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By the time of the release of Piece of Mind in 1983, Iron Maiden were almost undoubtedly the biggest metal band in the United Kingdom and were well on the way to conquering the worldwide audience. This was the first of their albums to break the U.S. Billboard top twenty, peaking at number 14 (as compared to 33 for The Number of the Beast the previous year) with negligible radio airplay. Whereas American radio stations were nigh silent, the gruelling tour schedules which Maiden were undertaking were speaking volumes to the record buying public. So, a new album and a new drummer on board in the form of Nicko McBrain. Without any disrespect intended (because McBrain is technically probably a better drummer), Clive Burr's drumming always seemed more natural, lending the first three albums a more aggressive edge. That having been said, the opening track of this album, Where Eagles Dare, is almost a tour de force for McBrain providing the best possible example of his style. The track is fantastic but with an instrumental section which is just a trifle overlong (the centre section was shortened for its appearance on their 1993 tour). Revelations which follows is the first Iron Maiden track credited to Bruce Dickinson (I believe that he had a part in writing some of the tracks on The Number of the Beast, but could not be credited for legal reasons), and although somewhat plodding is nonetheless a great track (live versions of this and Flight of Icarus benefitted from being played substantially faster - check out Live After Death). Flight of Icarus was the first single from the album in the U.K., narrowly missing the top ten. This is an inspired rewriting of the myth of Icarus and Daedalus with Maiden's usual gothic overtones featuring a great vocal performance from Dickinson and two inspired guitar solos. However, this can't cover for the fact that the track seems to trudge along like an arthritic Brontosaurus. Die With Your Boots On fares a little better, and during the eighties and early nineties would appear intermittently during their setlists. Not the greatest of Maiden songs, but certainly no disappointment.Then comes The Trooper, a huge stage favourite with the fans and absolutely essential Maiden. With the trademark twin guitar melody, rampant galloping rhythm and tale of the charge of the Light Brigade this is my personal live favourite. Successive listens accentuate rather than diminish this song's appeal. Brilliant. Still Life is a tale of lunacy with a high spirited dig at the people who labelled the band (utterly wrongly) Satanists in the form of a backwards message at the beginning of the song (which loosely translated merely says 'Beware of the thing with three heads. Don't meddle with things you don't understand'). The track itself is great with a fantastic instrumental and to my mind generally underrated. Quest for Fire is a dire song about cavemen, and to my mind a strong contender biggest turkey of a song ever written by Maiden. Sun and Steel fares a little better but is still just outwith the border of filler material. And finally comes To Tame a Land, a seven and a half minute epic based on 'Dune' by Frank Herbert. This is a track which doesn't seem popular with fans. I love it. The instrumental does continue too long , but the first four minutes are for me the the most powerful on the album. A great album, but it doesn't have quite the same raw energy as the first three albums.Read full review
More than 20 years on, Piece of Mind is still an essential heavy metal masterpiece. Second only to Powerslave from the "classic" period. Signature tunes like the Trooper and the Flight of Icarus sound fresh even after their 10,000th listen. Revelations and Still Life show a menacing subtlety and lyrical complexity. Some songs like Quest for Fire have not aged well and Steve Harris' reach exceeded his grasp on the Dune-inspired To Tame a Land but it was a reach few would dare. This was one of the Castle Media releases that had a second disc with covers by Montrose and Jethro Tull, neither particularly revelatory. The extra artwork for the Trooper and the Flight of Icarus 12 inches is pretty awesome.
The follow-up to Number of the Beast,Piece of Mind is an incredible release from one of THE legends of Heavy Metal. Iron Maiden completes their classic line-up on this album with the addition of drummer Nicko McBrain who replaced the departing Clive Burr. The band is in top form and takes their music farther than any previous release. This album has some of Iron Maiden's best material, ever! Songs like 'The Trooper', 'Flight of Icarus', and 'Where Eagles Dare'are brilliant! If you're not familiar with Iron Maiden, this would be a GREAT album to introduce you to this incredible band. Fans of old-school metal know what I'm talking about. I picked up this copy because it has the videos for 'The Trooper' and 'Flight of Icarus' along with other extras about the band.
The song selection is fantastic. The sound quality is superb. The look of the collection goes above & beyond. Thanks! :)
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
This is the 2nd release with singer bruce Dickinson and I would have to say that I like this album better than 666. The 2 singles are are just as good if not better than the 2 singles from 666. I do think the energy on this album is a little lacking but the overall music and writing are still second to none. I tend to grab this album over the previous (666) and still recommend owning this for any Maiden /metal fan
Verified purchase: No
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