Where Eagles Dare – They dared to go where no one would try #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #IronMaiden #SteveHarris #BruceDickinson #ClintEastwood #Fozzy #HandofDoomOrchestra #ThomasZwijsen

No synthesizers or ulterior motives. Just a full-on musical attack. Before ‘80s metal went astray with pretty boy hair/glam bands there was Iron Maiden. No one was better. All you have to do is really listen. This band does it all.

Back in 1983, Iron Maiden was coming off a massive breakthrough with 1982’s ‘Number of the Beast’ album, but they faced a few challenges. From a personnel standpoint, their drummer Clive Burr left the band for personal reasons. This opened the door for the dynamic Nicko McBrain, who may have the best drummer name in music history (second to only Chad Wackerman). With McBrain in tow, Iron Maiden made their way to New Jersey to write and rehearse material for what would become their ‘Piece of Mind’ album. The foundation of the album’s writing saw a continuation of the maturity of Steve Harris’s songwriting and lyrical inspiration. Iron Maiden’s literary interests are all over this album with clear references to Frank Herbert and ‘Dune’ in ‘To Tame a Land’, Alfred ‘Lord’ Tennyson and ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ in ‘The Trooper’, the life of Miyamoto Musashi in ‘Sun and Steel’ as well as Ramsay Campbell’s ‘The Inhabitant of the Lake’ which inspired ‘Still Life’. There are even allusions to Greek mythology in ‘Flight of Icarus’ and biblical references in ‘Revelations’ written by singer Bruce Dickinson. In addition to these examples of the band being extremely well read, there were also a couple of homages to movies of the recent and distant past including 1981’s ‘Quest for Fire’ and today’s feature ‘Where Eagles Dare’ which in addition to being a popular film in 1968 was also based on a 1966 novel written by Alistair MacLean.

It was the movie version of ‘Where Eagles Dare’ that truly inspired Harris. He recalled seeing the movie in a theatre as a 12 year-old, in 1968. ‘Where Eagles Dare’ pays tribute to the movie that starred Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood. It tells the story of a specially selected Secret Intelligence Service paratrooper team surveilling and then raiding a Nazi occupied castle in the Bavarian Alps during World War II. In addition to being a cinematography marvel with its stunning panoramas, it also served as a continuation for Clint Eastwood’s ascension, on his way to becoming one of Hollywood’s most celebrated actors. Here is the opening scene.

The inspiration for the song is clear in lyrical passages like the one below.

Bavarian alps that lay all around they seem to stare from below

 The enemy lines a long time passed are lying deep in the snow.”

Steve Harris

Harris wrote the song’s lyrics as well as all the music. He even worked with Nicko McBrain on his vision for what now is a classic drum track. The machine gun style kick was created by McBrain after Harris tapped it out on his leg. The fact that McBrain created this sound with a single kick pedal is a testament to his ability. The true power of this track becomes most apparent in its live presentation. You get a sense of the power of Nicko McBrain and the absolute superiority of Bruce Dickinson’s vocal range. I have long said, there are few better in his discipline.

In terms of cover versions of ‘Where Eagles Dare’ my goal is to present a range of styles. It serves my purpose by demonstrating Iron Maiden’s influence in the heavy metal genre, but it also shows how their music transcends genres, and is adaptable for musicians representing many styles. Here is Atlanta based heavy metal band, Fozzy from 2002 on their album ‘Happenstance’.  

I always love the orchestral interpretations of heavy metal songs and this rendition by the Hand of Doom Orchestra is really strong. You’ve got to love the name.

Now I go to the other extreme. Here is Thomas Zwijsen, a classical, acoustic, and heavy metal guitarist from Belgium who has become very well known for his classical guitar versions of songs from the Iron Maiden catalogue. Since 2007, he has created three albums of Iron Maiden covers that are each cleverly titled. Check out ‘Nylon Maiden’, ‘Nylonized’ and ‘Nylon Maiden II’. Try to check Zwijsen out if you get a moment. He has an interesting connection to the band, specifically ex-vocalist Blaze Bayley who replaced Bruce Dickinson in the band from 1994 to 1999.

They dared to go, where no one would try
They chose to fly where eagles dare”

Steve Harris

Have a great day and while you listen give a shout out to Bruce Dickinson who turns 63 today.

