Iron Maiden - Of The Dark (Roma 1993)

Iron Maiden - San Giovanni in laterano square, Roma, Italy, May 1, 1993, during the ’’ A Real Live Tour’’ 1993. Fear Of The Dark (Harris) Bruce Dickinson:Vocals Steve Harris:Bass Janick Gers:Guitar Dave Murray:Guitar Nicko McBrain:Drums [Lyrics] I am a man who walks alone And when I’m walking a dark road At night or strolling through the park When the light begins to change I sometimes feel a little strange A little anxious when it’s dark Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a constant fear that something’s always near Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a phobia that someone’s always there Have you run your fingers down the wall And have you felt your neck skin crawl When you’re searching for the light? Sometimes when you’re scared to take a look At the corner of the room You’ve sensed that something’s watching you Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a constant fear that something’s always near Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a phobia that someone’s always there Have you ever been alone at night Thought you heard footsteps behind And turned around and no-one’s there? And as you quicken up your pace You find it hard to look again Because you’re sure there’s someone there Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a constant fear that something’s always near Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a phobia that someone’s always there Fear of the dark, fear of the dark Fear of the dark, fear of the dark Fear of the dark, fear of the dark Fear of the dark, fear of the dark Watching horror films the night before Debating witches and folklore The unknown troubles on your mind Maybe your mind is playing tricks You sense and suddenly eyes fix On dancing shadows from behind Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a constant fear that something’s always near Fear of the dark, fear of the dark I have a phobia that someone’s always there When I’m walking a dark road, I am a man who walks alone... .................................. ’Fear Of The Dark’ is a song from Iron Maiden’s album ’’Fear Of The Dark’’,released in 1992. ’’ ’Fear Of The Dark’ is an instant Maiden classic, and certainly a live concert favourite. It begins and ends softly and ominously, with a tune that is vaguely similar to ’No Prayer For The Dying’. The main parts of the song are fast and exciting and quite frantic highlighting the notion of fear that becomes panic, with perhaps the most recognisable Maiden tune and chorus since ’The Trooper’. The live versions of the song feature an interesting crowd interaction during the instrumental section and it has become part of the setlist ever since the release of the album. Everything about this song is incredible, and it is probably the best song of the album. According to Bruce Dickinson, Steve who wrote the lyrics is himself actually afraid of the dark. Whether this is true or not is not important, as he seems to have transposed in a very clever way the childhood fear of being left alone at night in the dark a very common fear in children that most of us have probably experienced at a younger age and turned this irrational phobia into an adult metaphor. It is basically about the fear of losing control and drifting into the madness that threatens virtually everyone at one point or another in life. As Mick Wall recalls in his commentary contained in the 1998 re-edition of the album: “It’s about being scared but not really knowing what of,“ Steve explained at the time. “They say that everybody has a secret fear of something, they just don’t always know what it is until it’s too late,“ he added enigmatically.’’ ’Fear of the Dark’ is the ninth studio album released by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It topped the UK albums chart. Released on 11 May 1992, it was the final studio album to feature Bruce Dickinson as lead vocalist who left the band following the album’s support tour to pursue a solo career. He was succeeded by Blaze Bayley, formerly of Wolfsbane, for two studio albums until Dickinson returned to Iron Maiden for the 2000 release of Brave New World.