BOB ‘ANGELO’ SAWYER – Iron Maiden & Praying Mantis – The Early Days

Albums Reviews

BOB ‘ANGELO’ SAWYER – Iron Maiden & Praying Mantis – The Early Days

The ever-awesome Wymer Publiahing, which is housed in the UK, have released some of my favorite books on bands and music out there and "Iron Maiden & Praying Mantis – The Early Days" is certainly no different. The informal tone of the book is utterly charming and Mr. Sawyer tells it just like it is; there is no posh or pompous language here, folks. This is a great and fascinating story written by a talented musician who was actually there at the time and witnessed the birth of Iron Maiden and the NWOBHM movement. The fact that he was in Iron Maiden and played countless gigs with them all over London during their formative years should tell you that there is a lot of stuff in this cool piece of rock literature that ought to be of interest to you. There are so many funny anecdotes and stories and whatnot contained within its 144 pages that I had to laugh out loud quite a few times. When Sawyer was with Praying Mantis and touring with his old partners in Iron Maiden, a lot of mayhem and chaos ensued, most of which had to do with Clive Burr, Paul Di’Anno, and Sawyer himself. By means of diary entries as well as old band pictures and gig flyers he takes us with him on tour all over the UK and he tells it all in a down-to-earth and straightforward manner. The book also offers an interesting insight into what it meant to be a metal band back in the late 70s/early 80s and what it was like to crisscross the country in beat up vans, getting no sleep, eating crappy food, putting up with the bad tempers and lousy manners of other people, apathetic crowds, and what it felt like to put on a triumphant show.

Any aficionado of NWOBHM out there ought to invest in this neat little gem and that especially goes for those of you who worship Iron Maiden and/or the excellent Praying Mantis. It is a short read and you can cover it all in just one sitting if you want. I do wish that it was longer, but one cannot have it all, I suppose. Regardless of that, I can definitely recommend obtaining a copy of it and you ought to listen to some classic NWOBHM while reading it as Sawyer’s narrative truly captures the aura and essence of those wonderful metal years. Good stuff.