Somewhere Back in Time
Compilation album by
Iron Maiden
Released12 May 2008
Recorded1982-1988
GenreHeavy metal
Length71:25[1]
LabelEMI
Universal Music Group (US)
ProducerMartin Birch
Iron Maiden compilations chronology
The Essential Iron Maiden
(2005) 		Somewhere Back in Time
(2008) 		From Fear to Eternity
(2011)

Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980 - 1989 is a best of release by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, containing a selection of songs originally recorded for their first eight albums (including Live After Death).

Background

The album was released in conjunction with the band's Somewhere Back In Time World Tour to allow new fans to listen to a selection of the band's material that was played on the tour. The cover artwork by Derek Riggs features the Pharaoh Eddie monument from Powerslave and Cyborg Eddie from Somewhere in Time.

A number of tracks were taken from the band's 1985 live album, Live After Death, because the band preferred to use recordings which featured current Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson rather than Paul Di'Anno, who sang on their first two studio releases.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com[2]
AllMusic[3]
Classic Rock9/10[4]
Kerrang!5/5[5]
Metal Hammer9/10[6]
Rocksound8/10[7]

Reviews for the compilation were generally positive, with Kerrang! commenting that "metal collections don't come much more solid than this."[5] Classic Rock deemed it "a relentless, 70-minute crowd pleaser marathon," containing "timeless anthems that still make the adrenalin surge and the sinews stiffen after all these years."[4] Metal Hammer praised it for being "a reminder of why Iron Maiden became the most important band on the planet back in the 1980s - and why, once again, they've reclaimed that crown."[6]

AllMusic, however, were more critical of the release, deeming the album "merely adequate" and decrying the band's decision to avoid using the original versions of songs featuring Paul Di'Anno on lead vocals.[3]

Track listing

All songs written by Steve Harris, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Original albumLength
1."Churchill's Speech"Winston Churchill1985 ~ Live After Death (Segues into the next song)0:49
2."Aces High" (Live in Long Beach, US 1985) 1985 ~ Live After Death (1984 ~ Powerslave)4:36
3."2 Minutes to Midnight"Adrian Smith, Bruce Dickinson1984 ~ Powerslave6:00
4."The Trooper" 1983 ~ Piece of Mind4:11
5."Wasted Years"Smith1986 ~ Somewhere in Time5:06
6."Children of the Damned" 1982 ~ The Number of the Beast4:35
7."The Number of the Beast" 1982 ~ The Number of the Beast4:53
8."Run to the Hills" 1982 ~ The Number of the Beast3:53
9."Phantom of the Opera" (Live in Hammersmith, UK 1984) 1985 ~ Live After Death (1980 ~ Iron Maiden)7:21
10."The Evil That Men Do"Smith, Harris, Dickinson1988 ~ Seventh Son of a Seventh Son4:34
11."Wrathchild" (Live in Hammersmith, UK 1984) 1985 ~ Live After Death (1981 ~ Killers)3:07
12."Can I Play With Madness"Smith, Dickinson, Harris1988 ~ Seventh Son of a Seventh Son3:31
13."Powerslave"Dickinson1984 ~ Powerslave6:47
14."Hallowed Be Thy Name" 1982 ~ The Number of the Beast7:12
15."Iron Maiden" (Live in Long Beach, US 1985) 1985 ~ Live After Death (1980 ~ Iron Maiden)4:50
Total length:71:25

Personnel

Production and performance credits are adapted from the album liner notes.[1]

Iron Maiden
Production

Charts

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[8] 81
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[9] 26
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[10] 19
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[11] 36
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[12] 7
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[13] 74
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 3
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 84
Italian Albums (FIMI)[16] 27
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[17] 39
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[18] 24
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[19] 3
Scotland (Official Charts Company) [20] 14
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[21] 36
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[22] 2
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[23] 31
UK Albums (OCC)[24] 14
US Billboard 200[25] 58
Chart (2009) Peak
position
Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico)[26] 47
Chart (2010) Peak
position
Greek Albums (IFPI)[27] 56

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[28] Gold 11,815[28]
Sweden (GLF)[29] Gold 20,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[30] Gold 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ a b Somewhere Back in Time (Media notes). Iron Maiden. EMI. 12 May 2008.((cite AV media notes)): CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ Bowar, Chad. "Iron Maiden - Somewhere Back in Time Review". About.com. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  3. ^ a b Monger, James Christopher. Iron Maiden - Somewhere Back in Time at AllMusic. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  4. ^ a b Lawson, Dom (June 2008). "Any old Iron". Classic Rock. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  5. ^ a b Ruskell, Nick (10 May 2008). "Iron Maiden - Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  6. ^ a b Dome, Malcolm (June 2008). "Iron Maiden - Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  7. ^ Fraser, Lewis (1 May 2008). "Iron Maiden - Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Rocksound. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  8. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 138.
  9. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  10. ^ "Ultratop.be – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Ultratop.be – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  12. ^ "Iron Maiden Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  13. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  14. ^ "Iron Maiden: Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  16. ^ "Italiancharts.com – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  17. ^ "時空の覇者". Oricon.co.jp. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  18. ^ "Charts.nz – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  19. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  20. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
  21. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  22. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  23. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time - The Best of: 1980-1989". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  24. ^ "Iron Maiden | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  25. ^ "Iron Maiden Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  26. ^ "Mexicancharts.com – Iron Maiden – Seventh Son of a Seventh Son". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  27. ^ "Greekcharts.com – Iron Maiden – Seventh Son of a Seventh Son". Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  28. ^ a b "Iron Maiden" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.
  29. ^ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 2008" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2011.
  30. ^ "British album certifications – Iron Maiden – Somewhere Back in Time". British Phonographic Industry.Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Somewhere Back in Time in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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