In his most detailed comments yet on Iron Maiden‘s new lineup, frontman Bruce Dickinson has explained the crucial difference between legendary retired drummer Nicko McBrain and his successor, Simon Dawson, stating: “You can’t replace Nicko with a clone.” In a new interview on the Talk Is Jericho podcast, he praised Dawson‘s “analytical” and stable style, even comparing his “natural feel” to that of the band’s original drummer, the late Clive Burr.
Reflecting on the band’s first tour without McBrain in 42 years, Dickinson made it clear that the band deliberately sought a different kind of player to fill the iconic drum throne.
“Obviously, it was different, because Simon is not Nick. He’s not a copy of Nick,” Dickinson explained. “Nick was like a human fireworks display every night in terms of his drumming, personality and everything else. And Simon’s not; he’s low key… He’s more thoughtful. He’s very analytical. He warms up for, like, two hours… so he’s a different drummer, but the songs are the same. And he’s happy. Everybody in the band is perfectly happy. But they’re not the same. You can’t replace Nick with a clone.”
When host Chris Jericho noted that Dawson‘s playing has a “Clive Burr-type vibe,” Dickinson emphatically agreed.
“His natural feel is that, that inclination,” he said. “And I was shocked at how I was, like. ‘Oh my God. I’m having a flashback here,’ looking over my shoulder, going, ‘Wow.’ ‘Cause his natural feel is to be kind of like around the beat, almost like a swingtime thing, like an Ian Paice-type feel… I loved playing with Clive.”
In a previous interview, Dickinson had elaborated on the specific musical quality that Dawson brings to the band: stability.
“Simon kind of sticks with the program in terms of the tempo of the song and everything. He’s absolutely scrupulous about cutting the right tempo every time. So we actually, as a band, really kind of appreciate that,” he said. “‘Cause all the guitarists have big smiles, like Cheshire cats, [and] Steve [Harris is] the same. ‘Cause everybody’s not feeling, like, ‘Whoa, hey, steady on there, trigger. Whoa, slow down there.'”
Simon Dawson stepped in after Nicko McBrain announced his retirement in December 2024.
