Blaze vocal performance

[Christopher Baines]

Been listening Iron Maiden bootlegs for a long time and the consitancy of Blazes live performances is interesting and im sure played a part in them getting rid. People say he murdered or didnt do the Bruce songs justice but in part i disagree. Yes he sang them differently to Bruce, understandably, but he did some blinding versions of TNOTB, Wratchild, ATSS and FOTD especially on the Xfactour, he just didnt do them often enough. He is vocal performane went up and down from one gig to the next. I think Hallowed, Trooper and TETMD he should have tried to sing diffrrently and not hit the high notes.

However one thing you cant excuse is his constant forgetting lyrics. There isnt one gig ive listened to were he doesnt forget the lyrics to at least one song which is really poor. Im not sure why that would be. Anyways im sure a lot of this has been discussed before but heyho

 

[TheMercenary]

Been listening Iron Maiden bootlegs for a long time and the consitancy of Blazes live performances is interesting and im sure played a part in them getting rid. People say he murdered or didnt do the Bruce songs justice but in part i disagree. Yes he sang them differently to Bruce, understandably, but he did some blinding versions of TNOTB, Wratchild, ATSS and FOTD especially on the Xfactour, he just didnt do them often enough. He is vocal performane went up and down from one gig to the next. I think Hallowed, Trooper and TETMD he should have tried to sing diffrrently and not hit the high notes.

However one thing you cant excuse is his constant forgetting lyrics. There isnt one gig ive listened to were he doesnt forget the lyrics to at least one song which is really poor. Im not sure why that would be. Anyways im sure a lot of this has been discussed before but heyho

The biggest problem during Blaze Bayley era of Iron Maiden is that the band didn't tune in to Blaze's voice. If Steve and co. have done that, Blaze could sing the songs right. And most of the die-hard Maiden fans wouldn't have been so critical of Blaze and his voice. And would have appreciated much more the albums he has recorded with the band.

That added to the fact that Blaze was allergic to the pyros and the smoke which emanated from them. Moreover, he got a lot of insults from the fans in the crowd, especially in Europe and the US.

People were not fair with him, Blaze is a great vocalist though, and a very kind human too.

I have to add that 'The X Factor' is one of my favorite albums and I also love 'Virtual XI'. These albums were very different from classic Maiden style and contain some great tunes that the band is still using nowadays ("Sign Of The Cross", "The Clansman") and could use in the future ("Futureal", "Man On The Edge", "The Aftermath", "Blood On The World's Hands", "When Two Worlds Collide", "Lightning Strikes Twice").

The fact that Blaze regularly forgot songs lyrics wasn't a real problem. Bruce has the same problem. I think it's linked to the fact that these two great singers really concentrated on the songs and wanted to make fans happy. Sometimes, with the stress of performing well, forgetting a few words or notes is a normal thing for professionnal musicians.

 

[Christopher Baines]

The fact that Blaze regularly forgot songs lyrics wasn't a real problem. Bruce has the same problem. I think it's linked to the fact that these two great singers really concentrated on the songs and wanted to make fans happy. Sometimes, with the stress of performing well, forgetting a few words or notes is a normal thing for professionnal musicians.

I have to disagree with this. Yes Bruce forgets lyrics here and there (apart from CSIT on the current which he forgets every time) but Blaze was 2 or 3 songs every single gig i have heard and ive heard a lot of gigs from both guys.

 

[TheMercenary]

I have to disagree with this. Yes Bruce forgets lyrics here and there (apart from CSIT on the current which he forgets every time) but Blaze was 2 or 3 songs every single gig i have heard and ive heard a lot of gigs from both guys.

I think it's probably the stress being in such a legendary band and "replacing" in some way the "God" Bruce Dickinson. That was a huge responsability and very hazardous job, especially with very the massive crowds of very difficult fans.

 

[Christopher Baines]

I think it's probably the stress being in such a legendary band and "replacing" in some way the "God" Bruce Dickinson. That was a huge responsability and very hazardous job, especially with very the massive crowds of very difficult fans.

