Killers is the second studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was first released on 2 February 1981 in the United Kingdom by EMI Records and on 11 May in the United States by Harvest and Capitol Records.[9] The album was their first with guitarist Adrian Smith, and their last with vocalist Paul Di'Anno, who was fired after problems with his stage performances arose due to his alcohol and cocaine use.[10]Killers was also the first Iron Maiden album recorded with producer Martin Birch, who went on to produce their next eight albums until Fear of the Dark (1992).
Killers is the only Iron Maiden album to feature two instrumentals. It was written almost exclusively by Steve Harris;[11] only "Twilight Zone" and the title track are cowritten.
Bar "Murders in the Rue Morgue" (based on the story of the same name by Edgar Allan Poe)[12] and "Prodigal Son", the songs were written in the years prior to the recording of their debut album.[13] Five of the album's songs featured in the band's live setlists in 1977, when Dennis Wilcock fronted Iron Maiden.[14] "Wrathchild" and "Strange World" appear to be written as far back as 1976 and original singer Paul Mario Day later claimed he had co-written "Strange World".[15] No songs were recorded professionally until the Killers sessions, with the exception of "Wrathchild" (a version recorded in 1979 was featured on the Metal for Muthas compilation).[13]
"The Ides of March" is nearly identical to "Thunderburst", by fellow British NWOBHM band Samson, who featured a pre-Maiden Bruce Dickinson on vocals; however, "The Ides of March" was written during the brief time in 1977 in which future Samson drummer Thunderstick was a member of Iron Maiden. While Harris took sole credit for "The Ides of March", "Thunderburst" is credited to Harris and all four members of Samson's Head On line-up, Bruce Bruce, aka Bruce Dickinson, Chris Aylmer, Paul Samson, and Thunderstick, aka Barry Purkis.
The Killer World Tour featured the band's first US shows, beginning at The Aladdin, Las Vegas, in support of Judas Priest.[17] Subsequently, "Wrathchild" is the only regularly played track from the album, appearing in almost all their tours.
Track listingedit
All tracks are written by Steve Harris, except where noted
^ abWall, Mick (2004). Iron Maiden: Run to the Hills, the Authorised Biography (3rd ed.). Sanctuary Publishing. p. 183. ISBN 978-1-86074-542-3.
^"Iron Maiden Album Statistics: 1977 | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
^Blabbermouth (27 January 2019). "Original IRON MAIDEN Singer PAUL MARIO DAY Says Dispute Over 'Strange World' Song Is 'Finished With'". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
^Wall, Mick (2004). Iron Maiden: Run to the Hills, the Authorised Biography (3rd ed.). Sanctuary Publishing. p. 251. ISBN 978-1-86074-542-3.
^"Iron Maiden - Killers 1981 Australian LP". Discogs. April 1981. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
^"Iron Maiden - Killers 1995 US 2CD". Discogs. 9 October 1995. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
^"Sikth - Scent of the Obscene". Discogs. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
^"Kerrang! Maiden Heaven Track Listing Revealed!". Kerrang!. 25 June 2008. Archived from the original on 2 May 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
^"Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks The 80s: Complete List of Songs Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. 4 July 2007. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
^Killers (Media notes). Iron Maiden. EMI. 2 February 1981.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Killers Remastered (Media notes). Iron Maiden. EMI. 1998.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
^"Austriancharts.at – Iron Maiden – Killers" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Le Détail des Albums de chaque Artiste – I". Infodisc.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2012. Select Iron Maiden from the menu, then press OK.
^Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 166. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
^"Offiziellecharts.de – Iron Maiden – Killers" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
^ abcOricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
^"Charts.nz – Iron Maiden – Killers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Norwegiancharts.com – Iron Maiden – Killers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Swedishcharts.com – Iron Maiden – Killers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Iron Maiden | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Iron Maiden Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Italiancharts.com – Iron Maiden – Killers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^ ab"Greekcharts.com – Iron Maiden – Killers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2020. 47. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
^"Portuguesecharts.com – Iron Maiden – Killers". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
^"Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. 1981. Archived from the original on 19 October 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
^"Canadian album certifications – Iron Maiden – Killers". Music Canada. 30 January 1991. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
^"French album certifications – Iron Maiden – Killers" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 26 April 2013. Select IRON MAIDEN and click OK.
^"Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Iron Maiden; 'Killers')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
^"Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2013.