See Photos of Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson Through the Years
Paul Bruce Dickinson — the age-defying Iron Maiden frontman — was born on Aug. 7, 1958 in Worksop, Nottinghamshire in England, and, yes, Paul is his born first name. Dickinson's professional career kicked off in 1979 as the singer for Samson before departing that band for the greener pastures of Iron Maiden in late 1981. In celebration of his birthday, we've compiled over 25 photos of the legendary singer through the years.
Prior to replacing Paul Di'Anno in Iron Maiden, Dickinson went by the stage name of "Bruce Bruce," which he was convinced to drop once he joined Steve Harris' unit. His powerhouse voice was featured on two Samson records: Head On (1980) and Shock Tactics (1981). He made his Maiden debut in 1982 with The Number of the Beast.
Best known for his dominant voice, which seems to only grow stronger by the year, and his charismatic onstage persona, Dickinson is also renowned for his fashion sense, or lack thereof, sporting some of the more outrageous outfits ever seen in metal — if we're excluding their hair metal era altogether in this conversation.
Really — what's up with those pants, Bruce? Please don't ever change.
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And let's not forget about that hair, which underwent a radical transformation in the '90s and into the first decade of the new millennium. In recent years, Dickinson has finally let his hair grow back out, looking like the silver-maned warlock we always knew he could be.
See photos of Bruce Dickinson through the years directly below. Up the irons!