Rory Gallagher: Blues (3 CD Deluxe Edition Box Set) 2019

 

In what would have been the 50th year of Rory Gallagher’s recording career, Chess / UMC are pleased to announce the release of ‘BLUES’. From the vaults of the Gallagher estate’s tape archive comes this collection of rare and unreleased recordings of Rory playing his favourite blues material. Ranging from

never heard before tracks to special guest sessions with legendary blues artists (Muddy Waters / Albert King) and lost radio sessions, this album uncovers Rory’s love of the blues throughout his solo career from 1971 right through to 1994. Rory Gallagher was voted the world’S No 1 GUITARIST IN THE MELODY MAKER’S ANNUAL SHOWBIZ POLL RECENTLY. And it’s easy to say we told you so. Sure, everybody knew that Gallagher had it in him. He used to sleep with that battered guitar in the bed with him, its paint flaking off. And it wouldn’t have surprised us to hear that he used his amp as a pillow. Rory Gallagher, for as long as we knew him, has been interested in only one thing – music.
                                              

“Music is something that grows, it’s not something that you have to keep shocking the public with or shocking newspapers with, or thinking it’s time you changed the style of dress. It just doesn’t show progression and progression is something that you feel yourself, and the audience can feel it. It’s not

when it’s up to your manager or your make-up artist to make it look like you’re sounding new. I keep touring and writing songs and working on sessions and unless I’m very unlucky I’m sure I’ll hardly digress.”
“I have ideas though to make, let’s say, off-the-beaten-track albums — an acoustic album is one thing I’d like to do — and maybe do an album with off-the-beaten-track instruments. But I see doing albums in terms of the stage and the band. I rarely use guys who aren’t in the band at the time. If people come and see a concert there’s no point not being able to do something you’ve recorded.”
                                                   

Rory started playing guitar in Cork, Ireland, his home town, at a very early age. But Rory tells the story much better. “I was listening to music when I was six, seven and eight, that’s when rock and roll was starting to come into being. It was called skiffle in Britain. The guys that I really liked at the beginning

were guys like Elvis, Fats Domino and a guy you’ve probably heard of called Lonnie Donnegan. He would do Woody Guthrie stuff and Leadbelly material and call it skiffle even though it was country blues. When I was nine, I got a guitar and I learned how to play all the skittle songs and rock and roll, did school concerts and talent shows, you know, variety shows as a young boy guitarist. Then when I was twelve I got an electric guitar and I started playing in school bands. I played in a dance band when I was fifteen. That was the Fontana Showband. So we played in all the Irish dance halls where we could get work, which wasn’t much. We did a tour of Spain and did some work in England; the Irish dance halls there.”
                                                      

"When I was seventeen, I left that because I didn’t want to do the mixture of music that they were playing. I was already writing at the time and I wanted to do some of my own material. I went to Hamburg, Germany with a bass player and drummer from the Showband which had broken up by that

time. Then in ’65, I went back to Ireland and in ’66 I got Taste together. By that time the whole group thing was starting to finally build up in Ireland. The good musicians were finding each other and starting to get together. Anyway, that formation of Taste lasted two years. We worked in Ireland, went back to Hamburg, did a little work in England, which was very hard to find at that time. Eventually we moved to England, this was the second lineup of Taste with John and Ritchie, and that lasted two years and two albums.”
                                  

Rory is concerned about his audience. He prefers to play in smaller clubs that lend a more intimate environment rather than the Madison Square Gardens type of gig. “I prefer to play small clubs, but that doesn’t mean that I won’t do concert dates. Concerts can be great, so long as you’re not playing to an outrageous amount of people who can’t see or hear you. For instance, even on this tour we’re doing

some dates with Deep Purple in some pretty big places. Those dates are good for exposure, experience and making money, but you’ve got to be prepared to get down a little more to the people’s level. After all, they are the ones who pay the bills.” Gallagher as a Blues guitarist strode his own path and never looked back – he started out forming Rock’s first Power Trio in Taste (John Lennon’s favourite ban some say); he took over from Clapton in Melody Maker’s famous Musician of the Year Poll in 1972; he was first choice to replace Mick Taylor in The Stones and was David Coverdales’ second choice (after Jeff Beck) to replace Ritchie Blackmore in Deep Purple. He, however, chose to continue to make his own music. Gallagher was the man Clapton attributed with getting him back into the Blues and the man that Brain May says he appropriated his sound from. He is also the man who really understood the heart and soul of the Blues particularly the Chicago and Delta styles. But when you throw into the mix his prowess as a saxophonist and the fact he was a helluva vocalist you get a true individual talent.
                                         

