"The Evil That Men Do" is a song by the English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It is the band's seventeenth single and the second from their seventh studio album, Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988). The single debuted at number six in the UK charts and quickly rose to number five. The single's B-sides are re-recordings of "Prowler" and "Charlotte the Harlot" which appear as tracks number one and seven/eight respectively on the band's debut album Iron Maiden.
The title of the song is taken from Marcus Antonius's speech while addressing the crowd of Romans after Caesar's murder (Act 3, scene 2, "The Forum") in William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar: "The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones." Bruce Dickinson may sometimes repeat this before playing the song, but with the order of the clauses reversed (as he did in Rock in Rio). The poetic lyrics of the song are not related.
The guitar solo in "The Evil That Men Do" is played by Adrian Smith while the guitar solo in "Prowler '88" is played by Dave Murray. In "Charlotte the Harlot '88", the first guitar solo is played by Dave Murray followed by Adrian Smith.
An all-star cover of the song can be found on the tribute album Numbers from the Beast which features Fozzy frontman and AEW wrestler Chris Jericho on vocals, Paul Gilbert and Bob Kulick on guitar, Mike Inez on bass, and Brent Fitz on drums. It follows the basic layout of the song, but varies in terms of guitar solos and vocal harmonics.
Finnish progressive metal band Warmen have a song on their debut album "Unknown Soldier" called "The Evil That Warmen Do", assumingly taken from the Iron Maiden song of a similar name.
Hellsongs also covered this song on their "Pieces of Heaven, a Glimpse of Hell" album.
Band Крылья (Wings) from Ukraine covered that song with translated title and lyrics on their EP "Крылья". They version was named "То зло, что мы творим".
A cover by German power metal band Powerwolf is available in the cover album Metallum Nostrum that was originally a bonus disc in the deluxe edition of their 2015 album Blessed & Possessed.[1]
English horror punk band Creeper recorded a piano-centric cover of the song as part of an all-star Iron Maiden tribute album, Maiden Heaven Volume 2, for Kerrang! magazine released in June 2016.[2]
Versions
Songs
Country & Year
Catalog Number
Format
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88
Germany 1988
EMI 006 20 2751 7
Single 7"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88
Japan Promo 1988
EMI PRP-1315
Single 7"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88
UK 1988
EMI EM 64
Black Labels Single 7"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88
UK 1988
EMI EM 64
Silver Labels Single 7"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88
UK 1988
EMI EMG 64
Gatefold Sleeve Single 7"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88 / Charlotte the Harlot '88
EEC 1988
EMI K60 20 2773 6
Maxi Single 12"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88 / Charlotte the Harlot '88
Greece 1988
EMI 052 2027736
Maxi Single 12"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88 / Charlotte the Harlot '88
Italy 1988
EMI 14 2027736
Maxi Single 12"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88 / Charlotte the Harlot '88
Portugal 1988
EMI 2027736
Maxi Single 12"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88 / Charlotte the Harlot '88
UK 1988
EMI 12 EM 64
Maxi Single 12"
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88
UK 1988
EMI EMP 64
Shaped Picture Disc
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88 / Charlotte the Harlot '88
Japan 1988
EMI CDE12-5740
CD Single
The Evil that Men Do / Prowler '88 / Charlotte the Harlot '88
UK 1988
EMI CDEM 64
CD Single
Personnel
Production credits are adapted from the 7 inch vinyl,[3] 12 inch vinyl,[4] and picture disc covers.[5]
^"Kerrang!". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
^"The Evil That Men Do" 7 Inch Single (Media notes). Iron Maiden. EMI. 1 August 1988.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^"The Evil That Men Do" 12 Inch Single (Media notes). Iron Maiden. EMI. 1 August 1988.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^"The Evil That Men Do" Picture Disc Single (Media notes). Iron Maiden. EMI. 1 August 1988.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
