Bruce Dickinson Says His First Iron Maiden Album Was A Bridge Between Rainbow And Black Sabbath
Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson recently gave an interview to Consequence on the 40th anniversary of their ‘The Number of the Beast.’ He claimed his first album with the band served as a bridge between Rainbow and Black Sabbath albums.
In 1981, Bruce Dickinson auditioned for Iron Maiden and joined the band as Paul Di’Anno’s replacement. Following that, he debuted on the band’s successful album ‘The Number of the Beast,’ which was released on March 22, 1982. Prior to this album, Ritchie Blackmore’s band Rainbow released their second studio album ‘Rising’ in 1976. The album turned out to be a success after the release, and its major track was the 8-minute and 26 seconds long ‘Stargazer.’
Moreover, after Rainbow’s ‘Rising,’ Black Sabbath released their ninth record ‘Heaven And Hell’ on April 25, 1980. This album marked the first time Ronnie James Dio worked with Sabbath as their vocalist after Ozzy Osbourne’s departure in 1979. It gained commercial success, especially in the United States, after reaching number 28 on the Billboard 200 and selling one million copies.
In a recent interview with Consequence, Dickinson said that Rainbow’s ‘Rising’ greatly influenced him before ‘The Number Of The Beast.’ He then praised Dio’s and Blackmore’s talents seen in the album and the song’s distinctive sound, ‘Stargazer.’ Moreover, Dickinson stated that Sabbath’s ‘Heaven And Hell’ is a classic album and admitted that he believes Maiden’s ‘The Number Of The Beast’ offered a bridge between these two worlds.
While speaking about ‘The Number Of The Beast,’ Bruce Dickinson said the following:
“We had no idea how big it was going to be or how big the influence was. For me, the last album really was a big influence on me before ‘The Number Of The Beast.’ I was a kid; it was probably Rainbow’s ‘Rising.’
You know you got to hear Ronnie James Dio in full throat and Ritchie Blackmore playing his pants off. ‘Stargazer,’ you’re going ‘Oh my God, nobody’s done this in metal before. Wow, this is just incredible.’
And then Ronnie joined Sabbath, and of course, ‘Heaven And Hell’ is another classic. So, I think the Maiden and ‘The Number Of The Beast’ album offered a kind of a bridge between the two worlds.“
You can watch the interview below.