From Fear to Eternity (album)
Encyclopedia
From Fear to Eternity: The Best of 1990 - 2010 is a compilation album by British
heavy metal
band Iron Maiden
, containing a selection of songs originally released on their last eight studio efforts to date. The title is lifted from the 1992 single, "From Here to Eternity
", although it does not feature on this release.
on 23 May, although this was later changed to 6 June. Unlike their previous compilation (Somewhere Back in Time), the release covered two CDs in order to encompass longer tracks, such as "Paschendale", although the price remained that of a single disc record.
As with Somewhere Back in Time, each track is sung by Bruce Dickinson
rather than Blaze Bayley
(who sang on The X Factor
and Virtual XI
), the band again opting to use later live versions of songs which originally featured other lead vocalists.
, and serves to reference each relevant studio release. Three representations of Eddie
appear, one dressed in Grim Reaper attire (as in Dance of Death
), one atop the tank from A Matter of Life and Death
- which is imprinted with the "Cross-Keys" symbol from The Final Frontier
- and a large burning wicker man
(the first single
from Brave New World). The artwork also contains the tree from Fear of the Dark, the tombstone from No Prayer for the Dying
, a large "X" on the tree trunk (representing The X Factor
) and the twisted figures and burnt building structure from the Virtual XI
cover.
described the album as representing "Gold from ever era", claiming that, although "weighted towards the... last five studio albums", the "earlier singles... fight their corner remarkably well." The review also argues that some of the release's later songs "match anything from Maiden's 80s heyday."
In their July 2011 issue, Metal Hammer
praised the compilation for doing "an excellent job of gathering the heartiest wheat over the last two decades", although deeming Blaze Bayley
's absence from the album a "glitch" albeit "for the best."
with
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...
, containing a selection of songs originally released on their last eight studio efforts to date. The title is lifted from the 1992 single, "From Here to Eternity
From Here to Eternity (Iron Maiden song)
"From Here to Eternity" is the second single from the Iron Maiden album Fear of the Dark, released in 1992. The song is the fourth and most recent song in the ongoing saga of "Charlotte the Harlot" "From Here to Eternity" is the second single from the Iron Maiden album Fear of the Dark, released in...
", although it does not feature on this release.
Background
The album was announced on 15 March 2011, to be released by EMIEMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
on 23 May, although this was later changed to 6 June. Unlike their previous compilation (Somewhere Back in Time), the release covered two CDs in order to encompass longer tracks, such as "Paschendale", although the price remained that of a single disc record.
As with Somewhere Back in Time, each track is sung by Bruce Dickinson
Bruce Dickinson
Paul Bruce Dickinson is an English singer, songwriter, airline pilot, fencer, broadcaster, author, screenwriter, actor and marketing director, best known as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden....
rather than Blaze Bayley
Blaze Bayley
Blaze Bayley is an English singer and songwriter. He has been the lead singer of Wolfsbane from 1984 to 1994, and nowadays since their recent reunion. Blaze is however world-known for having been the lead singer of British metal band Iron Maiden from 1994 to 1999...
(who sang on The X Factor
The X Factor (album)
Initially, The X Factor was met with lukewarm responses from critics. Allmusic rated the album two stars out of five, stating that "suffering from a lack of powerful riffs and tightly written songs, The X Factor is a lackluster latter-day album from Iron Maiden...
and Virtual XI
Virtual XI
Virtual XI was met with mixed reviews from critics. Allmusic commented that "on the surface, there's nothing terribly wrong with the record, as it delivers all the crunching riffs and demonic horror of their best records. The problem is that there's nothing memorable about the hooks, riffs, or...
), the band again opting to use later live versions of songs which originally featured other lead vocalists.
Artwork
The album cover was designed by Melvyn GrantMelvyn Grant
Melvyn Grant , is a universal artist and illustrator. Trained traditionally he originally worked with oil paints, but now has switched to creating most of his work digitally...
, and serves to reference each relevant studio release. Three representations of Eddie
Eddie the Head
Eddie, also known as Eddie The Head, is the mascot for the British heavy metal band, Iron Maiden. He is a perennial fixture of the group's artwork, appearing in all of their record covers and in their merchandise, which includes t-shirts, posters and action figures...
appear, one dressed in Grim Reaper attire (as in Dance of Death
Dance of Death (album)
Dance of Death is the thirteenth studio album by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released first in Japan on 2 September and then the rest of the world on 8 September 2003.-Background:...
), one atop the tank from A Matter of Life and Death
A Matter of Life and Death (album)
A Matter of Life and Death is the fourteenth studio album by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It was released on 25 August 2006 in Italy and Finland, and 28 August worldwide, excluding the United States, Canada and Japan on 5 September 2006....
- which is imprinted with the "Cross-Keys" symbol from The Final Frontier
The Final Frontier
The Final Frontier is a 1986 album by the heavy metal band Keel. It was the band's second album to be produced by KISS bassist Gene Simmons. Videos were filmed for the tracks "Because the Night" and "Tears of Fire."...
