In Profile – Commentary

Released as part of the "Eddie's Head" box set (although it can also be found separately) that contains the remastered Maiden albums from Iron Maiden to Live At Donington, this CD is not stricly speaking a Maiden album itself. It actually tells us of the Iron Maiden story up to that point, from the very beginnings up to the arrival of Blaze. It is in a way a condensed version of Mick Wall's Run To The Hills and was released as some kind of "audio-biography" of the band. The cover represents the profile of a rather ugly Eddie and seems to be a closeup of the cover illustration of the Be Quick Or Be Dead single.

A note by Mike Hurst inside the CD booklet gives us a taste of what the CD itself contains:

From Upton Park to Donington Park by way of the Cart and Horses. If that sounds like a nursery rhyme, forget it. It's the route taken by a band that became one of the all time greats of Heavy Metal. It's also the dream of one man, Steve 'Harry' Harris. A dream that started with the idea of becoming a pro at his beloved West Ham and ended up with the burning ambition to have a band that would grab the World by the balls and say 'get out of that!'. From the early days in Stratford to Maiden's sell-out World tours two names have remained constant: Steve Harris and (allowing for one small hiccup) Dave Murray. But overall there has been an unbelievable twenty-two changes to the line-up through the years! A sobering thought when you consider most bands crumble after one. This is surely a testament to the strength of Iron Maiden's fan base and... of course, their music. Perhaps it's also a testament to their manager of long standing, Rod Smallwood. Every great act needs a manager who in a sense is like another band member. Rod's been there since 1979 and he's still going strong.

The other fascinating fact about Maiden is that network radio hardly ever play their records. So how come over 45 million album sales to date? Of course it's the amazing number of live gigs all over the World allied to what is probably one of the first truly successful merchandising operations in the rock industry (who hasn't got a Maiden T-shirt?). But it's also a bit like the American Declaration of Independence, you know the: 'Of the people, by the people, for the people' line. Iron Maiden is a people's band. They came from them, they were 'discovered' by them, and they play for them. No amount of radio or TV can compensate for that. It's the ultimate accolade.

So, this is the story. From Gypsy's Kiss and Smiler, the Soundhouse tapes and the first 'Iron Maiden' album to the present day line-up of Steve, Dave, Janick Gers, Nicko McBrain and Blaze Bayley. Oh yeah, and don't forget Eddie. It's all here, plus the 'best from the Beasts', so come and get it... this is IRON MAIDEN.

Mike Hurst 1997 – Music Legends

The Iron Maiden story, as told by Mike Hurst, has been divided into five parts that correspond to the major building blocks that eventually led to the edification of the Maiden monument:

PART I:
EARLY MAIDEN DAYS
Football to Iron Maiden and the Ruskin Arms

PART II:
GROUNDWORK
The Soundhouse Tapes, Eddie the 'Ead and Maiden meet Neil Kay and find manager Rod Smallwood

PART III:
ASCENDANCY
Maiden's first album and their first Reading Festival. The Killers World Tour and Bruce replaces Paul

PART IV:
SUPREMACY
A Top Ten single, a Number One album, massive live productions, World Tours and the hits keep on coming

PART V:
LEGENDS
Stadium room only, more hit albums and the departure of Dickinson. Blaze joins and Iron Maiden are confirmed as one of the greatest influences ever of Heavy Rock

The narration is complemented by excerpts of songs and by interviews of the relevant actors of the Maiden story.