Bruce Dickinson-Tatooed Millionaire

What are the board's thoughts on this album? I personally love it and now that I got it again, it's like I was never separated from it. I know many long time Maiden fans hated it due to it being melodic hard rock and not metal, but whats the use in doing a solo album if it's going to be a clone of your regular band. Bruce's voice is in top form in that album and IMO Janick Gers proves why he deserved to be Adrian's replacement (while he is not as good as Adrian he doesn't deserve all the flack he's received over the years). Born In '58 and Gypsy Road are great ballads, Dive Dive Dive, Hell On Wheels, and Lickin' The Gun are great hard rocking numbers, and I like the rest as well. One of my favortie albums and one that brings back fond memories as well.

I like the album and I agree with you, as far as solo album should be different from your regular day job or what is the point?

I like the album, but I don't love the album. I feel that as a solo artist Bruce Dickinson was beginning to hit his stride with " Chemical Wedding" and the prior album " Accident of Birth" which I prefer over the later day Iron Maiden studio albums.

"Tattoed Millionaire" is the sound of an artist streching his wings and maybe trying to hard not to sound like Iron Maiden, very good album expect for the ill advised Mott the Hopple cover tune, some songs are not meant to be covered.

It's an OK album but like Manny, I preferred his later solo stuff (i.e. ACCIDENT OF BIRTH and CHEMICAL WEDDING).

Never cared for the solo stuff. I did see him on the Accident Of Birth tour but only because Adrian was the touring guitar player and it was a chance to meet both Bruce and Adrian. Adrian is a class act too. We talked for a rather long time about songwriting and guitars, a very personal dude and very down to earth.

I haven't heard that album since it first came out - I didn't like it at the time. I may have to give it another chance. I have accident or birth and it;s awesome

It's okay, but I started to get interested when Balls To Picasso came out (a flawed album but which does have a few killer tracks)...I was also one of the 5 people on the planet that liked the Skunkworks album.

I've only heard the coupla songs that were on the Dickinson 2 cd comp. I liked them and Tattooed Millionaire is on my want list, as are most of Bruce's solo albums. Besides the Best of, I only have Accident of Birth (awesome, by the way).

detuned wrote:

...I was also one of the 5 people on the planet that liked the Skunkworks album.

Count me in that small minority as well.

Skunkworks isn't BAD but it sure isn't GREAT either. I actually found that CD in a dollar store about five years ago.... that was about the right price for it I'd say. If I'd spent fifteen bucks on it as a new release I doubt I would've been as open minded about it.

That said, the SKUNKWORKS era B-Side "I'm In A Band With An Italian Drummer" (included on the 2-disc version of THE BEST OF BRUCE DICKINSON) is frickin' hilarious.

I've always liked Tattooed Millionaire, there are some great songs on there. However, I get the impression that if it didn't have Bruce's voice soaring over it, it'd be painfully average.

"Tattoed Millionaire" is in my opinion the worst album by Bruce next to "Skunkworks". Nothing really grabbed me and the melodies and the flow of the songs were a bit "strange". But it's been a while since I gave it a spin so who knows? It may sound better and grow with time (like "Accident Of Birth" did for me and now it's my favourite Bruce album).

detuned wrote:

It's okay, but I started to get interested when Balls To Picasso came out (a flawed album but which does have a few killer tracks)...I was also one of the 5 people on the planet that liked the Skunkworks album.

I'm one of those 5 as well!

I think the difference between this cd & the solo cd's he made later is that he was still in Maiden at the time. He chose to do something that was not a copy of Maiden & goes back to his roots if you will. He was trying not to compete with sound of Maiden.

I liked this record a lot when it came out & listened to it quite a bit back then.

I have the remaster and i like it.

Great subject for a post! I think that TM is top notch. I love the album and for me it now also is a nostalgic trip to my early teens when I listen to it. It gives me a sense of great freedom in life with no care that I had as a teen. I think the album is amazing the whole way through and full of talent. I also think it doesn't take itself to serious which makes it such a fun rock album as well.

