Balls to Picasso

Balls to Picasso is a Hard rock album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1994. It is the second effort in Dickinson's solo career and the first released after he had officially left Iron Maiden.

This record marked the beginning of Dickinson's collaborations with Roy Z, who would work on many of Dickinson's later albums including Accident of Birth, The Chemical Wedding and Tyranny of Souls. Stylistically it departs from Tattooed Millionaire but is still more traditional-sounding than the follow-up album Skunkworks released in 1996. Later, Dickinson said that he and Roy Z were talked into making the album less heavy than it should have been.^[2]

Dickinson started working on his second solo album while still in Iron Maiden. For the very first recording sessions he recruited the British band Skin. Not satisfied with the style of the effort, Dickinson aborted the recording. His next attempt at a second solo album was a collaboration with producer Keith Olsen. Dickinson decided to scrap this project as well and teamed up with guitarist Roy Z and his band Tribe of Gypsies to write and record Balls to Picasso. Songs from the previous recording sessions later resurfaced as b-sides on singles from Balls to Picasso and subsequently also as bonus tracks on the album's 2005 extended edition (see below).

In the Anthology DVD, Dickinson said that he regrets not naming the album "Laughing in the Hiding Bush" after one the song of the same name. The song itself is dedicated to his son, Austin, who penned the title.

Balls to Picasso was also released in DVD-Audio 5.1 mix and DualDisc (CD/DVD-Audio 5.1 mix) versions.

Track listing

1. "Cyclops" - 7:58
2. "Hell No" - 5:11
3. "Gods of War" - 5:02
4. "1000 Points of Light" - 4:25
5. "Laughing in the Hiding Bush" - 4:20
6. "Change of Heart" - 4:58
7. "Shoot All the Clowns" - 4:24 - #37 UK
8. "Fire" - 4:30
9. "Sacred Cowboys" - 3:53
10. "Tears of the Dragon" - 6:24 - #28 UK, #36 US

All songs by Bruce Dickinson/Roy Z, except "Laughing in the Hiding Bush", by Bruce Dickinson/Roy Z/Austin Dickinson, "Fire", by Bruce Dickinson/Roy Z/Eddie Casillas and "Tears of the Dragon", by Bruce Dickinson.

The song "Tears of the Dragon" became a huge hit in Latin America, where Dickinson has a large fanbase.^[3]

Track listing for the 2005 Extended Edition (Bonus CD)

1. "Fire Child"
2. "Elvis Has Left the Building"
3. "The Breeding House"
4. "No Way Out...To Be Continued"
5. "Tears of the Dragon (Acoustic Chillout)"
6. "Winds of Change"
7. "Spirit of Joy"
8. "Over and Out"
9. "Shoot All the Clowns (12" Extended Remix)"
10. "Laughing in the Hiding Bush (live)"
11. "The Post Alternative Seattle Fall Out (live)"
12. "Shoot All the Clowns (7" Remix)
13. "Tibet"
14. "Tears of the Dragon (First Bit, Long Bit, Last Bit)"
15. "Cadillac Gas Mask"
16. "No Way Out...Continued"

Credits

• Bruce Dickinson – vocals

Tribe of Gypsies

• Roy Z – Guitar
• Eddie Casillas – Bass guitar
• David Ingraham – drums
• Doug Van Booven – percussion

Additional musicians

• Mario Aguilar ("Shoot all the Clowns")
• Dean Ortega ("Shoot all the Clowns")
• Dickie Fliszar – Drums ("Tears of the Dragon")

Credits

• Mastered by Greg Fulginiti & Andy Van Dette at Masterdisk

References