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Recent Album: Photo Finish
BORN: March 2, 1949, Ballyshannon, Ireland
For a career that was cut short by illness and a premature death, guitarist, singer and songwriter Rory Gallagher sure accomplished a lot in the blues music world. Although Gallagher didn't tour the U.S. nearly enough, spending most of his time in Europe, he was known for his
no-holds-barred, marathon live shows at clubs and theaters around the United States.
Gallagher was born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Irish Republic on March 2, 1949. He passed away from complications owing to liver transplant surgery on June 14, 1995, at age 46. Shortly after his birth, his family moved to Cork City in the south, and at age nine, he became
fascinated with American blues and folk singers he heard on the radio. An avid record collector, he had a wide range of influences including Leadbelly, Buddy Guy, Freddie King, Albert King, Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker. Gallagher would always try to mix some simple country blues
songs onto his recordings.
Gallagher began his recording career after moving to London, when he formed a trio called Taste. The group's self-titled debut album was released in 1969 in England and later picked up for U.S. distribution by Atco/Atlantic. Between 1969 and 1971, with producer Tony Colton behind
the board, Gallagher recorded three albums with the group before they split up. Gallagher began performing under his own name in 1971, after recording his 1970 debut, Rory Gallagher for Polydor Records in the UK. The album was picked up for U.S. distribution by Atlantic Records,
and later that year he recorded Deuce, also released by Atlantic in the U.S.
His prolific output continued, as he followed up Deuce with Live in Europe (1972) and Blueprint and Tatoo, both in 1973. Irish Tour 1974, like Live in Europe, did a good job of capturing the excitement of his live shows on tape, and he followed that with Calling Card for
Chrysalis in 1976, and Photo Finish and Jinx for the same label in 1978 and 1982. By this point Gallagher had made several world tours, and he took a few years rest from the road. He got back into recording and performing live again with the 1987 release (in the U.K.) of Defender.
His last album, Fresh Evidence, was released in 1991 on the Capo/I.R.S. label. Capo was his own record and publishing company that he set up in the hopes of eventually exposing other great blues talents.
Some of Gallagher's best work on record wasn't under his own name, it's stuff he recorded with Muddy Waters on The London Sessions (Chess, 1972) and with Albert King on Live (RCA/Utopia). Gallagher made his last U.S. tours in 1985 and 1991, and admitted in interviews that he'd
always been a guitarist who fed off the instant reaction and feedback a live audience can provide.
In a 1991 interview, he told this writer: "I try to sit down and write a Rory Gallagher song, which generally happens to be quite bluesy. I try to find different issues, different themes and different topics that haven't been covered before...I've done songs in all the different
styles...train blues, drinking blues, economic blues. But I try to find a slightly different angle on all these things. The music can be very traditional, but you can sort of creep into the future with the lyrics."
For a good introduction to Gallagher's unparalleled prowess as a guitarist, singer and songwriter, pick up Irish Tour 1974, Calling Card or Fresh Evidence, all available on compact disc. ~ Richard Skelly, All-Music Guide (From CD-NOW Biography)
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Recent Album: Un-Break My Heart
BORN: December 8, 1939, Belfast, Northern Ireland
James Galway gained fame as one of Ireland's most popular flautists in the late '70s. Over the next two decades, Galway's smooth, lightly Celtic instrumental stylings were internationally popular, selling numerous records and earning him several awards.
Galway began playing music with penny whistles and mouth-organs as a child, soon moving to flute. At the age of ten, he was the winner of all three classes of the Irish Flute Championships, which earned him a BBC radio session, as well as a spot in the Belfast Youth Orchestra.
Galway earned scholarships first at London's Guildhall School of Music, then the Paris Conservatoire; he would occasionally busk on the subways to earn extra money.
After spending some time at Sadlers Wells, Galway became the Berlin Philharmonic's principal flautist in 1969. His time with the orchestra was popular, which led his manager, Michael Emerson, to persuade the flautist to go solo in 1975. Galway was instantly successful as a solo
artist, both as a live performer and a recording artist. He was soon playing 120 concerts a year, as well as recording both both classical and popular albums. In 1978, his version of John Denver's "Annie's Song" became an international hit. While his pop recordings were commercially
successful, his classical albums were warmly recepted by critics and peers alike, as his records of Mozart and Vivaldi compositions won awards.
Though he wasn't able to replicate the success of "Annie's Song" in the '80s, he continued to sell out concerts around the world well into the '90s and his infrequent records have proven nearly as successful. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All-Music Guide (From CD-NOW Biography)
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Recent Album: Redwood Cathedral
BORN: May 17, 1948
Though primarily steeped in the traditions of folk and Celtic music, Scottish singer/songwriter Dick Gaughan enjoyed a lengthy and far-reaching career in a variety of creative pursuits. Born Richard Peter in 1948, he first picked up the guitar at the age of seven, and issued his
debut solo LP, No More Forever, in 1972. Gaughan then signed on with the folk-rock group the Boys of the Lough, releasing a 1973 self-titled LP before returning to his solo career with 1976's Kist o Gold. However, he soon returned to
the group format, forming a band named Five Hand Reel and issuing another eponymously titled effort that same year; over the next two years, Gaughan issued four more records -- two solo releases (1977's Copper and Brass and 1978's Gaughan) as well as two more Five Hand Reel outings
(1977's For A' That and 1978's Earl o' Moray). In the late 1970s and early 1980s, he worked as a critic and columnist with Folk Review magazine, and also acted as a member of the 7:84 Theatre Company; after a three-year absence from the studio, Gaughan also returned to regular
musical duty with the release of 1981's Handful of Earth. A Different Kind of Love Song followed in 1983, and in 1985 he released Live in Edinburgh; True and Bold appeared a year later. After 1988's Call It Freedom, Gaughan again retreated from view; much of his time was devoted
to his increasing interest in computer technology, and he later earned notice for his skills as a programmer and web designer. Finally, he formed a new band, the short-lived Chan Alba, which disbanded after releasing their 1995 self-titled debut; the solo Sail On arrived the next
year, followed in 1998 by Redwood Cathedral. ~ Jason Ankeny, All-Music Guide (From CD-NOW Biography)
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Recent Album: Shamrocks & Holly
Frankie Gavin comes from Connemara, one of the Irish-speaking areas of Ireland. He is best known as De Dannan's fiddle player, but he also plays the flute and records solo records. ~ Steve Winick, All-Music Guide (From CD-NOW Biography)
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DIED: June 14, 1995, London, England
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