Rory Gallagher

[the.alchemist]

Hi...Are there any rory fans on here.I know Jimmy Page was a big Rory admirer and was pretty cut up when Rory died.

[BUK]

I have 4-5 vinyls. Saw him in NYC in the late 70's The boy could play! Mississippi Sheik. Shin Kicker! Now I've gotta dig them out and fire up the turntable! Thanks.

[Reggie29]

Very much so.

Similar in style and playing.

I saw him in 1974 just after the Irish Tour in Sydney.

He played in a small venue 2 - 3000 people.

Check out Box of Frogs, a band made up of ex Yardbirds and guest guitarists:

Box Of Frogs 1984

Rory Gallagher (playing electric sitar)

Jeff Beck

Strange Land 1986

Jimmy Page

Rory Gallagher

Steve Hackett

Other guests include Graham Parker Dury, Graham Gouldman and Roger Chapman

[Knebby]

Hi...Are there any rory fans on here.I know Jimmy Page was a big Rory admirer and was pretty cut up when Rory died.

I love Rory - and you may like this photo

[Jahfin]

I love those Box of Frogs records, especially the first one.

[plantonic]

One of the finest!

Saw Rory many times, whenever he played the North West of England.

Best 'value for money' shows ever - he'd play his heart out for hours!

Got to give his band members Gerry McEvoy and Ted McKenna a mention, along with ace harp player Mark Feltham who came along in the latter years, they were such a tight unit - I think Gerry McAvoy and Mark Feltham are with 'Nine Below Zero' nowadays.

[the queen without a king]

I was browsing in a used vinyl store last week and I found 'Tatto'd Lady' for $3.00. Excellent condition. I've also been watching the 'Rory Gallagher @ Montreux' DVDs but there's one on-line that I want to order. I think it's called 'Live at Rockpalast' Based on the reviews it seems much better. I'm sure it will be great, Rory was a tremendous talent.

[tom kid]

I was browsing in a used vinyl store last week and I found 'Tatto'd Lady' for $3.00. Excellent condition. I've also been watching the 'Rory Gallagher @ Montreux' DVDs but there's one on-line that I want to order. I think it's called 'Live at Rockpalast' Based on the reviews it seems much better. I'm sure it will be great, Rory was a tremendous talent.

The Irish tour dvd is great!

[Swede]

Aah, thumbs up for a Rory thread!! Rory is a long time favorite of mine.. I've got most of the 70's albums by him, which I prefer to the latter stuff. Irish Tour '74 is a great live album, it's a must have. I think most of his albums can be found for a fair price in any second hand record store, that is probably because he's way underrated.

Be sure to check out his albums with Taste, too. Anyone into Cream and that kinda music will appreciate Taste.

Blister on the moon - Taste, live 1969

[dragster]

I had some stuff by RG.....

[Fortuenti]

OOOOoooooH yes. Count me in that number! Regrettably, I never caught him live. Fortunately, there are a good many quality boots online.

[ally]

I was lucky enough to see him live twice. 73 and 74 if I remember correctly. Two brilliant performances at the Garden's Auditorium.

[DoubleNecker]

I have quite a few of Rory material that I downloaded, but I haven't listened to them yet. I also have some Taste as well. All I know is that he was highly regarded in his day and his guitar was his brothers (which is cool) and when he died, a lot of the music world died.

[Roisin Dubh]

I had some stuff by RG.....

Thanks for the link 'dragster',

I was lucky enough to meet Rory at the Stonehenge Free Festival back in the early eighties, he had his guitar with him, we talked and he stayed the night in my caravan because it was raining........ I'll always remember that lovely smile he had....

[the queen without a king]

Thanks for the link 'dragster',

I was lucky enough to meet Rory at the Stonehenge Free Festival back in the early eighties, he had his guitar with him, we talked and he stayed the night in my caravan because it was raining........ I'll always remember that lovely smile he had....

Wow, sounds like quite an experience RD and about that smile...lovely indeed.

[Otto Masson]

Hi...Are there any rory fans on here.I know Jimmy Page was a big Rory admirer and was pretty cut up when Rory died.