My Generation – A song that defines rock and roll rebellion and a reflection on the one and only #KeithMoon. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheWho #GreenDay #IronMaiden #BillyJoel #TheHollywoodVampires

“I hope I die before I get old”

Pete Townshend

Yet another classic rock and roll line. Pete Townshend galvanized an entire generation with one passage in ‘My Generation’, and fifty four years later it remains as a defining statement. It is well documented that many did die before they got old. Others are still around to reflect on the impact they had as a voice of a generation. Today’s post will focus on a performer who did pass away far too young. One of the most influential drummers to ever pound the kit into submission; Keith Moon. This day is significant in Keith Moon’s short life for two reasons; the first being it was on this day in 1946 that the legendary drummer was born in Wembley, Middlesex, England. As the story goes this was only the beginning. There are truly no words to describe Keith Moon. As a drummer, superlatives become grossly inadequate because he took performance to another level. As an individual, his exploits defined everything that could be construed as rock and roll rebellion and destruction. This leads to the second reason this date is significant.

The scene is a Holiday Inn, in Flint Michigan on August 23, 1967. The Who was on tour with another British Invasion band; Herman’s Hermits. It was his 21^st birthday. This milestone meant that he was legally entitled to drink and he began to do so, immediately upon his arrival in the renowned Michigan city. During the afternoon The Who visited area radio stations to talk about their music and life on the road. Moon posed in front of a sign put up by the Holiday Inn that kindly stated, ‘Happy Birthday Keith’. By the time The Who went on stage that evening at Atwood Stadium, Moon was a disaster.

As the night progressed, The Who’s entourage made their way back to the hotel and things went to another level. According to reports, Moon started a food fight. In the fracas the drummer lost part of his front tooth. He was taken to the hospital but due to his inebriation they were unable to give him anesthetic, before removing the remainder of his tooth. Upon his return another melee erupted which saw a combination of events occur before police arrived. The scene was chaotic. Fire extinguishers were set off, a lobby piano was destroyed, intervening guests and members of The Who’s team were thrown in the pool along with TV sets and other furniture. With guns drawn the police attempted to sort out matters, but in the mass disorder Keith Moon managed to sneak out to the parking lot into the band’s Lincoln Continental limousine. He momentarily relaxed, thinking he had escaped justice, but in his inebriated state he released the parking brake. The limo rolled back over a curb, through a fence and, you guessed it; into the hotel swimming pool.

The Holiday Inn staff were understandably livid. They presented The Who with a bill for $24,000 to pay for the damage. Apparently, Herman’s Hermits’ management team temporarily covered the cost so they could move on. Pete Townshend claims that The Who were forever banned from Holiday Inn properties but their tour manager Edd McCann insists they stayed at a Holiday Inn in Rochester, New York less than a week later.

No matter what; it is clear that Keith Moon was a maniac. His antics appear zany but in truth they are intolerable. The behavior was brought on by a combination of troubled character, horrible addiction and entitlement that went unchallenged by enablers. It’s a shame that this has become as much a part of his legend as his superlative ability as a drummer.

This comes back around to the fact he died as a result of his disease. Alcoholism destroyed this exceptional talent just over 12 years later. Many tried to help. No one could do a thing. The flat he died in, in Mayfair, London was the same one that The Mamas and Papas singer Mama Cass died in four years earlier. He took an overdose of clomethiazole, a sedative designed to alleviate alcohol withdrawal symptoms. What a waste!

Back to today’s feature song ‘My Generation’ was released in 1965. It reached #2 on the U.K charts, making it the highest charting single in their career. Frankly, The Who was an album band and it all started with the genius of Pete Townshend’s songwriting. ‘My Generation’ was inspired by the Queen Mother. Yes, you read that right. Apparently, Townshend parked his unsightly Packard hearse near his flat and the Queen Mother noticed it along the route she routinely traveled and ordered it towed. Essentially, Townshend was fed up with the establishment and he wrote ‘My Generation’ to firmly establish his stance.

“‘My Generation’ was very much about trying to find a place in society.”

Pete Townshend

It can’t go without noticing that Pete Townshend is alive and well. He too, has battled numerous personal demons. Fortunately, he was able to come out on the positive side. To see him in interviews, in current day, he comes across as scholarly, professional and his wisdom is inspiring. He could pass as a retired professor. A far cry from the mantra portrayed in ‘My Generation’, but life has a way of transpiring in interesting ways. For Townshend’s part he makes no apologies and he would decry any suggestion that he is a hypocrite or failed to live up to his role as a voice of a generation. Nothing could be further from the truth. The man is a legend; a visionary, and one of the finest songwriters ever. He stands as the definitive writer of what became known as the rock opera through his work with Tommy and Quadrophenia. I could go on forever speaking of his influence. I don’t need to. Townshend has the perfect response. In an interview with Good Morning America thirty years ago he stated;

 “I hope I die before I get old.” He said that, for him, when he wrote the lyrics, “old” meant “very rich.”

