“The Trooper” by Iron Maiden

"The Trooper" charged out on 20 June 1983 as the second single from Piece of Mind, Iron Maiden's fourth album, with Martin Birch producing for EMI. It's a full-tilt charge from the first bar, guitars stampeding and the rhythm section hammering along like hooves on hard ground, and it never once lets up.

It did better at home than "Flight of Icarus" before it, reaching 12 on the UK Singles Chart, and it became one of the rare Maiden songs American radio actually played, getting to 28 on the Mainstream Rock chart. It has stayed one of their most-loved songs and a cornerstone of heavy metal, and a live version turned up on Death on the Road in 2005.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.