Nicko McBrain facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nicko McBrain
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McBrain in Costa Rica during the Somewhere Back in Time World Tour, 2008
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Michael Henry McBrain |
| Born | 5 June 1952 Hackney, London, England |
| Origin | Chipping Barnet, London, England |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Drummer |
| Years active | 1966–present |
Michael Henry "Nicko" McBrain (born 5 June 1952) is an English musician. He is best known as the drummer for the famous heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Nicko started playing in small bands when he was just 14 years old, back in 1966.
After school, he worked as a session musician, playing for different artists. He joined bands like Pat Travers and the French band Trust. In 1982, he joined Iron Maiden, replacing their previous drummer, Clive Burr. His first album with them was Piece of Mind in 1983. He has been with Iron Maiden ever since, playing on fourteen studio albums. He is the third-longest serving member of the band. Nicko retired from touring with Iron Maiden on December 7, 2024, but he will still be part of the band for future studio recordings.
Contents
Early Life and How He Started
Nicko McBrain was born in Hackney, London. He first wanted to play drums when he was very young. He saw a drummer named Joe Morello playing on TV. When he was ten, he started drumming on pots and pans. Later, he even used knives to drum on his parents' gas cooker, which chipped the paint!
Nicko remembers getting his first drum kit at age eleven or twelve. It was a simple kit with one snare drum, one tom-tom, one cymbal, and two drumsticks. Soon, he was playing songs by bands like the Rolling Stones and the Beatles with his school friends. By the time he was 14, he was regularly playing at pubs and weddings.
When he was at school, Nicko broke his nose in a fight. This is why his nose looks flat, and he never had surgery to fix it.
His Musical Journey
Nicko's first real band was called "The 18th Fairfield Walk." They later changed their name to "Peyton Bond." They mostly played cover songs by artists like Otis Redding and The Beatles. Nicko felt this band wasn't going anywhere, so he left.
He then joined "The Wells Street Blues Band," which became "The Axe" in 1969. This band played their own songs. After that band broke up, Nicko started playing with singer Billy Day in 1971. At this time, people called him "Nicky," a nickname from his teddy bear, Nicholas. But Billy Day introduced him as "Neeko" to a record company boss. Nicko liked the name and changed it to "Nicko" to sound more English. He kept the name even after leaving the group.
In 1973, Nicko played on a song called "Nice One Cyril" by Cockerel Chorus. That same year, he played on an album by guitarist Gordon Giltrap. This was Nicko's first album appearance.
In 1975, he played with Streetwalkers, then Pat Travers, and later the French band Trust. While touring with Trust in 1981, he met the band Iron Maiden. In 1982, Iron Maiden asked Nicko to join them. He replaced their drummer Clive Burr. Nicko even dressed up as Eddie, Iron Maiden's mascot, for his first TV appearance with the band. He became very good friends with bassist Steve Harris. Many people think Nicko completed Iron Maiden's best lineup. They released many popular albums in the 1980s.
Even when Iron Maiden's lineup changed in the 1990s, Nicko stayed. When Adrian Smith and Bruce Dickinson returned to the band in 1999, Iron Maiden became even more popular.
When Nicko is not playing with Iron Maiden, he sometimes plays with other bands. One of these was called McBrain Damage, which played Iron Maiden songs. In 2017, he was a guest drummer on the TV show Late Night with Seth Meyers.
Nicko creates all the drum parts for Iron Maiden's songs. He only has one songwriting credit on an album, for the song "New Frontier" from 2003's Dance of Death. This song shows his strong feelings against human cloning, which comes from his religious beliefs.
Retirement from Touring
On December 7, 2024, Nicko McBrain announced he would stop touring with Iron Maiden. However, he will still be a member of the band for studio recordings. He played his last live show with the band on that same day in Sao Paulo, Brazil. This was a very important moment for heavy metal music fans.
The band announced that Simon Dawson will replace Nicko for live shows. Simon is the drummer for British Lion, which is Steve Harris's other band.
His Drumming Style
Nicko McBrain's drumming has been a key part of Iron Maiden's sound since 1983. Guitarist Adrian Smith said that Nicko "really exploded" in Iron Maiden. He added that many of their songs were built around Nicko's busy and skilled drumming.
On the song "Where Eagles Dare" from the album Piece of Mind, Nicko shows how fast he can use a single drum pedal. He also plays very quick drum fills. His drum technician once said that other drummers called Nicko an "octopus." This was because he had amazing energy and could use all parts of his large drum kit during concerts.
