Holy Smoke (song)
| "Holy Smoke" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| B-side | "All In Your Mind" "Kill Me Ce Soir" |
"Holy Smoke" is Iron Maiden's 21st single and the first to feature guitarist Janick Gers, who joined the band in the summer of 1990. It was released just weeks before the album No Prayer for the Dying. The song deals with the many Televangelist scandals that took place in the United States in the late 1980s, including mentions of "Jimmy Reptile" (a reference to Jimmy Swaggart), Noah, and "plenty of bad preachers for the Devil to stoke." This is the only Iron Maiden song with profanity in the lyrics.
The band took a humorous approach for the video of the song, as the band members are filmed on Steve Harris' farm, playing football and driving a tractor, and everything happens in bright daylight. Dickinson is bouncing in a turnip field and wearing a pink T-shirt. Also the band's producer, Martin Birch, can be seen on the video. He is wearing a kind of sadomasochist costume. The video was directed by Harris himself.
The b-sides are covers of Stray's "All In Your Mind" and "Kill Me Ce Soir" originally performed by Golden Earring.
Track listing
- "Holy Smoke" (Steve Harris, Bruce Dickinson) – 3:50
- "All In Your Mind" (Stray cover) – 4:31
- "Kill Me Ce Soir" (Golden Earring cover) – 6:17
Credits
- Bruce Dickinson – vocals
- Dave Murray – guitar
- Janick Gers – guitar
- Steve Harris – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Nicko McBrain – drums
