It feels strange to look back now and realise that seeing Paul Di’Anno perform a set of classic early Iron Maiden at this year’s Stonedead Festival in August would be the last time I would ever see him play live again. Just under two months, and three gigs later, he’d be dead, at only 66 years of age.
Like many music fans of my age, and indeed younger, Paul Di’Anno’s short tenure with Maiden left an indelible mark on my formative listening habits. Sure, Maiden would go on to even greater heights and there are Bruce-era albums that visit my turntable more regularly these days, but those first two Iron Maiden albums, 1980’s self-titled debut and 1981’s follow-up, Killers, contained a raw primal energy that was so thrilling to a 15-year-old discovering heavy music for the first time, especially coupled with Derek Riggs’ phantasmagorical artwork.
