Best Maiden song

[Glory2Hypnotoad]

Well, since I can't re-vote I'll just list my other six.

The Sign of the Cross - brilliant lyrics and musicianship, an amazingly heavy yet beautiful song
Revelations - my favorite track off my favorite album, just a beautiful and lyrically amazing song
Still Life - a great rocker with a brilliant story, an absolutely addictive song
Paschendale - I think enough's been said about this one
Hallowed be Thy Name - I can't say anything that hasn't already been shouted from rooftops about this song
The Longest Day - another fantastic war epic that really captures the feeling of war. The imagery it conjures really puts you into the moment.

 

[Lovro]

1.Hallowed Be Thy Name
2.Paschendale
3.Rime Of The Ancient Mariner

For now...

 

[Genghis Khan]

Here is an attempt at a BEST 7 list.  The following songs are not necessarily my current seven best (as they do change) but they're the songs that have been high on the list for the longest amount of time (if that makes sense).  I reserve the right to change my mind tomorrow.  They're in the order of most recent.

1. For the Greater Good of God - Highlights: solos and the chorus.
2. Paschendale - 'Nuff said.
3. The Nomad - Highlights: the eastern riff, lyrics.
4. The Aftermath - Highlights: solo and the lyrics.
5. Afraid to Shoot Strangers - Highlights: solos and the riffs.
6. Infinite Dreams - Highlights: Bruce's precise singing, lyrics, bass.
7. Revelations - Highlights: the main riff and drum and the passionate lyrics.

Other favourites that I have mentioned in the past that had to be left off unfortunately: Murders in the Rue Morgue, Hallowed Be Thy Name, The Number of the Beast, The Trooper, Die with Your Boots on, most of Powerslave album, Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, Tailgunner, Fear of the Dark, Virus, The Educated Fool and many reunion songs.

EDIT #2: Compare the above seven with the SMX's Top Ten songs I voted for back in September of 2006.

Iron Maiden
Posted on 14 September 2006
1. Paschendale
2. For The Greater Good Of God
3. Hallowed Be Thy Name
4. Blood Brothers
5. The Longest Day
6. Rime Of The Ancient Mariner
7. Infinite Dreams
8. The Thin Line Between Love And Hate
9. Afraid To Shoot Strangers
10. Montsegur

EDIT: Here are the overall top 7 so far.

Spoiler

1. Hallowed Be Thy Name (10 votes -- TIE)
2. Paschendale (10 votes -- TIE)
3. Rime of the Ancient Mariner (8 votes)
4. Powerslave (6 votes -- three way tie)
5. Infinite Dreams (6 votes -- three way tie)
6. Seventh Son of a Seventh Sone (6 votes -- three way tie)
7. Brighter than a Thousand Suns (5 votes)

Other worthy mentions: The Nomad, Wasted Years, and Still Life have 4 votes each.
                                Phantom of the Opera, The Trooper, and For the Greater Good of God have 3 votes each.

 

[Lovro]

Poor little poll, no one votes anymore. 

 

[Forostar]

Hmm indeed a bugger.... It deserves more votes! Come on you Irons!


                           

 

[national acrobat]

After not much deliberation, I voted for:

Phantom of the Opera
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Rime of the Ancient Mariner
The Evil That Men Do
The Wicker Man
Paschendale
For The Greater Good of God

Reason: I like them best.

 

[Cosmiceddie]

1. For The Greater Good Of God
2. The Nomad
3. The Prisoner
4. Dance Of Death
5. The Longest Day
6. Brighter Than A Thousand Suns
7. The Thin Line Between Love And Hate

 

[Wästed The Great]

Wow!  Talk about hard choices!!

    Still Life--  I don't know how to describe the draw to this one.  It always seemed so mysterious to me, with the beginning of it.  It seemed like a very psychological-suicidal song.  Maybe almost 'classic' in that vein.  Someone that just is sure that the pool is where they need to be, that danger or death doesn't await them there...

