Black Sabbath’s Bill Ward took to Facebook to share his thoughts on Nicko McBrain’s retirement.
“Dear Nicko, in retiring to meet new horizons, I hope your journeys will be safe,” the drummer wrote. “I think it is so respectful and dignified that your drum chair will be available to you for any future Iron Maiden recordings, an idea that leads without fanfare, an idea that lays in tandem with any lick or rudiment, on any day. Respectfully, Bill Ward.”
McBrain announced his retirement on December 7 through Iron Maiden’s website and social media. He said that the concert at Allianz Parque in São Paulo, Brazil, would be his last with the band.
Although he is retiring from touring, McBrain will stay involved with Iron Maiden and work on different projects with them. The musician said, “I will, however, remain firmly part of the Iron Maiden family working on a variety of projects, my long-time managers, Rod Smallwood and Andy Taylor, have in mind for me.”
“I’ll also be working on a variety of different personal projects and focusing on my existing businesses and ventures, including The British Drum Company, Nicko McBrain’s Drum One, Titanium Tart, and of course, Rock-N-Roll Ribs!” Nicko added.
In January 2023, McBrain had a stroke at his home in Boca Raton, and it left him partially paralyzed. In August 2023, he shared that the stroke had paralyzed one side of his body, and he feared his career was over.
Four years earlier, he was diagnosed with stage 1 laryngeal cancer. He spoke about it once in 2021 but kept it mostly private.
On December 8, Iron Maiden named Simon Dawson as their new touring drummer. Dawson has played with Steve Harris in British Lion. The December 7 show was the last of their ‘The Future Past’ tour, which started in May 2023. Iron Maiden will tour again in 2025 with the ‘Run For Your Lives’ tour, starting in May.
