The Number of the Beast
| The Number of the Beast | ||||
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Studio album by 
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Publication |
March 22, 1982 |
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admission |
December 1981 - February 1982 |
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| Label (s) | EMI Electrola GmbH & Co. KG | |||
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Format (s) |
CD, LP, MC |
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Title (number) |
8/9 |
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running time |
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Studio (s) |
Battery Studios, London (England) |
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The Number of the Beast ( English for: "The number of the beast") is the third studio album by the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden . It was released on March 22, 1982 and produced by Martin Birch . The title of the album refers to the Revelation of John , in which 666 is referred to as “the number of the beast”, that is, the devil's representative on earth.
Emergence
This album is the first with singer Bruce Dickinson , who joined the band in September 1981. His way of singing earned him the nickname "Air Raid Siren" ("Air Raid Siren"). After the band played a few concerts in Italy , they began to write new songs. In contrast to the first two albums, no ideas from earlier band days were used. The last time drummer Clive Burr took part in the songwriting process . The Number of the Beast is one of the few Iron Maiden albums without a contribution from guitarist Dave Murray.
Bruce Dickinson was also involved in the songwriting, he contributed parts to "Children of the Damned", "The Prisoner", "Run to the Hills" and "Gangland". Due to the contract with his old band Samson , his participation could not be made public. In various interviews, however, Dickinson gave indications of his involvement. Adrian Smith inadvertently admitted that Dickinson was also involved in the theme song. In a YouTube video, Smith explains, “This song is written in D, which is an unusual note. That's because Bruce wrote the song. "
The album was recorded between December 1981 and February 1982 at Battery Studios in London . The process of mixing had to be interrupted for two weeks. Producer Martin Birch was involved in a car accident on a rainy Sunday evening. The workshop's bill was exactly £ 666 . Birch swears to this day that he did not invent this sum.
Cover design
The album cover was designed by Derek Riggs . It shows the band mascot Eddie who holds the devil as a puppet . The devil, in turn, has a smaller Eddie as a puppet. Originally, the picture should be used for the single for Purgatory from the previous album Killers . But the band was of the opinion that the picture was way too good for a single. So Riggs had to create a new picture for Purgatory .
The album artwork was parodied by the band SOD on their 1999 album Bigger Than the Devil . Another parody was used on a t-shirt by New York hip-hop label Uncle Howie Records.
Song information
Invaders
"Invaders" was put first because of the high speed. There is a song by the band Judas Priest called "Invader" which has a similar chorus.
Children of the Damned
The song is based on the films " The Village of the Damned " and "Children of the Damned". Both films are based on the novella "The Midwich Cuckoos" (Eng. Title: It happened on day X ... or cuckoo children ) by John Wyndham .
The prisoner
The song "The Prisoner" begins with a sample from the television series of the same name, The Prisoner . Harris and Smith were fans of the show at the time. Band manager Rod Smallwood personally asked the lead actor if Iron Maiden could use the sample. The theme of the song was continued with the song "Back in the Village" (from the album Powerslave ).
22 Acacia Avenue
This song continues the story of "Charlotte the Harlot" (from the debut album Iron Maiden ). Charlotte is a prostitute . The story continues with the songs "Hooks in You" (from the album No Prayer for the Dying ) and "From Here to Eternity" (from the album Fear of the Dark ).
The Number of the Beast
The title song was released as the second single and reached number 18 in the British single charts.
"The Number of the Beast" was ranked 7th in the list of the 40 best metal songs of all time by TV station VH1 .
Due to misinterpretation of the text, the band in the USA was accused of being a Satanist . Before a concert in Long Beach , California , some American Christians protested outside the stadium. The protesters wanted to set fire to a pile of Iron Maiden records. A person present prevented this on the grounds that "the smoke of the devil would poison us". So the records were destroyed with hammers. Singer Bruce Dickinson made fun of this at the Reading Festival concert .
Run to the Hills
The song is about a conflict between the Cree tribe and the soldiers who are conquering the tribe's land. The first and third stanzas were written from the perspective of the natives, while the second stanza describes the perspective of the soldiers. The original video contained sequences from James Parrott's cartoon Uncovered Wagon . A new video was made in the late 1990s. It contains Flash animations of Eddie in a futuristic wild west landscape.
“Run to the Hills” was ranked 27th in the list of the 40 best metal songs of all time by TV station VH1 .
Gangland
"Gangland" was made towards the end of the recording. This song slipped onto the album at the last second. There is a small bug in it. A short guitar solo by Adrian Smith is followed by an instrumental part of about 15 seconds. Dave Murray was supposed to play a solo here, but it was simply forgotten. The mistake was only noticed when mixing and could not be corrected.
Total Eclipse
The song "Total Eclipse" was planned for the album. However, it was replaced by the song "Gangland", which was created shortly before the end of the recordings. Due to the limited playing time of the LPs , both songs could not be on the album. The decision to put “Gangland” on the album instead of “Total Eclipse” met with a lack of understanding. When it was re-released in 1998, this decision was corrected.