     Prisoner-- Thats a 'Family vote' there.. i love the beat, and its what i consider a 'fun' song to listen to... but my 8 and 11 year old daughters put their support in for this song.  Currently the most requested song for road trips.

     Wasted Years-- The first Iron Maiden song that I ever heard, and it has stuck with me to this day... and sometimes it fits my feelings-- had many days that I was worried about all the wasted years and not paying attention to how good it is 'right now'.

     Face in the Sand-- Again, the beat.. I love the drive of this song, the way it starts and keeps on rolling.  I also really dig the meaning behind the song... whichever one you buy.  My first thought was the 'martian face in the sand' but I do like the Planet of the Apes view point.

     Fear of the Dark--  This is another group vote.  First song my son heard from Maiden, and I agree with what I have read here and there on this forum, it does rock live. We have had many discussions as to the 'best' live version of this song, and both agree that DOTR has the best version for us.

     Infinite Dreams--  I think the depth of the lyrics is what gets me here.  Infinity can be hard to comprehend!  I'm sure most of us have had a night or two when its been hard to fall back asleep due to the dreams we may face there. 

     Rime of the Ancient Mariner--  My favorite of all time!  I love the original poem! It is one of the few songs that EVERY time I listen to it, it gives me chills-- on the 'Live After Death' version, when 'down comes the rain' ... the feeling transfered to me of the excitement of survival.

So, out of too many good songs, thats gotta be what I vote.

 

[Lovro]

The so called ˝mother of all polls˝ seems dead. How come it didn`t get sticky-ed?

 

[LooseCannon]

It's already stickied.

 

[Deano]

Alright. This is like having to pick which one of your kids you like best and which one you want to shoot in the head. Here we go:

Running Free: One of my all time favorites, great rhythm and a nice short ass kicking song from beginning to end. + When I was 16, I did have a pickup truck, and lacked both money and luck.

Phantom of the Opera: Great guitar work and shifts, outstanding speed and intensity by Paul singing. A very spooky feel, always a good thing.

Where Eagles Dare: As I've mentioned before, the first song that I heard by Maiden that I knew was Maiden. Very intense and a perfect album opener.

Aces High: Another perfect album opener, puts you in the cockpit for a dogfight for sure. If this makes sense; I believe this to be the most underrated of the overrated Maiden songs.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner: Another of my all time favorites. Great intro and heavily consistent drum beat. Hit's home because I'm a long distance runner myself.

Public Enema Number One: The best song on NPFTD for sure. I love the raw intensity displayed by all band members on the track, particularly Bruce. Great social commentary.

Paschendale: Yep.

 

[LooseCannon]

Paschendale: Yep.

This might be the best summary of Paschendale yet.

 

[Anonymous]

Nah. The best one is: Pasch 4:40

Amen

 

[Cornfed Hick]

Never voted in this poll b/c I voted in the other one of the same name, posted by StrangerInAStrangeLand.  But, since it has been revived, and given the lament that it had been ignored, here goes.  [Note, this is probably inconsistent with my votes in other polls, but hey, my preferences change from time to time.] 

Rime of the Ancient Mariner:  Pretentious, yes.  Over-the-top, yes.  Self-indulgent, yes.  One the coolest things ever, yes.
Hallowed Be Thy Name:  Perfect.  This is the one that goes in the time capsule. 
Paschendale:  Can't say more about this than has already been written. 
The Longest Day:  Great way the mood builds, lots of tension in the song early, then it explodes.  Great match of music to subject matter.  One of the best guitar duet melodies in Maiden's oeuvre -- which is saying something. 
Phantom of the Opera:  Many of the songs on this list wouldn't have existed if this hadn't come first.  Nearly perfect epic.
Ghost of the Navigator:  I've written about this elsewhere.  I just love it. 
Infinite Dreams:  This song sneaks up on you.  The first time you hear it, you start to think, "oh, a slow jam filler," and then before you realize it, you're thinking, "hey, this is great!"

