The First Ten Years is a series of 10 CDs and double 12" singles

12-inch single

The 12-inch single is a type of gramophone record that has wider groove spacing compared to other types of records. This allows for louder levels to be cut on the disc by the cutting engineer, which in turn gives a wider dynamic range, and thus better sound quality...

 by British heavy metal 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...

, released between 24 February and 28 April 1990, in commemoration of the band's ten year recording anniversary.

Each CD/double 12" contains two singles, complete with original B-sides

A-side and B-side

A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...

 and artwork, as well as an edition of "Listen with Nicko", a spoken-word track in which drummer Nicko McBrain

Nicko McBrain

Michael 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:...

 would recount the history behind each song specific to that release. Each part in the series included a special voucher

Voucher

A voucher is a bond which is worth a certain monetary value and which may be spent only for specific reasons or on specific goods. Examples include housing, travel, and food vouchers...

, all ten of which could be exchanged by mail order for a limited edition storage box.

Iron Maiden also released The First Ten Years: The Videos

The First Ten Years: The Videos

The First Ten Years: The Videos is a VHS and laserdisc music video compilation released by the heavy metal band Iron Maiden in 1990...

on VHS

VHS

The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....

 videotape and laserdisc

Laserdisc

LaserDisc was a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. Initially licensed, sold, and marketed as MCA DiscoVision in North America in 1978, the technology was previously referred to interally as Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical...

, containing all 16 promotional music videos which the band had made up to that point.

The First Ten Years part I

1. "Running Free
   Running Free
   "Running Free" was the first single released by Iron Maiden, released on 8 February 1980 on the 7" 45 rpm vinyl record format. It was written by Steve Harris and Paul Di'Anno...
   
   " (Paul Di'Anno
   Paul Di'Anno
   Paul Andrews , better known as Paul Di'Anno, is an English singer best known as the first vocalist to record with the iconic heavy metal band Iron Maiden, from 1978 to 1981....
   
   , Steve Harris
   Steve 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...
   
   )
2. "Burning Ambition" (Harris)
3. "Sanctuary
   Sanctuary (Iron Maiden song)
   "Sanctuary" is the second single released by the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. The single was released on 23 May 1980. The song was included in the US release of their debut album Iron Maiden but it was not included in the UK/European release...
   
   " (Iron Maiden)
4. "Drifter (live)" (Harris)
5. "I've Got the Fire
   I Got the Fire
   "I Got the Fire" is a song from the Montrose album Paper Money in 1974. The guitar solo is the result of a fortuitous accident:"Guitarist Ronnie Montrose also contributes a solo of singular dexterity and earth-shaking intensity thanks, ironically, to a studio screwup which resulted in the...
   
    (live)" (Ronnie Montrose
   Montrose (band)
   Montrose was a California-based hard rock band. The band originally featured Ronnie Montrose on guitar and future solo artist and former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar...
   
   )
6. "Listen with Nicko! Part I" (Nicko McBrain
   Nicko McBrain
   Michael 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:...
   
   )

The First Ten Years part II

1. "Women in Uniform
   Women in Uniform
   "Women in Uniform" is a 1978 song originally recorded by the Australian band Skyhooks; it was written by the band's bass player, Greg Macainsh. It appeared on their fourth album, Guilty Until Proven Insane, and was a top 10 single in Australia.[]...
   
   " (Greg Macainsh)
2. "Invasion" (Harris)
3. "Phantom of the Opera (live)" (Harris)
4. "Twilight Zone
   Twilight Zone (Iron Maiden song)
   "Twilight Zone" was the fourth single by Iron Maiden, released on 2 March 1981. The song was also released in the United States as part of the album Killers, but was not included in the British release until the album was re-released in 1998....
   
   " (Harris, Dave Murray
   Dave 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:...
   
   )
5. "Wrathchild" (Harris)
6. "Listen with Nicko! Part II" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part III

1. "Purgatory
   Purgatory (song)
   "Purgatory" is Iron Maiden's fifth single and only single from the Killers album . This song is a remake of a very early Iron Maiden song originally called "Floating" which they used to play live during 1976 to 1977. According to current drummer Nicko McBrain, "Purgatory" is a faster re-arrangement...
   
