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I think it's quite funny that when steve rips off something it's never subtle, it's always from songs that he's on record as being a fan of.

It's apt that that quote comes from the X Factor era as there's a good few obvious rip offs on that, "eleven saintly shrouded men... one in front with a cross held high" is very similar to lyrics from his favourite genesis song suppers ready, the intro to lord of the flies is very similar to the intro to Love to Love from UFO which I think he said is his favourite all time song, and the Aftermath riff is again very similar to Warrior by Wishbone Ash who he always states as a huge influence on Maiden.

Agreed. Those examples off The X Factor stand out!
 
Only H and Jan are tuned to D though.

Seems so, by looking at Dave's live parts.

He quite probably wrote the chord sequence; otherwise someone else would have been credited.

He may have even hummed the chief theme (that's present in the harmony), but that's a far cry from actually putting down the demo of how it should sound.
 
He may have even hummed the chief theme that's present in the harmony but that's a far cry from actually putting down the demo how it should sound.

Well, I have never claimed that Bruce's demo for Powerslave sounded like the final version. As far as we know, he might have even whistled in the vein of Steve Harris, but adding harmonies/solos did not merit anyone else getting a songwriting credit (these are usually assigned based on contributing to the song's structure, chord progressions, and lyrics).

On a related note, in the most recent Metal Hammer Steve says that Bruce wrote the song putting together 3 different ideas he had.
 
I think it's quite funny that when steve rips off something it's never subtle, it's always from songs that he's on record as being a fan of.

It's apt that that quote comes from the X Factor era as there's a good few obvious rip offs on that, "eleven saintly shrouded men... one in front with a cross held high" is very similar to lyrics from his favourite genesis song suppers ready, the intro to lord of the flies is very similar to the intro to Love to Love from UFO which I think he said is his favourite all time song, and the Aftermath riff is again very similar to Warrior by Wishbone Ash who he always states as a huge influence on Maiden.

Regarding Wishbone Ash and their influence on Maiden, there is a clear nod to Throw Down the Sword in Afraid to Shoot Strangers. :)

Argus is an absolute masterpiece. No wonder it is loved so much by both Steve and Bruce.
 
Regarding Wishbone Ash and their influence on Maiden, there is a clear nod to Throw Down the Sword in Afraid to Shoot Strangers. :)

Argus is an absolute masterpiece. No wonder it is loved so much by both Steve and Bruce.

A masterpiece indeed (it took a couple of listens to appreciate this though).

I noticed the Warrior / Aftermath riff immediately, but will listen out for the Sword / Strangers influence next time I listen to Argus ;)
 
the intro to lord of the flies is very similar to the intro to Love to Love from UFO which I think he said is his favourite all time song
Janick actually wrote the intro of the song, and Steve built the rest upon it.
 
A masterpiece indeed (it took a couple of listens to appreciate this though).

I noticed the Warrior / Aftermath riff immediately, but will listen out for the Sword / Strangers influence next time I listen to Argus ;)

The harmonies in Afraid to Shoot Strangers are a clear nod to the guitar melodies at the start of Throw Down the Sword. Back in 1992, Steve said that Afraid to Shoot Strangers featured a homage to one of their favourite bands without mentioning its name; I realised who he was referring to once I bought Argus a few years later.
 
Intro/song proper/outro, without the instrumental?
 
Intro/song proper/outro, without the instrumental?

What do you mean? If you are asking about how to get songwriting credits, as I previously mentioned, these are usually assigned based on song's structure, chord progressions, and lyrics. If Bruce had a chord progression for the middle bit of Powerslave (and Steve's comment about Bruce writing the song by combining 3 different ideas suggests this could have been the case), it does not really matter the harmonies/solos added by other people; that would not grant someone a songwriting credit.
 
What do you mean? If you are asking about how to get songwriting credits, as I previously mentioned, these are usually assigned based on song's structure, chord progressions, and lyrics. If Bruce had a chord progression for the middle bit of Powerslave (and Steve's comment about Bruce writing the song by combining 3 different ideas suggests this could have been the case), it does not really matter the harmonies/solos added by other people; that would not grant someone a songwriting credit.

Where did you get that from? You, like rest of us, are presuming how the credits work. I don't think it's that clear with Maiden. If you have any interview or so to post, please do. 'I believe you' but we're all here for factual discussion :)
I'm presuming that 3 different ideas are - intro, song proper (verses, chorus, D minor stuff), and outro. Because there are 4 distinct parts of the song.
 
Where did you get that from? You, like rest of us, are presuming how the credits work. I don't think it's that clear with Maiden. If you have any interview or so to post, please do. 'I believe you' but we're all here for factual discussion :)
I'm presuming that 3 different ideas are - intro, song proper (verses, chorus, D minor stuff), and outro. Because there are 4 distinct parts of the song.

Here you have an interview from back in the day with Bruce discussing what he wrote (and how) for Powerslave:

http://www.metal-rules.com/metalnew...ere-back-in-time-the-powerslave-interviews/3/
 
Thanks, I stand corrected

Bruce: Yes, well, I’ve got a little Soft-tech four track. And I just sit down there and put rough demos down. I’ve got a little drum machine and a guitar, and I demo it all with a drum machine, a guitar, and a voice. I do the complete song. And I possibly put down a little idea for a solo or something.
 
Thanks, interesting interview!
But I doubt he still does that. In a more recent interview (perhaps after BNW with Eddie Trunk?) he said that everything apart from cassette is too complicated.
Sorry I can't be more specific about the source, maybe someone else can.
 
Little trivia: that casette was almost destroyed by Nicko after Mission From 'Arry argument. Bruce recorded that argument next to the demo of Powerslave.
 
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