"Fear of the Dark" is a song by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Written by Steve Harris, the band's bass player and primary songwriter, it serves as the title track to Iron Maiden's 1992 album Fear of the Dark. It is one of the band's most popular songs, and has been covered by several different artists. In 2011, it was covered by Fightstar for Kerrang! magazine's Maiden Heaven tribute album. The version of the song was released as downloadable content for the Rock Band video game series on 9 June 2009. When the song is performed live, the audience always sings along to the instrumental melody during the softer sections, at times becoming louder than the band themselves. It has been featured on all the band's live albums since its release.
Lyrics
The song's lyrics tell the story of a man who has always been intensely afraid of the dark. He recalls the many times he has walked alone, and recollections of the feeling of being followed while walking at night. According to Bruce Dickinson, Steve Harris wrote this song because he himself was really afraid of the dark.
A live version of the song was released on 1 March 1993 to promote A Real Live One, a live album featuring recordings from various concerts throughout the Fear of the Dark Tour. This song was recorded at the Helsinki Ice Hall on 27 August 1992. It is the 26th single released by the band, reaching number 8 in the UK charts. Different tracks taken from the same album served as B-sides, including "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter", "Be Quick or Be Dead", and "Tailgunner", in addition to "Hooks in You", recorded in 1990 during the No Prayer on the Road tour. The initial pressing of the 7" cut-to-shape vinyl picture disc listed "Hooks in You" as the B-side but actually played "Tailgunner". This mis-press was quickly corrected by EMI on future pressings. "Fear of the Dark" was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1994 in the "Best Metal Performance" category, but lost to "I Don't Want to Change the World" by Ozzy Osbourne. The single's cover art features Eddie playing Steve Harris' signature Fender Precision Bass.