   " (Harris)
2. "Genghis Khan" (Harris)
3. "Running Free" (live at The Kosei Nenkin Hall, Nagoya, Japan 23-5-81) (Harris, Di'Anno)
4. "Remember Tomorrow" (live at The Kosei Nenkin Hall, Nagoya, Japan 23-5-81) (Harris, Di'Anno)
5. "Killers" (live at The Kosei Nenkin Hall, Nagoya, Japan 23-5-81) (Harris, Di'Anno)
6. "Innocent Exile" (live at The Kosei Nenkin Hall, Nagoya, Japan 23-5-81) (Harris)
7. "Listen with Nicko! Part III" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part IV

1. "Run to the Hills
   Run to the Hills
   "Run to the Hills" was Iron Maiden's sixth single and the first single from their 1982 album The Number of the Beast. The lyrics clearly discuss the violence visited upon Native Americans in the Nineteenth Century. Several lines appear to address the Sioux Wars, a conflict between the Lakota...
   
   " (Harris)
2. "Total Eclipse" (Harris, Murray, Clive Burr
   Clive Burr
   Clive Burr is a British drummer, best known as a member of Iron Maiden from 1979 to 1982.-Career:Previously a member of Samson, Burr joined Iron Maiden in 1979...
   
   )
3. "The Number of the Beast
   The Number of the Beast (song)
   "The Number of the Beast" is Iron Maiden's seventh single and the second single from Iron Maiden's 1982 album of the same name. The song is inspired by both a nightmare bandleader and bassist Steve Harris had after watching the movie Damien: Omen II, and the storyline of the poem Tam o' Shanter...
   
   " (Harris)
4. "Remember Tomorrow (live)" (Harris, Di'Anno)
5. "Listen with Nicko! Part IV" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part V

1. "Flight of Icarus
   Flight of Icarus
   "Flight of Icarus" is a 1983 song by Iron Maiden. It is the band's eighth single and the first from the album, Piece of Mind. It was the first single by Iron Maiden that was released in the United States...
   
   " (Adrian Smith
   Adrian Smith
   Adrian 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...
   
   , 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....
   
   )
2. "I've Got The Fire" (Montrose)
3. "The Trooper
   The Trooper
   "The Trooper" is a song written by Iron Maiden bass player Steve Harris. It is Iron Maiden's ninth single, and the second from their 1983 album Piece of Mind. The single was released on 20 June 1983...
   
   " (Harris)
4. "Cross-Eyed Mary
   Cross-Eyed Mary
   "Cross-Eyed Mary" is a song by the English progressive rock band Jethro Tull from their album Aqualung . The song is about "Cross-Eyed Mary", a schoolgirl prostitute who prefers the company of "leching greys" over her schoolmates....
   
   " (Ian Anderson
   Ian Anderson (musician)
   Ian Scott Anderson, MBE is a Scottish singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known for his work as the leader and flautist of British rock band Jethro Tull.-Early life:...
   
   ; Jethro Tull
   Jethro Tull (band)
   Jethro Tull are a British rock group formed in 1967. Their music is characterised by the vocals, acoustic guitar, and flute playing of Ian Anderson, who has led the band since its founding, and the guitar work of Martin Barre, who has been with the band since 1969.Initially playing blues rock with...
   
    cover)
5. "Listen with Nicko! Part V" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part VI

1. "2 Minutes to Midnight
   2 Minutes to Midnight
   "2 Minutes to Midnight" is the second track from British heavy metal band Iron Maiden's fifth album Powerslave. It was released as the band's tenth single on 6 August 1984 and rose to number 11 in the UK Singles Chart and number 25 on Billboard Top Album Tracks.The song was written by Adrian Smith...
   
   " (Smith, Dickinson)
2. "Rainbow's Gold" (Slesser, Mountain)
3. "Mission From 'Arry" (Harris, McBrain)
4. "Aces High
   Aces High (song)
   "Aces High" is a song by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden, written by bassist Steve Harris. It is Iron Maiden's eleventh single and the second from the 1984 studio album Powerslave...
   
   " (Harris)
5. "King of Twilight" (Nektar
   Nektar
   Nektar is a 1970s English progressive rock band originally based in Germany.- History :The band formed in Hamburg, Germany in 1969, members included Englishmen Roye Albrighton on guitars and vocals, Allan "Taff" Freeman on keyboards, Derek "Mo" Moore on bass, Ron Howden on drums, and Mick Brockett...
   
