Rory Gallagher: Irish Tour' 74 (7CD Box Set, 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition 2014) + Irish Tour' 74 (Original Album)

 

By 1973 Rory Gallagher was also growing increasingly frustrated at not being able to capture the energy of his live shows in the studio. During one session, he threatened to “chuck the tapes in the

dustbin”. It was no ideal threat – he would go on to shelve whole albums in the future.
“He was a live performer,” said keyboard player Lou Martin. “He didn’t like the studio because he was playing to the walls and wasn’t getting any feedback from the audience. But he had to do the albums for the recordcompany.”
Onstage, it was another matter entirely, and Gallagher understandably jumped at the chance to record another live album. But this one would be different: it would be recorded in Ireland.
                                        

“We were one of the only bands to play Belfast,” says Lou Martin proudly. “Thin Lizzy wouldn’t do it because of the aggravation. But Rory insisted on it. I was from Belfast, Gerry was from Belfast and there was co-operation from ‘The Organisation’ to make sure the concerts went OK.”

“We were taken care of very well,” said drummer Rod de’Ath. “The hotels that we stayed at were carefully chosen, without going into too much detail.” (Neither man was willing to go into more detail about ‘The Organisation’, though we can presume that they’re not talking about the British government).
The resulting album, Irish Tour ’74, remains the highlight of Gallagher’s career. Recorded in Belfast, Dublin and Cork, it finally nailed his live performances on vinyl. While the sound quality is variable – partly due to the fact that they couldn’t get insurance for Ronnie Lane’s Mobile Studios in the more troubled areas – the album never loses its primal, raw urgency. It’s the sound of a band leaning out over the precipice – something Gallagher deliberately encouraged, making up the show as he went along.
                                

Gallagher never enjoyed going into the studio to make records. Playing to a live audience was essential,

he thought, to get the real energy needed for the kind of music he wanted to play. The members of his band felt the same way. Speaking about the Irish tour album keyboardist Lou Martin said "Albums were always done in a rush because we were on the road so much, and then we’d come back to London and it could be two weeks – like Blueprint was done in two weeks – and that is ridiculous,... but Irish Tour was an absolute highlight,... the band came to fruition in the Calling Card days, by that time we were well seasoned … everybody knew everybody else’s style of playing... The studio was not the best environment for recording.
                                      

He wasn’t at his most comfortable or happiest, I mean a lot of people really adapted to it really well like The Allman Brothers or Little Feat. With Rory, if he didn’t have somebody to look at then he couldn’t feed off the energy. That’s why Irish Tour is such a good bloody album because it was recorded live, he

got the crowd there with him singing along and sort of like urging him along… without the presence of an audience the recording process for Rory was a bit of a strain"
Gallagher's 1974 tour of Ireland coincided with one of the most tumultuous times in Belfast. Violence between the IRA and British Army was erupting throughout the city even at rock concerts. As a result, most rock acts refused to play in the city. The day before Gallagher's scheduled concert in Belfast ten bombs went off at various locations around the city. Everyone expected Gallagher to cancel as all the other big names had but he went on with the concert and was rewarded with one of his best shows.

What they said...

"Irish Tour captures some of his finest known live recordings and, while it's impossible to tell which songs were recorded where, across nine in-concert recordings (plus one after-hours jam session, Back on My Stompin' Ground), the energy crackling from stage to stalls and back again packs an intensity that few live albums – Gallagher's others among them – can match." (AllMusic)
                             

"Unlike many other of his contemporaries, he lived long enough to see his legacy and influence take

hold and flourish in the musical world. This display of one man’s ability to unite a people and a country in turmoil through his music is an essential listen for all rock fans, young and old, and is a crucial part of Irish musical history as well as the very legacy of blues rock." (Sputnik Music)
                                  

"From the moment the music starts, Rory Gallagher: Irish Tour '74 more than justifies itself. Gallagher

played like his guitar was plugged straight into the universal source, and it probably was. That Gallagher was on his home turf for this tour only increases the sense of some sort of direct connection with his sound. Every note played, every string struck and every song sung vibrates with all the passion and intensity of a spiritual experience, which this surely was." (Pop Matters)
                                                                          

FEATURING:

Rory Gallagher (Vocals/Guitars/Mandolin/Harmonica)
Gerry McAvoy (Bass Guitar)
Rod De’Ath (Drums)
Lou Martin (Keyboards)

Rory Gallagher – Irish Tour' 74
Label: Strange Music – 88875004882, Sony Music – 88875004882, Capo – 88875004882, Legacy – 88875004882, Eagle Records – 88875004882
Format:    7 x CD, Album, Box Set, Deluxe Edition
DVD, DVD-Video, NTSC
Country: Europe
Released: 2014
Genre: Rock,
Style: Blues, Rhythm & Blues

DISC ONE - CORK CITY HALL (3rd & 5rd JANUARY 1974)

                                                                   