Nicko often uses the back end of his left drumstick to hit the snare drum harder. He is known for not using a double bass pedal. Bruce Dickinson said Nicko refused to use one on "Where Eagles Dare," thinking it was "undrummerish." He says he only used a double pedal once for the song "Face in the Sand." Nicko prefers to use a single pedal. Since 2000, Nicko has played drums barefoot, saying it gives him "more freedom."
Steve Harris, the bassist, said that Nicko "can play all kinds of music." He also mentioned that drummers from other bands would watch Nicko to see how he played. Harris found it much easier to write songs with Nicko. Adrian Smith added that Steve and Nicko would work for hours on bass and drum patterns.
In 1991, Nicko released a video called Rhythms of the Beast. In this video, he shows how he plays drums. He also talks about tuning drums and different parts of the drum kit.
Awards and Recognitions
Nicko McBrain is often seen as one of the best and most important heavy metal drummers ever. In 2008, he was added to Guitar Centre's Drum Legends Hall of Fame. In 2020, he joined the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame. A year later, Nicko was also inducted into the Rhythm Magazine Hall of Fame.
In March 2024, Nicko played in three concerts at the Royal Albert Hall for the Mountbatten Festival of Music. He said it was a very special honor to be part of this event. Since 2019, Nicko has been an ambassador for the British Drum Company.
His Drum Gear
Nicko McBrain has used Paiste cymbals for a long time. He now plays British Drum Company drums. Before that, he used Sonor Drums and Premier. For the album A Matter of Life and Death, he used his old Ludwig snare drum, which he bought in 1975. He uses Vic Firth drumsticks, which are designed for him. Since 2016, Nicko also uses Remo drumheads, Sonor hardware, an LP cowbell, and a DW 9000 single pedal.
Nicko's cymbals have the Iron Maiden logo font instead of the usual Paiste logos.
About His Life
Nicko McBrain is married to Rebecca McBrain. He has two sons from his first marriage, born in 1983 and 1992. He lives in Boca Raton, Florida.
Nicko became a Christian in 1999. This happened after he visited the Spanish River Church near his home. His wife, Rebecca, had asked him to go with her. When he went into the church, Nicko felt a strong connection and started crying. He said he felt a "love affair with Jesus."
In 1988, Nicko appeared on a children's TV show called The Sooty Show. He played drums with the puppets Sooty and Sweep. Because of this, Nicko often has a Sooty puppet on his drum kit during Iron Maiden tours. The puppet is usually dressed to match the tour's theme.
Nicko also has a pilot's license, which means he can fly airplanes.
In 2009, he opened a restaurant called Rock 'N' Roll Ribs in Coral Springs, Florida. The restaurant has received good reviews and was even named "Best Ribs of 2012."
Nicko enjoys playing golf in his free time with his bandmate Dave Murray. He is also a fan of snooker, a cue sport, and has attended championships.
Nicko loves Jaguar Cars. In 2012, he bought a custom XKR-S car built just for him. In 2018, Jaguar also made a special Jaguar XJ car for Nicko.
In 2018, he opened a music store called Drum One in Manchester, England. The store sells drum kits and other related items. To promote the store, Nicko even interviewed Deep Purple drummer Ian Paice.
On August 3, 2023, Nicko shared in a video that he had a stroke in January 2023. A stroke is when blood flow to the brain is blocked. This made the right side of his body weak, from his shoulder down. After ten weeks of intense physical therapy, Nicko was able to join the band for rehearsals in May 2023. This was before their European tour. The band's manager, Rod Smallwood, said that Nicko's recovery showed amazing strength and willpower. Everyone in the band was very proud of him.
Discography
- Cockerel Chorus
- Nice One Cyril (1973)
- Gordon Giltrap
- Giltrap (1973)
- Streetwalkers
- Downtown Flyers (1975)
- Red Card (1976)
- Pat Travers
- Makin' Magic (1977)
- Putting It Straight (1977)
- Jenny Darren
- Jenny Darren (1980)
- Trust
- Marche ou Crève (Original French Release)/Savage (English Language Version) (1981)
- WhoCares
- "Out of My Mind" (2011)
- Solo
- Rhythms of the Beast (instructional drum video) (1991)
- Iron Maiden
- Piece of Mind (1983)
- Powerslave (1984)
- Somewhere in Time ((1986)
- Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988)
- No Prayer for the Dying (1990)
- Fear of the Dark (1992)
- The X Factor (1995)
- Virtual XI (1998)
- Brave New World (2000)
- Dance of Death (2003)
- A Matter of Life and Death (2006)
- The Final Frontier (2010)
- The Book of Souls (2015)
- Senjutsu (2021)
- Smith/Kotzen
- Smith/Kotzen (2021)
Images for kids
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Jaguar XJ6 customized for Nicko McBrain
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See also
In Spanish: Nicko McBrain para niños
