Featured in the latest edition of Classic Rock magazine, Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris revealed one time he was too nervous to speak to one of his music idols.

Harris: "I have people that I look up to too. I avoided meeting Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson for so long because I didn’t know what I’d say to him. I ended up playing tennis with Peter Gabriel once, just because he was on the court in the same hotel as me. I don’t know if he even knew who I was, but I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to get tongue-tied. I didn’t want to act like a fanboy, even though I felt like one.”

The new issue of Classic Rock can be purchased here.

Explorer1 Music (E1) recently announced a new collaboration in the US with their release of Harris’ second album with British Lion, the ‘up close and personal’ side project he devotes his time to, outside of his Maiden activities, which will be followed by an 18-date U.S. tour (details below). The Burning features 11 new songs and will be released worldwide on January 17 in digipak CD, double gatefold vinyl and digital download formats.

In this new video from Nights With Alice Cooper, Steve Harris discusses the upcoming release:

British Lion comprises vocalist Richard Taylor, guitarists David Hawkins and Grahame Leslie, Steve Harris on bass & keyboards and drummer Simon Dawson. Recorded, engineered and mixed at Barnyard Studios by Tony Newton and produced by Steve Harris, The Burning is crammed with powerful hard rock melodies. Find album pre-orders at this location.

Richard Taylor says: “We’ve been working on The Burning for the past couple of years and everyone is really pleased with the results. We started playing some of the songs live on recent tours and got a fantastic reaction from our fans so we are really excited to be sharing this album with the world. We’re also looking forward to heading out on the road again and seeing everyone at the shows.”

Paul Woolnough, CEO and Co-Founder of Explorer1 Music says: "Explorer1 offers a completely new turn-key solution for touring and recording artists such as British Lion in today's fast-changing industry. After watching the band evolve over the last couple of years and recently launching E1, it seemed the perfect time to partner and collaborate on the US release of The Burning’and British Lion's touring activities. I am proud to welcome Steve and the rest of British Lion into the E1 family and look forward to working together for many years to come."

Tracklisting:

"City Of Fallen Angels"
"The Burning"
"Father Lucifer"
"Elysium"
"Lightning"
"Last Chance"
"Legend"
"Spit Fire"
"Land Of The Perfect People"
"Bible Black"
"Native Son"

"The Burning":

"Spit Fire":

"Lightning":