Killers is the second studio album by English
heavy metal band
Iron Maiden. It was first released on 2 February 1981 in the United Kingdom by
EMI Records and on 11 May in the United States by
Harvest and
Capitol Records.[9] The album was their first with guitarist
Adrian Smith, and their last with vocalist
Paul Di'Anno, who was fired after problems with his stage performances arose due to his alcohol and cocaine use.[10]Killers was also the first Iron Maiden album recorded with producer
Martin Birch, who went on to produce their next eight albums until Fear of the Dark (1992).
Background
Killers is the only Iron Maiden album to feature two instrumentals. It was written almost exclusively by
Steve Harris;[11] only "Twilight Zone" and the title track are cowritten.
Bar "Murders in the Rue Morgue" (based on the
story of the same name by
Edgar Allan Poe)[12] and "Prodigal Son", the songs were written in the years prior to the recording of their debut album.[13] Five of the album's songs featured in the band's live setlists in 1977, when
Dennis Wilcock fronted Iron Maiden.[14] "Wrathchild" and "Strange World" appear to be written as far back as 1976 and original singer
Paul Mario Day later claimed he had co-written "Strange World".[15] No songs were recorded professionally until the Killers sessions, with the exception of "Wrathchild" (a version recorded in 1979 was featured on the Metal for Muthas compilation).[13]
"The Ides of March" is nearly identical to "Thunderburst", by fellow British
NWOBHM band
Samson, who featured a pre-Maiden
Bruce Dickinson on vocals; however, "The Ides of March" was written during the brief time in 1977 in which future Samson drummer
Thunderstick was a member of Iron Maiden. While Harris took sole credit for "The Ides of March", "Thunderburst" is credited to Harris and all four members of Samson's Head On line-up, Bruce Bruce, aka Bruce Dickinson,
Chris Aylmer,
Paul Samson, and Thunderstick, aka Barry Purkis.
The
Killer World Tour featured the band's first US shows, beginning at
The Aladdin, Las Vegas, in support of
Judas Priest.[17] Subsequently, "Wrathchild" is the only regularly played track from the album, appearing in almost all their tours.
Track listing
All tracks are written by
Steve Harris, except where noted
^Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 166.
ISBN978-951-1-21053-5.
Killers is the second studio album by English
heavy metal band
Iron Maiden. It was first released on 2 February 1981 in the United Kingdom by
EMI Records and on 11 May in the United States by
Harvest and
Capitol Records.[9] The album was their first with guitarist
Adrian Smith, and their last with vocalist
Paul Di'Anno, who was fired after problems with his stage performances arose due to his alcohol and cocaine use.[10]Killers was also the first Iron Maiden album recorded with producer
Martin Birch, who went on to produce their next eight albums until Fear of the Dark (1992).
Background
Killers is the only Iron Maiden album to feature two instrumentals. It was written almost exclusively by
Steve Harris;[11] only "Twilight Zone" and the title track are cowritten.
Bar "Murders in the Rue Morgue" (based on the
story of the same name by
Edgar Allan Poe)[12] and "Prodigal Son", the songs were written in the years prior to the recording of their debut album.[13] Five of the album's songs featured in the band's live setlists in 1977, when
Dennis Wilcock fronted Iron Maiden.[14] "Wrathchild" and "Strange World" appear to be written as far back as 1976 and original singer
Paul Mario Day later claimed he had co-written "Strange World".[15] No songs were recorded professionally until the Killers sessions, with the exception of "Wrathchild" (a version recorded in 1979 was featured on the Metal for Muthas compilation).[13]
"The Ides of March" is nearly identical to "Thunderburst", by fellow British
NWOBHM band
Samson, who featured a pre-Maiden
Bruce Dickinson on vocals; however, "The Ides of March" was written during the brief time in 1977 in which future Samson drummer
Thunderstick was a member of Iron Maiden. While Harris took sole credit for "The Ides of March", "Thunderburst" is credited to Harris and all four members of Samson's Head On line-up, Bruce Bruce, aka Bruce Dickinson,
Chris Aylmer,
Paul Samson, and Thunderstick, aka Barry Purkis.
The
Killer World Tour featured the band's first US shows, beginning at
The Aladdin, Las Vegas, in support of
Judas Priest.[17] Subsequently, "Wrathchild" is the only regularly played track from the album, appearing in almost all their tours.
Track listing
All tracks are written by
Steve Harris, except where noted
^Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 166.
ISBN978-951-1-21053-5.