List of Iron Maiden band members
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Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in 1975 by bassist Steve Harris. After several lineup changes prior to their recording career, they settled on Harris, vocalist Paul Di'Anno, guitarist Dave Murray and drummer Doug Sampson. The band currently consists of Harris and Murray with guitarist Adrian Smith (who first joined in 1980), vocalist Bruce Dickinson (who first joined in 1981), drummer Nicko McBrain (since 1982) and guitarist Janick Gers (since 1990).
History
The bands original line-up in December 1975, included Harris with singer Paul Mario Day, guitarists Terry Rance and Dave Sulivan and drummer Ron Matthews.Template:Sfn Day left in October 1976 due to not having enough stage charisma, he was replaced by Dennis Wilcock.Template:Sfn Harris temporarily disbanded Iron Maiden in December 1976 so he could replace Rance and Sulivan with guitarists Dave Murray and Bob Sawyer, while retaining Wilcock and Matthews.Template:Sfn By mid-1977, Matthews, Murray and Sawyer were all fired after conflicts with either Wilcock or Harris,Template:Sfn and replaced by guitarist Terry Wapram and keyboardist Tony Moore and drummer Thunderstick (real name Barry Purkis).Template:Sfn This line-up only lasted one show before Moore was fired by Harris, as he felt that keyboards didn't fit in to Iron Maiden's music at the time.Template:Sfn
Murray was reinstated in March 1978,Template:Sfn after which Wapram left.Template:Sfn Wilcock and Thunderstick also left shortly afterwards.Template:Sfn The band were quickly joined by Doug Sampson on drums,Template:Sfn who Harris had played with before forming Iron Maiden,Template:Sfn and began auditioned new singers, settling on Paul Di'Anno joined in November.Template:Sfn The band were also joined by second guitarist Paul Cairns in Winter 1978,Template:Sfn who played on their 1979 demo The Soundhouse Tapes.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Cairns stayed for three months before being dismissed due to not fitting in.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn
The band were joined by guitarist Paul Todd in June 1979,Template:Sfn however he left after a week,Template:Sfn not playing any shows due to his girlfriend not letting him.Template:Sfn Todd would later join Paul Mario Day's post Iron Maiden band More.[1] Tony Parsons was the bands next guitarist, joining in September 1979, before being dismissed in December[1] due to having less technical ability than Murray,Template:Sfn just before the band signed to EMI.Template:Sfn He later joined Dennis Wilcock's band Gibraltar.[1]
The band hired Dennis Stratton (guitar, backing vocals). Doug Sampson amicably left the band as he was unable to cope with the touring schedule.Template:Sfn At the suggestion of Stratton, Sampson was replaced by Clive Burr, with whom the band recorded their self-titled debut album in 1980.Template:Sfn Later that year, Stratton was replaced by Adrian Smith (the band's original choice), due to musical and personal differences brought about by Stratton choosing to travel with the road crew instead of the band on tour.Template:Sfn
During the tour supporting their second studio album, Di'Anno was fired from the band after drug and alcohol abuse affected his live performance.Template:Sfn Vocalist Bruce Dickinson left his previous band, Samson, which had also included Burr, to audition for Iron Maiden in September 1981 and joined shortly afterwards. After the release of their third album, The Number of the Beast, drummer Nicko McBrain (of support act Trust) replaced Burr, who left due to personal and scheduling problems on the subsequent Beast on the Road tour.Template:Sfn This is considered by many as their quintessential lineup,Template:Sfn with which they released a series of high-impact works.Template:Sfn
In 1990, prior to the recording of their eighth studio album, Smith was asked to leave the band due to a lack of enthusiasm, brought about by the "stripped-down" musical direction they were taking, which Smith considered "a step backwards" from the progressive direction they had been taking.Template:Sfn Janick Gers, an old friend of Dickinson's who performed on his debut solo album, became the new guitarist. This formation recorded one more album before Dickinson departed in 1993, in order to pursue his solo career further.Template:Sfn
The band listened to hundreds of tapes submitted by vocalists before asking Blaze Bayley to audition,Template:Sfn with whom they would go on to release two studio albums, after which Bayley left the band by mutual consent in January 1999.Template:Sfn At that point, the band were in talks with Dickinson,Template:Sfn who, after a meeting with Steve Harris and Rod Smallwood (the group's manager) in Brighton,Template:Sfn agreed to rejoin along with Adrian Smith, who was telephoned a few hours later.Template:Sfn Iron Maiden thus became a six-piece band and have gone on to make six further studio releases. This lineup is now the longest and most stable in the band's history.
