You wouldn’t really suspect that a band like Iron Maiden could or would be turned down by anybody. Even though the band has become a classic rock act at this point, there is still much left in the tank for the group as they still have so much more to not only give to their fans, but to give to the world of music as well. It’s truly shocking that this star snubbed the group and we are left to wonder if there are any deeper motives behind this. Thankfully, we have the answers.
During an appearance on The Metal Voice, Dream Theater singer James Labrie stated that he refused to audition for Iron Maiden back in 1993 when Bruce Dickinson left the band. During the interview, James stated the following about when he was approached with the idea to become the new singer of Iron Maiden.
James Labrie stated: “You’ve gotta remember – I was in a very bizarre situation. Dream Theater, we had already recorded ‘Images and Words,’ we were looking for a management, we were getting ready to try and set up a tour and get out there. And I remember him saying to me – he takes me aside, and the rest of the guys in Dream Theater were there too, playing darts – because we were looking at him for management. And he says, ‘I just wanna throw something at you.’ And he had his assistant with him too – Merck – at the time. And they were both standing there.”
James continued: “They were going, ‘What do you think about being the singer with Iron Maiden? And I said, ‘What? What are we talking about here? I’m confused. Are you not here for the reason that you might start managing Dream Theater? Or are you here to get me to become…?’ And I had already recorded the [Dream Theater] album. Can you imagine how bizarre that was? Anyways, so I just said, ‘No. No way. You know what? I’m gonna tell you the reasons why I’m not going to do this.’ And they said, ‘What’s that?’ And I said, ‘One: Dream Theater. That’s it. Period.'”
We wonder what life would have been like if James had replaced Bruce. Special thanks to Ultimate Guitar.