Gallagher was also the first of his generation to eschew Marshall stacks in favor of his small Vox and Fender combo amps. He craved and cared about the sound. And whilst he played electric and

acoustic Blues like the best of them most of all for me the real true magic of Gallagher was his improvisation, something more than Beck, Clapton or even Hendrix had in their bag of tricks.
This 3CD set from the vaults of the Gallagher estate’s tape archive encompasses it all and whilst it misses so much it really does capture the essence of the man split as it is into three sets – ‘Electric’ (CD1); ‘Acoustic’ (CD2) and ‘Live’ (CD3). Best for fans though is that this is essentially Rory playing his favourite material and all of it is either rare and/or unreleased.
                                  

The ‘Acoustic Disc’ is a joy from start to finish comprised as it is of outtakes and radio sessions and the ‘Live’ disc is just the icing on the cake, I could pull out highlights and wax lyrical but it would be rather moot as there’s nothing here that isn’t there for a reason. This really is a collection to treasure. Gallagher was one of the few modern day Bluesmen who is instantly recognisable and I think I love his

playing so much as it feels so real, he wasn’t interested in ‘note perfect’ copies of the classics, he never seemed to play the same song in the same way twice and in that you could feel the joy the Blues gave him, the force of nature that guided his fingers. The Blues is a living thing and like B.B. King and Buddy Guy before him, Gallagher let his guitar take you on a trip through the story and into the belly of the song. His vocals were perfect for what he did, and with an acoustic in hand he could channel Lead Belly and Big Bill, but not without adding and giving part of himself.  Most of all he believed in his vision and remained true to it throughout. To me there’s no-one quite like Rory and this is a wonderful addition to any Blues collection.
                                                        

Rory Gallagher – Blues
Label: Chess – 5386801, UMC – 5386801
Format:    3 x CD, Album, Deluxe Edition, Stereo, Digipak
Country: Europe
Released: May 31, 2019
Genre: Rock
Style: Chicago Blues, Blues Rock, Acoustic, Electric Blues

DISC ONE - ELECTRIC BLUES

                                                 

01. Don’t Start Me Talkin’(Jinx Album Session 1982)  3:33
Drums – Brendan O'Neil
Piano – Bob Andrews
Written-By – Sonny Boy Williamson
02. Nothin’ But The Devil (Against The Grain Album Session 1975)  
Written-By – Jerry West
03. Tore Down (Blueprint Album Session 1973)  5:09
Written-By – Sonny Thompson
04. Off The Handle (BBC Radio 2 Paul Jones Blues Show 1986)  4:36
Drums – Brendan O'Neil
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
05. I Could’ve Had Religion (WNCR Cleveland Radio Session 1973)  5:55
Arranged By – Rory Gallagher
Written-By – Traditional
06. As The Crow Flies (Tatoo Album Session 1973)  4:08
Written-By – Tony Joe White
07. A Million Miles Away (BBC Radio 1 Bob Harris Session 1973)  7:47
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
08. Should’ve Learnt My Lesson (Deuce Album Session Outtake 1971)  7:36
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
09. Leaving Town Blues (Remixed)  6:02
Bass – Jim Leverton
Drums – Richard Newman
Written-By – Peter Green
10. Drop Down Baby  3:07
Acoustic Guitar – Roger McKew
Bass – Alan Jones
Blues Harp [Harp] – Leo Sayer
Drums – Henry Spinnetti
Piano – Zoot Money
Vocals – Lonnie Donegan
Written-By – Sleepy John Estes
11. I’m Ready (1972 Version)  4:08
Bass – Rick Grech
Drums – Herbie Lovelle
Guitar – Sammy Lawhorn
Harmonica – Carey Bell Harmington
Piano – Georgie Fame
Vocals – Muddy Waters
Written-By – James Moore, Willie Dixon
12. Bullfrog Blues (WNCR Cleveland Radio Session 1973)  6:59
Arranged By – Rory Gallagher
Written-By – Traditional

MP3 @ 320 Size: 150 MB
Flac  Size: 409 MB

DISC TWO - ACOUSTIC BLUES

                                       