Spoiler

Honorable mention goes to "Wasted Years."  I had always underestimated this song until I saw it again live on the current tour.  Possibly my favorite song performance on this tour, except for ROTAM.  Great live song.

 

 

[Forostar]

More votes, we need more votes! Come on you Irons!

Too bad that a lot of people voted before this tour started, and before LAD was released on DVD.
Some of you forum freaks may know what I'm talking about 

 

[Kauha-Apina]

Very hard to pick only seven songs. I might have had a little bit different opinions earlier, but they change almost every week. That's because the level is just so high

Alexander the Great: Love the riff, love the solos. This song just rocks.
The Evil That Men Do: Bruce at his best. The best song of my favorite album.
2 Minutes To Midnight: Excellent guitar riff. Great lyrics and a catchy chorus.
The Nomad: What can I say? The riff, the lyrics, everything.
Dance of Death: Simply just great. The guitars in this song are just fucking awesome.
The Longest Day: Bone chilling intro, great guitars and one hell of a chorus.
Paschendale

 

[LooseCannon]

I love how people have simply stopped justifying why they like Paschendale.

 

[Some Hearts]

Aces High -- My favourite opener ever. Classic everything. Loved it. Made my sister fall in love with Maiden.
Rime of the Ancient Mariner -- Need I say more ? My favourite song of all time.
Infinite Dreams -- Infinite reasons why this song is the best.
The Clairvoyant -- This song is just so soothing & it's just. . . AH I can't explain why I picked these songs.
The Clansman -- That song is wicked. The best song in the NPFTD-VXI era.
Dream of Mirrors -- Brilliant. It gave a little something for everyone. "I want a really melodic song." Well they gave you the chorus. "I want a different song." This song certainly is different. "I want an epic." It's nine minutes long. Problem solved.
Paschendale -- Must I really explain this one ?

Honourable Mentions:
Hallowed Be Thy Name -- The only reason I didn't vote for this, honestly, is because I know everyone probably voted for this because of how awesome it is. It doesn't need me to vote for it too, doesn't need my help. The others I was nervous about.

Most of the AMOLAD album -- I had to save the classics in the end because AMOLAD songs still have their chance to shine.

Blood Brothers -- It took all my willpower to not vote for this one. I had to choose between Dream of Mirrors & this, & in the end I knew this one could sink or swim all on its own, so I didn't help it.

Rainmaker -- OMGAAAAAH. I'm still mad at myself for not picking it now that I actually see the results.

Stranger in a Strange Land -- I just chose not to pick it simply because this isn't their best, it's just my favourite at the moment. I'm a smart cookie.

Losfer Words (Big 'Orra) -- I just didn't see the option til now. I'm officially a stupid cookie.



This was impossible. 

 

[Dead Boss]

Here comes the top (currently)

These three are masterpieces, flawless: Fear Of The Dark, Dance Of Death, Powerslave
These seem to lack something: Still Life, Brighter Than A Thousand Suns, Stranger In A Strange Land
And finally Sign Of The Cross (I wouldn't mind it being shorter).

 

[Forostar]

At this point, these are the 10 most favourite Maiden songs as voted on this forum, and it's interesting to see if they will come as far as in Iron Maiden Survivor (to be continued ):

1. Hallowed Be Thy Name - 19 votes
2. Rime Of The Ancient Mariner - 15 votes
2. Paschendale - 15 votes
4. Powerslave - 11 votes
5. Phantom Of The Opera - 10 votes
5. Infinite Dreams - 10 votes
7. Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son - 8 votes
7. The Nomad - 8 votes
9. The Trooper - 7 votes 
9. Brighter Than A Thousand Suns - 7 votes

The albums "Powerslave" & "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" both have 2 songs in this top 10.
Looking at the amount of votes in this top 10, the album "Powerslave" comes out best with 26.