Page 22 - Classic Rock (February 2020)

Steve Harris

The Iron Maiden and British Lion bassist on having too

many ideas, being a tongue-tied fanboy and retirement…

Words: Dave Everley Portrait: John McMurtrie

teve Harris is in philosophical mood when he calls from his You’ve got Maiden and British Lion. Are there any other
home in the Bahamas. “You’ve got to cram things in and live musical itches left for you to scratch?
life while you can,” says the Iron Maiden bassist and [British Lion guitarist] David Hawkins said he’d love to do another
linchpin. “My candle’s burning down towards the end in album with me, doing some prog stuff. I went: “You’re joking, ain’t
my life, so I’ve just got to do what I want to do.” He’s you? I ain’t got time to do these two, let alone something else.”
Sreferring to The Burning, the new album from his side-band,
British Lion – their first in nearly eight years. “It’s evolved into a really If you find a window, and had the chance to collaborate with
solid unit,” he says of the band. “It feels very different now to when any musician tomorrow, who would it be?
we first did it.” That’s a hard one. [Thinks] I’d say Michael Schenker. He’s probably
my favourite rock guitar player ever. I always loved UFO. Him and
Your first album away from Maiden was a Steve Harris solo Paul Chapman.
record called British Lion. This is a British Lion album called
The Burning. What’s the difference? What about outside of hard rock or metal? You’re a big fan of
Well, I never really felt comfortable with it being a solo album. Genesis and Jethro Tull.
It was more of a side project. And it’s totally evolved into a band, When you’re into bands that much, you don’t really think about
which is what I wanted it to be anyway. The first album was working with them. You never really have a chance. You tend to put
recorded whenever we could, a bit more bits-and-pieces. This one, them on a pedestal.
we went in and recorded more the way Maiden do it, which is as
a live band. It’s weird hearing Steve Harris from Iron Maiden talk about
putting people on a pedestal.
You were playing some of the songs from this album on the Yeah, but I have people that I look up to too. I avoided meeting Ian
first British Lion tour six years ago. How many of them date Anderson for so long because I didn’t know what I’d say to him.
that far back? I ended up playing tennis with Peter Gabriel once, just cos he was on
It’s a similar thing to Maiden when we first started out. You have the court in the same hotel as me. I don’t know if he even knew who
a couple of covers in your set here or there, and as soon as you get I was, but I didn’t say anything cos I didn’t want to get tongue-tied.
a new song, you bin the covers. It’s great, cos we went straight into I didn’t want to act like a fanboy, even though I felt like one.
the studio to record them, and we didn’t have to rehearse them.
Will there be a new Maiden album before Download?
Does anyone have the guts to tell you if one of your songs isn’t You know I can’t tell you that.
any good?
It’s not like that with this band, cos they’re the ones driving the songs Okay, will we have to wait another seven or eight years for
from the start. They come in with the basic ideas and we take it from another British Lion album?
there. If I have a song, I’d want to try it with Maiden first, cos that [Laughs] I can’t answer that either. Hopefully not. But then
takes precedence. And as long as someone is involved outside of I remember saying that before. We’ve got enough material for
Maiden, there’s no way it’s going to go to the table with Maiden. probably a third of an album right now. Maybe even half. The thing
That’s the rule we’ve always had. is, we’re all prolific writers. The amount of ideas I have is insane.
Mind you, I’d rather have that problem than drying up.
Have you played the new album to anybody from Maiden?
No. Why would I, unless they asked me to? I wouldn’t force anything As a teenager you trained as a draughtsman. If you’d have kept
else on them. If they asked me: “Can I have an ear’ole of it?” then at it, you’d be retiring in a couple of years.
I would. I dunno, it’s just not something I’d do. Same thing as football. If I’d have done that I’d have retired many
years ago. Doing this has worked out fantastic. It’s a long career.
You’re pulling double duty at Download 2020 with British
Lion and Iron Maiden. Why? Does retirement sound appealing?
I could sit around twiddling my thumbs, but I’d rather play football Not really. Maybe it’s overrated. So many people seem to wish for
or play with British Lion. Or both. It’s not that I get bored. There’s retirement, then pop their clogs so soon afterwards cos they get
always something going on. My missus would tell me that I need to bored or their body runs down.
say no to a few things here or there. And she’s probably right.
So when does Steve Harris knock it on the head?
British Lion have played a few festivals where they’re I think someone else will have to knock me on the head. Probably
halfway up the bill. A lot of musicians of your stature the missus.
wouldn’t have done that.
I don’t know why not. I don’t see a problem with it. British Lion’s The Burning is out on January 17 via Parlophone.

22 CLASSICROCKMAGAZINE.COM