Rory Gallagher's brother tells of night John Lennon came to see him
Dónal Gallagher was present yesterday as the main roadway at Cork Airport was renamed after his brother, as unveiled by Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
The ceremony kicked off a summer of exhibitions, concerts and tours in tribute to 'Cork's finest cultural export' on the 30th anniversary of his death. Donal Gallagher. Pic:The blues legend has already been posthumously commemorated with statues, place names, stamps, coins, and festivals, but recognition, especially from the biggest names in music, was plentiful during his lifetime as well.
'One of the earliest ones' to leave a mark happened when Rory was still playing with Cork blues rock outfit Taste, his brother Dónal told Extra.ie.
John Lennon had 'turned up' to a Taste gig at the Lyceum Theatre in London and was asked by interviewers the following week what new music he liked.
'He just said he wasn't particularly enamoured with music at that time, but that he did see Taste, and the guy Rory Gallagher is going places,' Dónal said. 'At that time, to have Beatle recognition was a very big deal.'
Dónal admitted it was 'hard for me to contain my excitement' at the nod from Lennon. John Lennon. Pic: by George Konig/Shutterstock
'I was chuffed to bits,' he recalled. But Rory, true to character, 'took it very modestly'.
The original Gallagher brothers were more used to big-name praise by the time Bob Dylan came knocking some years later, but almost shunning the legendary songwriter was an accident.
'Dylan was in admiration of Rory's acoustic blues playing in particular,' Dónal explained. 'He turned up backstage [in LA], and initially I was turning him away. I didn't recognise him because so many people were trying to look like Bob Dylan.
'You're so preoccupied with the gig and what's going on and not letting the record company come backstage, so you've a million and one things on your mind.
'As he was turning to walk away, you see the side profile and see Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits [album cover] walk past you. The side profile did it. You're not expecting somebody like that to be there.'
Other admirers came in the shape of ABBA, who shared a bill with Rory in the Swedish band's 'very early days'. ABBA. Pic: Charles Knight/REX/Shutterstock
Dónal said: 'We had the same agent in Scandinavia, so there was a camaraderie. Right after Rory finished his set, they asked if they could have a picture taken with him. They were miming, so it was hysterical, because Rory's audience just didn't get it or know who ABBA were.'
Courted throughout his career by legendary rock groups including Canned Heat, Deep Purple and Free, Gallagher came closest to joining the Rolling Stones, who invited him to the Netherlands to jam and record as they sought a replacement for Mick Taylor.
'Mick [Jagger] and Keith [Richards] weren't talking, so you were being brought into this very fractious band in a state of flux,' Dónal said.
Some of Gallagher's riffs ended up on the Stones' 1976 album Black and Blue – uncredited – although Dónal insisted it was 'not a contentious thing'.
He said: 'Musicians borrow and lend and swap.' Rory Gallagher. Pic: Erica Echenberg/Redferns
One of many 'ifs and buts' of the Irish guitar hero's career, the dalliance ended inconclusively after Richards failed to surface for a mooted 'chat'.
'This was the day before Rory was to fly back to get his connection to Tokyo [for a Japanese tour],' Dónal recalled.
'Rory went up to Keith's suite but Keith was comatose, and Rory went back every hour, and Keith was just completely comatose and out of it.
'So Rory very quietly packed his bag and got on the plane, and I met him with a fresh suitcase at Heathrow Airport.'
Dónal learned basic guitar as a young teenager but admits now that his 'tutor was too good for me'.
'Rory would come home and say, 'Oh, you're doing really well,' and then he'd show you some other chord. He assumed that it was in the genes and you should be able to do it, so you had to do a Chuck Berry riff moving the small finger or something. He'd stretch it for you, and the next thing there'd be a brother's fight breaking out.'
The world-renowned Montreux Jazz Festival favourite died in 1995, at the age of just 47, from complications following a liver transplant.
Cork Rocks For Rory, a citywide tribute launched yesterday, includes a series of exhibitions featuring Rory memorabilia, handwritten lyrics, photos and more.
A walking tour will introduce fans to the blues legend's 'stomping ground', while a series of concerts culminate with American Blues guitarist Joe Bonamassa Live at the Marquee on the first three nights of July.
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