Killers

Killers was recorded at Battery Studios in London. Samson, the band Bruce Dickinson then sang in, recorded in the studio next door. Birch had topped the band's wish list for the debut but was busy with Black Sabbath, and the band told him they had not thought themselves worthy of him. He produced the next eight Maiden albums.

Harris wrote almost all of it. Only Twilight Zone and the title track are co-writes. It is the only Maiden album with two instrumentals, The Ides of March and Genghis Khan. Most of the songs were written before the debut was recorded, and only Prodigal Son and Murders in the Rue Morgue, named for Poe's story, were new. Harris said the debut had been a best-of from their live set and that they did not want to lose the strong songs still left. The album reached number 78 on the Billboard 200, and reviews on its release were mixed.