Original Iron Maiden Singer Paul Mario Day Dies at 69

Paul Mario Day, Iron Maiden's first frontman, died at his home in Newcastle, Australia, on July 30 after a hard-fought battle with cancer. He was 69. 

As Maiden's frontman from late 1975 to fall 1976, Day stood at the mic during their earliest shows. "When I sang in Iron Maiden, it was a new pub band and nobody wanted to see or hear them. We were all nobodys all trying to make the best music we could and fighting for an audience," Day remarked in 2019, as reported by Billboard.

His big break came later with the band More, when they played at the massive 1981 Monsters of Rock show. The crowd watched him share the stage with bands like AC/DC and Whitesnake. By 1985, he joined Sweet and sang on their Live at the Marquee record.

"We needed a singer and when Paul arrived for the audition we looked no further. Our first dates were in Australia, total sell-outs which boded well for the future," Sweet's Andy Scott shared on social media, as per Consequence.

His time with Maiden ended when they sought a bolder stage act. "Steve was saying, 'You've got to get better. You've got to be more in the audience's face. You've got to be commanding," Day told Danish webzine Power of Metal, as reported by NME.

Australia became his home in the 1980s. There, he kept the music going with groups like Wildfire and Buffalo Crows. He put out his final track, "Unwanted Guest," in June, just weeks before his death.