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Scorpions - When The Smoke Is Going Down - Guitar Solo Tab

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Key E minor
Scorpions - When The Smoke Is Going Down guitar tab video
Steph Le Gratteux
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Classic Rock

Gain6
Bass6
Mid7
Treble6
Presence5
Master7
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Roll back the gain slightly and pick near the neck for a warmer, more open crunch.
Blackout album cover
Blackout
1982 3:50
Listen on Spotify
Scorpions Hard Rock 1982 E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About When The Smoke Is Going Down

Among the ballads on the 1982 "Blackout" album, "When The Smoke Is Going Down" stands apart for how much mileage Scorpions get out of clean, fingerpicked arpeggios in E minor. The picking pattern is the whole song: a repeating, intimate figure that asks for a relaxed right hand, consistent finger placement, and an even tone across strings. At 120 BPM in E Standard tuning, the tempo is not punishing, but keeping each note ringing cleanly while moving through the chord shapes is trickier than it first appears. The left hand has to hold full chord voicings while the right hand picks selectively, so muting and fretting pressure matter a lot. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the opening figure slowed down until the picking pattern becomes automatic before you bring it back up to tempo. This is a rewarding piece for anyone in Hard Rock who wants to build fingerpicking control alongside their usual pick technique.

  • The entire song is built on a fingerpicked arpeggio pattern in E minor, making clean fretting and right-hand consistency the central challenge.
  • Played in E Standard tuning at 120 BPM, the tempo is moderate but demands an even, controlled touch to let each note sustain properly.
  • Practising the repeating arpeggio figure with a clean tone, no distortion, will expose any muted or buzzing notes quickly and speed up progress.

How to Play When The Smoke Is Going Down

Tuning: E Standard · Key: E minor · Tempo: 120 BPM

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 120 BPM to build it up to tempo.

Fender Stratocaster
Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Matthias Jabs adopted Fender Stratocasters with humbuckers in later years, using their brighter character for cleaner ballad tones and more articulate lead work than his earlier Explorer guitars. The single-coil versatility lets him dial back aggression while maintaining the Scorpions' signature sustain.

Gibson Les Paul Standard
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

While less documented than their Custom models, the Les Paul Standard's thick body and stock humbuckers provide the warm, sustained tone the Scorpions need for layered lead harmonies and heavy power chord work in the studio.

Gibson Les Paul Custom
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

Matthias Jabs relied heavily on Gibson Les Paul Customs in the studio for their superior sustain and thick tonal character on solos, using the guitar's humbuckers and weight to achieve the band's signature fat, compressed lead sound.

Gibson Flying V
Guitar

Gibson Flying V

Rudolf Schenker's iconic Gibson Flying V since the mid-70s delivers his aggressive, palm-muted rhythm tone through hot PAF-style humbuckers, becoming synonymous with the Scorpions' raw, pointed attack and distinctive visual identity.

Gibson Explorer
Guitar

Gibson Explorer

Matthias Jabs built his lead style around the Gibson Explorer's angular design and humbucker tone, using the guitar's focused midrange and sustain for expressive solos before transitioning to signature ESP and Fender models.

Marshall JCM800
Amp

Marshall JCM800

Both Rudolf Schenker and Matthias Jabs powered the Scorpions' classic 80s sound through Marshall JCM800 heads, with Schenker running moderate preamp gain for defined rhythm crunch and Jabs pushing higher gain for lead work and sustain.

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