On the origin of the first album cover

From the book Run For Cover The Art of Derek Riggs:

"And the background of that is the streets where I used to live in London. So I just kind of put the two together. I used to read H.P.Lovecraft, and I read an interview with him where he says anyone can make a horror story horrible in the wilds of Transylvania, with a hooting owl and bats and smoke and all that, but what's it like if you shove it right on your doorstep? So I stuck him right on your doorstep. That was a street in London where I lived, or one of them anyway, actually a combination of two. Given my gypsy soul I guess, I tended to move around a lot. But I used to walk around a lot at night, and I liked the yellow glow from the streetlights and the blue tine to the moon - quite a stunning contrast, really"
 
Brigantium said:
The question is....in which street did he find Eddie? ;)
Click to expand...

For the answer to that question, I defer you to this thread:

http://forum.maidenfans.com/threads...ee-the-original-eddie-here.14741/#post-153056

The image links don't work anymore, but here's the image being talked of in the thread (warning, it's quite gruesome):

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So yeah, that's it... all the origins of the first Maiden album cover are in this thread!
 
That photo could indeed have inspired Riggs to decide on how he would draw Eddie.
However, the original idea already existed before Riggs came along (check that mask; it also has the typical nose features), so I'd be very surprised if he would not have been aware of that. Read on:
http://www.getreadytoroll.com/interviews/davebeazley.htm
db9.jpg

db2.jpg

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What creative juices led to the concept of Eddie, and how much input did you have into the way he developed? And have you come to look on Eddie as one of your family?
Eddie The ‘Ed was a joke that was going around at the time, i.e. - a couple had a child, but when the child was born it was only a head - no arms, legs or anything else. The couple were devastated but the doctor said ‘Don’t give up hope. When the head’s grown to its full size, which will be when the boy is about 14 years old, we’ll fix him up with a body‘. So the couple put Eddie on the mantle-piece and looked after him for the next fourteen years. On his fourteenth birthday they said to him ‘Eddie, we have a very special present for you’, and Eddie replied… ‘Oh no... not another fuckin hat!’.

So yes, the idea for Eddie grew out of that joke! In the song ‘Iron Maiden’, the lyric goes ‘See the blood begin to flow‘ etc. So, on the backdrop that we used for the pub gigs, with the help of a friend from art college I rigged up a mask that was made from a mould of my own face which coughed up blood in time to those lyrics. The Eddie that was used as the band became more famous was designed from artwork by Derek Riggs, but the original idea started with that joke, and that first mask. As to whether I see him as family, yes, in a way I suppose I do!

db1.jpg
 
Hehe. It was easy to cut it off, so it's like the person who scanned it wanted to leave it on intentionally.
 
Anyway, well, the thread I linked to has information on Riggs stating that the photo was what inspired him to do the drawing. I think the story goes that Riggs had a portfolio with that picture included which he showed around to potential gigs, and Maiden said they wanted to use the one they eventually did use for their album cover.

I know I've seen other pictures, but if you look at the early Eddie masks on the back of the original Iron Maiden LP, in the '98 reissue booklet and in Run to the Hills, I don't think they look anything like Riggs' version. I always thought they hired Riggs because they wanted him to give Eddie the "definite" look.
 
From Riggsy's Facebook page:

Hi it's Derek Riggs,
Here is something that Pablo Miniaci found. It's the actual picture that I used for the skin texture on the very first Eddie.
It wasn't the inspiration for Eddie, as some sources have wrongly stated. It is where I went to in order to find out what dried-up skin on a skull looked like.

http://life.time.com/history/guadalcanal-world-war-2-rare-and-classic-photos/?iid=lf|mostpop#1

I have seen this image reproduced under the heading "American soldier's head on a Nazi tank." "American soldier's head on a Vietnamese tank." and now this Japanese version. So I have no idea where it really comes from, it's been used as propaganda so many times I wonder if it is a real skull at all, or just something someone faked up as a propaganda tool.
 
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