Besides the band’s founder, Steve Harris, no one has a longer history with British heavy metal legends Iron Maiden than guitarist Dave Murray. Murray joined the nascent group in 1976 and, outside a brief hiccup in ’76-77, he has held down Maiden stage left with his fluid, rapid-fire chops ever since. With the band currently jetting through a series of South American shows, Murray took the time to talk to CreativeLoafing.com about a variety of topics, including the band’s recent Best Metal Performance Grammy victory for “El Dorado.”
“We got nominated a couple years back for ‘The Wicker Man,’” Murray recalled. “We’ve been aware of it, but it’s not the thing that would make or break Iron Maiden. We’ve always done things our own way, touring, making albums. It’s a very nice compliment to be acknowledged and to have this award – it’s any band’s dream to get awards. It’s great to just exist as a band and play for an audience. We’re very proud of it, we’ve been around for quite a while, obviously somebody’s taken that we’ve been around for quite a while – maybe that nudged it in the right direction. Not sure who votes on that stuff. Ultimately, it’s the Iron Maiden fans at the top of our priority. They come first.”
It was pointed out to Murray that, 12 years after singer Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith rejoined the group in 1999, Iron Maiden have managed to maintain what has become their most enduring lineup.
“This is it, really,” he said. “This is how the band will exist in the future. I can’t see there being any changes. Ultimately it’s the perfect lineup, because it does extend back to when Adrian was in the band for the first few albums. And obviously when Bruce was in the band, so this is obviously the strongest and most creative lineup Maiden has ever had. Everything kind of gels and glues together really well. As far as rehearsing and writing, everything fits into place nicely. We just sit down like we always do and work out songs. We wouldn’t be changing anymore. This is it; I think we’re kinda far along enough now to say. Also, it’s my favorite lineup, and also most of the other guys. There’s a chance for everyone to play and enjoy what they’re doing.”
As for when this lineup will head back into the studio to record a follow-up to the smash hit, The Final Frontier, Murray was enthusiastic, if a bit non-committal.
“A lot of the time you plan ahead, and things tend to get in the way. At the moment it’s nice to focus on the here and now. We’re on tour, we’ve got another later this summer, and then we’ll all need a rest. Possibly there will be, but it’s hard to say at the moment. It definitely won’t be next year, anyway. My gut feeling is once we sit down, if everyone’s up for it—that’s the main thing—then we’ll go for it.”
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