The Number One Beast, 666: A Tribute to Iron Maiden

Can you imagine what it would sound like if Whitesnake or Cinderella had covered Iron Maiden? Well, listen to this album and all the non-Di'Anno tracks will give you a clearer idea. Those track are mainstream-sounding and would have been perfect in the heyday of "Hair Metal". This isn't a negative criticism, as most are actually quite nice to listen to, but this simply isn't Maiden. The power and rawness are absent and these covers sound a bit bland.

Musicians:
Lea Hart – Lead Guitar, Paul Quinn – Guitar, Bernie Torme – Guitar, Andy Barnet – Guitar, Rob Page – Guitar, Steve Parry – Guitar, Dave Colwell – Guitar, Steve Bennett – Drums, Dean Moraity – Bass, Jem Davis – Keyboards.

Songs:
1. Can I Play With Madness [Steve Overland]
2. 2 Minutes To Midnight [Steve Grimmett]
3. Wrathchild [Paul Di'Anno]
4. Hallowed Be Thy Name [Doogie White]
5. Running Free [Paul Di'Anno]
6. The Evil That Men Do [Doogie White]
7. Phantom Of The Opera [Paul Di'Anno]
8. The Number Of The Beast [Steve Grimmett]
9. Iron Maiden [Paul Di'Anno]
10. Run To The Hills [Steve Overland]
11. The Trooper [Gary Barden]

Among the musicians who contributed, it is interesting to note that a couple of friends of Adrian Smith's are present, namely Andy Barnet and Dave Colwell, who contributed to a few songs recorded by Maiden in the late 80s and that ended up as B-sides on singles. The musical performance is excellent and the whole album is quite good.

It is also noteworthy to point out that Doogie White was one of the most serious contenders – along with Blaze Bayley and Damian Wilson – to the replacement of Bruce Dickinson when he left in 1993. Judgeing from the covers on this album, he would also have been a good choice, although Blaze gave Maiden a different dimension that White couldn't have provided. He probably would just have had less problems singing Dickinson-era material.

The only thing to deplore is that Paul Di'Anno only sings on tracks he used to do with Maiden. Some Bruce Dickinson tracks would have made an interesting comparison, although the songs with Di'Anno on this album are excellent, with even more rage and aggression than on Maiden's first two album. Di'Anno's voice is really the only one suited to sing Di'Anno-era material.

The voice may come as a bit of a shock to die-hard Maiden fans. Gone is the aggression of Bruce Dickinson's vocals, to be replaced by a more mainstream and "FM"-type hard rock voice. This is an example of a song that would have had quite a lot airplay if Steve Overland had been Iron Maiden's singer. With Di'Anno on the vocals, this cover doesn't really sound much like a cover. That was to be expected!

Only Di'Anno can sing 'Running Free' the way it should be sung, and he proves it once again with this pretty good cover.

All in all, this is a very good tribute album.

Download: