by far my preferred version. In that spirit, my favourite track is also the shortest, and that’s Futureal. A right banger it is, and a highlight of the era.

Brave New World (2000)
By this point things weren’t looking good. Maiden were playing smaller venues and while Dickinson’s solo career was thriving creatively, having been joined by former cohort Adrian Smith, it wasn’t exactly setting the charts on fire. While Blaze Bayley has spoken highly of the plans for a third album in recent years, it wasn’t to be. As if in answer to many prayers news filtered though that Bayley was gone, and that both Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith were to return. Anticipation was high, could a new album restore the bands fortunes? Oh hell yes! From opener The Wicker Man, through epics Blood Brothers and The Nomad, to the storming Out of the Silent Planet it said one thing loud and clear: Iron Maiden are back. This was to be no ‘Greatest Hits’ revival, but a whole new era. Indeed, it’s the opener that’s my choice. It’s a banger, and I’d love to hear it played live.

Dance of Death (2003)
Yes, the cover art is awful, we all agree. But the albums a cracker, so I’ll forgive it this time. Yes, opener Wildest Dreams is fairly standard, but I adore the riff in Rainmaker and the thunder of No More Lies. Paschendale is a grim tale of the horrors of the First World War, matched in emotion by Montsegur, and the album ends with the bands, at the time of writing, only completely acoustic number, Journeyman. But my track of choice is the title track, in all it’s hammy ridiculous glory. It could go fully Spinal Tap, but somehow makes it work.

A Matter of Life and Death (2006)
Further tales of war and death, the band infuriated a section of fandom by playing the entire album from start to finish on a chunk of the tour. I say fuck em’, there’s only so many times you can play the old stuff. These Colours Don’t Run is a defiant cry, perhaps in response to the Ozzfest incident, The Longest Day takes us through the D-Day landings (I’m guessing Adrian Smith had recently watched the film), but it’s the opening single, The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg, that’s my choice.

The Final Frontier (2010)
The band kept themselves busy during the break between albums, recording a documentary (Flight 666) and finally returning to Australia! Nice work lads, you’d only been saying you’d be down under again since 199fucking5. It was a special night for me, and the memories I still cherish. As for the album, opener Satellite 15 is an odd one, but all becomes clear when the second half of the track, named for the album, kicks in. El Dorado gallops along at speed, while closer When the Wild Wind Blows is a nightmarish epic of fear of nuclear war. My pick? Coming Home, an emotional track about finally, well coming home. It hits me where I live, you know?

The Book of Souls (2015)
Yes, the wait between albums are getting longer, but it’s not as if the band are getting younger. This is the point when the tendency towards epics got pushed past any logical extreme, with it being the bands first studio double album, and longest ever song, Empire of the Clouds, an 18 minute long piano based number about the R101 airship disaster. (Fun Fact: One of the Eighth Doctor’s companions was meant to have died on it) I should not listen to Tears of a Clown when I’m having a bad mental health day, as Death or Glory is far more cheerful. The woah-oh’s in The Red and the Black are as addictive as Warhammer 40,000, and Speed of Light rumbles along, but it’s disc 1 opener If Eternity Should Fail that’s my choice. Originally written by Dickinson for a solo album, a reworked version appeared on his most recent disc, The Mandrake Project. While it’s not bad, it doesn’t quite have the soaring bombast of the original, and Maiden’s career long commitment to ‘too much bombast is barely enough’ is one of the reasons I love them so.

Senjutsu (2021)
Another double album? Recorded in secret and hidden away for when the then current tour, cut short by that bastard Covid 19, ended? The epics continue, though there’s a few odd notes for me. The Writing on the Wall is a cracking tune, but given Bruce Dickinson’s support of Brexit, some of the lyrics have me wanting the band to leave politics out of things. It’s the same with Darkest Hour, which despite a soaring chorus speaks a little too highly of Winston Churchill, something Doctor Who has done in recent years as well. Therefore, I’m plumping for Death of the Celts, even with the extended middle section that could have been cut in half.

*whew* 17 albums, 17 tracks. This spiralled out of control pretty quickly. In any case, if you’ve made it this far I salute you. Thoughts, feedback, abuse at my choices? I’m curious to hear.

Time for bed now. Good night all. Be seeing you…