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Iron Maiden - Death Of The Celts Janick Gers - Guitar Solo Tab

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Key E minor
Iron Maiden - Death Of The Celts Janick Gers guitar tab video
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Classic Rock

Gain6
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Iron Maiden Heavy Metal E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About Death Of The Celts Janick Gers

Few Iron Maiden tracks lean as heavily on Celtic-flavored melody as "Death of the Celts," and the guitar work credited to Janick Gers reflects that with winding, folk-influenced lines sitting inside a heavy metal framework. The song lives in E minor, which gives the riffs a naturally dark, modal feel, and Gers leans into that with lead phrases that owe as much to traditional melody as to hard rock technique. Getting the right articulation on those melodic runs is the real challenge: the pick attack needs to stay clean without losing the fluidity that makes the lines sing. Pay close attention to the picking hand, because sloppy alternate picking will muddy the Celtic character of the runs very quickly. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the lead sections slowed down until each note speaks clearly before you bring the tempo back up. Iron Maiden write these kinds of melody-driven pieces to sit between full-band bombast and something almost acoustic in spirit, so the dynamic control you bring matters as much as the speed.

  • The lead guitar lines draw on Celtic folk melody shapes, so clean left-hand fretting and smooth legato phrasing are more important here than raw speed.
  • Playing in E minor lets you lean on open-string resonance for extra depth, so be thoughtful about when to use open versus fretted E and B strings.
  • Janick Gers is known for a loose, expressive picking style, so matching his feel on the melodic runs requires relaxed wrist technique rather than a rigid grip.

How to Play Death Of The Celts Janick Gers

Key: E minor

Use the section loop to isolate a passage and drop the speed to build each section up to tempo.

Fender Stratocaster
Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Iron Maiden's signature choice for heavy metal, the Strat's bright single-coils in neck and middle positions deliver the glassy, articulate tone that defines their melodic passages. Dave Murray and Adrian Smith pair bridge humbuckers with this platform to preserve pick dynamics and note definition rather than drowning in compressed gain.

Marshall JCM800
Amp

Marshall JCM800

The backbone of Maiden's iconic sound, the JCM800's moderate gain structure lets the power tubes sing without preamp saturation, preserving the punch and harmonic clarity that makes their riffs cut through a mix. Murray and Smith set gain moderately to maintain definition while pushing the amp into natural tube breakup.

Seymour Duncan JB
Pickup

Seymour Duncan JB

Adrian Smith's weapon of choice, the JB's balanced output drives Marshall amps into singing sustain without over-compressing dynamics, allowing his lead lines to breathe with clarity and snap. This moderate-output humbucker maintains the attack and articulation essential to Maiden's punchy, defined metal tone.

DiMarzio Super Distortion
Pickup

DiMarzio Super Distortion

Dave Murray's bridge pickup at 13k output strikes the perfect balance, hitting the Marshall hard enough for thick sustain yet retaining enough dynamics for expressive bending and harmonic control. It's hot enough to sing but not so overwound that it flattens the natural Strat character underneath.

Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive
Pedal

Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive

Murray and Smith use this clean boost to push their Marshalls harder during solos, adding aggression without relying on pedal distortion, keeping the tube amp saturation as the true tone source. The SD-1 preserves their natural playing dynamics while giving leads extra presence and cut.

ISP Decimator Noise Gate
Pedal

ISP Decimator Noise Gate

Smith occasionally employs this noise gate to manage feedback and hum from his high-output rig without sacrificing sustain, staying true to Maiden's philosophy of minimal pedal intervention. It's a practical tool for live performance that doesn't color the natural tube amp tone.

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