On 7 December 2024, McBrain announced he was retiring from touring due to health issues following the band's show on that day,[2] but would remain a member of the band.[3] The following day, Simon Dawson of Harris's band British Lion was announced as the band's new touring drummer.[4]
Members
Current
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:CSS image crop | Steve Harris | 1975–present | Template:Hlist | all Iron Maiden releases |
| Template:CSS image crop | Dave Murray | Template:Hlist | Template:Hlist | |
| Template:CSS image crop | Adrian Smith | Template:Hlist | Template:Hlist | all Iron Maiden releases from Killers (1981) to Maiden England (1989), then from Brave New World (2000) to present |
| Template:CSS image crop | Bruce Dickinson | Template:Hlist | Template:Hlist | Template:Hlist |
| Template:CSS image crop | Nicko McBrain | 1982–present (inactive from touring as of 2024)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". | Template:Hlist | all Iron Maiden releases from Piece of Mind (1983) to present |
| Template:CSS image crop | Janick Gers | 1990–present | guitars | all Iron Maiden releases from No Prayer for the Dying (1990) to present |
Former
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ron (Rebel) MatthewsTemplate:Efn | 1975–1977 | drums | none | |
| Terry RanceTemplate:Efn | 1975–1976 | guitars | ||
| Dave SullivanTemplate:Efn | ||||
| Paul Mario DayTemplate:Efn | lead vocals | |||
| Dennis WilcockTemplate:Efn | 1976–1978 | |||
| Bob Sawyer (later Rob Angelo)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Template:Efn | 1977 | guitars | ||
| Terry WapramTemplate:Efn | 1977–1978 | |||
| Template:CSS image crop | Thunderstick (Barry Purkis)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". | drums | ||
| Template:CSS image crop | Tony Moore | 1977 | keyboards | |
| Doug Sampson | 1978–1979 | drums | Template:Hlist | |
| Template:CSS image crop | Paul Di'Anno | 1978–1981 (died 2024)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". |
lead vocals | Template:Hlist |
| Paul Cairns (a.k.a. "Mad Mac")Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". | 1978–1979 | guitars | The Soundhouse Tapes (1979 demo) | |
| Paul Todd | 1979 | none | ||
| Tony Parsons | BBC Archives (four songs from 1979) | |||
| Clive Burr | 1979–1982 (died 2013)Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". |
drums | all Iron Maiden releases from Iron Maiden (1980) to The Number of the Beast (1982) | |
| Template:CSS image crop | Dennis Stratton | 1979–1980 | Template:Hlist | Template:Hlist |
| Template:CSS image crop | Blaze Bayley | 1994–1999 | lead vocals | Template:Hlist |
Touring and session
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Kenney | 1988–2022 | keyboards | Since 1980, Kenney was employed by the band as Harris' bass technician.Template:Sfn Following Iron Maiden's Seventh Son of a Seventh Son album, in which the band used keyboards for the first time, Harris insisted that Kenney perform the keyboard parts live under the alias of "The Count".Template:Sfn Following this tour Kenney provided keyboards on their next four studio albums after which Harris took over playing keys with Kenney assisting.Template:Sfn He continued to provide the band's live keyboards, although unlike the Seventh Tour of a Seventh Tour during which he performed on a forklift, Kenney would later play the keys backstage.Template:Sfn For the Maiden England World Tour 2012–2013, Kenney reprised his role as "The Count" during performances of the song "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son".Template:Sfn On 9 September 2022, he announced on Facebook that he had retired from Iron Maiden.Template:Hlist | |
