Iron Maiden

An East London heavy metal band founded by bassist Steve Harris in 1975, whose third album, The Number of the Beast, gave them a first UK number one.

Origin: Leyton, East London, England
Years active: 1975-present
Genres: heavy metal, new wave of British heavy metal
Labels: EMI, Harvest, Capitol

From Leyton to EMI

Iron Maiden formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975, founded by the bassist and main songwriter Steve Harris. He took the name from a film of The Man in the Iron Mask, because the title reminded him of the iron maiden torture device. The line-up changed repeatedly in the early years. Harris and the guitarist Dave Murray are the two members who have played on every release. Paul Di'Anno joined as singer after an audition in November 1978.

On New Year's Eve 1978 the band recorded a four-song demo at Spaceward Studios in Cambridge. Neal Kay, who managed the Bandwagon Heavy Metal Soundhouse, played it there, and Prowler reached number 1 in the club's chart, which Sounds published every week. Rod Smallwood heard a copy and became their manager. The band released the tracks themselves as The Soundhouse Tapes, and all 5,000 copies sold out within weeks. An EMI deal followed in December 1979.

The first two albums

Iron Maiden came out on 11 April 1980 and entered the UK chart at number four. Wil Malone produced it at Kingsway Studios in west London, and Harris said it was finished in 13 days. The band later criticised the production, though many fans still prefer its raw sound. It also introduced Eddie, the mascot painted by Derek Riggs, who has appeared on almost all of the band's releases. The closing title track, Iron Maiden, became a fixture of the live set.

Dennis Stratton, the second guitarist on that record, was replaced by Adrian Smith in October 1980. Killers followed in February 1981, the first Maiden album produced by Martin Birch. Harris said its production was like chalk and cheese next to the debut. It was the last album with Di'Anno, who left in 1981.

Bruce Dickinson

Bruce Dickinson, then singing with Samson, was hired after auditioning in September 1981, following a conversation with Smallwood at the Reading festival. He sang his first show with the band in Bologna on 26 October 1981. The Number of the Beast (1982) was made at Battery Studios in London with Birch producing, and recording and mixing took only five weeks. A contractual issue with Samson meant Dickinson could not be credited as a writer, though he described a moral contribution to three songs. It became the band's first UK number one album and reached number 33 in the United States.

Its singles included Run to the Hills, and the album gave the band The Number of the Beast and Hallowed Be Thy Name. The album was controversial in the United States because of the religious references in its artwork and title track lyrics. Clive Burr left in December 1982 and Nicko McBrain replaced him, and that line-up of Harris, Murray, Smith, Dickinson and McBrain made Piece of Mind and Powerslave.

The classic run

Piece of Mind (1983) was rehearsed at a hotel in Jersey and recorded at Compass Point Studios in Nassau. It reached number 3 in the UK and brought The Trooper. Powerslave (1984) was recorded at the same studios and closed with Rime of the Ancient Mariner, a 13 minute retelling of Coleridge's poem. The World Slavery Tour that followed touched 28 countries, and the double live album Live After Death came out in October 1985.

Smith left in 1990, before No Prayer for the Dying, and was replaced by Janick Gers, and Dickinson left in 1993. Both returned in 1999, and Brave New World was recorded in Paris that November. At Rock in Rio on 19 January 2001 they played to an audience of over 250,000. The band has released 17 studio albums and has sold over 130 million albums worldwide.

Fifty years on

The Guardian called Iron Maiden one of the most influential and deeply idiosyncratic British bands in history in 2026, the year of their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 13 April. Their 50th anniversary tour, Run for Your Lives, began in 2025, and a documentary, Burning Ambition, reached cinemas in May 2026. The old songs keep finding new audiences. The Trooper played over the finale of Stranger Things, and Ralph Fiennes danced to The Number of the Beast in the film 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.

