Paul Di’Anno Was Crucial To Iron Maiden’s Rise To The Top Of Heavy Metal

Vocalist Paul Di’Anno (left) & bassist Steve Harris (right) of Iron Maiden photo: EMI

Paul Di’Anno the original vocalist on Iron Maiden’s 1980 eponymous debut album and 1981 follow-up Killers, died today at his home in Salisbury, England at the age of 66. Di’Anno was fired (or quit according to Di’Anno) from Iron Maiden in 1981.

Di’Anno had numerous health issues over the past few decades and for the last several years Di’Anno would sing while seated in a wheelchair.

The first two Iron Maiden studio albums plus a 1981 live EP release, Maiden Japan, showcase the prowess of a young hungry band and the unabashed vocals of Paul Di’Anno. The albums represent the punk-metal hybrid that Iron Maiden was originally producing.

Without Di’Anno the band would jettison the punk edges in lieu of a more polished heavy metal sound.

How much and what Di’Anno contributed is difficult to quantify. Four words come to mind to describe early Maiden. Edgy. Raw. Unyielding. Powerful.  It’s best to see and hear Di’Anno live.

Live At The Rainbow December 21, 1980

Post-Di’Anno, Iron Maiden would rise to worldwide fame with their new singer Bruce Dickinson.

During his short time with Iron Maiden, Di’Anno managed to capture a large group of fans who would remain convinced Di’Anno was the not just the preferred vocalist over his replacement Bruce Dickinson, but the better vocalist. From a singing standpoint I would disagree. But for that time and for that music he was the right vocalist.

After Maiden, the numerous bands Di’Anno would go on to form essentially got him nowhere. The main  problem was Di’Anno was not much of a songwriter without Iron Maiden’s founder, bassist and lead songwriter Steve Harris. Most of Di’Anno’s songs post-Maiden were banal, possessing little of the eclecticism that he displayed with Iron Maiden .

Never properly trained as a singer, Di’Anno’s voice was ruined by the early 1990s.  His many live performances over the last three decades are on YouTube, and are sometimes painful and embarrassing to watch.

And while Di’Anno had battles with drugs and domestic violence issues, nothing will ever diminish his contributions to making Iron Maiden into one of the world’s most successful bands.

For that music fans should be grateful and will insure Paul Di’Anno’s legacy.