| Brent Diamond | 2022–present | From 2022, he replaced Michael Kenney as Steve Harris' bass technician, and as a keyboard player during concerts.[5] | ||
| Template:CSS image crop | Simon Dawson | 2024–present | drums | Dawson, who also known as a drummer for Harris's side-project, British Lion, was announced taking McBrain's place for the band's upcoming tours.[6] |
Timeline
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Colors =
id:Lvocals value:red legend:Lead_vocals id:Bvocals value:pink legend:Backing_vocals id:Guitars value:green legend:Guitars id:Bass value:blue legend:Bass id:Drums value:orange legend:Drums id:Keys value:purple legend:Keyboards,_synthesisers id:Tour value:yellow legend:Touring_members id:Studio value:black legend:Studio_album id:Live value:gray(0.75) legend:Live_album id:bars value:gray(0.93)
BackgroundColors = bars:bars
LineData =
layer:back color:Studio at:14/04/1980 at:02/02/1981 at:22/03/1982 at:16/05/1983 at:03/09/1984 at:29/09/1986 at:11/04/1988 at:01/10/1990 at:11/05/1992 at:02/10/1995 at:23/03/1998 at:29/05/2000 at:08/09/2003 at:28/08/2006 at:16/08/2010 at:04/09/2015 at:03/09/2021 layer:back color:Live at:14/10/1985 at:22/03/1995 at:18/10/1993 at:08/11/1993 at:25/03/2002 at:04/11/2002 at:29/08/2005 at:25/05/2009 at:26/03/2012 at:25/03/2013 at:17/11/2017 at:20/11/2020
BarData =
bar:Day text:"Paul Day" bar:Wilcock text:"Dennis Wilcock" bar:DiAnno text:"Paul Di'Anno" bar:Dickinson text:"Bruce Dickinson" bar:Bayley text:"Blaze Bayley" bar:Sullivan text:"Dave Sullivan" bar:Rance text:"Terry Rance" bar:Murray text:"Dave Murray" bar:Sawyer text:"Bob Sawyer" bar:Wapram text:"Terry Wapram" bar:Cairns text:"Paul Cairns" bar:Todd text:"Paul Todd" bar:Parsons text:"Tony Parsons" bar:Stratton text:"Dennis Stratton" bar:Smith text:"Adrian Smith" bar:Gers text:"Janick Gers" bar:Harris text:"Steve Harris" bar:Matthews text:"Ron Matthews" bar:Thunderstick text:"Thunderstick" bar:Sampson text:"Doug Sampson" bar:Burr text:"Clive Burr" bar:McBrain text:"Nicko McBrain" bar:Dawson text:"Simon Dawson" bar:Moore text:"Tony Moore" bar:Kenney text:"Michael Kenney" bar:Diamond text:"Brent Diamond"
PlotData=
width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Day from:25/12/1975 till:01/07/1976 color:Lvocals bar:Wilcock from:02/07/1976 till:01/03/1978 color:Lvocals bar:DiAnno from:01/11/1978 till:01/10/1981 color:Lvocals bar:Dickinson from:01/10/1981 till:28/08/1993 color:Lvocals bar:Bayley from:01/01/1994 till:02/01/1999 color:Lvocals bar:Dickinson from:02/01/1999 till:end color:Lvocals bar:Dickinson from:01/09/2014 till:31/12/2014 color:Keys width:3 bar:Dickinson from:02/05/1983 till:05/07/1985 color:Guitars width:3 bar:Sullivan from:25/12/1975 till:01/12/1976 color:Guitars bar:Rance from:25/12/1975 till:01/12/1976 color:Guitars bar:Murray from:01/12/1976 till:01/06/1977 color:Guitars bar:Murray from:01/03/1978 till:end color:Guitars