| "Prodigenous Zee/Run to the Hills infobox" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| B-side | 1982 single "Total Eclipse" 1985 live single "Phantom of the Opera (live)", "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)" 2002 live single Part 1 "22, Acacia Avenue (live)", "The Prisoner (live)", "Run to the Hills (Camp Chaos video)" Part 2 "Children of the Damned (live)", "Total Eclipse (live)", "Run to the Hills (video)" |
"Run to the Hills" is a song from Iron Maiden's 1982 album The Number of the Beast. It was written by Steve Harris, bassist and founder of the band.
The song was released as a single on 12 February 1982, as a prelude to the album. This would be the first single released by the band to feature current vocalist Bruce Dickinson. On the b-side was a song called "Total Eclipse", which would not be on the initial version of the album The Number of the Beast. However, the band later regretted this decision, as they thought the song was too good to be only a b-side. "Total Eclipse" was added to the Number of the Beast album when it was re-released in 1998.
In 1985, "Run to the Hills" was released as a single once again, but now in a live version, taken from the live album Live After Death. However, The single cover-art displayed Iron Maiden's mascot Eddie in a setting that is often associated with The Phantom of the Opera: playing an organ. Live versions of "Phantom of the Opera" and "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)" were the b-sides.
In early 2002 "Run to the Hills" was again released as a single, and once again in a live version. This time it was the original studio version again, but with live recordings as b-sides. The single was released to raise money for the Clive Burr MS Trust Fund, to help former Iron Maiden drummer Clive Burr, who is suffering from multiple sclerosis. In March of 2002, Iron Maiden played three shows at the Brixton Academy in London to raise money for this trust fund, and the single was released around the same time. Two versions of this single exist, with different b-sides.
It was released as a video in the early 1980s, which was later remade in the late 90s/early 2000s. The first video consisted of the band performing, interspersed with comical footage from a Buster Keaton film featuring Indians. Buster himself is not shown at any moment, apparently for rights reasons. The later video removed all the old film footage and replaced it with Flash animation of Eddie in a sci-fi Wild West setting, animated by Camp Chaos.
The song itself is about the conflict between Native Americans and the invading white men. The song starts with a narrative from the Indians side but as the song takes off turns itself around to the point of view of a soldier.
"Run to the Hills" ranked #27 on VH1's Top 40 Metal Songs.
A shortened version of the song is included in the soundtrack of SSX on Tour.
An all-star cover version of the song is found on the tribute album Numbers from the Beast, featuring Robin McAuley on vocals, Michael Schenker and Pete Fletcher on guitars, Tony Franklin on bass and Brian Tichy on drums. This version follows the original schema of the song, but varies in terms of guitar solos. Schenker has also added small solos in places where there originally are no solos.
Track listing edit
1982 single edit
- "Run to the Hills" (Steve Harris) – 3:50
- "Total Eclipse" (Harris, Dave Murray, Clive Burr) – 4:28
1985 live single edit
- "Run to the Hills (live)" (Harris) – 3:54
- "Phantom of the Opera (live)" (Harris) – 7:20
- "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra) (live)" (Harris) – 4:14
2002 single edit
Version 1 edit
This version of the single contains the studio version of the song "Run to the Hills", while the b-sides were recorded live at the Reading Festival, on August 28 1982. It also includes the Camp Chaos version of the "Run to the Hills" music video.
- "Run to the Hills" (Harris) – 3:50
- "22, Acacia Avenue (live)" (Harris, Adrian Smith) – 6:33
- "The Trooper (live)" (Smith, Harris) – 5:55
- "Run to the Hills (Camp Chaos video)" (Harris)
Version 2 edit
This version of the single contains a live version of the song "Run to the Hills", which is the same as on the Rock in Rio live album. The b-sides for the second version were recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon in London on March 20 1982. The live video of "Run to the Hills" is also from the Rock in Rio live album.
- "Run to the Hills (live)" (Harris) – 4:59
- "Children of the Damned (live)" (Harris, Smith) – 4:32
- "Total Eclipse (live)" (Harris, Murray, Burr) – 3:57
- "Run to the Hills (live video)"