- and a large burning wicker man
Wicker Man
A wicker man was a large wicker statue of a human used by the ancient Druids for human sacrifice by burning it in effigy, according to Julius Caesar in his Commentarii de Bello Gallico...
(the first single
The Wicker Man (song)
"The Wicker Man" is a song by Iron Maiden, released as the first single from their album Brave New World in April 2000. It was co-written by Adrian Smith, Bruce Dickinson and Steve Harris. It was co-produced by Kevin Shirley and Harris. The title is inspired by the British cult film of the same name...
from Brave New World). The artwork also contains the tree from Fear of the Dark, the tombstone from No Prayer for the Dying
No Prayer for the Dying
Reviews for the album were generally poor, with Allmusic commenting that "the songwriting wasn't up to snuff when compared to such classics as Killers or Number of the Beast" and "as a whole doesn't measure up to the hits." Sputnikmusic were equally negative, stating that "No Prayer for the Dying...
, a large "X" on the tree trunk (representing The X Factor
The X Factor (album)
Initially, The X Factor was met with lukewarm responses from critics. Allmusic rated the album two stars out of five, stating that "suffering from a lack of powerful riffs and tightly written songs, The X Factor is a lackluster latter-day album from Iron Maiden...
) and the twisted figures and burnt building structure from the Virtual XI
Virtual XI
Virtual XI was met with mixed reviews from critics. Allmusic commented that "on the surface, there's nothing terribly wrong with the record, as it delivers all the crunching riffs and demonic horror of their best records. The problem is that there's nothing memorable about the hooks, riffs, or...
cover.
Reception
Classic RockClassic Rock (magazine)
Classic Rock is a British magazine dedicated to the radio format of classic rock, published by Future Publishing, who are also responsible for its "sister" publication Metal Hammer. Although firmly focusing on key bands from the 1960s through early 1990s, it also includes articles and reviews of...
described the album as representing "Gold from ever era", claiming that, although "weighted towards the... last five studio albums", the "earlier singles... fight their corner remarkably well." The review also argues that some of the release's later songs "match anything from Maiden's 80s heyday."
In their July 2011 issue, Metal Hammer
Metal Hammer
Metal Hammer is a monthly heavy metal music magazine published in the United Kingdom by Future Publishing, and in several other countries by different publishers. Metal Hammer articles feature both mainstream bands and more unusual acts from the whole spectrum of heavy metal music...
praised the compilation for doing "an excellent job of gathering the heartiest wheat over the last two decades", although deeming Blaze Bayley
Blaze Bayley
Blaze Bayley is an English singer and songwriter. He has been the lead singer of Wolfsbane from 1984 to 1994, and nowadays since their recent reunion. Blaze is however world-known for having been the lead singer of British metal band Iron Maiden from 1994 to 1999...
's absence from the album a "glitch" albeit "for the best."
Disc one
Disc two
Chart performance
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Albums Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
22 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... |
26 |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 45 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 11 |
| German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
19 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
30 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
16 |
| Portuguese Albums Chart Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa The Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa is currently the only recording industry association in Portugal. Created in 1989, it succeeded GPPFV and UNEVA .... |
8 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
6 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
19 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
86 |
Personnel
- Bruce DickinsonBruce DickinsonPaul Bruce Dickinson is an English singer, songwriter, airline pilot, fencer, broadcaster, author, screenwriter, actor and marketing director, best known as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden....
- lead vocals - Dave MurrayDave Murray (musician)David Michael Murray is an English guitarist and songwriter best known as one of the earliest members of the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden.-Biography:...
- guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Janick GersJanick GersJanick Robert Gers is an English musician, best known for being one of the three current guitarists in Iron Maiden, along with Dave Murray and Adrian Smith, as well as his earlier work with Gillan and White Spirit.-Career and Personal Life:...
- guitar - Adrian SmithAdrian SmithAdrian Frederick "H" Smith is an English musician and one of three guitarists in the heavy metal band, Iron Maiden. He is also one of the band's regular songwriters and, along with bassist Steve Harris, performs backing vocals on some songs.-Biography:While at school, Smith purchased his first...
- guitar, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
(except on "Holy Smoke", "Tailgunner", "Be Quick or Be Dead", "Afraid to Shoot Strangers", and "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter") - Steve HarrisSteve Harris (musician)Stephen Percy "Steve" Harris is an English musician and songwriter, known as the bassist, occasional keyboardist, backing vocalist and primary songwriter of the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden, which he founded in 1975...
- bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, keyboardsElectronic keyboardAn electronic keyboard is an electronic or digital keyboard instrument.The major components of a typical modern electronic keyboard are:...
, backing vocals - Nicko McBrainNicko McBrainMichael Henry "Nicko" McBrain is an English musician, best known as the drummer for Iron Maiden, which he joined in 1982, prior to which he had played for Streetwalkers, Pat Travers, and the French political band, Trust.-Biography:...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
with
- Michael Kenney - keyboards on "Sign of the Cross", "Afraid to Shoot Strangers", "Fear of the Dark" and "The Clansman"