RORY GALLAGHER

Hard Rock Magazine was the last magazine to devote an article to this badass bluesy Irishman. Since then, Rory seemed to have disappeared somewhere in his country of Ireland. That’s what his silence made us think anyway. But the understated Rory never planned to hang up his old Strat. He was simply finetuning this famous and long-awaited LP that he announced ten months ago. Anyway, with the aim of putting an end to this gossip about his retirement, he has headed to Paris at the last minute for one of his most explosive tours…

Rory showed up, just like that, without warning, as usual. Just a few posters eight days before, and that was enough  to fill  one of the best Parisian concert halls. It was the same in the provinces, where the guitarist played a dozen or so dates. Rory is one of those guys that we love because he questions all the laws of business (as long as they exist). A true paradox, in fact. This guy who has been coming to our country for more than 15 years with his eternal Stratocaster and who attracts, come what may, tens of thousands of people of all ages and styles. There were cool blues fans, rockers and old hippies – all in all, a good bunch, of whom many had come to see the legend for the first time, if their age is anything to go on. However, it had been a while since the ‘beast’ had given us any news: just a passing visit last summer at the Mont-de-Marsan festival – which enabled us to meet him and propose an exclusive interview (the first in almost three years, see Hard Rock no. 14) – and appearances on the albums of Box of Frogs (the second has just come out) and Gary Brooker. But no album. It’s now been four years since he brought one out, he who used to be such a model of regularity.

A Rather Off Topic Watchword

It must be said that Rory has a rare integrity these days and that, because of this, he has trouble with record companies.

“Record companies want me to make a pop 45 or something of the sort. It was them who demanded that I make an album. But the problem are rules nowadays. The album is completely finished and we are going to bring it out in August on several labels across the world. I hope that the fans forgive me for the delay.

The album will be called Torch. It evokes the flame in ancient Greece that was lit to mark the start of the Olympic games, and the idea that the old could transmit their knowledge to the young… In terms of the songs on this album, I think we spoke about that last time.

Folkloric Starts

Rory has, it seems, an excellent memory, even if he doesn’t always remember all the details of his very long career, starting in the middle of the 1960s with Taste. “We travelled in a small van with all our equipment. There was a Vox amp, a Marshall 100 watts, the drumkit, the guitars, a small sound system, a roadie and three musicians (Rory included). We went to play everywhere and we didn’t even have the time to analyse what we were doing, which is a good thing. At that time, you didn’t depend on an effect to add to the tone of your amp, or a new set of strings, all things that the majority of musicians need nowadays to play. You just had your amp and you plugged it in to play every evening.

A Very Efficient Line-Up

After the Taste era, Rory changed musicians many times, yet always keeping with him his faithful and excellent bassist Gerry McAvoy (since 71). He seems, however, to have found a good balance with this new line-up, which comprises Brendan O’Neill (he replaced Ted McKenna who left to play with Michael Schenker in 1982) and Mark Feltham on the harmonica (but he doesn’t play on all the songs). Therefore, it’s a Rory younger than ever who we saw in their company for one of those almost three-hour shows. He tells us his secret. 

“Sometimes, half an hour before the show, I feel like I’m 90 years old. I feel unable to even walk, but once on stage, I forget everything and I feel nothing.”

Rory is one of those artists who stays out of the limelight. He never hits the headlines and although we know the musician well, we know nothing about the man himself.

“I have a very quiet private life. My second passion after music is cinema. I also love reading police novels. But apart from that, I don’t do much else.”