This was inspired by the novel Lord Of The Flies by William Golding, which was made into two movies: one in 1963 and one in 1990 (neither were great critical successes). It's about a group of boys who are shipwrecked and begin embracing their primal side. >>

Lord Of The Flies is the literal translation of the Greek word Beezelbub. In the Bible, Beezelbub is the name given for Satan by Jesus (this occurs in the episode where he casts demons out of a crazy man and into a pig. There's also a line in there from which Lincoln derived his phrase about the Civil War- a house divided upon itself can not stand). While most songs dealing with Golding's novel deal with the more good guy characters in the novel - Ralph and Piggy, or with the kinda psychic kid (Simon) who actually talks to the beast, this song is unique in that it's told from the point of view of the most savage boys - Jack and his crew. It's kind of like The Rolling Stones' Sympathy For The Devil in that it's a sort of exoneration for evil behavior, and cautions that everyone is called to be evil. >>

This is the most guitar-driven song on the album.

The artwork on the single depicted Iron Maiden's mascot Eddie as literally a lord of the flies. He sits, dressed as a monarch, on an electric chair (serving as a throne) with a swarm of flies around him.

The two songs on the B-side were a cover of the Who's "My Generation" and a cover of UFO's "Doctor, Doctor." >>