01. Messin' With The Kid (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Mel London
02. Cradle Rock
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
03. I Wonder Who
Written-By – McKinley Morganfield
04. Tattoo'd Lady
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
05. Walk On Hot Coals
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
06. Laundromat (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
07. A Million Miles Away
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
08. Hands Off (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
09. Too Much Alcohol
Written-By – J.B. Hutto

MP3 @ 320 Size: 173 MB
Flac  Size: 512 MB

DISC TWO - CORK CITY HALL (3rd & 5rd JANUARY 1974)

                                                              

01. As The Crow Flies
ritten-By – Tony Joe White
02. Pistol Slapper Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Blind Boy Fuller
03. Unmilitary Two-Step (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
04. Bankers Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Big Bill Broonzy
05. Going To My Hometown (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
06. Who's That Coming
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
07. In Your Town (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher

MP3 @ 320 Size: 115 MB
Flac  Size: 331 MB

DISC THREE - DUBLIN CARLTON CINEMA (2rd JANUARY 1974)

                                                 

  
01. Cradle Rock (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
02. Tattoo'd Lady (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
03. Hands Off (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
04. Walk On Hot Coals (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
05. Laundromat (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
06. Too Much Alcohol (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – J.B. Hutto
07. A Million Miles Away (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher

MP3 @ 320 Size: 130 MB
Flac  Size: 377 MB

DISC FOUR - DUBLIN CARLTON CINEMA (2rd JANUARY 1974)

                                

                             
01. As The Crow Flies (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Tony Joe White
02. Pistol Slapper Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Blind Boy Fuller
03. Bankers Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Big Bill Broonzy
04. Unmilitary Two-Step (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
05. Going To My Hometown (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
06. In Your Town (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
07. Bullfrog Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher

MP3 @ 320 Size: 123 MB
Flac  Size: 345 MB

DISC FIVE - BELFAST ULSTER HALL (28th & 29th DECEMBER 1973)     

                                              

  
01. Messin' With The Kid (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Mel London
02. Cradle Rock (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
03. I Wonder Who (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – McKinley Morganfield
04. Tattoo'd Lady (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
05. Walk On Hot Coals (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
06. Hand Off (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
07. A Million Miles Away (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
08. Laundromat (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher

MP3 @ 320 Size: 137 MB
Flac  Size: 397 MB

DISC SIX - BELFAST ULSTER HALL (28th & 29th DECEMBER 1973)

                                                      

01. As The Crow Flies (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Tony Joe White
02. Pistol Slapper Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Blind Boy Fuller
03. Unmilitary Two-Step (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
04. Bankers Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Big Bill Broonzy
05. Going To My Hometown (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
06. Who's That Coming (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
07. In Your Town (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
08. Bullfrog Blues (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher

MP3 @ 320 Size: 136 MB
Flac  Size: 387 MB

DISC SEVEN - CITY HALL IN SESSION (4th JANUARY 1974)       

                                          

01. Maritime (The Edgar Lustgarten Cut)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
02. I Want You / Raunchy Medley (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By [I Want You] – Bob Dylan
Written-By [Raunchy] – Bill Justis, Sid Manker
03. Treat Her Right
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
04. I Wonder Who (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – McKinley Morganfield
05. Too Much Alcohol (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – J.B. Hutto
06. Just A Little Bit
Written-By – Rosco Gordon
07. I Can't Be Satisfied (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – McKinley Morganfield
08. Acoustic Medley (Previously Unreleased)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
09. Back On My Stompin' Ground (After Hours)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher
10. Stompin' Ground (Alternate Version)
Written-By – Rory Gallagher

MP3 @ 320 Size: 118 MB
Flac  Size: 316 MB

Tracks CD1-1, CD1-6, CD1-8, CD2-2 to CD2-5, CD2-7, CD3-1 to CD3-7, CD4-1 to CD4-7, CD5-1 to CD5-8, CD6-1 to CD6-8, CD7-2, CD7-4, CD7-5, CD7-7, CD7-8 previously unreleased.

THE ORIGINAL ALBUM: RORY GALLAGHER - IRISH TOUR' 74

 
                     

Rory Gallagher – Irish Tour '74
Label: UMC – 5797707
Format:    CD, Album, Reissue, Remastered
Country: Europe
Released: Mar 16, 2018
Genre: Rock
Style: Blues Rock, Electric Blues, Classic Rock

TRACKS

                                         

01. Cradle Rock
02. I Wonder Who  (Written-By – Muddy Waters)
03. Tattoo'd Lady
04. Too Much Alcohol  (Written-By – J.B. Hutto)
05. As The Crow Flies  (Written-By – Tony Joe White)
06. A Million Miles Away
07. Walk On Hot Coals
08. Who's That Coming?
09. Back On My Stompin' Ground (After Hours)
10. Just A Little Bit

MP3 @ 320 Size: 185 MB
Flac  Size: 549 MB