The late Irish blues rocker
Rory Gallagher would have been pleased to see the Chess logo embossed on the three-disc
Blues, a box of rare, unissued, acoustic, and live recordings. Issued to mark what would have been his half-century as a recording artist, 90-percent of the material here is previously unreleased. The discs are divided thematically: Electric, Acoustic, and Live. The booklet is wonderfully annotated with an authoritative essay from journalist and music historian Jas Obrecht; it places
Gallagher in his rightful historical place as an electric blues rock pioneer alongside admirers
Eric Clapton,
Johnny Winter,
Jimi Hendrix, and
Peter Green. The set opens with a raucous cover of
Sonny Boy Williamson's "Don't Start Me Talkin'," an unissued cut from the sessions that begat the excellent 1982 offering
Jinx.
Gallagher is in full Chicago house-rocking mode with his wailing harmonica and nasty slide guitar, accompanied by pounding piano and a barely contained rhythm section shuffle. His songwriting is showcased to fine effect, too, with the slow-burning "Off the Handle" from a live BBC appearance in 1986, "Should've Learnt My Lesson," an outtake from the
Deuce sessions in 1971 (a midtempo blues rocker steeped in the Celtic folk tradition), and an unhinged take of his "Bullfrog Blues" from a radio station appearance in 1972. Along the way, we get lean, mean covers of
Tony Joe White's "As the Crow Flies,"
Green's "Leaving Town Blues," and two guest spots, "I’m Ready" with
Muddy Waters in 1971, and "Drop Down Baby" with skiffle icon
Lonnie Donegan from 1978. The second disc showcases
Gallagher's considerable acoustic guitar playing and extremely effective singing, as well as his obsessions with
Waters' slide playing and
Jesse Fuller's and
Big Bill Broonzy's rhythmically complex fingerpicking. Highlights include "Prison Blues" and
Broonzy's "Bankers Blues" (both from the
Blueprint sessions), the slide-tastic solo acoustic "Secret Agent" from a TV appearance in 1974, and a screaming solo take on
John Lee Hooker's "Want Ad Blues" from a 1988 radio session. There are also several key originals, including the previously unissued "Whole Lot of People."
The first three tracks from the live volume are drawn from a 1982 concert, with
Gallagher's wrangling readings of
Sonny Boy Williamson's "When My Baby Left Me," Jerry West's "Nothing But the Devil" and
Willie Dixon's "What in the World" -- they’re fiery, direct, improvisational, and raw as hell.
Junior Wells' "Messin with the Kid," culled from a 1977 Sheffield concert rocks like the
MC5, as does
Sonny Thompson's "Tore Down" from another show. There are three
Gallagher guest spots, including "Born Under a Bad Sign" with
Jack Bruce from 1991, "Comin’ Home Baby" with
Chris Barber in 1989, and "You Upset Me" from
Albert King's Live in 1975. All told, this box places
Gallagher in his rightful place with his peers above, and as an influence cited by guitar slingers
Brian May,
Gary Moore,
Johnny Marr, and
Slash.
Blues makes a final incontrovertible case for
Gallagher's musical immortality. ~ Thom Jurek