Classic Albums: Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast

I first heard Iron Maiden in the mid-80s on the then Bolshevik-banned Voice of America radio (the equivalent of Free Europe), which ran a regular program about rock music. I think they played title track and it was love at first listen. The next day I went to my metalhead friend who secretly brought their records from Yugoslavia, recorded the first three albums on cassettes, turned on an old Tesla Walkman and it was on. Then I finally sealed my position as a fan of Iron Maiden by sewing a patch of the mascot Eddie on my heavy-metal jersey. Those were nice rock days. My colleague subic writes that this album is only about two hit songs, which I can't agree with. “Number” is full of ideas and I really like the subtle songs that have been played minimally in concerts, like “Gangland” or “The Prisoner”. PS: But I still believe that their best album is the underrated “Somewhere in Time” from 1986. A song like “Alexander the Great” is something you only write once in a lifetime. (18.02.2022)