Steve Harris Defends Iron Maiden No Prayer for the Dying

Iron Maiden bassist and founder Steve Harris has spoken out in defense of the band’s eighth studio album, 1990’s No Prayer for the Dying, a record that often appears at or near the bottom of ranking lists.

Going Back to Basics

Speaking to Metal Hammer, Harris argued that the album is much stronger than its reputation suggests, attributing its raw sound to a deliberate shift away from the grandiosity of records like Somewhere in Time and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son.

“I think it’s a really strong album,” Harris said. “At the time, we had gotten so big, with all the grandiose shows, that we were trying to go back to basics a little bit.”

Harris also pointed to an indirect influence from frontman Bruce Dickinson’s solo work at the time, specifically noting Tattooed Millionaire. He explained that he wanted to write material that allowed Dickinson to utilize a rougher, gruff vocal delivery.

Recording in the Barn

To capture a stripped-down aesthetic, the band tracked the album in an outbuilding at Harris’s home utilizing the Rolling Stones’ mobile recording studio. Looking back, Harris revealed the single detail he would change about the project.

“We probably should have put audience noise on it, because it would have sounded more like a proper live album – we did that with the Tailgunner video, and it made a big difference,” he noted.

Despite the historical criticism directed at the record’s rough-edged performances and rudimentary production, Harris remains unfazed by the backlash. “If someone says they don’t like something, that makes me embrace it even more,” he said. “You’ve got to believe in what you do, don’t you?”

Frank Zappa’s estate is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Mothers of Invention’s groundbreaking 1966 debut album, Freak Out!, with a massive deluxe reissue. Arriving on Sept. 25 via Zappa Records and UMe, the expanded collection unearths a long-lost mono mix, unreleased live performances, demos, and rehearsal tapes straight from the vault.

Released originally on June 27, 1966, via Verve Records, Freak Out! stands as one of rock’s very first double albums and an early blueprint for the concept album. Its influence reached far and wide, inspiring Paul McCartney when the Beatles were crafting their own concept album Sgt. Pepper’s. Zappa and the Mothers rejected standard pop formats in favor of a sprawling mix of doo-wop, R&B, orchestral arrangements, free jazz, and caustic social satire.

What’s Inside the 60th Anniversary Box Set

Produced by Zappa vaultmeister Joe Travers, the Super Deluxe 5CD/1Blu-ray edition packs a trove of bonus material, including numerous rare live and studio recordings. The core 15-track album features 24-bit/192kHz digital transfers and 2026 mastering by John Polito. Listeners get three distinct ways to experience the original double-LP: a newly remastered stereo mix, a rediscovered 1966 pre-master mix, and the elusive mono mix that remained unavailable for decades.

Discs four and five of the super deluxe set dive into the archives with live material captured at San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium in June and February of 1966. It also features original Mothers rehearsals, demos, vocal reference mixes, and a late-night jam session outtake collage. The accompanying Blu-ray includes the stereo mix and a bonus track titled “Groupie Bang Bang.”

Formats and Physical Packaging

For vinyl enthusiasts, the release will also be available as an 180-gram 5-LP box set containing the pre-master mix, the mono master, and an extra LP of unreleased highlights, demos, and live cuts. A 2-LP multi-colored vinyl version of the original album is also on the way.

Physical super deluxe editions include a litho print and a 26-page booklet packed with unseen photos from Ray Leong and David Anderle, alongside historical essays and liner notes penned by Leong, music journalist Jason Pettigrew, and Joe Travers.

Check out the track listing for the six-disc Super Deluxe Edition of the set below.

