Nicko McBrain was Clive Burr's predecessor and
joined Maiden in 1983, just in time to record Piece Of Mind.Many (including myself) regard Nicko as being one of the greatest drummers in the history of metal. He holds the beat like other drummers
but also drives the song along.
Nicko's presence on stage was felt from day one. Other the years he has been seen leaping from his drum stool to lead the cheers and entertain the loyal crowd.
Born
on June 5, 1954 in Hackney, East London he was named Michael Henry McBrain. His nickname is Nicko because he used to have a teddy bear called Nicholas - famliy members and friends started calling
him Nicky. From an early age he would go into the kitchen, pick up some knifes and bang them on the cooker.
He got his first drum kit at the age of 12 and picked up the talent to play straight
away. By the time he had left school at 15 he was playing in many part-time pub bands. The first real band he was in was The 18th Fairfeild Walk, who did mostly cover of The Beatles. He
then joined a band called The Wells Street Blues Band (This is when he was first called Nicko)
In 1975 Nicko finally found some fame with Streetwalkers but they unfortunately did not have any hits and so
he left and joined The Pat Travers Band. Makin' Magic was released by The Pat Travers Band in 1976. A french punk band called Trust would be his next stop, which actually suppoerted Maiden in
1981 on the UK leg of the tour
Steve had seen Nicko in 1979, when he was playing in a band called McKitty alongside Maiden at a Belgium Festival. Harris watched Nicko do an amazing drum solo when the
rest of the band tried to fix a broken guitar. Harris thought the drum solo was better than the rest of the performance. So when Clive Burr left, Harris soon remembered Nicko.
It is extremly
hard to imagine what Maiden classics would sound like without Nicko McBrain as the drummer. Nicko has also been involved with song writing on the Dance Of Death album due September 2003 for the first
time.
Who knows what the future will hold for Nicko - but the future's definitely looking bright.
