The singer eventually left the band 10 years later in 1993 and returned in 1999 but there were trying times for Dickinson during the band’s “Powerslave” era of 1984-85.
He told Loudwire, “I was just very, very mentally exhausted by the whole … grind, if you like, of grinding out 13 months on the road with so stable social life of any description really. People say, ‘Stop complaining – you’re a rock star and you make all this money.’ I said, ‘Yeah, actually, I am, but therefore if I decide to stop, it’s my choice.’ So I did think about it. … I thought there were other things, perhaps, that I could do that earned much, much less money, but would give me the same or greater level of satisfaction.”
Part of the challenge for the singer was he repetition and lack of one-to-one interaction, adding, ‘Off you go, there’s 300 shows.’ I’m like, ‘Okay, so what exactly do I get out of each show, apart from lots of people going yeah-yeah-yeah?’ My brain’s not creaking and expanding – in fact, quite the contrary. After the first hundred or so … There’s more to life than just that.”
Dickinson said it was a quote from “Tropic of Cancer” writer Henry Miller that helped him solidify his decision, “All growth is a leap in the dark”
Dickinson is a multi-talented rocker. He’s also an accomplished fencer and airline pilot. His new book is called “What does this button do?” – by John Beaudin
John Beaudin has been in major market radio (Edmonton, Vancouver & Calgary) for 33 years and a music journalist since 1989. He graduated from Broadcasting school as a news man so he would have the skills to write about the artists that inspired him since he bought his first album, “Madman Across The Water” by Elton John as a teen. In the 80’s Beaudin was the host of the syndicated radio show “The Cross Canada Report” which had two version (Rock and A/C). Beaudin was also asked to be a judge at the Juno Awards (Canada’s answer to the Grammys) Twice. He has anchored every position in radio including morning and afternoon drive and was a Program and Music Director for The Breeze and California 103 in Calgary. He currently hosts the popular Lovesongs at QM-FM in Vancouver and on iHeartRadio.
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