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Irish Independent
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Cork streets cultivated Rory Gallagher's musical talents, says brother Dónal
Rory Gallagher was born in Ballyshannon, Donegal, and spent his early formative years in the city of Derry, but it was Cork that gave the blues genius his musical upbringing. Living in the heart of the city, on McCurtain Street, Rory thrived off the city's up-and-coming music scene, and famously bought his 1961 Fender Stratocaster, reportedly the first in Ireland, at Crowley's Music Shop. 'Rory grew up in the heart of the city,' said Dónal, at the launch of a number of new initiatives to honour the musician at City Hall. 'We had been up and down, but this was the final stay. We lived in Sidney Park, then the Douglas Road, and then finally the Well Road. 'Coming from the north, Rory had opened his ears to a lot of music. When we were in Derry, it was where the Americans were based for the Second World War and stayed for the Cold War, so we would listen to American radio. 'Then, we came down to Cork, and you suddenly found that you were in one of the main streets of the city. The whole culture and internationalism of the city, because there was still shipping going on in Cobh. "We lived in a bar on McCurtain Street and got to know all the characters, of all sorts: educated men, dockers, whatever, right across the board. It was a very easy city then, and due to its size it was a nice urban place for Rory, who was already developing his songs, talent, and music, and could identify with what other cities were like. 'He was out on the streets.' Dónal, speaking right across the road from his very first school (the Model school, now the site of a courthouse), says that the city was extremely kind to both himself and his brother, who returned regularly to play concerts at the City Hall, which are woven into the city's lore by those who attended (as well as the many who claim to have!). 'It wasn't a bit intimidating, traversing the city over and back to go to school from McCurtain Street. On my mother's side of the family, there were tons of cousins – more than we had in Derry – so to have that was all good.' Dónal would act for many years as his older brother's right-hand man. A manager, and mentor, and carving a path few, if any, Irishmen had done before. However, it could have been so different if he had been a bit more sensitive in his youth. 'I got fired once by Rory for dissent on stage,' Dónal told the many amassed at City Hall to celebrate the launch of the campaign about some of Rory's earliest gigs. 'He'd gotten on so well that they had asked for an encore, so he asked me to come on stage and do my party piece, which was 'The Scottish Solder', because I could do the accent. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more 'I started off with the song, and Rory started to join in with the guitar. So I stopped and I said to him 'there's no guitar on this', so the next thing it was all over, at seven years of age I was fired!' 'Cork Rocks for Rory' is the first major attempt by the city to truly commemorate the life and times of a man who was counted by many of his peers as the best guitarist to walk the earth. Cork City Council have worked alongside members of the family, as well as Sheena Crowley in a number of events in memory of the former member of Taste, and successful solo artist, 30-years on from his death. While last weekend, the main roadway at Cork Airport was renamed 'Rory Gallagher Avenue'. 'All four corners of Ireland have Rory at their heart, and each town has its own story,' said Dónal. 'People of all races, creeds, and colour, see Rory as a model person. He was very modest, but who actually travelled the world and brought Irish music and culture as well. 'Even though he was playing rock and roll, his talent paved the way for Irish musicians thereafter. There had almost been a stigma that if you're Irish, you can't play modern music. When Rory broke down those barriers, people began to take Ireland more seriously and went to look at the talent in Ireland. 'And of course, they found a goldmine!' For that, Rory and indeed the city can thank Mike Crowley's decision to allow a young Gallagher to purchase the Stratocaster for £100 on credit, whose previous owner belonged to Jim Conlon, of the Royal Showband, who decided to sell the guitar because its colour wasn't exactly what Conlon had in mind. Mike's daughter Sheena, who remembers as a 16-year-old the then revered Gallagher coming into the shop regularly to talk tech with her Dad, was a key part of the success of the exhibition, attending the auction in Bonhams to purchase a number of items, and many prospective buyers backed off once they learned why she was present. 'You'd be on a high thinking about it really,' Sheena said at the launch. 'You'd be thinking about what my Dad must have been thinking, what Rory would be thinking, it's fabulous really. 'I'm absolutely buzzing,' said the owner of Crowley's Music shop, adding that she would like to soon scale up to a larger premises, having vacated their shop on McCurtain Street in August 2013, before reopening a new shop on Friar Street a decade later. Rory's nephew, Eoin, has now been living in Cork for the past 20 years, following in both his uncle's and father's footsteps, and has continued the family's impact on the city through over a decade's work in the arts, before focusing full-time on keeping alive his uncle's legacy. 