01. Who’s That Coming (Acoustic outtake from Tattoo album sessions 1973)  5:15
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
02. Should’ve Learnt My Lesson (Acoustic outtake from Deuce album sessions 1971)  3:04
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
03. Prison Blues (Unreleased track from Blueprint album sessions 1973)  4:10
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
04. Secret Agent (Unreleased acoustic version from RTE Irish TV 1976)  5:26
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
05. Blow Wind Blow (Unreleased WNCR Cleveland radio session from 1972)  3:41
Written-By – McKinley Morganfield
06. Bankers Blues (Outtake from the Blueprint album sessions 1973)  4:49
Written-By – Big Bill Broonzy
07. Whole Lot Of People (Acoustic outtake from Deuce album sessions 1971)  3:38
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
08. Loanshark Blues (Unreleased acoustic version from German TV 1987)  2:27
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
09. Pistol Slapper Blues (Unreleased acoustic version from Irish TV 1976)  3:06
Written-By – Fulton Allen
10. Can’t Be Satisfied (Unreleased Radio FFN session from 1992)  3:58
Written-By – Muddy Waters
11. Want Ad Blues (Unreleased RTE Radio Two Dave Fanning session 1988)  3:05
Written-By – John Lee Hooker
12. Walkin’ Blues (Unreleased acoustic version from RTE Irish TV 1987)  4:13
Harmonica – Mark Feltham
Written-By – Son House

MP3 @ 320 Size: 11 MB
Flac  Size: 282 MB

DISC THREE - LIVE BLUES

                                                      

01. When My Baby She Left Me (Live At The River Records Radio Concert Broadcast - Unreleased track from Glasgow Apollo concert 1982)  6:28
Drums – Brendan O'Neill
Written-By – Sonny Boy Williamson
02. Nothin’ But The Devil (Live At The River Records Radio Concert Broadcast - Unreleased track from Glasgow Apollo concert 1982)  6:56
Drums – Brendan O'Neill
Written-By – Jerry West
03. What In The World (Live At The River Records Radio Concert Broadcast - Unreleased track from Glasgow Apollo concert 1982)  7:39
Drums – Brendan O'Neill
Written-By – Willie Dixon
04. I Wonder Who (Unreleased live track from late 1980s)  6:35
Drums – Brendan O'Neill
Harmonica – Mark Feltham
Written-By – McKinley Morganfield
05. Messin’ With The Kid (Unreleased track from Sheffield City Hall concert 1977)  4:18
Written-By – Junior Wells
06. Tore Down (Unreleased track from Newcastle City Hall concert 1977)  4:51
Written-By – Sonny Thompson
07. Garbage Man Blues (Unreleased track from Sheffield City Hall concert 1977)  6:21
Written-By – Willie Hammond  
08. All Around Man (Live At The Old Grey Whistle test - Unreleased track from BBC OGWT Special 1976)  11:11
Written-By – Bo Carter
09. Born Under A Bad Sign (Unreleased track from Rockpalast 1991 w/ Jack Bruce)  7:19
Bass, Vocals – Jack Bruce
Drums – Brendan O'Neill
Harmonica – Mark Feltham
Piano – Geraint Watkins
Written-By – Booker T. Jones, William Bell
10. You Upset Me (Unreleased guest performance from Albert King album ‘Live’ 1975)  5:47
Bass – Lonnie Turner
Drums – Joe Turner
Guitar, Vocals – Albert King
Horns – Nate Fitzgerald, Steve Wilson , Wayne Preston
Keyboards – James Washington
Written-By – B.B. King, Joe Josea, Jules Taub, Maxwell Davis
11. Comin’ Home Baby (Live In Swindon - Unreleased track from 1989 concert with Chris Barber Band)  5:24
Bass – Vic Pitt
Drums – Alan "Sticky" Wickett
Guitar – Jon Slaughter
Trombone – Chris Barber
Written-By – Ben Tucker, Bob Dorough
12. Rory Talking Blues (Interview track of Rory talking about the blues)  2:20
Written-By – Rory Gallagher

MP3 @ 320 Size: 176 MB
Flac  Size: 482 MB

Bass – Gerry McAvoy (tracks: 1-1 to 1-8, 1-12, 3-1 to 3-8)
Drums – Rod De'Ath (tracks: 1-2, 1-3, 1-5 to 1-8, 1-12, 3-5 to 3-8)
Executive-Producer – Daniel Gallagher
Guitar, Vocals, Harmonica, Mandolin – Rory Gallagher
Mastered By – Frank Arkwright
Mixed By – Martin Dubka (tracks: 1-2, 1-3, 1-8, 1-9, 2-1 to 2-3, 2-6, 2-7, 3-5 to 3-7)
Piano, Guitar, Keyboards – Lou Martin (tracks: 1-2, 1-3, 1-5 to 1-8, 1-12, 2-3, 2-6,3-5 to 3-8)
Producer – Rory Gallagher