Here's a photo of the two of them together:

On the old board there was an Irish poster who sometimes contributed to the forums, and he had this great picture of Rory and Phil Lynott together on stage - don't know where and when this was, just a great photo:

I love Rory. I think he was one of the most talented guitarists/songwriters in the history of Rock & Roll. His acoustic playing was simply wonderful; if you watch the triple DVD set from Rockpalast, the first gig is in 1976 and he plays a long acoustic set. That's one of the things I watch most often from my music DVD collection. Eventually, after seven acoustic numbers, six of them solo, he picks up his battered old Strat and starts playing a great version of 'I Take What I Want'....

But instead of just going on about the things I love about his music, I'd like to develop a few thoughts. I've often wondered why he didn't become one of the biggest and most successful numbers ever, because the potential is so obviously there. I think he conceived his career a bit narrowly in a way. Don't think it helped that when Lou Martin and Rod d'Ath left he reduced the band to a trio. He was a good singer, and could play very well while singing - but I do think this was limiting in the end. His voice does not really stand out in the same way his guitar playing does.

His decision to not work with a really great singer (like Plant with Zeppelin) may have been related to a slightly conservative attitude towards the blues legacy, I feel. He probably didn't want a vocal 'acrobat'. In my mind there's no doubt that his take on the blues legacy wasn't as original and productive as Jimmy Page's - and yet he always displayed the talent to do just as well. When he does things like 'Banker Blues', I think, 'This is great, really wonderful - but did it relate to the times, to the 70s, much?'

Rory Gallagher was always staunchly honest in his music. Perhaps his vision could have been greater, more daring. But nevertheless he's still one of the very best rock artists ever. R. I. P.

[Otto Masson]

I was browsing in a used vinyl store last week and I found 'Tatto'd Lady' for $3.00. Excellent condition. I've also been watching the 'Rory Gallagher @ Montreux' DVDs but there's one on-line that I want to order. I think it's called 'Live at Rockpalast' Based on the reviews it seems much better. I'm sure it will be great, Rory was a tremendous talent.

The Montreux is damn good I think, but yeah, Live at Rockpalast is even better - a wonderful set. I would also recommend the Irish Tour DVD.

And all the albums.

[Roisin Dubh]

Here's a photo of the two of them together:

On the old board there was an Irish poster who sometimes contributed to the forums, and he had this great picture of Rory and Phil Lynott together on stage - don't know where and when this was, just a great photo:

I love Rory. I think he was one of the most talented guitarists/songwriters in the history of Rock & Roll. His acoustic playing was simply wonderful; if you watch the triple DVD set from Rockpalast, the first gig is in 1976 and he plays a long acoustic set. That's one of the things I watch most often from my music DVD collection. Eventually, after seven acoustic numbers, six of them solo, he picks up his battered old Strat and starts playing a great version of 'I Take What I Want'....

But instead of just going on about the things I love about his music, I'd like to develop a few thoughts. I've often wondered why he didn't become one of the biggest and most successful numbers ever, because the potential is so obviously there. I think he conceived his career a bit narrowly in a way. Don't think it helped that when Lou Martin and Rod d'Ath left he reduced the band to a trio. He was a good singer, and could play very well while singing - but I do think this was limiting in the end. His voice does not really stand out in the same way his guitar playing does.

His decision to not work with a really great singer (like Plant with Zeppelin) may have been related to a slightly conservative attitude towards the blues legacy, I feel. He probably didn't want a vocal 'acrobat'. In my mind there's no doubt that his take on the blues legacy wasn't as original and productive as Jimmy Page's - and yet he always displayed the talent to do just as well. When he does things like 'Banker Blues', I think, 'This is great, really wonderful - but did it relate to the times, to the 70s, much?'

Rory Gallagher was always staunchly honest in his music. Perhaps his vision could have been greater, more daring. But nevertheless he's still one of the very best rock artists ever. R. I. P.

Hey, thanks for the picture of Phil and Rory together, I didn't have a copy of tht one.

Got to give it up, got to give it up...........

[danelectro59]

Count me in.

I've been a big fan of his since his days in Taste and i've seen him live at least half a dozen times.

He could rock the house with the best of them and in the days of huge Marshall stacks, did it through a tiny Vox amp sitting on a road case. And how about that battered Stratocaster? The guy was a real maverick, right down to the flannel shirts, which became a grunge fashion statement sometime later. Yes, i'm surprised he wasn't more revered here in the US than he was. Hell, I didn't even know he died until a year later when I picked up his Blue Day for the Blues CD. Probably one the most underrated musicians ever.

