ADRIAN SMITH On His Creative Bond With BRUCE DICKINSON: “We Write Some Great Music Together”

The musical relationship between Iron Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith and vocalist Bruce Dickinson has spanned decades, crossing over from band duties into fruitful solo collaborations. In a new interview with Made In Metal, Smith pulled back the curtain on how their dynamic started — and how it still fuels their songwriting today.

“Well, even when Bruce first joined Iron Maiden in ’82, I think it was, we’d rehearse, the band would rehearse and then everyone would go home,” Smith explained (via Blabbermouth). “And I wasn’t married then. I don’t think Bruce was then. But Bruce and I would go and have a beer after or play pool, and we’d hang out a little bit. ‘Cause he’d only just joined, so I was trying to get him into the band a bit. And I’ve always written songs, so I used to play him riffs and stuff, and then we’d start writing songs.”

Smith described how this camaraderie naturally evolved into a creative partnership. “That’s our musical relationship. He’ll always come to me and say, ‘Oh, what have you got?’, if we’re doing a record. ‘You got any riffs?’ So I have riffs or even have melodies or a title for a song. And he’s great. He is really easy to write with. He’ll come up with something really quickly, and we write songs very quickly. That’s the way he likes to do it. And he’s a great singer. He’s got a great range. When I’m on my own and getting ideas together, I can visualize him maybe singing over what I’m playing, so there’s that side to it too.”

Their connection continued beyond Iron Maiden, especially during the 1990s, when Smith temporarily stepped away from the band. “In the ’90s, when I was just doing my solo stuff, he came to me and said he wanted me to join his [solo] band,” Smith said. “And I really liked the songs he was doing with [the guitarist for his solo band] Roy Z — I think it was Chemical Wedding, [Bruce’s] first [solo] album; I love those songs. So I sort of threw my lot in with Bruce in the ’90s, and I had a great couple of years. I really enjoyed that. I learned a lot of stuff, like from Roy. So, yeah, Bruce and I, we get on great, and we write, I think, some great music together.”