Seventh Son of a Seventh Son

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Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
Studio album by Iron Maiden
Released	11 April, 1988
Recorded	Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany, during 1987 - March 1988
Genre	Heavy metal
Length	43:50
Label	EMI
Producer	Martin Birch
Professional reviews
Allmusic link Kerrang! -
Iron Maiden chronology
Somewhere in Time (1986) Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988) No Prayer for the Dying (1990)
Singles from Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
"Can I Play with Madness" Released: 20 March 1988 "The Evil That Men Do" Released: 1 August 1988 "The Clairvoyant" Released: 7 November 1988

Seventh Son of a Seventh Son is a concept album by heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released in 1988 as the band's seventh studio album on EMI in Europe and its sister label Capitol Records in the US (it was re-released by Sanctuary/Columbia Records in the US in 2002).

[edit] History

Seventh Son of a Seventh Son was the last Iron Maiden album to feature guitarist Adrian Smith until the album Brave New World in 2000 (he did write a song that Bruce Dickinson finished for the next album, No Prayer for the Dying, titled "Hooks in You", a loose tie-in to the Charlotte the Harlot saga).

At least five of the album's songs ("Moonchild", "Infinite Dreams", "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son", "The Prophecy" and "The Clairvoyant") can be directly related to a main lyrical storyline inspired by the folklore concept.

Lyrically, the album centers around some main philosophical ideas: good vs. evil, mysticism, prophetic vision, reincarnation and afterlife. Almost all the album includes direct or indirect references to questions regarding to these concepts and poetically refers the answers.

Stylistically, Seventh Son of a Seventh Son develops the sounds first heard on Somewhere in Time (1986), and continues the band's lyrical exploration of topics related to mysticism, power, and the occult.

The album debuted at #1 in UK charts (their only since The Number of the Beast) as well as #12 in the U.S, while the singles "Can I Play with Madness", "The Evil That Men Do", "The Clairvoyant (live)" and "Infinite Dreams (live)" reached #3, #5, #6 and #6 positions, respectively. It is the last Iron Maiden album to go platinum in the USA.

Of all the songs in the album, "The Evil That Men Do", "The Clairvoyant" and "Can I Play with Madness" sporadically appear on the set lists of nearly all of the band's concert tours.

7th Tour of a 7th Tour was the tour supporting the album.

[edit] Track listing

1. "Moonchild" (Bruce Dickinson, Adrian Smith) – 5:39
2. "Infinite Dreams" (Steve Harris) – 6:09
3. "Can I Play with Madness" (Dickinson, Smith, Harris) – 3:31
4. "The Evil That Men Do" (Dickinson, Smith, Harris) – 4:34
5. "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" (Harris) – 9:53
6. "The Prophecy" (Dave Murray, Harris) – 5:05
7. "The Clairvoyant" (Harris) – 4:27
8. "Only the Good Die Young" (Dickinson, Harris) – 4:42

[edit] 1995 Reissue Bonus CD

1. "Black Bart Blues" (Dickinson, Harris) - 6:41
2. "Massacre" (Brian Downey, Phil Lynott, Scott Gorham) - 2:53
3. "Prowler 88" (Harris) - 4:07
4. "Charlotte the Harlot 88" (Murray) - 4:11
5. "Infinite Dreams (live)" (Harris) - 6:03
6. "The Clairvoyant (live)" (Harris) - 4:27
7. "The Prisoner (live)" (Smith, Harris) - 6:09
8. "Killers (live)" (Paul Di'Anno, Harris) - 5:03
9. "Still Life (live)" (Murray, Harris) - 4:38

[edit] Personnel

• Bruce Dickinson – vocals
• Dave Murray – guitar
• Adrian Smith – guitar, backing vocals, synth
• Steve Harris – bass, backing vocals, string synth
• Nicko McBrain – drums

[edit] Production

• Martin Birch – producer, engineer, mixing, tape operator
• Albert Boekholt – engineer, assistant engineer
• Ronald Prent – engineer, assistant engineer
• George Marino – mastering engineer

[edit] Chart performance

[edit] Album

[edit] Singles