Childhood's End

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How good is Childhood's End on a scale of 1-10?

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    13
8.

It's such a unique Maiden song, if for only the drums alone. That chorus is epic, I long to hear what it would sound like with modern production and a double bass pedal...
 
This song feels very airy sort of, and I guess that's because the soft synths and Nickos unusual drumming on both the intro and chorus. The solo is quite good.
The vocals feels a little out of place on the chorus, should not have been so raspy. The song is good but a little to soft in some way for my taste.

6/10
 
6. Fun enough song but nothing special.

Rankings:

Previous Albums:

Iron Maiden - 6.67

8 - Prowler
6 - Sanctuary
7 - Remember Tomorrow
6 - Running Free
9 - Phantom Of The Opera
7 - Transylvania
4 - Strange World
6 - Charlotte The Harlot
7 - Iron Maiden

Killers - 5.91

6 - The Ides Of March
6 - Wrathchild
6 - Murders In The Rue Morgue
5 - Another Life
5 - Genghis Khan
5 - Innocent Exile
8 - Killers
5 - Prodigal Son
8 - Purgatory
6 - Twilight Zone
5 - Drifter

The Number Of The Beast - 7.56

6 - Invaders
7 - Children Of The Damned
8 - The Prisoner
7 - 22 Acacia Avenue
9 - The Number Of The Beast
10 - Run To The Hills
6 - Gangland
5 - Total Eclipse
10 - Hallowed Be Thy Name

Piece Of Mind - 7.44

8 - Where Eagles Dare
9 - Revelations
9 - Flight Of Icarus
7 - Die With Your Boots On
8 - The Trooper
7 - Still Life
6 - Quest For Fire
6 - Sun And Steel
7 - To Tame A Land

Powerslave - 6.75

8 - Aces High
7 - 2 Minutes To Midnight
3 - Loss Fer Words
7 - Flash Of The Blade
5 - The Duellists
6 - Back In The Village
9 - Powerslave
9 - Rime Of The Ancient Mariner

Somewhere In Time - 8.00

8 - Caught Somewhere In Time
9 - Wasted Years
8 - Sea Of Madness
8 - Heaven Can Wait
8 - The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner
7 - Stranger In A Strange Land
8 - Deja Vu
8 - Alexander The Great

Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son - 8.25

7 - Moonchild
9 - Infinite Dreams
9 - Can I Play With Madness
9 - The Evil That Men Do
10 - Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
6 - The Prophecy
8 - The Clairvoyant
8 - Only The Good Die Young

No Prayer For The Dying - 6.90

6 - Tailgunner
6 - Holy Smoke
8 - No Prayer For The Dying
7 - Public Enema Number One
7 - Fates Warning
7 - The Assassin
6 - Run Silent Run Deep
8 - Hooks In You
8 - Bring Your Daughter... To The Slaughter
6 - Mother Russia

Fear Of The Dark

7 - Be Quick Or Be Dead
8 - From Here To Eternity
9 - Afraid To Shoot Strangers
5 - Fear Is The Key
6 - Childhoods End
 
I have mixed feelings about this one. It's certainly an interesting track, and there's a lot to enjoy about it. But the pace is a bit sludgy, and the chorus gets increasingly less enjoyable as the song progresses. Overall, an average track.
6/10
 
One of the best on the album. I love the drumming on this one, and the guitar playing is great (both Dave and Jan do great jobs on this album). 8/10
 
9/10

Childhood’s End is an oft-forgotten, horribly underrated song. From Nicko’s pummeling drums to the guitar melodies and Bruce’s soaring voice, it’s a pure joy. Yes, the production could have been better and I do not understand why there is no distorted guitar playing chords during the chorus to make it sound less empty, but the melodies and dynamics are top notch. Just like Fear Is the Key, Childhood’s End is incredibly experimental for the band while still sounding like typical Maiden. It would have made a killer live song and it’s a shame they never brought it out.
 
Not a big fan of this one. I find the pummeling rhythms really bland and the production makes them more lifeless than they should be. Horrible chorus with an annoying guitar harmony and an annoying Bruce on top of the lifeless rhythm. I will say the guitar melody around 3:20 is really cool. Could do without the rest of the song.

Lyrics are also a bit preachy while not very profound.

4
 
Another decent effort. One thing I like on this album generally is the almost singalong guitar melodies and this is another good one. I like the stripped down chorus with pounding drums and keyboards.

It's quite an experimental song and the novelty does kind of wear off after a few listens though

6
 
I want to like this more than a 7, but I can't justify it. The instrumental section seems to be building to something, but never gets there. Bruce sounds like someone shoved a file over his vocal cords. Cool riffs though, and a good song, but man, it can't get to great.
 
7. Not as good and strong as "Fear Is the Key", but still very very good. Great and thoughtful lyrics, even though the chorus feels a bit awkward, which brings its rating down a little, but doesn't actually harms the song.
 
An unremarkable intro leads into a simple, repetitive, but strangely catchy plaintive groove. This gives way to a blase verse with uneven vocals, then returns to the plaintive groove for what I guess is supposed to be the chorus, which is mostly Bruce coughing up a few melody-free lyrics every once in a while.

More boring verse and pathetic chorus, then we get a by-the-numbers 90s Maiden groove for a while. A strong solo breaks up the monotony, then leads into a decent harmonized interlude before stumbling through the verse and chorus again, and finally putting the song out of its misery.

There are a handful of brighter elements here, but most of the song is mediocre to bad. Bruce's vocals are also not very good. 4/10.
 
A long time ago (relatively) I'd have given this song close to a 10. Nowadays? It's unique, sure, but the drums just don't do it for me, and the verses suck. They're so simplistic it's not even funny. I like the idea behind it, but Jesus Christ, did it have to feel like they were just doing it because they needed to pad the runtime? The chorus and instrumental sections have a little bit more life but the whole song is just too bleh for my taste. More effort was required here. One of Maiden's worst songs. 1
 
A little underrated - one of my favorite songs from Maiden! Amazing melancholic intro and when the drums starts, it's sounds epic. Great verses and the chorus is unique and fantastic. Good riff. Superb twin-lead guitar harmonies and very good solo. I love this song. I wish Maiden will play it live some day. The song is with a perfect length. A hidden gem! 10/10.
 
Last edited:
According to Dickinson, the lyrics refer to the prevailing
fear of the uncertain future of humanity due to ecological
disasters, wars and living conditions in many countries
of the planet. The changes that this fear brings to the human psyche
are summarized in the title of the song, the end of childhood, the end of it
innocence.
While this may be a coincidence,
interesting is the fact that
the book of the same name with the song
(1953) of the award-winning
science fiction writer
Arthur Clarke (1917 - 2008)
refers to a race of aliens
who come to guide
humanity in peace and
prosperity, eliminating all
governments (and therefore war)
and ending global poverty,
hunger and oppression.
 
I loved this song when I first heard the album, but it’s falling tremendously. The verses and lyrics are so simplistic and cover such a deeply horrible topic without doing it justice that it takes me right out of the music. It’s also a weird song when it comes to Nicko’s drumming too. The instrumental section is pretty strong, but it doesn’t bring the song up much. Meh, let’s move on. 5/10
 
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