Heavy Metal Sunday loves a good Turkey!
Nov. 27th, 2008 08:38 amIn this case, it's not the song, but the video.
Iron Maiden's Run to the Hills, released on 1982's The Number of the Beast, is possibly their biggest hit and one of the most enduring songs in Heavy Metal. The story of the Indian Wars of the 19th century told from several points of view; this song is a serious look at a dark period of American history.
Since this was the dawn of the music video age, it was decided that a video was needed to accompany the single's release. There were a couple of problems though. Early videos were dominated by the New Wave acts who were far more video friendly, Maiden had a strict time limit due to touring obligations, and nobody really understood how to handle the very stage-centered look of a heavy metal act. So Maiden shot the concert footage at their tour rehearsal stage and went on tour understanding that some stock footage of Indians and Cavalry would be added.
Alas, the video's director chose to use footage from The Uncovered Wagon, a 1923 spoof of westerns that was pure slapstick. The band, who first saw the video weeks after its release on MTV, were reportedly ready to kill the director. However, due to contractual obligations, they could not pull the video. Needless to say, they kept a closer eye on their next few videos.
The video was remade in the early part of this decade, with a computer animated Eddie replacing all the movie shots, but that version is just cheesy.. we want the original Turkey:
And now, dessert:
Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!
Iron Maiden's Run to the Hills, released on 1982's The Number of the Beast, is possibly their biggest hit and one of the most enduring songs in Heavy Metal. The story of the Indian Wars of the 19th century told from several points of view; this song is a serious look at a dark period of American history.
Since this was the dawn of the music video age, it was decided that a video was needed to accompany the single's release. There were a couple of problems though. Early videos were dominated by the New Wave acts who were far more video friendly, Maiden had a strict time limit due to touring obligations, and nobody really understood how to handle the very stage-centered look of a heavy metal act. So Maiden shot the concert footage at their tour rehearsal stage and went on tour understanding that some stock footage of Indians and Cavalry would be added.
Alas, the video's director chose to use footage from The Uncovered Wagon, a 1923 spoof of westerns that was pure slapstick. The band, who first saw the video weeks after its release on MTV, were reportedly ready to kill the director. However, due to contractual obligations, they could not pull the video. Needless to say, they kept a closer eye on their next few videos.
The video was remade in the early part of this decade, with a computer animated Eddie replacing all the movie shots, but that version is just cheesy.. we want the original Turkey:
And now, dessert:
Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!