Best Tune on "The Number of the Beast" by Iron Maiden

Number of the Beast



Recorded at Battery Studios, London, Jan-Feb 1982
Released 22 Mar 1982
Produced by Martin Birch

Bruce Dickinson - vocals
Dave Murray – guitar
Adrian Smith – guitar
Steve Harris – bass guitar
Clive Burr – drums

Tunes

Invaders
Children of the Damned
The Prisoner
22 Acacia Ave.
The Number of the Beast
Run to the Hills
Gangland
Total Eclipse
Hallowed be Thy Name

Good luck on this one! Quite possibly the greatest heavy metal album of all time (hyperbole be damned). I have to go with Hallowed be Thy Name, one of the strongest and most memorable Maiden cuts that I always find myself humming.

Note: I threw in Total Eclipse for the hell of it. I'm kind of with the band on this one; Total Eclipse is far stronger to me than Gangland. It's a killer tune.

Hallowed Be Thy Name.

I love both Invaders and Gangland, two that many seem to dismiss. On the other hand, neither 22 Acacia Ave nor Total Eclipse have ever done much for me.

Oh I don't know! Probably between Hallowed be thy Name and Children of the Damned.

But, I'm sorely tempted to vote for one that I don't really think will get very many votes, for IMHO the wrong damn reasons and that's 



Okay people like us had clocked up 100,000 listens to this before our 20th birthday and by now we are all truly, truly sick of it but it's hard to forget that this staggering record was heavy enough to be loved by even the grouchiest metal fan, accessible enough to become a staple of MTV at a time when many bands were softening their sound and look in search of airplay and catchy enough to be sneakily sung along to by your mum (well my mum anyway) To get that balance right takes a stroke of genius, want proof? Look at all the bands who got it horribly wrong.

It was also the song that demonstrated that they had outgrown the NWOBHM scene and were heading for big things fast!

Went with the dank "Invaders".

One of the best albums ever! This is a hard choice between Number of the Beast and Run to the Hills...

But Run to the Hills is the song that got me into Iron Maiden, so that has to be it. To me, that's Metal's song.

Hard to choose on this one. This is one of the greatest ones to ever be released. For me it was a toss up between the title track and Run To The Hills. I went with the title track.

I have to admit - I never bought an Iron Maiden release.
Obviously I heard of them...but none of my metal friends cranked them -
looking back now, we had W.A.S.P in common - incredibly enough
It was the same with Megadeth, never bought their material -
but now have recently bought 4-5 releases of theirs -
" Killers " got major props - might as well start from the beginning -
Also, thought Vincent Price was the intro voice to 'Number" - wrong !

Again, very hard to choose, but I went with "Hallowed Be Thy Name." "Children of the Damned" was a close second.

DakotaRogers wrote:

Went with the dank "Invaders".

Say whaaaaaaaaaat, son?!

I actually really like Invaders. Even more than Gangland. I think it's vastly underappreciated.

Hallowed Be Thy Name.

Hallowed Be Thy Name would be a good choice for Best Maiden Song Ever. I voted for that.

I also think Invaders is a great track. If you look at their album tracklists chronologically, then that'd be their last NWOBHM song. After that, they transcended the sub-genre.

Number of the Beast, the song, was probably the first Maiden song I ever heard. I still think it's amazing.

Great album. Nice variety, a great listen. Stands the test of time. No filler. I even like Gangland. Why would anyone think there's something wrong with this song?

Lari wrote:

Hallowed Be Thy Name would be a good choice for Best Maiden Song Ever. I voted for that.

I also think Invaders is a great track. If you look at their album tracklists chronologically, then that'd be their last NWOBHM song. After that, they transcended the sub-genre.

Number of the Beast, the song, was probably the first Maiden song I ever heard. I still think it's amazing.

Great album. Nice variety, a great listen. Stands the test of time. No filler. I even like Gangland. Why would anyone think there's something wrong with this song?

I don't think there's anything wrong with it, it's a good song and I rarely skip it. For me, it's just underwhelming compared to the rest of the album. Even the band regrets choosing Total Eclipse over Gangland for the B-side (although they also dislike Invaders, which I consider very good for the reasons you state).