Hallowed Be Thy name
"Hallowed Be Thy Name" is one of the most famous songs by Iron Maiden, along with the title track and "Run to the Hills". The song describes the thoughts of a man sentenced to death before he is hanged on the gallows . He is scared at first, but later realizes that he is not afraid of death. Parts of the lyrics are from the Beckett song "Life's Shadow". The song was released as a single in 1993 in a live version. On the B-side you can hear live versions of "The Trooper", "Wasted Years" and "Wrathchild". The song was named the third best rock and metal song of all time by Rock Hard magazine .
Track list
Original album
- Invaders ( Steve Harris ) - 3:22
- Children of the Damned (Steve Harris) - 4:33
- The Prisoner ( Adrian Smith , Steve Harris) - 6:00
- 22 Acacia Avenue (Steve Harris, Adrian Smith) - 6:38
- The Number of the Beast (Steve Harris) - 4:50
- Run to the Hills (Steve Harris) - 3:47
- Gangland (Adrian Smith, Clive Burr ) - 3:49
- Hallowed Be Thy Name (Steve Harris) - 7:10
Re-release in 1995
The re-release from 1995 includes a bonus CD with the songs “Total Eclipse” and a live recording by “Remember Tomorrow”. It was the B-sides of the two singles that were released.
Re-release in 1998
In 1998 The Number of the Beast was re-released. First the title cover was redesigned in color. The old, bluish-looking cover was just the result of a misprint. In addition, the then B-side of the Run to the Hills single Total Eclipse was inserted as a regular title on the album. All tracks have also been remastered. There is also a multimedia section on the CD with the videos of the two singles.
- Invaders - 3:21
- Children of the Damned - 4:33
- The Prisoner - 6:00
- 22 Acacia Avenue - 6:38
- The Number of the Beast - 4:50
- Run to the Hills - 3:47
- Gangland - 3:49
- Total Eclipse (Steve Harris, Dave Murray, Clive Burr) - 4:28
- Hallowed Be Thy Name - 7:10
Single releases
Run to the Hills (1982)
Run to the Hills was the first single and was released on February 12, 1982. It was the first single with Bruce Dickinson as a singer. On the B-side was the song "Total Eclipse". "Run to the Hills" is one of the most famous Iron Maiden songs and is still an integral part of an Iron Maiden concert today. The single sold over 250,000 times in Great Britain, which was enough for seventh place in the single chart.
The Number of the Beast (1982)
To date, "The Number of the Beast" is the only theme song that was released as a single. A live recording by “Remember Tomorrow” was used as the B-side. In the British single charts, the song was ranked 18th.
Run to the Hills (Live, 1985)
In 1985 the song was released as a single for the second time, this time as a live version. The B-sides were live recordings of "The Phantom of the Opera" and "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)". The songs were recorded for the album Live After Death .
Run to the Hills (Live, 2002)
In early 2002 the song was released as a single for the third time. There are two versions with different B-sides. The proceeds went to the Clive Burr MS Trust Fund . The then Iron Maiden drummer suffered from multiple sclerosis . The songs were recorded for the live album Rock in Rio .
The Number of the Beast (2005)
The second release of the theme song as a single contains the song "The Number of the Beast" in the studio version as well as live versions of the theme song recorded in 2002 and of "Hallowed Be Thy Name" and "Children of the Damned". There is also a video clip and a live video, which was also recorded in 2002.
reception
With this album Iron Maiden achieved the worldwide breakthrough and to this day it is considered one of the most important albums in heavy metal. The online magazine MetalRules.com has named it the second best metal album of all time (after Master of Puppets by Metallica ).
The album reached # 1 in the UK album charts. It was the first time that a heavy metal band was on top.
Cover versions
The progressive metal band Dream Theater played the entire album at a concert in Paris as part of their world tour in 2002 as “Special - Live”, and released a live recording on CD via their own label YtseJam Records. The rock band The Djali Zwan recorded an acoustic version of "The Number of the Beast" for the 2002 film Spun . In addition to various tribute albums, there are also an abundance of cover versions of well-known bands on their releases. a. by Iced Earth , Cradle of Filth, and Kreator .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bushell, Garry; Halfin, Ross: Running Free, The Official Story of Iron Maiden, Zomba Books 1985, p. 100, ISBN 0-946391-84-X
- ↑ a b Rock Hard June 2007, page 21
- ↑ a b Rock Hard June 2007, page 22
- ↑ a b musicmight.com ( page can no longer be accessed , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b vh1.com
- ↑ Iron Maiden Biography ( Memento from August 8, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Online biography of the band
- ↑ Rock Hard June 2007, page 24
- ↑ Rock Hard June 2007, page 23
- ↑ Steve Harris in a 1998 interview
- ↑ MetalRules.com: metal-rules.com ( Memento of the original from January 28, 2012 on WebCite ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Product description on ytsejamrecords.com
