A biography for Rory Gallagherhasn’t been written yet.
“Touring doesn't have to be a harried, cliched way of life.”
“In the first band I was ever in, we all had to wear a matching grey suit. I hated that.”
“The difficulties people have with me are purely musical things, never personality things. But, you know that's just the way it goes. I like to get things right!”
“I've never commercialized my music. I've seen that ruin too many people who think two-minute ditties are the answer.”
“I see music as a lifetime affair.”
“I have my own stubborn attitude about how I want to play and where I want to go.”
“In my opinion, the P-90 is the best pickup for slide - it has the right overtones.”
“I was just fascinated by the blues.”
“You can play slide on any guitar, but to be serious about it you have a tough set of strings, otherwise you don't get the full attack - you can't dig in.”
“I think rock should always stay a little bit outside the pale; I think it should remain a little bit dangerous - a little bit ornery, as the Americans say.”
“Playing live is my natural element. It's too hard to relax in the studio because there are too many options. It's just not as exciting.”
“I'm a great listener - I play records all the time at home. And I play guitar as a hobby. So inspiration has never been a big problem for me, but motivation can be a bit difficult sometimes.”
“All I really want to do is play, that's all that matters. I don't think I've ever tried to cultivate an image. Everything has been on instinct. The flannel shirt and jeans, for example... those are the clothes I wear. If I wore anything else on stage, I wouldn't feel comfortable.”
“I spend most of my time in London but I come back to Ireland whenever I can.”
“Even though I was a rock 'n' roll fan, hearing the raw blues was like listening to music on a much deeper kind of level.”
“I enjoy some nights in the studio. I'm not the greatest person in an enclosed space; I'm a live player by birth - like a gypsy folk player, I just sit in the corner and play.”
“Playing live is much more natural for me. The instant reaction and the feedback from the audience is great for me. I really relish it. And if you play blues-based music, it's not really academic music or recital music. It really needs a bit of atmosphere and a bit of interplay and a bit of roughness, and you really get that with an audience.”
“I've had too many opportunities to sell out.”
“I like a nice rumble on bass, openness on guitar and drums that breathe.”
“Ideally, I'd really like to put my own stamp on things, but it takes years, you know, and you're constantly learning and studying and falling in and out with your instrument, learning different approaches and different attacks.”