'When you're born into a family where you have someone like Rory Gallagher, who's just your uncle starting out. When you become a teenager, you get into your own music, and then Rory died, and when you compare contemporary stuff, you see how great he was and the talent that he had. 'Newer generations are finding out about him and seeing the lineage that traces the music they like, all the way back to him, so there's always work to be done!' The new project has all taken place within a whirlwind four months, that saw constant collaboration between Eoin and City Council, in securing vital exhibits for the Cork Public Museum in Fitzgerald's Park and in the atrium of City Hall, as well as a number of other exhibitions across the city, complimented by a 'Stompin' Ground' walking train, which acts as a permanent legacy, 'highlighting the places and streets that were Rory's stompin' ground' across Cork. 'Cork City Council have been absolutely fantastic in their help. It's been intense but everyone has worked extremely hard, and I'm very optimistic about the future in honouring Rory and his Cork roots. 'I think he would be extremely proud, especially in his hometown. He was a fantastic musician, but at the end of the day he's our Rory, from our Cork, our man.'
Extra.ie
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Extra.ie
Rory Gallagher's brother tells of night John Lennon came to see him
Rock legend Rory Gallagher's brother and long-time manager has revealed the siblings' varying reactions to an early word of praise from John Lennon. 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 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.
Irish Examiner
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Cork airport road renamed in honour of Rory Gallagher on 30th anniversary of musician's death
Gone 30 years, but certainly not forgotten in his home city, the unveiling of 'Rory Gallagher Avenue' took place at Cork Airport on Saturday morning. Fellow Leesider, An Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD, was on hand to perform the renaming ceremony of the main thoroughfare through the airport, with Cork's lord mayor Cllr Dan Boyle, and members of the Gallagher family among those in attendance. In many ways, the airport is a fitting place to memorialise the legendary guitarist who also has a city-centre plaza named after him, and an abstract statue by Geraldine Creedon, in Cork. As airport managing director Niall MacCarthy mentioned in his address, it was from this facility that Gallagher took his first ever plane journey in June 1965, when he flew to Spain with The Impact showband for their residency at an American air force base near Madrid. Fresh from his Leaving Cert, the talented 17-year-old had reluctantly agreed to cut his trademark long hair before travelling, for fear of not being admitted to Franco-ruled Spain. Cork Airport also featured in Gallagher's final journey when the 47-year-old was returned home following his death in London on June 14, 1995. In the intervening years, the Ballyshannon-born, Cork-raised musician had established a reputation as one of the best guitarists in the world. One of Ireland's first rock stars, Gallagher was a source of pride for Corkonians who witnessed one of their own rubbing shoulders with all sorts of international luminaries. Indeed, the airport unveiling came in a week when the music world was mourning the loss of Beach Boys' Brian Wilson and Sly Stone, both figures that Gallagher had shared bills with. Gallagher toured extensively in the US and Europe, but his younger brother Dónal recalled how Rory had always retained his affection for his hometown. 'Coming back to Cork Airport was the moment he always cherished and always loved. And the family and I are so deeply honoured. Thank you to everyone for turning out,' said Dónal. Karen Skelly from Ballyshannon, Keery Irvine from Belfast and Fiona Campbell at the launch of Cork Rocks for Rory. Picture: Darragh Kane During his speech at the event, the Taoiseach also recalled Gallagher's humility, describing how, during his tenure as Lord Mayor of Cork in 1993, he had to coax a the shy and reluctant star into attending a civic reception following a benefit gig at the Everyman Theatre for Bosnian refugees. 'Rory Gallagher was a genuine rock star who inspired people right around the world with his music,' added Mr Martin. 'His legacy is one which reverberates across Cork, and it is only fitting that he is honoured in the city where he spent much of his life. I want to pay tribute to the Gallagher family and all those at Cork Airport and Cork City Council in bringing about this wonderful initiative in Rory's memory.' Rebecca Loughry and Sarah Wrixon at the launch of Cork Rocks for Rory. Picture: Darragh Kane The airport unveiling also coincided with an ongoing Cork Rocks For Rory event that the City Council is running with the Gallagher family. A number of Rory-related exhibitions, discussions and other events are taking place across the city, culminating in three concerts by American guitarist Joe Bonamassa at the Marquee on July 1-3.
