Rory Gallager – Who’s That Coming

Rory Gallager – Who’s That Coming (acoustic out-take) (5:15)

Rory Gallagher was born March 02, 1948, in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Irish Republic.

His family moved to Cork City shortly after his birth.

Growing up in the fifties, he listened to British skiffle king Lonnie Donegan and heard performers such as Leadbelly, Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry, and Jerry Lee Lewis on the American Armed Forces radio broadcasts.

As a wee lad, just nine years old, he received his first acoustic guitar, teaching himself to play using tutorial books.

By age twelve, he won a talent contest at the Cork City Hall and got his picture in the local paper.

He also got his first electric guitar.

Three years later, he bought a 1961 Sunburst Fender Stratocaster for the astronomical price of 100 pounds, with his mother’s help. As it turned out, it was quite a good investment as it would be his “go-to” guitar for the rest of his life.

Performing as a trio under the name Taste, Gallagher and the band moved to London in early 1968 and quickly made a name for themselves, soon landing a Tuesday night residency at the Marquee Club.

Later that year they toured Denmark becoming a favorite of the Danish music press.

On November 25, 1968, they opened (along with Yes) Cream’s farewell show at the Royal Albert Hall.

Taste would release three singles and three LPs in the U.K. and after their break-up, Gallagher went on to a solo career.

Gallagher, “When I listen to something I like, I like to be taken out of my seat and thrown across the room. I like guts, a good drive, which can include gentle stuff too.”

His work with Taste, his solo LPs, and his session work are all marked by a sense of joyous abandon, especially in a live setting. Watching him, you can see an almost physical response to the instant reactions and feedback he is receiving from the audience.

I most enjoy watching and listening to him play acoustically.

When he plays acoustic, whether solo or with accompaniment, there is nothing between him and the instrument and him and the audience.

Here is an example – a studio out-take from the “Tattoo” sessions – Gallagher solo on acoustic guitar – yet compared with the full band version released on the LP, Gallagher is just as committed to the performance. Granted the full band version opens the number up, and Gallagher took the opportunity to add harmonica to his arsenal for the released take.

The released, full-band version:

Rory Gallagher – Who’s That Coming (7:13) –