Reflecting on his first sighting of Iron Maiden, Dickinson reminisced about a gig at the Music Machine in Camden, where his then-band, Samson, held the headlining spot. Despite Samson‘s management securing the prime slot, Dickinson couldn’t help but notice the fervor surrounding Iron Maiden‘s performance.

“The first time I saw Maiden was at what was then the Music Machine in Camden. Samson were headlining because our management had bankrolled the gig and said, ‘We want the top slot,’ although we didn’t really deserve it. That became obvious when Maiden came on because the whole place was rammed. I’d heard rumors about how good they were, and I thought I’d better see them. When they came out, I thought, ‘I’ve never seen Deep Purple, but this is what it must have felt like to see Deep Purple in their prime, rocking up a storm.'”

Dickinson‘s admiration for Iron Maiden‘s prowess was evident, even as he assessed the vocal abilities of then-frontman Paul Di’Anno. While sort of acknowledging Di’Anno‘s competence, Dickinson recalled: “He was okay, but he didn’t have a lot of flex to his voice. I thought his voice had come as far as it was going to get.”

However, it was the collective talent of his future bandmates what really captivated him: “I saw what the rest of the band were capable of straight away, and I remember thinking, ‘Good God, I’d love to front that band.’ And as soon as they finished playing, everybody in the venue left and we were headlining to about three people.”

Who is Bruce Dickinson?

Bruce Dickinson originally fronted Iron Maiden between 1981 and 1993, and then again between 1999 and present day. Dickinson also has a prolific solo career, having released his first new album in 19 years named The Mandrake Project earlier in 2024.