Pete Townshend

So there you go…when you are rich you can justify anything. The thing about Pete Townshend is, he walks the line very well.

For today’s cover versions I have found a series of phenomenal cover versions by some bands that have also stood out as voices of their genre.

Here is Green Day doing a tribute to The Who in 1990. It was a bonus track from their album Kerplunk. It comes across as very alt/punk which is perfect because when you really get down to it, The Who were very much the same when they broke through with this classic song. Thumbs up!

In 1996, Iron Maiden recorded a version of ‘My Generation’. This recording is done with Blaze Bayley on vocals. He replaced Bruce Dickinson in 1994. Blaze is no Bruce, but this is still cool.

I was intrigued by the fact Billy Joel covered ‘My Generation’ in 2011. When I searched the cover on Youtube I managed to find this amazing live version. Billy Joel shares the stage with Roger Daltrey. This was the second of a two night stand that saw Billy Joel close Shea Stadium.  The iconic venue hosted The Who on several occasions. I thought posting this version of the song was appropriate, and hats off to Billy Joel for his class in this moment. Check out the bass work by Andy Cichon. It’s tough to fill John Entwistle’s shoes but he does an admirable job.

Finally, here are the Hollywood Vampires doing their homage to The Who. Tons of fun from this Alice Cooper project featuring Johnny Depp and Joe Perry. In its original incarnation back in the 1970s the Hollywood Vampires included…Keith Moon; he was their ‘Vice President’. Everything has a way of coming around.

“Talkin’ ‘bout my generation.”

Pete Townshend

The Number of the Beast – Today’s classic song and interesting covers. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #IronMaiden #Powderfinger #ShawnJames #StringQuartetTributetoIronMaiden

Today’s song is a beauty by my favourite band from the ‘80s heavy metal era; Iron Maiden’. ‘The Number of the Beast’ is a classic. On this day in 1982 the album of the same name went to #1 on the UK charts and it became the first Iron Maiden album to go Platinum. It is as important for its message as it is for its popularity in music circles. The intention of this post is to speak to the former point because it is another clear example of holier than thou religious zealots commenting on what they do not understand, only to make fools of themselves in the process. They then, unwittingly became a key spoke on the wheel of the song’s popularity. Here is how it goes.

‘The Number of the Beast’ was written by Iron Maiden bassist and founder Steve Harris. It has roots in a dream he had after watching Damien: Omen II as well as the poem Tam O’Shanter by Scottish poet Robert Burns. From my perspective, when rock stars have dreams some pretty amazing creativity emerges. Those of you familiar with the song will recall the opening passage which appears in spoken word as read by English actor Barry Clayton. Clayton quotes Revelation 12:12 and Revelation 13:18. Their original choice was Vincent Price, but it is reported that he wanted no less than 25,000 pounds to deliver the message. In hindsight that was an economic decision that paid off in spades. Every time I hear Clayton’s oration it becomes synonymous with the song and it takes me back to the summer of 1982 as a 15 year old, straddling the lines between ‘60s and ‘70s classic rock and the emerging metal movement. As always, I resisted but, to me Iron Maiden was captivating. At the encouragement of my friend Nick, I was drawn into this band. To this day I admire Iron Maiden and to me Bruce Dickinson is one of the best vocalists ever. The blood curdling scream in ‘The Number of the Beast’ was a spontaneous act by Dickinson which was not actually a part of the song. It came about as a result of producer Martin Birch’s insistence that they do take after take of the song’s introduction. When Birch said ‘let’s do it one more time’, one more time, Dickinson wailed. The scream was caught on tape and they spliced it into the final version. To this day it is known as one of rock and roll’s finest screams.

Now let’s head back to the controversy of ‘The Number of the Beast’. Upon its release and at the detection of its potential popularity, religious holy rollers in the United States fell all over themselves to prevent Iron Maiden’s voice from being heard. They tried to brand the band as Satanists. They organized burnings of the group’s albums and arranged protests as Iron Maiden toured the album. Right out of the ‘Frank Zappa School of Rock and Roll Success’, this only served to make the album more popular. I can hear Frank Zappa laughing as I type. When mindless authorities try to step up and condemn creativity, the youth of the day come out in droves. Way to go Jimmy Bakker, Billy Graham and Jerry Falwell. Just one more example of the fact that ‘the moral majority, is neither’. For his part, songwriter Steve Harris called the accusations of Satanism, ‘mad’.