[alwizard03]

Rory's cool saw him only once He opened for Rush in Hampton Va 1982 just bought the 2 dvd set Rory Gallagher at montreux .Includes live footage from 75,77,79,85,94 good stuff

[danelectro59]

Count me in.

I've been a big fan of his since his days in Taste and i've seen him live at least half a dozen times.

He could rock the house with the best of them and in the days of huge Marshall stacks, did it through a tiny Vox amp sitting on a road case. And how about that battered Stratocaster? The guy was a real maverick, right down to the flannel shirts, which became a grunge fashion statement sometime later. Yes, i'm surprised he wasn't more revered here in the US than he was. Hell, I didn't even know he died until a year later when I picked up his Blue Day for the Blues CD. Probably one the most underrated musicians ever.

and not even in Rolling Stone's Top 100 Guitar Player's. A shame.

[Strider]

Rory is my third favourite guitarist of all-time, after the two J's: Jimi Hendrix and

Jimmy Page.

What an amazing player AND an amazing performer live, too...check youtube

for some cool clips as well as the dvds that are out, especially the Irish 74 tour.

I was late getting into Rory Gallagher, so my first time seeing him wasn't until

1973, when by pure chance, I went to the Kinks show at the Hollywood Palladium

April 11, 1973 and Rory happened to be the opening act.

Needless to say, he BLEW the Kinks off the stage(the Kinks starting to sound kind

of tired by this point in their career). After that, I said man I got to get this cat's

records and definitely made a note to myself to see him again in concert.

Due to one thing or another, I had to miss the next couple of times he played

the LA area that year, so it wasn't until February 17, 1974 when I saw Rory again,

this time as headliner at the Long Beach Auditorium(not to be confused with Long

Beach Arena), where I kid you not, Kiss was the opener...and man, did Kiss SUCK!

For some reason, the scheduled opener, Fleetwood Mac, never showed, and we

got stuck with Kiss. My reward for suffering through Kiss, however, was a full

headlining show of Rory blazing away!

I remember seeing pictures of Rory in magazines and thinking how similar to

Jimmy Page he looked...and what Jimmy is to Les Paul Sunbursts, Rory is to

battered Fender Strats.

While Rory was more of a blues traditionalist than Jimmy, he never bored me

the way Eric Clunkhead did with his Michelob Lite music for yuppies.

In fact, it's always bothered me that Rory had to toil away in relative obscurity

while Eric got all this "Clapton is God" love, when for my money Rory was far

better than Clapton. Rory could play stuff that would melt your face...he was

that good!!!

Over the years, I managed to see Rory quite a few more times, maybe 10 or 12

all together...the highlight being when I finally got to see him in his Irish homeland

on a few dates of his 83-84 Irish tour.

Rory was truly one of a kind...magnificent guitarist and a geniunely warm,

charming and generous performer in concert. He is, and will always be, missed

by this music fan.

[Swede]

^^ Nice Rory story (no pun intended), thanks for sharing.

I wish I could say I've seen him too.. I got into him when I was a kid, my dad had some blues collection where a couple of tunes of Rory was included. It was I Wonder Who (which fast became my fav Rory tune), Cradle Rock and a couple of other songs. As soon I could afford it I purchased most of his 70's catalog. I still have to purchase his Taste records.

[Otto Masson]

I'm only coming back to the thread now - that's a great story, Strider.

I would like to add that I've found out more about the photos I posted. The photo of Rory and Phil Lynott sharing a stage comes from Punchestown festival July 18, 1982 - if my information is correct that is actually a racing course just outside Dublin. There is a recording of the show, and I've only just acquired it.

As for the photo of Rory and Jimmy Page together, I'm now pretty sure it was taken on July 16, 1984 at the Pistoia Blues Festival - one of two Alexis Korner tribute concerts that Jimmy played that year. Also appearing were Ginger Baker and Jon Hiseman and Dave Heckstall-Smith of Colosseum fame (the last-named also appeared at the other Korner tribute, in Nottingham on June 5, with Ian Stewart, Jack Bruce, Charlie Watts and others).

Rory Gallagher in fact, like Jimmy, went way back to the early 1960's British blues scene, and performed several dates in London in 1964, for example.

[Otto Masson]

HERE's a little information about Rory's appearance in Pistoia in 1984. He also played in Pistoia ten years later, and I have that on a bootleg. I wonder whether there is a recording of the 1984 appearance.