SPECIAL 2 WEEK COLLECTION OF REVIEWS, WHILE I GO ON VACATION. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA!!

Rory Gallagher
Tattoo
Eagle Rock Records
www.eaglerockent.com

Rory Gallagher
Against The Grain
Eagle Rock Records
www.eaglerockent.com

Rory Gallagher
Calling Card
Eagle Rock Records
www.eaglerockent.com
By George W. Harris

I hadn’t given blues guitarist Rory Gallagher a second thought for over
30 years until my wife and I travelled through pubs in Ireland last
summer. Just about every place had either a poster or secular shrine to
their home boy, which got me wondering what I missed back in the 70s.
Eagle Rock records has been reissuing some of his material, and let me
tell you, if you’re a fan of guys like Clapton, Vaughan or Beck, you’re
going to go crazy with this guy. He’s got the blues feel like no one
else, and that mixed with his Catholic imagery of sin, salvation and
hope make for a catalogue that needs revisiting. Here are three of his
most popular releases…

Gallagher was nothing if he wasn’t a touring artist, and the 1973
Tatoo disc sounds like he honed his craft on the concert circuit. He’s
with his regular team of Gerry McAvoy/p, Lou Martin/key, and Rod
de’Ath/dr and they sound like a well oiled blueswailing machine.
Gallagher was best known for his more rockishly assertive tunes like
“Tatoo’d Lady” and “Cradle Rock,” but what always wins me over are his
more acoustic Delta blues material, such as “Whho’s That Coming” and
“20-20 Vision.” He sounds like he just came out of Lafayette Louisiana
here, while the extra track “Tucson, Arizona” will make you feel like
you’re in some late night dive in the Mojave desert. A Strat fan’s
delight.

Gallagher’s 1975 Against The Grain followed his popular concert disc.
This one reflects the predecessor’s success in that it sounds very much
like a concert. Gallagher’s voice is as extroverted as ever, as he
wails along with his axe on “Souped Up Ford” and “All Around Man.” He
also adds a bit of exoticism to the session, as “Bought And Sold” has
some jazzy congas, and Leadbelly’s “Out On The Western Plain” mixes
cowboy sensibilities with East Indian stinged voicings. An instrumental
cooker “CLuney Blues” is a welcome addition, making this one another
excellent book in Gallagher’s anthology.

By 1976, when Calling Card came out, Gallagher was as good as he would
ever get. He’s still with his core band, and the mix of electric and
acoustic is balanced just right. The more uptempo “Secret Agent” and
“Country Mile” have more hooks than an angler’s convention, but once
again, it’s the acoustic tunes that carry the day. “I’ll Admit You’re
Gone” and “Edged In Blue” are ruminative and meditative as anything
that could come out of a guitar, and Gallagher’s voice drips with
feeling and pathos. After listening to theses sessions, it’s easy to
understand why Eric Clapton said that Gallagher’s music inspired him to
get back to playing blues. The music is that riveting.