Rory Gallagher
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Rory Gallagher (1948-1995) was an Irish blues/rock guitarist, born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, and raised in County Cork. His first bands were showbands, which played the popular hits of the day. In 1965 he turned the showband The Impact into an R'n'B group which played gigs in Ireland and Spain. He formed Taste in 1966, but the line-up which became legendary was formed in 1967, featuring his guitar and vocals, the jazz-tinged drumming of John Wilson and intricate bass playing of Richard McCracken. Recordings of the earlier version of Taste are still available and it's interesting to compare Rory's rudimentary guitar playing to the virtuosity that became evident fairly soon after in the later Taste. This was the group who released two studio albums, Taste and On the Boards, and made two live recordings showing the band at its incendiary best, Live at Montreux and Live at the Isle of Wight, the latter appearing a long time after the band broke up, famously, at that same Isle of Wight Festival in 1970.
Rory went solo (dropping the band's name and hiring another bassist, Gerry McAvoy, and various drummers, the most notable being Rod De'Ath) and produced more than a dozen albums, among them Rory Gallagher and Deuce from 1971, Blueprint and Tattoo from 1973, Irish Tour from 1974, 1975's Against the Grain, featuring his old worn out looking Fender Strat on the cover, and Calling Card in 1976.
In 1972 he was voted Melody Maker's Top Musician of the Year, dethroning Clapton. His album Live in Europe has been a big selling album not only in the UK but internationally.
He died in London on 14th June 1995 from complications following a liver transplant.
"An uncompromisingly serious musician" - The Times, 16th June 1995.
External links
- Rory Gallagher homepage (http://www.rorygallagher.com)
- Fan page (http://www.roryon.com)de:Rory Gallagher