Bruce Dickinson possesses one of the greatest voices in heavy metal. Even before joining Iron Maiden , the vocalist was praised by one of his childhood idols, Ian Gillan of Deep Purple , during a Samson . Talent was not lacking, but the experience of recording The Number of the Beast was definitive in reaching a new vocal level.
Maiden's third album – and Dickinson's first with the band, replacing Paul Di'Anno – had legendary producer Martin Birch in the studio with the band. “He was a childhood idol of mine and I had the chance to work with him. He transformed my mindset in terms of singing,” the vocalist told the Next Level Soul . “I thought I was a very good singer, until I met Martin. Then I discovered a new level of meaning.”
When it came time to record the first two verses of "The Number of the Beast," Bruce was sure he could easily perform the whispered vocals, but nothing pleased the producer. "No, I'm not hearing it," was Birch's response, who would start the recording from scratch, without answering whether the problem was with the pitch or the timing.
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After repeating the same lines for several hours, Dickinson was furious. "Can we get to the rest of the song? I'm fed up with singing two verses," the singer demanded. Irritated by the situation, he even threw a chair across the studio.
Faced with the scene, Birch said they would finish the song the next day. Questioned again, the producer explained what he was looking for in those first verses. “Let me tell you a story, I had the same problem with Ronnie James Dio . In the first verses of 'Heaven and Hell' , the title track of the album, when he sang, I said 'No, I'm not listening',” Bruce recalled. “What I'm not listening to is that you're a singer, aren't you, Ronnie? So your whole life is in those two verses.”
Although abstract, the advice completely changed Bruce Dickinson and transformed "The Number of the Beast" into the classic that spans decades. "You need to surrender and not even think about it," the vocalist continued. "He was right. That's the epiphany moment when you think, 'My God, I think I'm starting to understand.'"