“They completely got the wrong end of the stick. They obviously hadn’t read the lyrics. They just wanted to believe all that rubbish about us being Satanists.”

But wait, it gets better.

On their follow up album, Piece of Mind, Iron Maiden ramped it up by placing a backwards mask as a message at the beginning of their song ‘Still Life’. Drummer Nicko McBrain (the best drummer name ever next to Chad Wackerman) gives a drunken impression of Idi Amin where he states”

“Don’t meddle wid t’ings yo don’t understand.”

This direct shot at the mindless zealots who labelled Iron Maiden as devil worshippers would have made George Martin proud. McBrain later commented:

“We thought, if people were going to be stupid about this sort of thing, we might as well give them something to be really stupid about, you know.”

As we all know, when you give people with no capacity for independent thought the opportunity to be stupid they carry the torch proudly. Sadly, the result, all too often is people like Donald Trump, Doug Ford and Andrew Scheer. Hopefully someday we will collectively learn from the damage created by not seeking the truth.

‘The Number of the Beast’ has been covered by several bands. Largely due to the fact that Iron Maiden is revered as one of the most influential acts of the heavy metal genre their songs are proudly recorded by many up and coming acts. Here is one such cover. I love this version by Powderfinger.

Here is a scaled down version by Shawn James complete with a cool introduction. Shawn is a fascinating character. In music, he has been an engineer, singer/songwriter as a solo artist and with his band The Shapeshifters. He has also acted in the TV show ‘Reckless’. Currently, he is living off the grid, and as a result he was featured on the Discovery Channel show ‘Yukon Men’. An interesting back story that only scratches the surface.

In direct contrast here is a version by String Quartet Tribute. A classical portrayal where the highly trained musicians recognize the depth to Iron Maiden’s songwriting. The instruments literally speak to the listener. Enjoy!

Aces High – We shall never surrender. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #IronMaiden #StevenSeagulls

We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.

Winston Churchill

When a song begins with this passage from Winston Churchill’s famous speech it is bound to capture my attention. When ‘Aces High’ was released on the Iron Maiden album, ‘Powerslave’ back in 1984 it was the opening track on the album and it was a standout. Iron Maiden is one of a handful of ‘80’s metal bands I like, and this is for two reasons. The first is the lyrics which were mostly shared by bassist Steve Harris and singer Bruce Dickinson, are intelligent and offer a wide range of interests and inspiration. The second reason is the voice of Bruce Dickinson. It is so powerful. He has been described as a human air raid siren. Ironically, lyricist Steve Harris opens this song with the line “There goes the siren that warns of the air raid.” ‘Aces High is an exceptional song because you can feel the tension and the excitement from the opening note. It describes an air battle from the perspective of a WW II flying ace flying in the ‘Battle of Britain’. This brings us back to the Churchill passage that is played dramatically during the beginning of the song. The ‘Battle of Britain’ holds the distinction of being the first military engagement fought entirely with aircraft. 
‘Aces High’ is among Iron Maiden’s most popular songs and with the dramatic opening and high energy beginning it has been played on virtually every tour since 1984 and it is often the band’s opening song. 
I feature this song today in celebration of Bruce Dickinson who joined Iron Maiden on this day in 1981. I have already mentioned Dickinson’s distinctive voice; but this is only where his intrigue begins. He is a very diverse man with a variety of interests that most notably include the fact he is a licensed commercial airline pilot. He actually flew the Iron Maiden charter plane ‘Ed Force One’ on band tours. Dickinson has been the owner of his own aircraft maintenance and training company since 2012. In addition to his aviation pursuits he is also busy in radio and TV production working on a radio show for BBC 6 and producing several documentaries. He has authored several novels and film scripts. He has also competed internationally in fencing competitions and if that was not enough he managed to create a successful beer with Robinson’s Brewery in England. Naturally it is called ‘Trooper’ after an Iron Maiden song. It is a premium bitter with 4.7% alcohol. If you drink enough you begin to think you can sing like Bruce Dickinson…Anyway, raise a glass to this talented and intriguing man on this day.