Maybe, big problem if he couldnt handle the stress. Like i say some of vocal performances are really good. He just couldnt do it often enough. Obviously thr strain on his voice was too much night after night

 

[Kalata]

He had some very good live performances of certain songs, but he was not consistent. Most of the old classic songs were not for his voice, even his timbre was very different for them. But that's not his fault in the first place. Maiden should have played more songs from the first 2 albums and more that were not hard for his voice. On the other hand, they can't omit the big classics like Trooper, Number, Hallowed, 2 Minutes - especially in the mid-90's, when the popularity of heavy metal was not at its peak. The live performances(!) and the poor reviews and new album sales were enough for Maiden, Steve and Rod.

He was very good on his songs, good on songs like Afraid, Evil That Men Do, Sanctuary, Running Free, Iron Maiden, Wrathchild and not that bad on songs like 2 Minutes and Fear, but Trooper, Hallowed, Number, Clairvoyant, Heaven were not for his voice. They tried to help him by playing a lot of new songs in 1998, but the big classics were at the end of the set, which was never going to help. Even with a 3rd album.
He wanted to try Phantom, Still Life and Wasted Years, but he didn't get the chance. The (90's) setlists would have been so much fresh with them.

I've always said that after he left Maiden he became a better live vocalist (his early solo live albums, the 2008 one). In Maiden, he didn't have the experience of many tours and his voice have not yet grown deeper enough. I love his albums with the band, but he wasn't the right fit for Maiden. They wanted a different voice, but had to adjust the songs live (I think they would never do that) or completely remove some of them from the sets. There were no other solutions. Other than a different vocalist with a different voice to Bruce, but with high notes.

 

[TheMercenary]

Eduardo Falaschi or Doogie White would have been better choices for Maiden. Despite all his talent, Andre Matos wouldn't have been the right choice either, as Blaze Bayley. BUT, Blaze finally was the only judicious choice for Maiden, seeing the dark and hard albums the band has done with him as a singer.

 

[Christopher Baines]

I remember being really pleased at the time that Blaze had got the job, he was my first choice. Unfortunately i was very disappointed with XFactor. Maybe it just wasnt what i was hoping for. I have come to appreciate it a lot more recently though.

 

[AncientMariner_Essex]

I think it's probably the stress being in such a legendary band and "replacing" in some way the "God" Bruce Dickinson. That was a huge responsability and very hazardous job, especially with very the massive crowds of very difficult fans.

I’ve heard fans say things like this before and it always makes me wonder, if Bruce was such a god to the fan base how come hardly any of them paid any attention to his solo career.

I mean, his album sales never set the world alight, even accident of birth and chemical wedding which nowadays are revered as metal classics. Plus he wasn’t playing live in big venues.

 

[The Red and the Black]

Blaze couldn't stay in tune live even on his own Maiden songs, never mind Bruce's. I'm glad Maiden picked him, though, because if they had picked someone better, they wouldn't have failed so badly, and Bruce and Adrian wouldn't have returned. So God bless Blaze.

 

[permanenteddie]

I’ve heard fans say things like this before and it always makes me wonder, if Bruce was such a god to the fan base how come hardly any of them paid any attention to his solo career.

I mean, his album sales never set the world alight, even accident of birth and chemical wedding which nowadays are revered as metal classics. Plus he wasn’t playing live in big venues.

I think you partly answered to your own post in the other Blaze thread. Most of the times, fans are fans of the band, not of the members themselves. Of course, there is always the idea of the classic line-up but if one of these members leave the band to start a solo career, no matter how much he was liked by the fans, he was liked because he was a member of the band, not just for himself. And this has happened to a lot of musicians that were in a successful band and when they went solo oh well, most of the time they failed even when albums they released were good or great, it's just that they were not in the group anymore...same thing has happened with Rob, the metal god...And same goes for British Lion, because even if the music might not be that great (actually pretty bad for me), how come when you have the "god" Steve Harris coming to a venue nearby there is no riot of fans? But when he comes with Maiden...we all know what happens!