   )
6. "The Number of the Beast (live)" (Harris)
7. "Listen with Nicko! Part VI" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part VII

1. "Running Free (live)" (Harris)
2. "Sanctuary (live)" (Iron Maiden)
3. "Murders In The Rue Morgue (live)" (Harris)
4. "Run to the Hills (live)" (Harris)
5. "Phantom of the Opera (live)" (Harris)
6. "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra) (live)" (Harris)
7. "Listen with Nicko! Part VII" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part VIII

1. "Wasted Years
   Wasted Years
   "Wasted Years" is the fourteenth single released by Iron Maiden and the first from their Somewhere in Time album. It's the only song on the album that features no synthesizers. Released in 1986, it was the first single solely written by guitarist Adrian Smith, who also sings backing vocals...
   
   " (Smith)
2. "Reach Out" (Dave Colwell
   Dave Colwell
   Dave "Bucket" Colwell is a guitarist from the United Kingdom and has been a member of Bad Company, Samson, ASAP, The Eastenders, The Entire Population of Hackney, Angel Street and FM...
   
   )
3. "Sheriff Of Huddersfield" (Iron Maiden)
4. "Stranger in a Strange Land
   Stranger in a Strange Land (song)
   "Stranger in a Strange Land" is the second single by Iron Maiden from their 1986 album Somewhere in Time. The song is unrelated to Robert A. Heinlein's novel by the same name. The lyrics are about an Arctic explorer who dies and is frozen in the ice. After a hundred years his body is found...
   
   " (Smith)
5. "That Girl" (Andy Barnett, Goldsworth, Jupp)
6. "Juanita" (Steve Barnacle, Derek O'Neil)
7. "Listen with Nicko! Part VIII" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part IX

1. "Can I Play with Madness
   Can I Play with Madness
   "Can I Play with Madness" was the sixteenth single released by Iron Maiden. Released in 1988, it is the first single from the Seventh Son of a Seventh Son album and hit number 3 in the UK charts. The song is about a young man who wants to learn the future from an old prophet with a crystal ball...
   
   " (Smith, Dickinson, Harris)
2. "Black Bart Blues" (Harris, Dickinson)
3. "Massacre" (Phil Lynott
   Phil Lynott
   Philip Parris "Phil" Lynott was an Irish musician who first came to prominence as a founding member, principal songwriter, and frontman of the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy....
   
   , Scott Gorham
   Scott Gorham
   Scott Gorham is an American guitarist and songwriter who rose to international recognition as one of the "twin lead guitarists" of the Irish-formed rock band, Thin Lizzy...
   
   , Brian Downey
   Brian Downey (drummer)
   Brian Michael Downey is an Irish drummer.Downey is the drummer and a founding member of the rock band Thin Lizzy, and a friend from childhood of co-founder and frontman Phil Lynott. Along with Lynott, Downey was the only constant member of the pioneering hard rock group until their break-up in...
   
   )
4. "The Evil That Men Do
   The Evil That Men Do (song)
   "The Evil That Men Do" was released in 1988 by Iron Maiden. It is the band's seventeenth single and the second from their Seventh Son of a Seventh Son album. The single debuted at number six in the UK charts and quickly rose to number five...
   
   " (Smith, Dickinson, Harris)
5. "Prowler 88" (Harris)
6. "Charlotte the Harlot 88" (Murray)
7. "Listen with Nicko! Part IX" (McBrain)

The First Ten Years part X

1. "The Clairvoyant (live)
   The Clairvoyant (song)
   "The Clairvoyant" was released in 1988 by Iron Maiden. It is the band's nineteenth single and the third from their Seventh Son of a Seventh Son album. The single, which was also released as a clear vinyl, debuted at number six in the UK charts...
   
   " (Harris)
2. "The Prisoner (live)" (Smith, Harris)
3. "Heaven Can Wait (live)" (Harris)
4. "Infinite Dreams (live)" (Harris)
5. "Killers (live)" (Di'Anno, Harris)
6. "Still Life (live)" (Murray, Harris)
7. "Listen with Nicko! Part X" (McBrain)

Chart Positions

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1990	"Running Free / Sanctuary" Released: 24 February 1990	Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...	23
		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...	10
	"Women in Uniform / Twilight Zone" Released: February 1990		10
	"Purgatory / Maiden Japan" Released: March 1990		5
	"Run to the Hills / The Number of the Beast" Released: March 1990		3
	"Flight of Icarus / The Trooper" Released: March 1990		7
	"2 Minutes to Midnight / Aces High" Released: March 1990		11
	"Running Free (Live) / Run to the Hills (Live)" Released: March 1990		9
	"Wasted Years/ Stranger in a Strange Land" Released: April 1990		9
	"Can I Play with Madness / The Evil That Men Do" Released: April 1990		10
	"The Clairvoyant / Infinite Dreams" Released: April 1990		11