Frank Zappa & the Mothers of Invention, ‘Freak Out! 60th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition’ Track Listing

CD 1
Freak Out! – The Original Album – 1966 Stereo Mix (2026 Remaster)
1. Hungry Freaks, Daddy
2. I Ain’t Got No Heart
3. Who Are The Brain Police?
4. Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder
5. Motherly Love
6. How Could I Be Such A Fool
7. Wowie Zowie
8. You Didn’t Try To Call Me
9. Any Way The Wind Blows
10. I’m Not Satisfied
11. You’re Probably Wondering Why I’m Here
12. Trouble Every Day
13. Help, I’m A Rock
14. It Can’t Happen Here
15. The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet

CD 2
1966 Pre-Master Mix
1. Hungry Freaks, Daddy
2. I Ain’t Got No Heart
3. Who Are The Brain Police?
4. Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder
5. Motherly Love
6. How Could I Be Such A Fool
7. Wowie Zowie
8. You Didn’t Try To Call Me
9. Any Way The Wind Blows
10. I’m Not Satisfied
11. You’re Probably Wondering Why I’m Here
12. Trouble Every Day
13. Help, I’m A Rock
14. It Can’t Happen Here
15. The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet

CD 3
1966 Mono Mix
1. Hungry Freaks, Daddy
2. I Ain’t Got No Heart
3. Who Are The Brain Police?
4. Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder
5. Motherly Love
6. How Could I Be Such A Fool
7. Wowie Zowie
8. You Didn’t Try To Call Me
9. Any Way The Wind Blows
10. I’m Not Satisfied
11. You’re Probably Wondering Why I’m Here
12. Trouble Every Day
13. Help, I’m A Rock
14. It Can’t Happen Here
15. The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet

CD 4
Fillmore Auditorium – Live In San Francisco, CA, 6/24/1966
1. Band Introductions At The Fillmore West
2. Motherly Love
3. Plastic People
4. You’re So Fine
5. Trouble Every Day
6. You Didn’t Try To Call Me
7. I’m Not Satisfied
8. Wedding Dress Song / The Handsome Cabin Boy
Fillmore Auditorium – Live In San Francisco, CA, 2/24/1966
9. Mothers Rock Out
10. Coquette
11. I’m A Rollin’ Stone
Fillmore Auditorium – Live In San Francisco, CA, 6/25/1966
12. Motherly Love
13. Plastic People
14. You Didn’t Try To Call Me
15. I’m Not Satisfied
16. Wedding Dress Song / The Handsome Cabin Boy
17. Hungry Freaks, Daddy
18. Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder

CD 5
Fillmore Auditorium – Live In San Francisco, CA
Continued + Demos & Rarities
Fillmore Auditorium – Date Unknown (most likely 2/24/66)
1. Mothers Rock Out II
2. The Downtown Talent Scout
Original Mothers Rehearsal 1966
3. “Every Day I Have The Blues”
4. Tick Tock
5. 4 Mothers In Rehearsal
6. Any Way The Wind Blows
7. How Could I Be Such A Fool – False Starts
8. How Could I Be Such A Fool
9. The Story Of My Life
Mothers Demos
10. Any Way The Wind Blows
11. I’m So Happy I Could Cry
12. Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder
13. How Could I Be Such A Fool
14. Trouble Every Day
15. I Ain’t Got No Heart (Edited)
16. Love Of My Life
17. I’m Not Satisfied
Freak Out! – Mono Vocal Reference Mixes
18. Motherly Love
19. I’m Not Satisfied
20. I Ain’t Got No Heart
21. How Could I Be Such A Fool
22. You Didn’t Try To Call Me (Edited)
23. Freak Out Ad
Freak Out! – Session Outtake Collage
24. Freak Out GTR Solo & Screams 7/4
25. Freak Out Zilofone
26. Percussion Cue #3

BLU-RAY AUDIO
Freak Out! – The Album + Bonus Audio
24-bit/48kHz Dolby Atmos / 24-bit/48kHz Dolby TrueHD 5.1 / 24-bit/192kHz PCM Stereo / 24-bit/96kHz PCM
Stereo
Freak Out! – The Album
1. Hungry Freaks, Daddy
2. I Ain’t Got No Heart
3. Who Are The Brain Police?
4. Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder
5. Motherly Love
6. How Could I Be Such A Fool
7. Wowie Zowie
8. You Didn’t Try To Call Me
9. Any Way The Wind Blows
10. I’m Not Satisfied
11. You’re Probably Wondering Why I’m Here
12. Trouble Every Day
13. Help, I’m A Rock
14. It Can’t Happen Here
15. The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet
Bonus Audio
1. Groupie Bang Bang