 

[efekåseo_suomi]

However one thing you cant excuse is his constant forgetting lyrics. There isnt one gig ive listened to were he doesnt forget the lyrics to at least one song which is really poor. Im not sure why that would be. Anyways im sure a lot of this has been discussed before but heyho

In his book At The End of The Day, he cited lack of rehearsal before touring as one reason. They only rehearsed for about a week before The X Factor. This does not explain forgetting lyrics four months in to touring though.

The biggest problem during Blaze Bayley era of Iron Maiden is that the band didn't tune in to Blaze's voice.

The even bigger problem was the fact that he was technically unprepared. Blaze had time to train before he went on the road with the band. Lack of vocal range awareness, inconsistent pitch, horrible diction and articulation. The list goes on. He has improved over the years and is a much better singer these days. But you can't step into Bruces shoes without any technical abilities.

I'm glad Maiden picked him, though, because if they had picked someone better, they wouldn't have failed so badly, and Bruce and Adrian wouldn't have returned. So God bless Blaze.

Well, Judas Priest picked Tim Owens and released their best live album (performance technically speaking) in "98' Live Meltdown". The band featuring Scott Travis and Tim Owens was on a totally diferent level technically compared to the version (With Halford and Holland) that recorded "Priest...Live!". Still, the band choose to reunite with Halford in 2003. Even if Blaze was "better", it would have been hard to not reunite with Bruce at some point.

 

[Kalata]

Blaze couldn't stay in tune live even on his own Maiden songs, never mind Bruce's. I'm glad Maiden picked him, though, because if they had picked someone better, they wouldn't have failed so badly, and Bruce and Adrian wouldn't have returned.

This is actually true. Maiden wanted to be a big band again. Bruce would have continued to release strong albums (sales weren't what they were in the late 90's), play Maiden songs in his shows and probably play more bigger shows. But the fans will still want to see the band Maiden and their songs more, even though Bruce is very important to the band.

That being said, even if the 3rd album with Blaze was a success and they started making new ''hits'' and playing more songs from the his albums, the classics would still be played. Blaze's voice would be better, but Bruce's voice is one of the faces of Maiden. The same goes for another ''better'' vocalist. It's just that there are very few voices like Bruce's! In the end, both Maiden and Bruce would want to play big shows again and be successful, so the Reunion was going to happen either way imo. They both needed each other for this. And let's not forget another important thing - Adrian was and still is very important for the band. And Steve most likely would have been very pleased to hear these classic sounding metal/Maiden songs on AOB. The same thing happened with Priest. Despite all the harsh talk between Bruce, Steve and Nicko. Steve knew what was best for the band, especially at this time. He and Bruce are equally important for the band. And it would have been a low point for a band like Maiden to look for another different vocalist again. Wasn't there something that Steve even thought about disbanding the band in 1998?

The even bigger problem was the fact that he was technically unprepared.

This. It's not about rehearsals.

 

[chaosapiant]

Something else to consider is the lack of a real producer. For all of Bruce's talents, Birch really pushed Bruce and helped him to expand and understand his strengths and weaknesses. When Blaze joined, not only did he already have one arm tied behind his back, but there was no one there to really get him into shape vocally.

Steve has commented at times how Bruce can essentially sing anything you can throw at him, and while I'm maybe being presumptuous, I think Steve feels it's easy for good singers to just sing and it sound good. And it isn't. Not even for Bruce, who is a born natural.

 

[Christopher Baines]

Some great points. It seems like a lot of it is that this singing lark is harder than it seems. I think Blaze had the talent but it seems to take more than that to be in a band like Maiden. To be 'match fit' to do it for 100+ nights a year at times.

A slightly different point aside, those vocalists who looked after themselves and their voices through their careers are pretty evident these days. I know all voices get weaker but the likes of Vince Neill whos smoked and drank and gained weight sound like shit.

 

[efekåseo_suomi]

I think Blaze had the talent but it seems to take more than that to be in a band like Maiden.

Definitely had the talent. Didn't put in the work preparing himself for the live part back in 1993-1994. His contribution to the officially released live material (the b-sides Man on the Edge, Blood on the World's Hand's, The Aftermath, The Evil that Men Do, and the best of track Afraid to Shoot Strangers) still ranks among my favorite stuff recorded live by the band. To bad he wasn't consistent in his delivery. The 1995 performances were great, the 1996 and 1998 ones were mostly not...

