Bruce's Singing

Regarding A Real Live/Dead One: I think that album is solid (Not that great production though...), and while it isn't Bruce's best performance, he is singing very well, and there are a few glimpses of spectacular singing as well (Where Eagles Dare comes to mind).
I don't know... Not that he sings badly or anything close (to be fair I'd rather have this version of him than anything post 2008, which is perfectly rational). But his performance sounds disengaged. He doesn't hit those notes with the power and conviction he did one or two years prior. Don't get me wrong: it sounds nice yet a bit sloppy for his standards, that's all.
 
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I don't know... Not that he sings bad or anything close (to be fair I'd rather have this version of him than anything post 2008, which perfectly rational). But his performance sounds disengaged. He doesn't hit those notes with the power and conviction he did one or two years prior. Don't get me wrong: it sounds nice yet a bit sloppy for his standards, that's all.
For me he sounds like balls to picasso
 
he sounds perfectly fine on both live after death and maiden England.
Mmmm... he sounds fine in Maiden England (although there's something that's holding his massive output to come even nearly what he is capable of, resulting in some songs sounding a bit strained) and to a lesser degree he sounded a bit off during the various gigs from that tour I listened to. Which once again is strange to say the least: I think Bruce sounds way better performing many of those tunes during the following tour. But I think LAD is Bruce on another level. Ah! Not to mention RIR 1985! Bruce is on fire, and it's a broadcast! What that guy does on the second chorus of Aces High is jaw dropping!
Honestly, 30+ years ago when I first got into Maiden and started buying their albums I never listened to any live album of there's and thought Bruce sounded terrible. I remember their headline performance at Donington 1992 and it was broadcast live on the radio (albeit with a small delay to beep out any swearing) and I was like a pig in shit listening to it and never gave any thought to “oh Bruce’s sounds rough, positively unlistenable”
This! One thing is noticing stuff now that he's older and his voice somewhat eroded (which, once again, is perfectly normal), yet not compromising what I consider to be his former prime the majority of times. Another thing is saying anything Bruce did up to roughly 2010 sounds "strained" or "bad". There are levels and yes, one can be a bit nitpicking on this or that era, and that's fine. But I simply can't comprehend how people find huge dips on quality standard during those nearly 30 years (perhaps the Somewhere on Tour decrease - which I think is his least achieved 80's live era - was the most noticeable, but even so there are still many songs he really nailed during 1986 to 1987).
 
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Bruce sounds typical and and fine on the Live After Death live album, but not better than the previous 2 tours. This is probably the best he could have sounded live at that time. The next tour showed it too, although his voice was fried from the long tour. 1988 is probably better than 1986. But I don't think the dip is that big or noticeable in the mid-80's.
He also sounds good enough and solid on the Maiden England show given the circumstances, some songs sound rough (Wasted Years, Hallowed), but others like Seventh Son are very strong. I like how he sounds on Dortmund 2003, but not Mexico 2019.
He sounded better live in 1990 than on the album (like TFF album). Then he had some good shows in 1992/1993 (and some very uninspired ones), but not better than BTP era.

Peak 80's Bruce was probably POM tour.
 
This! One thing is noticing stuff now that he's older and his voice somewhat eroded (which, once again, is perfectly normal), yet not compromising what I consider to be his former prime the majority of times.
Totally agree with this. As he gets older his voice has eroded a bit but not too a huge degree to me.

As an example I have noticed he sounds slightly rough and at some points he’s straining to hit the notes on a lot of the final frontier album but I put that down to age plus less production on his voice than was probably given during the Martin birch years. I still think he sounds great on the album and I only really noticed how strained he sounds when I bought en vivo as he sounds way better to my ears singing some of the FF songs than in the actual album.

Weirdly I thought he sound much better on book of souls.

I’ve been listening to maiden England and beast over Hammersmith today whilst in my home office working and I think he sounds great on both. Maybe because I don’t expect him to sound anywhere near as polished as the studio recordings I’m a little more forgiving I don’t know but nothing jumps out on me and screams bad singing.

