Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson helped take the band to another level after joining them in the early 1980s. His powerful vocals were the perfect match for their sound and played a crucial role in making the British group one of the best-selling bands of all time. Heavy Metal music wouldn't be the same without them, and they have been a major influence on countless bands that came after. Although many subgenres of Rock music have emerged, such as Heavy Metal, at its core it is all Rock and Roll. Everyone has their own definition of what this kind of music is about, and Bruce Dickinson once revealed which two songs he would play for someone to help them understand what Rock truly is. 2 songs Bruce Dickinson picked to show what Rock and Roll is Jimi Hendrix "Little Wing" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35luFxHO5E0&list=RD35luFxHO5E0&start_radio=1&pp=ygUaSmltaSBIZW5kcml4ICJMaXR0bGUgV2luZyKgBwHSBwkJwQkBhyohjO8%3D Bruce was asked in an interview with Come Backstage in 2018 which songs he would play to convince someone to listen to Rock and Roll. His first choice was Jimi Hendrix's ballad "Little Wing", explaining that is a song that "makes you want to cry". That track was released on Hendrix's second album "Axis: Bold as Love" (1967). The Iron Maiden vocalist is a fan of the late legendary guitarist and singer and when he was the host of the BBC Radio “Masters Of Rock” and in the website of the show, Dickinson listed the 15 essential albums that everyone should listen. One of them was Hendrix's debut "Are You Experienced" (1967), which has songs like "Purple Haze", "Fire" and "Manic Depression. Curiously, it was Jimi Hendrix who indirectly inspired Iron Maiden to rent their own airplane. Dickinson recalled that during an appearance at the Campus Party festival in Brasília, Brazil in 2019. “I read a book about Jimi Hendrix when I was learning to fly. I discovered that early in his career, people in America used to travel in old DC-3. (It's) something a little faster than walking. But not so reliable. Then the Hendrix manager said: Hey! Why don’t we just get a couple of guitars, some drumsticks and suddenly you can be in San Francisco one day and the next day in New York?” He continued: “This will only cost us something like $ 500! Wow!! Okay, but of course someone asked: how will we do with the amplifiers and PA? Then the manager said: you can just rent them is simple! I read this and was inspired because I am basically a big child of 60 years old. So I thought that, quite romantic, I could also fly around with a band and do shows. Because I would fly the plane and I could do this by singing!” “But of course it would not be that easy, because it never happens that way. The accountants said that we could not do that. That we didn’t have the money to go to South America, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa. I then came up with this crazy idea because I was working as a pilot in an airline. I knew that in the winter of Europe the rental of airplanes was much cheaper. Why not have our own Magic Carpet?” One of the most influential musicians of all time, Hendrix tragically died too soon at the age of 27 in 1970. Led Zeppelin "Whole Lotta Love" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQmmM_qwG4k&list=RDHQmmM_qwG4k&start_radio=1&pp=ygUfTGVkIFplcHBlbGluICJXaG9sZSBMb3R0YSBMb3ZlIqAHAQ%3D%3D The second song Bruce Dickinson mentioned was "Whole Lotta Love", classic track by Led Zeppelin featured on their second studio album "Led Zeppelin II" (1969). He explained his choice saying it is "one (that) makes you want to jump up and down and to have sex". Led Zeppelin also has been a huge inspiration for Bruce and he already said they are one of his favorite Hard Rock bands of all time. In his opinion, the band's vocalist Robert Plant is one of the bases of the Heavy Metal singing style, alongside Paul Rodgers and Ian Gillan. “There are basically 3 bases for the metal style of singing. If you join aspect of these 3 singers, you have everything. These 3 singers are Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin), Ian Gillan (Deep Purple, Black Sabbath) and Paul Rodgers (Free, Bad Company). If you join them in various combinations you have everyone was always talking about well,” Bruce Dickinson told Metal Rules. His favorite Led Zeppelin albums The Iron Maiden frontman talked about Led Zeppelin multiple times over the years and even revealed that "Led Zeppelin II" (1968) and "Led Zeppelin IV" (1971) are some of his favorite albums of the band. Besides "Whole Lotta Love", those albums also had tracks like "Thank You", "Ramble On", "Black Dog", "Rock and Roll" and "Stairway to Heaven". “Zeppelin were adopted by American radio big-style. But I’ve got to confess that the thing I loved most about Zeppelin was their English folk roots. Not their copies of American blues tracks. Also ‘Ramble On’ is one of my favourite Led Zeppelin songs. But that’s just me,” Bruce Dickinson told Metal Hammer in 2022. Dickinson had the chance to cover Led Zeppelin with Iron Maiden when they recorded "Communication Breakdown". The track was released as the b-side of their late 80s single "Bring Your Daughter to The Slaugther". The post 2 songs Bruce Dickinson picked to show what Rock and Roll is appeared first on Rock and Roll Garage.