Iron Maiden and Genesis the connection.

[Blazer]

Today I spoke to a buddy of mine who read that Iron maiden Bass player Steve Harris cited Rinus Gerritsen of Golden Earring and Michael Rutherford of Genesis as his main influences for him to start playing bass.

And he went "Golden Earring, yeah I can see that. They did some really rocking stuff but Genesis? Come on, that's sappy pop music, how on earth could he get inspiration from that?"

I told him that he was thinking of the wrong era and took out my copy of "Nursery Cryme" and put on "The return of the giant hogweed"


His reaction: "WTF is that guy doing on the bass?" and after hearing the whole thing "Okay I understand now, I made the link."

 

[Moggl]

I think saying that any member of Genesis is / was limited to 'sappy pop music' says a lot more about the person making that claim than it does about the artists in question.

 

[klasaine]

Genesis - Frank Zappa - Weather Report ...
What's (who's) the connection?

 

[Smoky Booroo]

I love old Genesis! I can say that I've said how much I like them and have had to explain that there are two eras also... that said, the first album I ever bought was Genesis "Invisible Touch" when I was like 12.

 

[franchelB]

I think I learned about Genesis when I was in highschool...and that was WAY AFTER Peter Gabriel and Steve Hackett left! Then I learned there was Genesis "rock" before "And Then There Were Three"!

 

[Radspin]

Chester Thompson?

 

[JackStraw]

^^^ Gets my vote.

 

[klasaine]

Chester Thompson?

Bingo!

*You knew you didn't need the question mark.

 

[e-merlin]

I think saying that any member of Genesis is / was limited to 'sappy pop music' says a lot more about the person making that claim than it does about the artists in question.

+1. Even during their "sappy pop era" they had some great stuff.

 

[jonzer]

We're supposed to be in a box musically?

I love Genesis, Nirvana, Ratt, Beatles, Pete Yorn, the Ramones....I don't just listen to one type of music. Why should professional musicians?

 

[Super Locrian]

"Kill them with your hogweed hairs, Heraclea Mantegazziani!"

Anyone who could put something like that into rock lyrics and get away with it, deserves huge amounts of praise IMO!

Compare this with Maiden's prose:

I'm coming back
I will return
And I'll possess your body
and I'll make you burn
I'll have the fire
I'll have the force
I'll have the power
to make my evil take its course

 

[klasaine]

I don't just listen to one type of music. Why should professional musicians?

Exactly. If they're truly creative you can't possibly expect to remain stagnant.

*Though I really like 'solo' Peter Gabriel (the 3rd record in particular - the one with Games w/o Frontiers), I'm more of a Genesis fan post PG ... go figure - ?

 

[napawino]

I like Genesis up through Abacab.

 

[Blazer]

I like Genesis up through Abacab.

And even that album has some really good prog gems, such as "Dodo/Lurker"

 

[napawino]

"Through" Abacab. Meaning I like that one!

 

[Slow Reflexes]

I'd go up through Genesis. They lost me with "Invisible Touch."

 

[polishcomedy]

I liked 'em through We Can't Dance.

 

[Oster]

I recall an interview (in a magazine) years ago with Steve Harris talking about his influences and he was saying how he was fortunate to grow up at a time when one could see Black Sabbath and The Moody Blues on the same bill for not a lot of money, words to that effect.

Apart from their obvious debt to Judas Priest, Iron Maiden did strike me as having some progressive sensibilities that were I think original for the time. I remember Rime Of The Ancient Mariner from Powerslave as being an ambitious track. Maybe a little Genesis to that one. I think the cerebral element of a band like Genesis may have been influential to them rather than strictly musical. Though Hogweed and things like The Knife or the loud parts of Musical Box border on hard rock.

The thing with Metal as a genre is the further down the line you go into the modern age you have musicians who are only influenced by Metal and not the psychedelic melodic symphonic sounds that someone like Steve Harris would've been exposed to. So you end up with some very one-dimensional bands later on. This is true of any genre, I think; It gets over-distilled.

The original NWOBHM bands all had brains and good record collections. Their fans later on maybe not so much.

PS I grew up not far from Lado Guitars, where Steve Harris had some custom basses made in the '80s during Maiden's heyday. I used to hang out there as a kid.

 

[Blazer]

PS I grew up not far from Lado Guitars, where Steve Harris had some custom basses made in the '80s during Maiden's heyday. I used to hang out there as a kid.

According to a very recent interview with the German mag "Gitarre und Bass" Harris still owns the Lado basses he got but he didn't really like to use them live because of them not having that powerful Fender Precision Bass sound.

One of the Lado custom basses that Steve Harris still owns.

Adrian Smtih however used his custom Lado explorers to good effect as his main live instruments for many years.
image removed

 

[casterway]

Check out what the bass is doing here...