Iron Maiden - 2 Minutes to Midnight
Evidently, the new American ambassador to Iraq is a heavy metal fan. One of his prized possessions is a poster of Iron Maiden’s “2 Minutes to Midnight” single (EMI, 1984). Pretty hip for a diplomat, though of course the song and cover has geopolitical significance, which a Maiden fansite explains in detail here.
The single had two interesting B-sides, both of which appeared on the 1995 reissue of Powerslave. “Rainbow’s Gold” was a cover of obscure prog rock band Beckett, with an “Immigrant Song”-esque drum intro. “Misson from ‘Arry,” however, was one of the strangest pieces of audio ever pressed to vinyl. It was a recording of a spirited argument between Steve Harris (“‘Arry”) and Nicko McBrain.
What happened was, Harris had some technical difficulties live while Nicko was doing a drum solo. Harris sent someone to tell Nicko to extend his solo. However, Nicko didn’t understand the messenger and screwed up his solo. So after the show, Nicko punched out the guy. Bruce Dickinson walked in and recorded the resulting row.
English people fighting = funny.
