Rory Gallagher - Irish Tour '74 (2011) [BLU-RAY] {Eagle Rock}

Tony Palmer's excellent documentary film "Rory Gallagher: Irish Tour '74" arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eagle Rock Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include footage from Rory Gallagher's Japanese tour of the same year; audio commentary by Donal Gallagher and Gerry McAvoy; and a wonderful documentary produced for RTE (Irish Television Network) in 1972. In English, without optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

I believe it was sometime during the early 80s when a good friend of mine, who was crazy about Humble Pie, introduced me to Irish guitarist Rory Gallagher. He had a tape with a recording of a live show Gallagher and his bandmates did somewhere in the United Kingdom. To be honest, however, the only thing I remember now is that we listened to the tape because earlier Gallagher had been voted Top Musician of the Year (top guitar player) by Melody Maker Magazine, ahead of Eric Clapton, which is how my friend had discovered him.

Having just finished watching Tony Palmer's excellent documentary film Rory Gallagher: Irish Tour '74 - which contains a lot more than just footage from Gallagher's gigs in Ireland - it is obvious to me that I have been ignoring a truly exceptional artist, a man whose stage presence was electrifying and performances absolutely riveting.

Gallagher's style could probably best be described as Irish blues rock - it is raw and notably expressive, blending hard and classic rock, blues, R&B, and even jazz, and spiced up with plenty of Irish folk. Naturally, in the live performances captured in Palmer's film Gallagher is just as impressive when performing various blues tunes ("As The Crow Flies") as he is when he does harder and faster tunes ("Cradle Rock").

Gallagher was clearly influenced by American blues and R&B artists. His extended improvisations, for instance, reminded me about Albert King and Otis Rush's music, while his shorter and harder improvisations reminded me about Creedence Clearwater Revival and Led Zeppelin's sound; they ooze a raw, edgy elegance. Gallagher himself has been a major influence on such artists as Gary Moore, Brian May, The Edge, Slash, and Glenn Tipton.

In addition to the live gigs, Palmer's film also contains a great deal of behind-the-scenes and on-the-road footage in which Gallagher and his bandmates - Gerry McAvoy (bass), Lou Martin (keyboards), and Rod De'Ath (drums) - are seen rehearsing, testing various instruments, or just drinking, talking about life and having fun (the film was initially intended to be shown only on TV).