Rod Smallwood Reveals The Origin Story Of Iron Maiden’s Eddie

He is one of the most recognized figures in heavy metal, but the skeletal mascot of Iron Maiden, Eddie, was not the product of a grand design. Instead, he was born out of a practical need: the band was just too shy.

In the official visual history book “Iron Maiden: Infinite Dreams“, longtime manager Rod Smallwood reveals that the band’s reserved nature in their early days necessitated a visual focal point to represent their music.

“It really came from the fact that the guys were quite shy,” Smallwood explains (according to Metal Addicts). “Even Paul [Di’Anno, former Iron Maiden singer] beneath all his bravado, was quite a sensitive soul. I wanted something that we could develop as a sort of conceptual continuity.”

Inspired by the elaborate, surreal artwork of bands like Yes, Smallwood began searching for an artist. The breakthrough came from a chance encounter at EMI before the band had even signed.

“I was at EMI for a meeting, pre-signing, and noticed artwork on the wall — a jazz poster. I contacted the artist, Derek Riggs,” Smallwood recalls. “We were in the studio working on the album, so I had Derek come around with samples of his work. There were about two dozen. Twenty-three were effectively science-fiction book covers — more Elo than Maiden. But in the midst was what we used for the artwork. It jumped out at me as the ideal character; we just made the hair longer.”

Once the striking figure was chosen, it needed a name. Steve Harris insisted on “Eddie,” a name borrowed from a classic East End joke told by the band’s lighting technician, Dave ‘Lights’ Beazley. The joke centered on “Eddie the ’ead,” a character who was just a disembodied head. As the punchline goes, when given a gift at Christmas, Eddie moans: “Not another f**king hat!”

The public was first introduced to this new character on the cover of the “Running Free” single in February 1980, where he was depicted with his face obscured by shadows. It wasn’t until the band’s self-titled debut album dropped in April 1980 that the full, gruesome face of Eddie was revealed.

The “Infinite Dreams” book also addresses one of the most enduring myths about Eddie’s creation: that he was inspired by a 1942 Ralph Morse photo of a Japanese soldier’s skull on a tank. The book clarifies that this photo was not the inspiration for the character, stating “it was just his reference for Eddie‘s skin texture.”