Dickinson's own summary was that any song given to Iron Maiden will always sound like Iron Maiden. Asked about new music, Harris said there was no point in doing Run to the Hills Part Two or The Trooper Part Two.

Members

Steve Harris bass, backing vocals (1975-present)
Dave Murray guitar
Paul Di'Anno vocals (1978-1981)
Bruce Dickinson vocals (1981-1993, 1999-present)
Adrian Smith guitar
Clive Burr drums (1979-1982)
Nicko McBrain drums (1982-present)
Dennis Stratton guitar, backing vocals (1979-1980)
Janick Gers guitar

Records

Iron Maiden 1980 · EMI
The 1980 debut: eight songs, Eddie's first appearance on a cover, and a UK chart debut at number four.
Killers 1981 · EMI
The second album: the first with Adrian Smith and with Martin Birch, and the last with Paul Di'Anno.
The Number of the Beast 1982 · EMI
The third album: Bruce Dickinson's first with the band, the last with Clive Burr, and Iron Maiden's first UK number one.
Piece of Mind 1983 · EMI
The fourth album, the first with drummer Nicko McBrain, written in Jersey and recorded in the Bahamas.
Powerslave 1984 · EMI
The fifth album: an Ancient Egypt cover, two hit singles and a 13 minute retelling of Coleridge to close.

Songs

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden · 1980
The band's title track and set closer, one of the earliest songs Steve Harris wrote.
Run to the Hills The Number of the Beast · 1982
The first single with Bruce Dickinson and the band's first UK top ten hit, told from both sides of the conflict between Native Americans and settlers.
The Number of the Beast The Number of the Beast · 1982
The title track of the 1982 album, a spoken Revelation intro, a famous scream and a nightmare of Steve Harris's.
Hallowed Be Thy Name The Number of the Beast · 1982
The seven-minute closer of The Number of the Beast, about a man facing execution.
The Trooper Piece of Mind · 1983
Harris's song about the Charge of the Light Brigade, a modest hit in 1983 that became the band's most streamed track.
Rime of the Ancient Mariner Powerslave · 1984
A 13 minute abridgement of Coleridge's poem that closes Powerslave.

Metallica, Dream Theater, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath

Where to go next

Official

Iron Maiden: the band The band's own account of its history, on the official site.
Iron Maiden: studio albums The official list of the 17 studio albums, 1980 to 2021.

Reference

Iron Maiden at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The 2026 induction biography and the list of inducted members.
Iron Maiden The long encyclopedia article on the band's history and line-ups.

Writing and criticism

Iron Maiden on The Guardian The Guardian's archive of Iron Maiden articles and reviews.
How Iron Maiden and a naked Ralph Fiennes created the ultimate big-screen needle drop How The Number of the Beast ended up in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.
The great literature our writers discovered through pop music A short piece on Rime of the Ancient Mariner among other writers' discoveries.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class of 2026 The Guardian's report on the 2026 inductees.
The story behind The Number of the Beast Metal Hammer on the song, the studio mishaps and its film use.
The story of The Trooper Metal Hammer on the song's writing, video and live history.
The story behind the song: Iron Maiden On the debut's title track and the origin of Eddie.
Iron Maiden on Louder Louder's archive of Iron Maiden news and features.

Interviews

'I nearly quit to become a fencing teacher' A 2026 career interview with Harris, Dickinson and Smith.
Bruce Dickinson and The Number of the Beast An extract from the official visual history on how the album was made.

Live performance archives

Iron Maiden review, Birmingham A review of a 2025 anniversary tour show.

Sources

Iron Maiden, Wikipedia
Iron Maiden: the band, ironmaiden.com
Iron Maiden, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
'I nearly quit to become a fencing teacher': Iron Maiden on 50 years of heavy metal, The Guardian (2026-04-24)
How Iron Maiden got their man and made the album that sent them stratospheric, Louder (2026-01-22)
Iron Maiden: the story of The Trooper, Metal Hammer (2026-01-06)