Irish Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
'Slash froze when he saw Rory's guitar'
RORY Gallagher is goin' to his hometown... one more time. The life of the legendary bluesman will be celebrated in Cork, where he was reared, with a series of events over the next few weeks to mark the 30th anniversary of his death. It's an emotional time for Dónal Gallagher, the late guitarist's brother and long-time manager. 'It's very satisfying, compared to some times when it almost seemed like Rory was being airbrushed out of rock music history,' says Dónal. 'To see newer generations finding him now is quite incredible. 30 years on, that he's getting honoured in such a manner of different ways is great.' On Saturday, a new road at Cork Airport will be named in his honour and three exhibitions dedicated to Gallagher's life and music will open in the city where he grew up as part of 'Cork Rocks For Rory'. 'The one at City Hall is a photographic exhibition of his early years,' says Dónal. 'The library are doing one about his songwriting and also about how he'd become a bit of a hidden cult figure in the world of comics in the US. 'The museum is the more general one with posters and guitars. There's quite a collection of guitars. And that rolls into the Joe Bonamassa dates.' Blues great Bonamassa will play Gallagher's music for three nights at the Marquee in Cork next month and there have been rumours Rory's famous Fender Stratocaster guitar will make an appearance. 'I've no idea,' says Dónal, laughing. 'I'm sure Joe would love that to happen, but it's in the hands of the museum people and they have their work to do. 'There's so many of the other of Rory's instruments have been offered around, so I'm sure he won't be short on guitars.' The Strat was bought at auction last year for over €1m and gifted back to the State to be displayed at the National Museum in Dublin. Dónal is still amazed at the effect the battered Strat has on some of the world's greatest guitarists. 'Johnny Marr's a great guy. He used to ring up to get a 'fix' of playing Rory's Strat,' said Dónal. 'He'd take it out, either at my house or the office, and he'd sit there in a corner just playing it. It was wonderful to see. 'The instrument, while it's not human, you feel it's orphaned. So it's great to see it get a good cuddle of sorts, especially from a guitarist like Johnny. 'Instruments need to be played. I don't play, so I couldn't do that. I think other family members were intimidated in some ways. 'I remember seeing Slash and the guitar was brought across to Dublin some years ago when he was playing. 'The guitar went to his dressingroom and he couldn't actually play it. He sort-of froze.' Gallagher was born in Ballyshannon, before moving to Cork at a young age, where he later cut his teeth on the showband circuit. Dónal collected a huge amount of material during his brother's career, going right back to the earliest days and went through much of it for the RTÉ documentary Calling Card last year. 'Very emotional, you're going back in your life as well as forwards,' said Dónal. 'It's not just about the career, it's sharing your life with your brother, it's loss as well. Particularly as we were the only two siblings. That leaves quite a void. 'I'm more fortunate than most that it's such a well-recorded life. 'We used to perform together at a very early age, do church socials, until I got fired! Even from nine or 10 years old Rory was destined for things. I found I'd collected something on everything he was doing. 'He had such an amazing life. He achieved what he wanted to achieve as a musician, which was his primary goal.' Gallagher died on June 14, 1995, at the age of just 47. 30 years after his death his music is still finding new fans and still inspiring new generations of musicians. He's even on this year's Leaving Cert. 'A cousin of mine, his daughter, who is a budding musician herself. She couldn't believe it to see the question on the Leaving Cert Irish exam,' said Dónal. 'That's quite something when you come into a Leaving Cert. I wish I'd got one like that.' Cork Rocks For Rory starts on June 14
