Rory Gallagher - The Cork Connection

Known as the Rebel County, and considered by some to be the real capital, County Cork, Ireland, has not exactly been the centre of the world when it comes to music. However, the city would play an influential part in the creation of not just Irelands greatest musical export, but a guitarist who is without doubt a hot contender to wear the crown as the greatest.

Born on the 2nd March, 1948, Rory Gallagher would take his first breath of life at the Rock Hospital in Ballyshannon in County Donegal, Ireland. The Gallaghers had settled in Ballyshannon when Danny, Rorys father, took up employment with the Irish Electricity Supply Board (ESB). However their stay in Donegal was short lived with the family relocating to Co. Derry a year later.

By 1958 the Gallagher marriage ended resulting in Rorys mother Monica taking him and his younger brother Donal back to her native county, Cork. Rory had already developed a fixation for guitar when living in Derry. Now in his pre-teens and settled in Cork, Rory began teaching himself to play, first on an acoustic before progressing to a Rosetti Solid 7 electric guitar.

It would be during his Cork years that Gallagher developed his personality and a strong Corkonian accident which never left him. However the city had much more to offer the young guitarist. Just like many other teens his age, Rory became fascinated by the rock'n'roll pioneer, Buddy Holly. However, for Gallagher it wasnt just the songs and voice that got him hooked, instead it was the style of guitar Holly had over his shoulder.

At the age of fifteen Gallagher would catch his first sight of a Fender Stratocaster in real life within the shop window of Crowleys Music Centre. Rory had already purchased a guitar from the shop in the past. The young guitarist would stare at the instrument through the shop window dreaming of what he could do if only it was his. The guitar had belonged to a member of the Royal Showband, Jim Conlon. From the moment it was purchased Rory would put his sweet, blood and tears into it, literally. The result would be the now iconic damaged paintwork which is known around the world by guitar enthusiasts.

While the purchase of a guitar is not necessarily an important moment for most city's, it would be this 1960's Fender Stratocaster in a Cork music shop that would help shape the world of rock guitar. U2s The Edge, Queens Brian May, Guns n Roses, Slash and The Smiths Johnny Marr are amongst a long list of guitar legends who would be inspired by the sound coming from Rorys battered Fender. Further evidence to back up the importance of the instrument is displayed on its price tag after it was sold for £700,000 (approximately €841,000) at a London auction. The guitar now takes pride and place in National Museum of Ireland (NMI) after it was donated back to the people of Ireland by Live Nation Gaiety Ltd, a joint venture between concert promoter Denis Desmond and live music giants Live Nation.

From 1950s to the 1980s Ireland was awash with Showbands. Synchronised footwork, and wearing matching suits, the Showbands brought rock'n'roll to the dance halls around catholic Ireland. Tame in comparison to the UK and US, the showbands music included a variety of genres including rock'n'roll, country and Irish traditional music.

Armed with his beloved Stratocaster Rory would comb the local newspapers in search of bands looking for musicans. Eventually Gallagher would see such an advertisement from brothers Oliver and Bernie Tobin, who were forming the Fontana Showband. At the age of 15 Gallagher began his apprenticeship in the Showbands, learning the tricks of the trade that would earn him a reputation in later years as one of greatest live performers.

Following his apprenticeship in the Showbands Rory would move away from the city of Cork, eventually forming his own band, Taste in 1966, which was based around his virtuosic guitar playing and captivating live performances. In his solo years following Taste breakup Gallagher would continue to tour earning him a place in rock history as a result of his powerful guitar playing, songwriting, and overall stage presence, leaving a lasting mark on countless musicians for decades.