Iron Maiden
was formed in the year 1976 by bassist Steve Harris. They released their first album in 1980 as a five piece band with Paul Di’Anno on vocals. Later, Bruce Dickinson replaced him in 1981. With several line-up changes Steve Harris would remain the only original member never to have had a hiatus. When Bruce Dickinson quit in 1994 and was replaced by Wolfsbane’s Blaze Bayley, the band lost a lot of their fanbase. They recorded two albums with Blaze before Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith returned to the fold for 2000’s “Brave New World”, and 2003’s “Dance of Death”, making them a six-piece. As of 1999 the line-up hasn’t changed. Here’s the biography of this popular band.

Known for such powerful hits as “Two Minutes to Midnight” and “The Trooper,” Iron Maiden were and are one of the most influential bands of the heavy metal genre. The often-imitated band has existed for over nearly four decades, pumping out wild rock similar to Judas Priest. Iron Maiden have always been an underground attraction; although failing to ever obtain any real media attention in the U.S. (critics claimed them to be Satanists due to their dark musical themes and their use of grim mascot “Eddie”), they still became well-known throughout the world and have remained consistently popular throughout their career. Iron Maiden were one of the first groups to be classified as “British metal,” and, along with Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and a host of other bands, set the rock scene for the ’80s.

Band Members:

Vocals:
Paul Mario Day (1975-1976)
Dennis Wilcock (1976-1977)
Paul Di’Anno (1978-1981)
Blaze Bayley (1994-1998)
Bruce Dickinson (1981-1993 and 1999-present)

Drums:
Barry “Thunderstick” Purkis (1977)
Doug Sampson (1977-1979)
Clive Burr (1980-1982)
Nicko McBrain (1982-present)

Guitar:
Dave Murray (2) (1976-present)
Dennis Stratton (1979-1980)
Adrian Smith (2) (1980-1990 and 1999-present)
Janick Gers (1990-present)

Bass:
Steve Harris (1975-present)

Keyboards:
Michael Kenny (1986-present) (Live performances only, not a full member)