Leftover Songs that Should have been Included on the Album

[CA Bryers]

Since, for the last two albums, we've been in the era of "no song left behind" resulting in double albums, I was wondering if there were any B-Sides that could've/should've been included on the album proper. For instance, Maiden themselves rectified the absence of Total Eclipse on The Number of the Beast, but were there any others that were good enough and fit the tone (i.e. no comedy/cover tracks)? If so, where would you slot them in on the album?

For an example, I've been listening to The X Factor for the last few years with all three leftovers on the album and may even someday include Virus into the mix, since the production of the song gives it the sonic stamp of The X Factor to my ears more so than it does Virtual XI. And yes, I know it was a totally different recording session.

You could argue Women in Uniform--even though it is a cover--could've found its way onto Killers since it was an A-Side...even if the band didn't like the song much. Would it even fit sonically? Fun fact: Women in Uniform is included in the Australian version of Killers, slotted in between the title track and Prodigal Son.

Then there's the big standout track from Somewhere in Time: Reach Out. While it sounds more Adrian solo than a proper Maiden song and it has outside writer credits (a big no-no for Steve), could it fit? Where would you put it?

What else? Burning Ambition and Invasion on the debut?

On the flip side, which overlong albums would you trim down by a song or two to make them a stronger package?

 

[naranja]

Blaze was saying Justice of the peace should have been on X Factor but I think Judgment day is way better and definitely should have been on the album. I've made this up in my head but I'm convinced a certain bass player didn't want two songs called "judgment..." on the album and that's why it didn't make it..

TXF really needed another fast tune

I live my way is shit.

 

[CA Bryers]

Blaze was saying Justice of the peace should have been on X Factor but I think Judgment day is way better and definitely should have been on the album. I've made this up in my head but I'm convinced a certain bass player didn't want two songs called "judgment..." on the album and that's why it didn't make it..

TXF really needed another fast tune

I live my way is shit.

I prefer Judgment over Justice any day of the week as well. And yeah, the album definitely needed another short banger like one of those two.

I used to like I Live My Way a lot, but nowadays it kinda sounds like Maiden doing a bad impression of a Wolfsbane song. The first song written for the album, if I recall, and one Steve thought might've been the lead single. I'll have to sift through my old interviews from the era to verify all that, though. I think the main reason I like including it is because it has energy and is another punchy rocker that adds much-needed dynamics to the album.

 

[Eddieson]

I did a challenge where I wanted to keep each album under 60 min, so I took the albums over 60 min and cut them down to see how that affected them. Here are the results! 5 songs on Book of Souls, that's crazy!

THE X FACTOR - 58 min 4 sec
1. Sign of the Cross
2. Lord of the Flies
3. Man on the Edge
4. Look for the Truth
5. The Aftermath
6. Judgement of Heaven
7. Blood on the World's Hands
8. The Edge of Darkness
9. The Unbeliever

BRAVE NEW WORLD - 55 min 29 sec
1. The Wicker Man
2. Brave New World
3. Blood Brothers
4. Dream of Mirrors
5. The Fallen Angel
6. The Nomad
7. Out of the Silent Planet
8. The Thin Line Between Love and Hate

DANCE OF DEATH - 57 min 57 sec
1. Rainmaker
2. No More Lies
3. Montségur
4. Dance of Death
5. Gates of Tomorrow
6. New Frontier
7. Paschendale
8. Face in the Sand
9. Journeyman

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH - 59 min 35 sec
1. Different World
2. Brighter Than a Thousand Suns
3. The Pilgrim
4. The Longest Day
5. The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
6. For the Greater Good of God
7. Lord of Light
8. The Legacy

THE FINAL FRONTIER - 57 min 47 sec
1. Satellite 15... The Final Frontier
2. El Dorado
3. Mother of Mercy
4. Isle of Avalon
5. Starblind
6. The Talisman
7. When the Wild Wind Blows

BOOK OF SOULS - 58 min 3 sec
1. If Eternity Should Fail
2. The Red and the Black
3. The Book of Souls
4. Shadows of the Valley
5. Empire of the Clouds

SENJUTSU - 54 min 56 sec
1. Senjutsu
2. Stratego
3. The Writing on the Wall
4. Days of Future Past
5. Darkest Hour
6. The Parchment
7. Hell on Earth

 

[CA Bryers]

I did a challenge where I wanted to keep each album under 60 min, so I took the albums over 60 min and cut them down to see how that affected them. Here are the results! 5 songs on Book of Souls, that's crazy!

THE X FACTOR - 58 min 4 sec
1. Sign of the Cross
2. Lord of the Flies
3. Man on the Edge
4. Look for the Truth
5. The Aftermath
6. Judgement of Heaven
7. Blood on the World's Hands
8. The Edge of Darkness
9. The Unbeliever

BRAVE NEW WORLD - 55 min 29 sec
1. The Wicker Man
2. Brave New World
3. Blood Brothers
4. Dream of Mirrors
5. The Fallen Angel
6. The Nomad
7. Out of the Silent Planet
8. The Thin Line Between Love and Hate

DANCE OF DEATH - 57 min 57 sec
1. Rainmaker
2. No More Lies
3. Montségur
4. Dance of Death
5. Gates of Tomorrow
6. New Frontier
7. Paschendale
8. Face in the Sand
9. Journeyman

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH - 59 min 35 sec
1. Different World
2. Brighter Than a Thousand Suns
3. The Pilgrim
4. The Longest Day
5. The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
6. For the Greater Good of God
7. Lord of Light
8. The Legacy

THE FINAL FRONTIER - 57 min 47 sec
1. Satellite 15... The Final Frontier
2. El Dorado
3. Mother of Mercy
4. Isle of Avalon
5. Starblind
6. The Talisman
7. When the Wild Wind Blows

BOOK OF SOULS - 58 min 3 sec
1. If Eternity Should Fail
2. The Red and the Black
3. The Book of Souls
4. Shadows of the Valley
5. Empire of the Clouds

SENJUTSU - 54 min 56 sec
1. Senjutsu
2. Stratego
3. The Writing on the Wall
4. Days of Future Past
5. Darkest Hour
6. The Parchment
7. Hell on Earth

Those are some super-tight tracklists! I found Book of Souls alarming with only 5 songs (very EP-like), but when you account for The Red and the Black and Empire of the Clouds alone, that's 31 minutes right there. I might have to experiment listening to some of these as a playlist to see how they might benefit overall for not being so overlong. I'm especially intrigued to try your picks for The X Factor.

 

[Eddieson]

Those are some super-tight tracklists! I found Book of Souls alarming with only 5 songs (very EP-like), but when you account for The Red and the Black and Empire of the Clouds alone, that's 31 minutes right there. I might have to experiment listening to some of these as a playlist to see how they might benefit overall for not being so overlong. I'm especially intrigued to try your picks for The X Factor.

Haha, yes, I set up so many ridiculous ways of seeing discographies. What happens if each album is a 5-track EP? What happens if you only allow 8 songs per album to match the 80s albums? It always changes the flow and makes you see the albums in different ways.