Hallowed be Thy Name

Hallowed be thy Name! Children of the Damned would be close.

corplhicks wrote:

I actually really like Invaders. Even more than Gangland. I think it's vastly underappreciated.

I actually know a lot of people who wish it wasn't on the album period. Just look at that thread we had on here not too long ago.

Nutjobs, I swear.

Gotta go with "Hallowed Be Thy Name" and it looks like I'm with the vast majority. Such an impressive song both musically and lyrically. I remember writing the lyrics to that song in Caligraphy class in junior high and my very religious teacher asked me why I chose to write such a thing. Because "Life down there is just a strange illusion," lol.

DakotaRogers wrote:

corplhicks wrote:

I actually really like Invaders. Even more than Gangland. I think it's vastly underappreciated.

I actually know a lot of people who wish it wasn't on the album period. Just look at that thread we had on here not too long ago.

Nutjobs, I swear.

I'm one of those nutjobs, lol. I don't care for "Invaders." I don't hate it I just think it's a weak opening track for such a classic album: "InvAders, da da-da-da da." I don't like "Gangland" and, I know I'll catch heat for this, I think "The Prisoner" is overrated. The drum opening is awesome, but the chorus sounds hella lame: "Not a prisonerer, I'm a free ma-an" ugh!

The Number Of The Beast

I would have easily opted for Children of the Damned, but for the mighty Hallowed Be Thy Name which is my all time favourite Iron Maiden song behind Infinite Dreams.

22 acacia ave.
I love the vibe on this song.

80s Metal Lady wrote:

I don't care for "Invaders." I don't hate it I just think it's a weak opening track for such a classic album: "InvAders, da da-da-da da."

I admit the chorus is a little awkward, but to me that is not an important part of that song. It's really all about the verses. A ripping song with a wonderful vocal line.

It makes me think of a sped up Breaking the Law.

80s Metal Lady wrote:

I'm one of those nutjobs, lol. I don't care for "Invaders." I don't hate it I just think it's a weak opening track for such a classic album: "InvAders, da da-da-da da." I don't like "Gangland" and, I know I'll catch heat for this, I think "The Prisoner" is overrated. The drum opening is awesome, but the chorus sounds hella lame: "Not a prisonerer, I'm a free ma-an" ugh!

I'm one of those nut jobs too, oh well. I don't think I would like "Invaders" regardless of the track position, but my God, this could be the worst opening track of any classic metal album ever. The chorus is pretty bad. I can't share your feelings on "The Prisoner", but definitely agree with you on the other two tracks. It's still a perfect album in my opinion. The other seven tracks are that damn good. In retrospect, I enjoy the fact that "Number of the Beast" has such a quizzical opening track to lead things off. In all honestly, I could go with one of four tracks as my favorite: "22 Acacia Avenue", "t/t", "Total Eclipse" or "Hallowed Be Thy Name". I think I will go with the underrated "Total Eclipse".

Hallowed. Glad you included Total Eclipse on the list. The band has admitted it was a mistake to include Gangland over Total Eclipse on the album. They also played Total Eclipse on TNOTB tour.

metalinmyveins wrote:

80s Metal Lady wrote:

I'm one of those nutjobs, lol. I don't care for "Invaders." I don't hate it I just think it's a weak opening track for such a classic album: "InvAders, da da-da-da da." I don't like "Gangland" and, I know I'll catch heat for this, I think "The Prisoner" is overrated. The drum opening is awesome, but the chorus sounds hella lame: "Not a prisonerer, I'm a free ma-an" ugh!

I'm one of those nut jobs too, oh well.

Nutjobs unite!

thejokeriv wrote:

Hallowed. Glad you included Total Eclipse on the list. The band has admitted it was a mistake to include Gangland over Total Eclipse on the album. They also played Total Eclipse on TNOTB tour.

I need to listen to Total Eclipse some more. I think I've only heard it a couple times and promptly forgot about it. I remember liking it.