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Paul Mario Day, original lead singer of Iron Maiden<\/a> and singer of the new wave of British heavy metal band More, has died at the age of 69.<\/p>\n “We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of the great\u00a0More vocalist Paul Mario Day,”\u00a0More wrote in a Facebook statement, which you can see below. “Paul was a huge part of the NWOBHM from his time in an early version of Iron Maiden, and of course his fantastic performance on the Warhead<\/em> album.<\/p>\n “He was a well-loved figure in British rock music and played many memorable shows, not least the legendary 1981 Monsters of Rock show at Castle Donington with AC\/DC<\/a>, Whitesnake<\/a>\/David Coverdale<\/a>, as well as tours with Iron Maiden<\/a>, Def Leppard<\/a> and many other legendary artists.”<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> Iron Maiden Albums Ranked Worst to Best<\/a><\/p>\n The band continued: “Mike Freeland [current More lead singer] remembers him fondly as a ‘bloody great vocalist!’ It’s an honour for us to continue to play his music and we will always think of him every time we hit the opening notes to ‘Warhead.’ We send our deepest condolences to Paul’s family and friends and also the many fans around the world who love his music. Play his music loud and sing along! Thank you.”<\/p>\n Born on April 19, 1956, Day became the first singer for Iron Maiden, joining the band in December 1975 at the age of 19. His tenure lasted less than a year, as Maiden kicked him out in October 1976 and replaced him with\u00a0Dennis Wilcock.<\/p>\n Day formed More in 1980, and the band released its debut album,\u00a0Warhead<\/em>,\u00a0in 1981. He left the band before the release of their second and final album, 1982’s Blood & Thunder<\/em>.<\/p>\n After More, Day briefly fronted the band Wildfire from 1983 to 1984, and in 1985 he joined a reformed version of Sweet<\/a>\u00a0alongside guitarist Andy Scott and drummer Mick Tucker, singing on their 1986 album\u00a0Live at the Marquee<\/em>.<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> Five ’70s Bands That Should Have Been Bigger<\/a><\/p>\n Scott also paid tribute to Day via Sweet’s social media. “In 1985 Mick Tucker and myself put together the first new line-up of Sweet after the hiatus of the original band,” he recalled. “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. Europe followed suit and 3 sold out nights at the Marquee in London produced a live album, video and DVD. Live at the Marquee<\/em>\u00a0did well in various charts around the world and Paul\u2019s vocal performance has stood the test of time.”<\/p>\n Reflecting on his brief\u00a0stint with Iron Maiden in 2019, Day told the Danish webzine Power of Metal (via Blabbermouth<\/a>): “I never really was in a band, I just worked with guitar players in bedrooms, just sort of learning, experimenting, because I wasn’t really a singer. I just felt I could sing.”<\/p>\nPaul Mario Day’s Life and Career<\/h3>\n
Paul Mario Day Reflects on Brief\u00a0Stint With Iron Maiden<\/h3>\n