 

[Christopher Baines]

Definitely had the talent. Didn't put in the work preparing himself for the live part back in 1993-1994. His contribution to the officially released live material (the b-sides Man on the Edge, Blood on the World's Hand's, The Aftermath, The Evil that Men Do, and the best of track Afraid to Shoot Strangers) still ranks among my favorite stuff recorded live by the band. To bad he wasn't consistent in his delivery. The 1995 performances were great, the 1996 and 1998 ones were mostly not...

Absolutely. Ive heard some fantastic gigs on the xfactour were Blaze and the band were on fire but as you say just nowhere near consistant enough

 

[CA Bryers]

There were a lot of things working against Blaze in the band. As mentioned above, the refusal to tune down by veterans at that point who should have known better. The lack of a real producer on the albums, which--along with recording TXF over a year and doing countless takes--is why he doesn't really have any fire in his voice on that album. To his credit, he sounded excellent on his own material live. With the Bruce/Di'Anno material...some were better than others. Trooper should never have been attempted in its original key, but other songs...he kind of pulled them off here and there. They weren't great (except for Afraid to Shoot Strangers"), but listenable. Tuning down would have made ALL THE DIFFERENCE to that era in the live arena. There are videos on Youtube of him doing Bruce songs properly tuned to his voice, and they sound excellent, IMO.

Yes, nobody could have filled Bruce's shoes. Yes, others probably could have done it better. The Blaze era was when I got into Maiden, so I do love the albums and tours despite their faults. My biggest disappointment with that era was that Blaze was a crazy wildman in Wolfsbane who brought a TON of personality to the proceedings. In Maiden, it seemed like he never found his place. His personality never really came out, probably because he was too busy running uphill the whole time, doing a job he arguably wasn't the best choice for. Despite that, the Blaze era is what we got, and I'm incredibly thankful we did.

 

[permanenteddie]

Yeah, this is something I never quite understood.
- replacing an iconic singer in such a legenday band is already a source of huge stress for the new singer, no matter his the level of experience
- yet the band chose a singer with very little experience, specially in terms of long tours (which has of course an impact in the voice if you don't know how to take care of it for a long period of time) and playing in front of big crowds

- With all of this, why didn't the band try to do the best in order to help Blaze, which means:
a) maybe not playing songs that he was not comfortable at all singing even if it meant dropping a few classics (The trooper comes directly to mind)
b) Tune down the other songs so he wouldn't have to be struggling to sing them proprely!!!
c) rehearsal as much as possible before the tour (it seemed that this part was rushed as well)

This is what really is still a grey area for me...I mean, I'm sure Blaze could have done a lot better, despite all the stress that he was already under from having to replace Bruce, if he was given the...necessary tools!!!

 

[Kalata]

Absolutely. Ive heard some fantastic gigs on the xfactour were Blaze and the band were on fire but as you say just nowhere near consistant enough

For sure.

along with recording TXF over a year and doing countless takes--is why he doesn't really have any fire in his voice on that album.
To his credit, he sounded excellent on his own material live.
There are videos on Youtube of him doing Bruce songs properly tuned to his voice, and they sound excellent, IMO.
the Blaze era is what we got, and I'm incredibly thankful we did.

True about the recording of TXF (wow!), he had some issues with his songs live (even the ones he co-wrote), he is a better singer now, and I'm thankful too.

replacing an iconic singer in such a legenday band is already a source of huge stress for the new singer, no matter his the level of experience
b) Tune down the other songs so he wouldn't have to be struggling to sing them proprely!!!

Not for some singers, Ripper comes to mind. Maiden would have never tuned down (Janick knew they had to do this), so their only option was to carefully choose the songs for Blaze's voice. It was a different and bold decision, but the band/Steve should have taken into account the range (and importance) of the big classics and the amount of shows. Their set was 20 songs in 1998! They should never accept something as just listenable.