The start of something great...
Jorge Ruben | West Hempstead, NY United States | 10/04/2001
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This is Bruce's first solo album before leaving Iron Maiden and striking out on his own. Is it his best? No, I would reserve praise like that for "The Chemical Wedding" or "Skunkworks". Is it his heaviest? Nope, that would probably be "Accident of Birth". Well then, what is it about this album that just stands out? It's straight from Bruce's heart. It was written, composed and recorded in a very short amount of time. It's Bruce letting loose and doing what he wants to do. It's Bruce writing about things near & dear to him ("Born in '58") and just being plain goofy ("Zulu Lulu", "Dive! Dive! Dive!"). It's awesome hard-rocking songs ("Son of a Gun", "Tattooed Millionaire"). It's a cool cover song ("All the Young Dudes"). It's an album that's better recorded than any of the last few Maiden albums. Is it a heavy metal album? No. Is it an Iron Maiden album? No. That's the whole idea. To those reviewers who say "this is disappointing", "I wouldn't play frisbee with this", "I'm a huge Maiden fan", "Steve Harris and Paul Di'Anno are sitting somewhere laughing", *knock* *knock* *knock* that's the sound of the 21st century asking you to leave the '80's and join the rest of us. It's OK. Go ahead, cut off your mullets. Take off your spiked wristbands and your spandex tights and join us. You'd be surprised at what you've missed. Iron Maiden is my favorite band. But this album is meant to be different from everything that Maiden did. The album on the whole is very good, with a little bit of everything for everyone. Bruce's band is comprised of Andy Carr, Fabio Del Rio and Janick Gers, before Bruce released The Plague of Gers on Iron Maiden. After hearing this album, I don't know what happened to Janick. His playing is pretty damn good on Tattooed Millionaire the album. Like I said before, it's not a Maiden album. And that's what Bruce was going for. Steve Harris laughing? He almost ran Maiden into the ground before he had to swallow his pride and his HUGE ego and ask Bruce to come back to Maiden. Paul Di'Anno laughing? PAUL DI'ANNO???? Let's not EVEN go there... Iron Maiden is NOT Bruce Dickinson, and Bruce Dickinson is NOT Iron Maiden (although seeing how Maiden's fortunes took a HUGE turn for the better when Bruce re-joined, that point is certainly debatable). Bruce would improve his sound and his supporting cast on his later follow-ups "Accident of Birth" and "The Chemical Wedding", but if you want to see how the seeds for Bruce's solo career were sown, "Tattooed Millionaire" is a great starting point. If you still have a mullet and end every sentence with "Maiden Rules!!", then maybe this album is not for you. BUT, if you appreciate good songwriting, and want to see the potential Bruce saw in Janick Gers before his disastrous performances in Iron Maiden, then by all means pick up "Tattooed Millionaire". You will not be disappointed."
Clever hooks, lots of fun
Just Bill | Grand Rapids, MI United States | 01/28/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The first solo album from Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson was clever and catchy at the time of its release back in 1990. But by comparison to what followed (a decade's worth of noteworthy and excellent albums), it probably seems pretty tame to some fans. For with each album (with the exception of the horrid Skunkworks attempt), Bruce rocked harder and harder. By the time he got to Chemical Wedding, his riffs were bone-crushing and almost too painful to listen to with headphones on.That's why the hard rock (not HEAVY METAL) arrangements and riffs found on Tattooed Millionaire are still among my favorites. Sitting in as guest guitarist is none other than long-time friend Janick Gers who filled in six string duities in Maiden for 10 years for the departed Adrian Smith -- until Smith's return to Maiden on the Brave New World album, bringing the total number of guitars in Maiden to three.But, back to Tattooed Millionaire.Of the album's 10 tracks, there are many that I like a lot -- partly because I've always liked Janick's guitar style. "Son of a Gun," which kicks it all off, is great, as is the title track. "Born in '58" is fun, if frivolous, "Dive! Dive! Dive!" is a powerful, tongue-in-cheek track with a growling vocal from Bruce on the chorus and, of course, Bruce's cover of "All the Young Dudes" is another enjoyable track.Tattooed Millionaire is melodic hard rock at its finest. If you compare it to the sounds of Accident of Birth or Chemical Wedding, I'm sure you'll think it's pretty tame. And, possibly, even pretty bad. But don't dismiss it that quickly. Keep it in its proper context (1990) and try to enjoy it for what it is.I like Tattoed Millionaire and always have. It went out of print before I could get a copy, so I had to track it down at used CD stores all over Milwaukee when I lived there three or four years ago. I ended up finding, like, three copies of it and bought all three in case it was never reissued.Thankfully -- for you -- Tattooed Millionaire has now been reissued. Better buy your copy now before someone changes his mind!"
If you liked Iron Maiden's...
randy mikell | Millington, TN United States | 07/31/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
""Bring Your Daughter..." and "Hooks in You" then you'll probably like this album. If, on the other hand, your attidude was "doesn't sound like Maiden, and I want Dickinson's stuff to sound like Maiden" then not only will you probably not like this album, you probably won't like any of his solo efforts. I have all the studio albums, and I like them all, partially because they all have their own distinct feel to them."
Track Listings (10) - Disc #1