Today’s cover version was a subject of much consideration. Since Iron Maiden is a revered band in the hard rock, heavy metal and even beyond as the metal scene evolved into thrash, death and even shouter styles. There are several covers of ‘Aces High’ out there and I watched and listened to several. Heather thought I was losing my mind actually. I wasn’t able to tolerate most of the versions I listened to; just not my scene. Then I noticed a familiar group; and everything was right again. The Steve N’ Seagulls do a great version of ‘Aces High’ that is featured below. This Finish bluegrass band is simply awesome with their unique twists on hard rock bands like AC DC (you may have seen their production of ‘Thunderstruck) and Iron Maiden as well as unique twists of the Beastie Boys ‘Sabotage’. Named after the American actor Steven Seagal, they have become a Youtube sensation. ‘Thunderstruck’ alone has over 65 million views. Today’s feature was released two years ago as part of the band’s second album. The video takes place in a farmer’s field complete with haystacks and cows for authenticity. The final piece are the model planes flying overhead which simulates the air battle while the band is flanked with buxom Finish dancers. Classic, fun and really good. Enjoy!

Thanks to Alan Cross and his fantastic daily blog called ‘A Daily Journal of Musical Things’ for sharing this post. This is how Iron Maiden is passing the time during the COVID-19 lockdown. Social distancing with an edge.

This is fun: Here’s how Iron Maiden is spending their time in lockdown

Cross Eyed Mary – She signs no contract but she always plays the game #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JethroTull #IronMaiden #BurtonSilverman

How many artists can write a song about ‘the Robin Hood’ of prostitutes and have it stand up 47 years later as a classic? Not many but there is nothing conventional about Ian Anderson or his band Jethro Tull. ‘Cross Eyed Mary’ is a sympathetic character created by the flute playing leader of this iconic progressive band in 1971. He describes Mary as a good person reacting to bad circumstances. As the lyrics to the song unfold you realize she is open to taking as much money from her affluent ‘johns’ but then offer her services to downtrodden tricks for very little or occasionally nothing. ‘Cross Eyed Mary’ is part of the Jethro Tull ‘Aqualung’ album and the ‘Aqualung’ character actually makes a cameo appearance in the song as one of Mary’s ‘clients’. Anderson’s intention for ‘Cross Eyed Mary’ was to demonstrate that even the most dubious and unpleasant of society’s characters have commendable characteristics. 

There is no denying the influence Jethro Tull had on future musicians. Ian Anderson unveiled a world of possibilities to musicians with his combination of classical music, progressive rock and art rock. A prime example is the Iron Maiden cover of ‘Cross Eyed Mary’. Bruce Dickenson is among the most powerful vocalists to grace a stage and Ian Anderson was honoured when the influential ’80s band brought his song to their vast audience. He kept it all in stride though when he said;

We’ve always got to remember that whenever somebody says ‘I grew up listening to your music’ just because they happen to be very successful in their own right as musicians today, it’s a mistake to think that you’re their prime influence. What they’re doing is tipping their hat and citing you but probably amongst 50 other influences that were important to them in their learning process.

Ian Anderson

‘Cross Eyed Mary’ appeared as a B side to Iron Maiden’s 1983 release ‘The Trooper’, The timing was excellent because at this time the band was on a rapid ascent and were among the top acts worldwide at the time. Within four years Jethro Tull would be back on top with a Grammy Award winning record called ‘Crest of a Knave’. 

Here is the Iron Maiden version: 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7Eeg6v60lLU

An interesting side note to this song/album was shared with my by friend Sandy a while back and this is a perfect opportunity to share the story with you. 

Take a look at the album cover of ‘Aqualung’. This famous rendering was actually a painting by a man named Burton Silverman. A gentleman named Terry Ellis who was the head of Chrysalis Records, paid Silverman $1500 for three paintings that served as the artwork for the album cover. The deal was solidified with a handshake. There was no written contract and never any discussion of its to future use. The album has sold over 7 million copies over the past five decades and music fans would immediately identify it as the image of ‘Aqualung’. Silverman actually consulted with Ian Anderson and had access to the lyrics of ‘Aqualung’ to help him create a visual image. The end result was ‘a misbegotten street person, an angry man at war with an unjust world, who would yell incoherent things.” For his part Ian Anderson claims never to have liked the cover of ‘Aqualung’ calling it ‘not very attractive or well executed’. Options to share in any proceeds were dismissed by Anderson though and Silverman has never bothered to pursue it as a legal matter. One would think there is some middle ground here though. 

Here is the full story because I really don’t give it any justice here. I just wanted to share the interesting chapter of progressive rock history. 

https://theoutline.com/post/4490/jethro-tull-aqualung-cover-artist-burton-silverman?zd=1&zi=lsal3ggf