We love Iron Maiden just as much as the next person, but it’s never crossed our minds to sit down and spend seven years working out how to play every single album track Maiden have recorded on the drums, then stitch it together in one epic medley.
But that’s exactly what YouTuber and ardent Maiden fan David Winter has done. This absolute hero has just posted a 36-minute video titled Medley Of The Beast, which finds him rattling through every Maiden song from every Maiden album, starting with Prowler, the opening song on their 1980 debut album, and ending with 2021’s Senjutsu closer Hell on Earth. That”s 17 albums, 160 songs in total and a whole lot of wrist-ache.
“I've had this idea in my head for more than seven years,” says David, who unsurprisingly cites Nicko McBrain as his drumming idol. “I've pieced this medley together three times over. Without exaggeration, I have easily put at least 1,000 hours into this project. Countless hours of pre-planning, production, recording and editing has gone into this.”
There are caveats. There are no stand-alone singles, b-sides or rare tracks – so no Sanctuary or killer Number Of The Beast-era deep cut Total Eclipse. Really? Come on man, stop slacking.
We’re kidding. It‘s a truly monumental feat, and it’s also fascinating to hear how Maiden’s sound has transformed over the years – though Nicko’s (and his much-missed predecessor Clive Burr’s) drum sound remains constant. Even the Blaze Bayley-era material sounds pretty great in this context.
Check out the video below, then head over to David’s YouTube channel to give him a little thumbs-up love.
