British virtuoso guitarist, composer and one of the members of the cult heavy metal band Iron Maden Janick Gers celebrates the 45th anniversary of his creative activity this year. A brief biography, interesting facts from the life of a musician and not only - later in this article.
early years
Janick Robert Gers was born on January 27, 1957 in the city of Hartlepool (Great Britain), in the family of the former Polish naval officer Boleslav Hers (in other sources - Bronislaw) and the housewife Luis Gers. In addition to Janick, the family had three more children - two younger sisters Luis and Roberta, as well as a younger brother Chris. Below is a photo of Janick Gers while studying at school.
The future musician graduated from high school of the English martyrs, as well as Sixth Form College, equivalent to the Russian 10th and 11th grade. At the end of college, the parents presented the young man with a guitar that he had long dreamed of, perhaps later Luis and Boleslav regretted it, because, fascinated by music, Yanik abandoned his preparation for the university, and then completely changed his mind about getting a higher education.
Subsequently, the parents of Janik Gers supported the choice of their son and were not mistaken - no one knows how the student would have left him, but everyone knows that he became an excellent guitarist. In general, Yanik never experienced problems with his parents: he had (and has) a large friendly family, with many uncles and aunts, grandparents, as well as numerous nephews and nieces. Warm relations with family are also confirmed by family photos with the participation of Herce, walking on the Web. One of these can be seen below.
The beginning of creativity
At age 17, Janick Gers, along with friends from Hartlepool, organized a heavy metal band called White Spirit. The team never gained popularity beyond the scope of their native city, and the result of the joint activity was one single studio album, released in 1980. In 1981, the White Spirit fell apart.
A fortunate set of circumstances led Herce to a group called Gillan, created by former vocalist Deep Purple, one of the most famous musicians of the time, Ian Gillan. Yanik took part in the recording of two albums, after which, in 1982, another Gillan project was disbanded.
Iron maiden
Herce’s journey to Iron Maiden was thorny and lay through acquaintance with former members of the group - vocalist Paul Diano and drummer Clive Barr. Together with the young guitarist, they created the band Gogmagog, but, as in the case of White Spirit, things did not go further than one 45-turn album released in 1985.
By the end of the 80s, Janick began working with a musician known as Fish, a former vocalist of the rock band Marillion. Together, they also released a studio recording, after which Gerza was noticed by Bruce Dickinson, who at that time was already the vocalist and frontman of Iron Maden.
At first it was planned that Gers and Dickinson would simply record one song together, which was supposed to be the soundtrack for the film, but the musicians liked working together so much that in 1990 Bruce's debut solo album sprang from their collaboration. It was Bruce Dickinson who brought Janick Gers to Iron Maiden in 1990. At first, the musician replaced the former guitarist of the group Adrian Smith, but then Smith returned to the band without having removed Herce. Thus, from 1999 to the present day, Iron Maden owes its unique sound to three guitarists simultaneously performing on stage.
Here's what Gers himself said about this feature:
This alignment gives our group a completely unexpected sound, it expands our capabilities when writing new compositions. The sound of the group has become much more powerful and heavier. I think that such a grand combination will give many old songs a truly unexpected character, in general, three guitars are great!
Music style
During the very first performances of Iron Maden with Gers as part of the team, they were struck on the spot by his charisma, energy and "freaks", which no one dared to before. Many of those first tricks became Yanik's trademarks, for example, tossing a guitar during a solo, playing with a cord, playing with hands thrown behind his back and much more.
About improvisations and solo of Janik Gerza once spoke the chief guitarist of Iron Maden Dave Murray:
When he goes on stage, he can get himself to such an extent that he cannot control himself. Either everything is under control, or complete improvisation, but the melody and its play are always on top. The obvious pluses include excellent feed and good game speed. This is an accomplished professional who moves from one extreme to another and always stays on top. In his power is every facet of the game: from quiet acoustics to frantic rock. He can do anything and more! Plus, do not forget about his acting talent.
Below is a video with excerpts from Herrs' outstanding performances.
Personal life
Given the excellent relationship in the family of Herce and the fact that his parents spent their whole lives in love and fidelity to each other, it is not difficult to imagine that Yanik himself devoted himself to his only beloved woman, his wife Sandra. The spouses have two sons - Sian and Dylan, all four of the Germans often fall into the lens of the paparazzi during joint walks and travels. One of these random photos is presented below.
