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Iron Maiden - Flight Of Icarus Dave Murray's - Guitar Solo Tab

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Key D minor
Iron Maiden - Flight Of Icarus Dave Murray's guitar tab video
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Iron Maiden Heavy Metal D minor
Capo Advisor 0 D minor · Original key

About Flight Of Icarus Dave Murray's

Dave Murray's guitar work on "Flight of Icarus" is one of the cleaner entry points into the Iron Maiden catalogue, but it still demands attention to detail. The song sits in D minor at a steady 120 BPM in E Standard tuning, which means no retuning required before you dig in. The main riff is built around a driving, palm-muted gallop pattern that must stay tight and even. If your pick hand loses discipline at full speed, the riff turns muddy fast. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop that opening riff slowed down until your muting is consistent before pushing the tempo back up. The lead work leans on the heavy metal vocabulary of pentatonic and natural minor runs, so players comfortable with those scales will find the solos approachable. Pay particular attention to the phrasing of the bends: hitting the correct pitch at the top of each bend is where many players slip up.

  • The riff relies on tight palm-muted picking at 120 BPM in E Standard, so right-hand consistency is more critical than fretting-hand complexity.
  • The song is in D minor, and the solo draws heavily on the D natural minor scale, making it a practical exercise for that position on the neck.
  • Looping the gallop riff slowed down is the most efficient way to lock in the palm-mute rhythm before attempting it at full tempo.

How to Play Flight Of Icarus Dave Murray's

Tuning: E Standard · Key: D minor · Tempo: 116 BPM

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 116 BPM to build it 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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