bar:Murray from:01/01/1986 till:30/06/1986 color:Keys width:3 bar:Sawyer from:01/01/1977 till:01/06/1977 color:Guitars bar:Wapram from:01/07/1977 till:01/03/1978 color:Guitars bar:Cairns from:01/12/1978 till:01/03/1979 color:Guitars bar:Todd from:23/06/1979 till:30/06/1979 color:Guitars bar:Parsons from:01/09/1979 till:15/11/1979 color:Guitars bar:Stratton from:20/12/1979 till:01/11/1980 color:Guitars bar:Stratton from:20/12/1979 till:01/11/1980 color:Bvocals width:3 bar:Smith from:05/11/1980 till:01/01/1990 color:Guitars bar:Smith from:05/11/1980 till:01/01/1990 color:Bvocals width:3 bar:Smith from:01/02/1999 till:end color:Guitars bar:Smith from:01/02/1999 till:end color:Bvocals width:3 bar:Smith from:01/01/1986 till:31/03/1988 color:Keys width:7 bar:Gers from:01/02/1990 till:end color:Guitars bar:Harris from:25/12/1975 till:end color:Bass bar:Harris from:25/12/1975 till:end color:Bvocals width:3 bar:Harris from:01/01/1986 till:31/03/1988 color:Keys width:7 bar:Harris from:01/08/1997 till:end color:Keys width:7 bar:Matthews from:25/12/1975 till:01/06/1977 color:Drums bar:Thunderstick from:01/09/1977 till:08/04/1978 color:Drums bar:Sampson from:09/04/1978 till:23/12/1979 color:Drums bar:Burr from:26/12/1979 till:01/11/1982 color:Drums bar:McBrain from:01/12/1982 till:07/12/2024 color:Drums bar:McBrain from:07/12/2024 till:end color:Drums width:3 bar:Moore from:01/09/1977 till:01/11/1977 color:Keys bar:Dawson from:07/12/2024 till:end color:Drums bar:Dawson from:07/12/2024 till:end color:Tour width:3 bar:Kenney from:28/04/1988 till:09/09/2022 color:Keys bar:Kenney from:28/04/1988 till:09/09/2022 color:Tour width:3 bar:Diamond from:09/09/2022 till:end color:Keys bar:Diamond from:09/09/2022 till:end color:Tour width:3
</timeline>
Line-ups
| Period | Members | Releases |
|---|---|---|
| December 1975Template:Sfn – October 1976Template:Sfn |
|
none – live performances onlyScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". |
| October 1976 – November 1976 |
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| December 1976Template:Sfn – mid-1977Template:Sfn |
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| Mid-1977Template:Sfn – November 1977Template:Sfn |
| |
| November 1977Template:Sfn – early 1978Template:Sfn |
|
none – rehearsals onlyScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". |
| March 1978 – April 1978 |
| |
| Early 1978Template:Sfn – November 1978Template:SfnTemplate:Efn |
| |
| November 1978Template:Sfn – early 1979Template:Sfn |
|
|
| June 1979Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn |
|
none – rehearsals onlyScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". |
| September – December 1980Template:Sfn |
|
none – live performances onlyScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". |
| December 1979Template:Sfn – November 1980Template:Sfn |
|
|
| November 1980Template:Sfn – September 1981Template:Sfn |
|
|
| September 1981Template:Sfn – December 1982Template:Sfn |
|
|
| December 1982Template:Sfn – June 1990Template:Sfn |
|
|
| June 1990Template:Sfn – August 1993Template:Sfn |
|
|
| January 1994Template:Sfn – January 1999Template:Sfn |
|
|
| January 1999Template:Sfn – December 2024[2] |
|
|
| December 2024[4] – present |
|
Notes
References
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