Phantom of the Opera

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How good is Phantom of the Opera on a scale of 1-10?

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    16
Ooh, ooh! Phantom Of The Opera! A clear 10, right? Well...no.

Actually, it's very close to a 10. The riffs here are really amazing and that instrumental section...my god, that's some great stuff.

The vocals are great, too, though in the verses, it seems more like Paul Di'Anno just singing along with the melody. Now, this is probably intentional and I don't mind it.

This song is actually somewhat progressive which is something I really like about this song.

I could give it a 10, of course and it wouldn't seem out of place for me. But I will play it safe and give it the rating that resonates best with me.

9/10.
 
Phantom Of The Opera is a real classic Maiden song. The instrumental section is out of this world.

I must admit that I prefer Bruce on vocals, though.

10/10, hands-down!
 
10/10

Phantom of the Opera is a crowning achievement. It’s the type of a song you expect a band to write on their third or fourth album once they’ve completely figured themselves out. For an artist to release a song of this quality on their first album is astonishing. It’s an absolute classic and a true epic, one of the best songs of Maiden’s career. Di’Anno, Murray, and yes, even Dennis Stratton sound absolutely electric, Clive Burr is unstoppable, and Harris dominates the entire second half of the song with fire and grit.
 
This, of course, is the stand out track of the record for me as it is for so many others. There is a certain brillians to the arrangement with the overlong midsection and the quick start/stop verses. And the intro is just so perfect I just can't seem to get tired of it. For me it's really very close to a ten, but as so often for this period the lyrics just makes it miss that perfect spot.

edit:
Change my vote to a 10, this is after all one of the songs I TRY to leave out of every playlist but keep failing, it's one of the best songs they've done.
 
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Here we fucking go.

This song grabs you from the first second and says, hold on for the ride. This is a song that benefits from the raw production - it's never quite sounded as good live, I think. If you listen carefully, you can hear finger noise on Steve's bass, you can hear mistakes in the mix. And it smashes through that. This is the first true killer Iron Maiden riff, as well as the first true Iron Maiden epic.

Part of me wonders if Steve didn't write this too early. If he wrote it around the time of Powerslave, it might be 9 minutes instead of 7, and have far more sophisticated lyrics. But even if that were true, it couldn't get any better.

As Bruce said, if you don't like Phantom of the Opera, you don't fuckin' like Iron Maiden.

10/10.
 
  • Just a brilliant composition that flows fantastically from beginning to end.
  • Lovely bass playing by Steve Harris. The bass basically carries the entire track and the guitars are singing the melodies on top of it. A favorite of mine to play on the bass as well.
  • Another instance of the production contributing to the track. The song retains the energy in its composition through the raw production.
  • Lovely up-and-down rhythmic plays on this track. The palm muted guitars on the "Keep your distance" part, the rather playful and dance-able rhythm around the 4:30 mark. Brilliant.
  • Nice solos all around.
10/10.
 
LooseCannon said:
As Bruce said, if you don't like Phantom of the Opera, you don't fuckin' like Iron Maiden.
Click to expand...
^That.

It was probably the best live song I've heard them play. When I listen to it, I listen to the LaD version, it just sounds better. One of the best Maiden songs ever.
10/10
 
This song really is fantastic, and quintessential early Maiden. The crap production, in this case, actually added to the heaviness and the ferocity of the song. Steve's bass is particularly on fire here. The band, in every lineup, sounds like they're on fire every time they play this song. An absolute classic in the best sense of the word. 10/10
 
10.

So anyway, it seems to me that this might have been a pretty important stepping stone for the entire "prog metal" genre. I can't think of anything much that came before Maiden's debut that was this heavy and "scary" but also so structurally complex. Sabbath had Sabotage, which was prog but still sounded very much like a band that came up in the sixties, with a drugged-out, anything-goes atmosphere. Rush had the chops but never this much grit. Did Priest have anything like it? Anyone else?
 
Priest had atmospheric/scary stuff. They had gritty stuff? Not many songs had rhythm or tempo changes or breaks. Victim of Changes or Sinner come closest perhaps.
 
Easily my favourite from the debut album, and always in my top 10 Maiden songs. Everything about it is cool. I'm very happy that they've decided to keep bringing it back on tour setlists, so that I've been able to witness it live despite attending my first Maiden show as recently as 2006.

And like several others have pointed out already, very enjoyable song to play. It has everything that makes a Maiden classics:
  • A killer bassline to drive the song along
  • Several shifts in mood and tempo, with the song flowing nicely between the different parts
  • Awesome solo work
  • Tons of energy!
The 7 minutes just fly by when listening to it. 10/10 and one of the Maiden songs I'd give an 11 if I could.
 
What a giant this song is!

Honestly, I can't believe Iron Maiden released this behemoth on their debut album. Magnificent songwriting and delivery from all the band members. As others have pointed out, 7 minutes just fly by, like nothing.

I just love everything about this song, even the production. Iron Maiden Top 5 material, easily.

The highlight: The harmony that starts at 4:52 - so easy to play, yet so effective.

10/10
 
Shadow said:
10.

So anyway, it seems to me that this might have been a pretty important stepping stone for the entire "prog metal" genre. I can't think of anything much that came before Maiden's debut that was this heavy and "scary" but also so structurally complex. Sabbath had Sabotage, which was prog but still sounded very much like a band that came up in the sixties, with a drugged-out, anything-goes atmosphere. Rush had the chops but never this much grit. Did Priest have anything like it? Anyone else?
Click to expand...
Check this out! Fits well! He even mentions Rush!
 
This is the song that separates Iron Maiden from the bunch. It's a heavily prog-rock inspired track, the epitome of their 'progressive influences'. It works. I don't feel like it's a 10 because this style evolves a bit to get there. Some of the melodies and parts I find a bit cheesy and pretentious. 9
 
Love this song. There's not much I can say about it that hasn't been said already. It's punk, it's progressive, it's metal, it has everything. I find it kinda funny that this song (IMO) has both the punkiest riffs on the album and the proggiest. It really covers the gamut that way.

This is the first Maiden song I remember really learning on guitar. Like, every single part practiced until perfected. I'm not sure why I chose this song over any others, but I did and finally playing through it all was a joy. I'll still pick out some of those riffs and melodies for fun when warming up. It's an instrumental section that has really been unmatched since. Alexander is complex, The Red and the Black is ambitious, but there's something about the Phantom instrumental that just sticks out. It's perfectly constructed.

10
 
The absolute star attraction of the album for me, if not a high point of Maiden's entire discography. Not bad for something off of the debut, eh? Has a bit of everything in it. Quite long for early stuff, but a captivating instrumental. It should sound a lot more dated than it does, but somehow still works an absolute treat in front of a present-day festival crowd of tens of thousands. As previously mentioned, a joy to play. Even if I do make it sound crap.
Undisputed 10/10.
 
9/10. I really like this one, but not as much as most and I actually prefer Remember Tomorrow over it. Still a very strong song for the debut and some great riffs and a great solo!
 
9.

What an absolute monster of a song. Easily the best on the album but saying that feels almost a disservice to a song that would stand out in any Maiden album.

1980 - Iron Maiden

8 - Prowler
6 - Sanctuary
7 - Remember Tomorrow
6 - Running Free
9 - Phantom Of The Opera

 
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