Out of all of Bruce's solo albums, my least favorite is Balls to Picasso. Although a good album, still has some great tracks on it, but come on Shoot All the Clowns??? How did he even come up with that turd?

The rest are all simply amazing from beginning to end. Including Skunkworks which is epic.

mez wrote:

Great subject for a post! I think that TM is top notch. I love the album and for me it now also is a nostalgic trip to my early teens when I listen to it. It gives me a sense of great freedom in life with no care that I had as a teen. I think the album is amazing the whole way through and full of talent. I also think it doesn't take itself to serious which makes it such a fun rock album as well.

Out of all of Bruce's solo albums, my least favorite is Balls to Picasso. Although a good album, still has some great tracks on it, but come on Shoot All the Clowns??? How did he even come up with that turd?

The rest are all simply amazing from beginning to end. Including Skunkworks which is epic.

I liked Shoot All The Clowns, but that may be because I hate clowns .

Bruce has an amazing voice, but his voice was a little too "big" for some of what he attempted on Tattooed Millionaire...his vibrato and power were sort of "busting out" of those Melodic Rock tracks...there is some good stuff on there, though...

For me, Bruce's best non-Maiden material is Chemical Wedding and Skunkworks...the latter gets a bad rap but I think it's a very good record...

detuned wrote:

It's okay, but I started to get interested when Balls To Picasso came out (a flawed album but which does have a few killer tracks)...I was also one of the 5 people on the planet that liked the Skunkworks album.

Well, I counted 5 so far in this thread so anymore and your theory is shot .

There is always something special with "the first". I always lked Tattoeed Millionaire, and even though Accident of Birth and Chemical Wedding both are better albums, and more to my liking, I still wouldn't hesitate to call TM my favorite BD solo album. I'm weird with debut albums.

It's good. I have had it on cassette for years (and will soon upgrade to cd) and enjoy it every now and again, but I think he was trying too hard not to sound like IM. Son Of A Gun is a great tune. Peace.

I like it. But I prefer Accident Of Birth and Chemical Wedding.

kmorg wrote:

There is always something special with "the first". I always lked Tattoeed Millionaire, and even though Accident of Birth and Chemical Wedding both are better albums, and more to my liking, I still wouldn't hesitate to call TM my favorite BD solo album. I'm weird with debut albums.

Thats nostalgia for you. I'm almost the same way, the firsts are always high on my favorite lists (obviously most of these are not debuts but I wasn't into metal/hard rock when those came out):

Bruce Dickinson-Tattooed Millionaire (2nd favorite)
Iron Maiden-Fear Of The Dark (3rd Favoritte)
Dream Theater-Images & Words (tied for favorite)
Blind Guardian-Nightfall In Middle Earth (favorite)
Metallica-The Black Album (2nd Favorite)
Anthrax-Sound Of White Noise (favorite)
Dio-Lock Up The Wolves (3rd Favorite)
King Diamond-Abigail (favorite)
Sentenced-Amok (favorite)

Just to name a few.

OK album. There are some really good songs on it but also some filler IMO.

Tattooed Millionaire and Born In 58 are my favorites.

His last few solo albums rule.

LockedUp wrote:

OK album. There are some really good songs on it but also some filler IMO.

Tattooed Millionaire and Born In 58 are my favorites.

His last few solo albums rule.

Would have been cool to have an entire concert with Bruce playing the best tracks from his entire solo career on DVD (I know there's something on "Anthology" but the picture/audio is bad) with Bruce, Roy Z and Adrian Smith in action.

zombiewalkin wrote:

Never cared for the solo stuff. I did see him on the Accident Of Birth tour but only because Adrian was the touring guitar player and it was a chance to meet both Bruce and Adrian. Adrian is a class act too. We talked for a rather long time about songwriting and guitars, a very personal dude and very down to earth.

Wow. That is really cool to hear. Adrian always seemed like a pretty cool guy.

I like Tattooed Millionare quite a bit. It is raw and catchy. Born in 58 is my personal favorite.