British rocker Paul Mario Day, best known as the original vocalist of Iron Maiden, has died at age 69.<\/p>\n
The heavy metal musician died peacefully at his home in Australia Tuesday, his family revealed.<\/p>\n
While an official cause of death is unknown at this time, the rocker had been battling cancer in recent years, Parade reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n British rocker Paul Mario Day, best known as the original vocalist of Iron Maiden, has died at age 69. YouTube\/Metal Talk<\/p>\n Day joined Iron Maiden as the group\u2019s first vocalist in December 1975 at just 19 years old after being recruited by bassist Steve Harris.<\/p>\n However, Day\u2019s tenure with the iconic band lasted just 10 months and saw him leave following claims he lacked both energy and charisma.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I sang in Iron Maiden, it was a new pub band and nobody wanted to see or hear them,\u201d Day\u00a0said in 2019<\/a>\u00a0of his time in the group. \u201cWe were all nobodies all trying to make the best music we could and fighting for an audience.\u201d<\/p>\n Day performed at Iron Maiden\u2019s first gig in May 1976 in London.<\/p>\n Shortly after, he was replaced by Dennis Wilcock \u2014 another short-lived member of the group who exited the following year.<\/p>\n Day joined Iron Maiden as the group\u2019s first vocalist in December 1975 at just 19 years old after being recruited by bassist Steve Harris. Getty Images<\/p>\n Wilcock\u2019s spot was later taken by\u00a0Paul Di\u2019Anno, who performed on the band\u2019s first two albums before longtime vocalist Bruce Dicksinson took over for good.<\/p>\n Following Day\u2019s exit, the rocker later claimed that he co-wrote the track \u201cStrange World\u201d \u2014 from the group\u2019s self-titled 1980 debut album \u2014 without being credited.<\/p>\n \u201cBack then we were all pulling for the same side and it still hurts to think the first-ever song I ever composed was on a big-selling album and nobody knows it was me,\u201d he said in 2019.<\/p>\n Still, the drama had blown over by that time as Day declared that the issue was \u201cfinished with.\u201d<\/p>\n Following his swift exit from Iron Maiden, the rocker formed the band More in 1980, with the group releasing its debut album \u201cWarhead\u201d the following year.<\/p>\n Following Day\u2019s death, his former More bandmates paid tribute to him in a post on social media.<\/p>\n Following his swift exit from Iron Maiden, the rocker formed the band More in 1980. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cWe are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of the great More vocalist Paul Mario Day,\u201d his former band More wrote on Facebook<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cPaul was a huge part of the NWOBHM from his time in an early version of Iron Maiden, and of course his fantastic performance on the \u2018Warhead\u2019 album.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe was a well-loved figure in British rock music and played many memorable shows, not least the legendary 1981 Monsters of Rock show at Castle Donington with AC\/DC, Whitesnake\/David Coverdale, as well as tours with Iron Maiden, Def Leppard and many other legendary artists,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n After moving on from More, Day fronted the band Wildfire from 1983 to 1984.<\/p>\n His most commercially successful stint was in 1985 when he joined the reformed version of glam rock legends Sweet.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n The gig saw him collaborate with guitarist\u00a0Andy Scott\u00a0and drummer\u00a0Mick Tucker, who have paid tribute to Day following news of his death.<\/p>\n