Last week, Iron Maiden surprised fans when they announced that their longtime drummer Nicko McBrain was retiring from performing live with the group. The band paid tribute to McBrain on stage during his final show in São Paulo, Brazil, and announced their new drummer, Simon Dawson, the following day.
Chris Jericho appeared on SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation” with Eddie Trunk earlier this week to plug this weekend’s dates with his non-makeup era KISS cover band, Kuarantine. Jericho commented on McBrain’s departure and revealed that the 72-year-old drummer was having a few issues.
“We just saw Nicko in Minneapolis probably about a month ago or so. And I asked him, like, ‘How are you doing?’” Jericho said. “He was having problems playing 16th notes, he said. But he’s still Nicko — funniest guy, best guy. So it doesn’t surprise me that he retired ’cause he told me before, ‘I want the guys to go on when I’m ready to stop. And it’s gonna be soon.'”
Jericho continued: “Maiden is so classic in that, if you think about this, they didn’t give fans a chance to even think about it. They announced it on the morning. He plays his last show that night. They announced the new drummer the next day, and boom. It’s, like, ‘See you, guys.’ It’s, like, ‘Whoa.’ They didn’t do, like, the Nicko farewell tour or anything like that. But, obviously, they’ve been planning it for a while. And Nicko, one of the most influential rock drummers ever, and more importantly, just a sweetheart of a guy. He’s one of those guys, as you all know, no one ever says anything bad about Nicko McBrain — ever. He’s just the friendliest, nicest, happiest, most encouraging guy. So, nothing but the best to him, man. And it’s gonna be hard to replace Nicko McBrain. But he earned his right to step down. And he’s just a classic drummer and a classic man.”
Jericho was also asked if he thinks McBrain might play on future Iron Maiden records. “It leaves the door open. And Nicko even said in his statement that he’s still gonna be working on Maiden-related projects and he’s still managed by Rod Smallwood and Andy Taylor. So whether he plays on the album or not, I think they’re leaving the door open for him. But, as you know, Iron Maiden songs are not easy to play, and recording a new record takes a while. So, maybe he’ll play on it, but I think once you kind of step back from that daily playing or that tour life of playing, he might not wanna do it, or maybe he’ll do a song or two. But I think it leaves the door open, but I wouldn’t count on it anytime soon. And Maiden isn’t doing a record anytime soon either. So…”
