Jackson Dinky 1985 Adrian Smith
Jackson Dinky 1985 Adrian Smith
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In the mid-80s, Iron Maiden’s sound adapted to the trends of the time and began incorporating synthesizers. Fortunately, the band didn’t become a new wave knockoff with drum machines — instead, they simply blended new electronic sounds with their hard-hitting heavy metal. That said, they never officially added a keyboardist to the band (even though Michael Kenney has played offstage since 1988), so they had to find another way to trigger these sounds live: this is why Adrian Smith, the band’s second guitarist since 1980, took an interest in the MIDI guitar.
This white Jackson Dinky (still the type of guitar most closely associated with Smith today) is one of the custom guitars he ordered at the time to be properly equipped. As revealed by the numerous buttons on its body, it is fitted with a hexaphonic pickup that outputs via MIDI through a separate jack from the magnetic pickups, allowing a mix of traditional and synthetic sound. This technological monster (for its time, of course!) was used for the recording of Somewhere In Time, the band’s first progressive-leaning album released in 1986, as well as for the world tour that followed. It also appears on Seventh Son of a Seventh Son in 1988, the last album for which Smith was officially part of the band, and his final tour with Iron Maiden before rejoining in 1999.
This Jackson would remain one of his favorites, as it was also seen during his time with The Untouchables. A piece of guitar tech history and a slice of heavy metal history — all in one guitar.
Adrian Smith
(1957)
Band: Iron Maiden
Main guitar: Jackson Dinky
Must-listen track: Two Minutes to Midnight
Fate seems to have decided that the two guitarists of the heavy metal giant Iron Maiden would play together all their lives. Indeed, Adrian Smith started as a singer in Murray’s first band, then learned guitar influenced by his friend, inspired by blues rock musicians like Johnny Winter. He remained the bluesy and wild counterpart to Murray’s smoother and more technical playing style. The two then formed the band Urchin, which Murray left to join Iron Maiden in 1978. Smith wanted to give Urchin a chance and refused to follow his friend, but eventually agreed in 1980 when his band fell apart.
From then on, the band found its definitive guitar duo; Murray and Smith harmonized, answered each other, and competed in creativity in their riffs and solos. Smith is also an excellent songwriter and began contributing to the band’s songs from the moment singer Bruce Dickinson joined in 1982 for the album The Number of the Beast. Classics like "22 Acacia Avenue" and the immortal riff of "Two Minutes to Midnight" on Powerslave are credited to Smith.
Following creative differences with bassist and band leader Steve Harris, Smith left Iron Maiden in 1990 after the Seventh Son of a Seventh Son tour. He then formed Psycho Motel and released albums and toured, but his band was put on hold when Dickinson, who had been replaced in Maiden in the meantime, invited him to join his solo project. The duo resumed writing together for two tracks on the excellent Accident of Birth in ’97, and two tracks on The Chemical Wedding the following year.
Finally, in ’99, Dickinson returned as Iron Maiden’s singer and brought Adrian Smith back with him, making him the band’s third guitarist alongside Murray and Jannick Gers, who had replaced him in the meantime. The massive Brave New World album marked their reunion in 2000, and since then the band has continuously released albums and toured worldwide to sold-out crowds.
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