Also maybe if I really sit and listen with zero distractions I might be able to pick out some odd bum notes and straining but where’s the fun in that. I don’t expect perfection in live performances.
 
Also, I don’t listen to a ton of bootlegs so to me I couldn’t care less if he had a few off nights on a tour. As long as I’m happy with his voice on official releases and when I’m at the gigs I actually attend then it’s all good.

I’ve seen maiden over 30 times across all tours since the x-factor tour and never came away from one gig thinking “well that was shit” whether it be from Bruce’s singing or from any of the other band members messing up. I even thought blaze sounded better than he was given credit for on some of the Bruce material on the two tours I saw him with the band.
 
Peak 80's Bruce was probably POM tour.
I don't know if it's the best... As I said before, during the first three tours it was godlike mode for me all the way. However, last week I was listening to 22 Acacia Avenue live in Dortmund 1983 (broadcast) and man... That thing is scary. IMO the best version of the song I've ever listened to. Not to mention To Tame A Land in Ipswich.
 
he sounds way better to my ears singing some of the FF songs than in the actual album.

Weirdly I thought he sound much better on book of souls.
IMO Bruce sounded great in 2010 overall. Now, 2015/16 is when I think his voice started to dip. Perhaps due to chemo. To a point that he sounded way better to me during The Future Past Tour than on The Book Of Souls Tour or Legacy Of The Beast (not to mention the solo tour where his voice is also on a really high level). Turning back the clock a decade is mind blowing... I don't know how Bruce managed to achieve it, but IMO he did it.
 
IMO Bruce sounded great in 2010 overall. Now, 2015/16 is when I think his voice started to dip. Perhaps due to chemo. To a point that he sounded way better to me during The Future Past Tour than on The Book Of Souls Tour or Legacy Of The Beast (not to mention the solo tour where his voice is also on a really high level). Turning back the clock a decade is mind blowing... I don't know how Bruce managed to achieve it, but IMO he did it.
2014 he sounded worse than 2016 IMO, but that is probably because of a huge lump in his throat.
 
IMO Bruce sounded great in 2010 overall. Now, 2015/16 is when I think his voice started to dip. Perhaps due to chemo. To a point that he sounded way better to me during The Future Past Tour than on The Book Of Souls Tour or Legacy Of The Beast (not to mention the solo tour where his voice is also on a really high level). Turning back the clock a decade is mind blowing... I don't know how Bruce managed to achieve it, but IMO he did it.
For me, Bruce’s best tour post-cancer was 2018. He was on fire! He was excellent last year, but 2018 was something else. It came out of the blue, considering he was hit and miss in 2017.
 
Yes, if someone could explain to me why Maiden play in Germany when Wacken is on.
I missed the beginning of the ticket sale because my mom had an accident, so I don't have a ticket for Berlin 1, and Berlin 2 is when I'm in Wacken. What should I do now? Thank you Rod!
I have no money to travel abroad.
Because they realized that Wacken is an entirely overrated beer fest. It doesn't differ much from Oktoberfest actually: Both at Wacken and Oktoberfest people wearing leather clothing in their own traditions, drink incredible quantities of beer and clap their hands to some music.
 
I think the only really good live years in the 80s for Bruce were 1982 and first half of 1983, the rest of the 80s were passable but not amazing by any means.
Then it was probably 1994-1999, 2005-2009 and 2018.
 
I think the only really good live years in the 80s for Bruce were 1982 and first half of 1983, the rest of the 80s were passable but not amazing by any means.
Then it was probably 1994-1999, 2005-2009 and 2018.
lol, utter garbage. I’m all for people expressing their own opinions and usually I don’t care if someone’s opinion is different to mine but this statement is preposterous.

So Bruce only sang well for 1.5 years in the whole of his time with Maiden in the 80’s. :oops::facepalm:
 
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