happenings song demo and circulated it to club owners and others involved in the London scene, including the group’s soon-to-be manager Ron Smallwood. The demo’s popularity led Iron Maiden to self-release it as 1979’s The Soundhouse Tapes EP, which soon sold out its 5,000-copy run. After scoring a deal with EMI, the band enlisted a second guitarist, Dennis Stratton. Late in 1979, Sampson departed due to health issues and former Samson drummer Clive Burr took his place behind the kit. The band’s self-titled debut arrived in 1980; though it was recorded in a hurry, it was nonetheless a U.K. hit due to the single “Running Free.” Its 1981 follow-up, Killers, had a harder approach thanks in part to producer Martin Birch — with whom the group worked until his 1992 retirement — and also saw the replacement of Stratton with Murray’s childhood friend Adrian Smith. Due to substance abuse issues, Di’Anno was dismissed from Iron Maiden after the Killer World Tour in 1981. His replacement was Dickinson, another former Samson member who joined that September and made his recorded debut with the band on 1982’s groundbreaking The Number of the Beast. Boasting songs such as the title track and “Hallowed Be Thy Name,” it became known as one of the all-time great rock albums. Though it was the band’s first chart-topping album in the U.K. and was a Top 10 seller in several other countries, Christian activists and conservative politicians in America claimed the band was satanic (which Iron Maiden denied). Nevertheless, The Number of the Beast’s success made Iron Maiden international superstars, and despite the replacement of Burr with former Trust drummer Nicko McBrain, they changed very little of their style on 1983’s Piece of Mind. The band undertook two major tours before recording 1984’s Powerslave, which would go on to be another cult hit and featured the 13-minute epic “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” which was inspired by Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem. The product of Powerslave’s 11-month tour was 1985’s Live After Death, a double-live album featuring their biggest hit singles. Now established as a powerful and unique metal band, Iron Maiden experimented on their long-awaited 1986 album, Somewhere in Time, incorporating synthesized bass and guitar and futuristic themes. They continued to expand their sound and subject matter with 1988’s Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. Another concept album featuring the singles “The Evil That Men Do” and “The Clairvoyant,” as well as the band’s first use of keyboards, it was Maiden’s most critically acclaimed album since The Number of the Beast. When Iron Maiden reconvened to work on a new album, Smith left over creative differences; ex-Gillan guitarist Janick Gers joined the fold for 1990’s No Prayer for the Dying. A return to the band’s stripped-down sound of the early ‘80s, it gave Iron Maiden their first No. 1 U.K. single with “Bring Your Daughter...To the Slaughter.” At the end of the band’s 1991 tour, Dickinson expressed his desire to leave and work on his own music. However, he recorded another album, 1992’s Fear of the Dark, and toured with the band, ultimately leaving in 1993.
26 FEB
IRON MAIDEN BOK Center (Tulsa)
Known for such powerful hits as “Two Minutes to Midnight” and “The Trooper,” Iron Maiden is one of heavy metal’s most influential bands. They’re also one of metal’s most enduring and distinctive acts, thanks to their melodic guitars, ambitious songwriting, powerhouse vocalist Bruce Dickinson and iconic mascot Eddie. One of the first groups to be classified as “British metal,” Iron Maiden helped set the rock scene for the ‘80s and inspired generations of subsequent bands, including Metallica, Dream Theater, Slipknot, In Flames and Avenged Sevenfold. Despite a lack of radio airplay or mainstream media support, early allegations of Satanism, and a revolving lineup, they have remained consistently popular throughout their career. Iron Maiden was formed in 1975 in Leyton, East London by bassist Steve Harris. The group’s lineup was volatile during its early years, but eventually settled on drummer Doug Sampson, guitarist Dave Murray and vocalist Paul Di’Anno in 1978. Later that year, this incarnation of the band recorded a four16 February 2016
Iron Maiden took some time off after Dickinson’s departure, returning with 1995’s The X Factor, which featured new singer and ex-Wolfsbane member Blaze Bayley. While the record didn’t perform as well commercially as some of its predecessors, it was still a success in England. Its follow-up, 1998’s Virtual XI, was one of the band’s lowest-selling albums; in addition, Bayley was having issues with his voice, and he left Iron Maiden early in 1999. Soon after, Dickinson and Smith returned to the group, who released the ambitious, Kevin Shirley-produced Brave New World the following year. Iron Maiden remained reinvigorated throughout the 2000s, touring and recording almost as consistently as they did in the ‘80s. They reunited with Shirley for 2003’s critically acclaimed Dance of Death, which was inspired by battles ranging from the conquering of a 13th century Cathar stronghold (“Montségur”) to a notable World War I campaign (“Paschendale”). The band’s 14th album, 2006’s A Matter of Life and Death, was the first to enter the Top 10 of the Billboard 200. Iron Maiden worked with Shirley once again on 2010’s The Final Frontier, which reached the top of the charts in 28 countries and earned the band a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance for the single “El Dorado.” In 2013, the band began work on its 16th studio album. Though the album was completed in mid-2014, the discovery of cancerous tumors on Dickinson’s tongue and neck slowed things down. He underwent rigorous chemotherapy and was declared cancer free in May 2015. The 92-minute, double-length album Book Of Souls dropped in September 2015.