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Rory Gallagher - The Later Years
Rather than a traditional biography, Rory Gallagher - The Later Years takes the format of a series of essays. It consists of six core sections (‘In the Studio’, ‘On the Stage 1985-1991’, ‘Introducing the New Rory Gallagher Band’, ‘On the Stage 1992-1995’, ‘Ireland’, ‘Rory in the 21st Century’) in which eighteen chapters are grouped together; however, each chapter can be read independently. Although the book’s focus is squarely on 1985 to 1995, occasionally it also encompasses important earlier achievements in the 1980s that have been overlooked in previous works on Gallagher. Section 1 looks at Gallagher’s three final studio Jinx (1982), Defender (1987) and Fresh Evidence (1990). It also covers his session work and collaborations between 1985 to 1995. Section 2 covers the period when Gerry McAvoy and Brendan O’Neill were members of the Rory Gallagher Band. It recounts Gallagher’s tours of Hungary and Yugoslavia (1985), Spain (1986) and the United States, Australia and Japan (1991), as well as headlining performances at major European festivals. Section 3 provides the first full account of Gallagher’s final band members (Richard Newman, David Levy, and Mark Feltham), as well as occasional guests. Section 4 tackles the last four years of Gallagher’s touring history including The Bonn Blues Festival (1992), the Montreux Jazz Festival (1994) and the final tour of 1995. Section 5 is dedicated to his many musical achievements in his homeland, including his “comeback” show at the Cork Opera House in 1987, his 1988 Irish Tour and his involvement with major Irish events and festivals, such as Lisdoonvarna (1983), Self Aid (1986) and Rock on the Lough (1989). Also the Temple Bar Blues Festival (1992)―one of Gallagher’s crowning achievements―and a number of important 1992-1993 shows in Cork, including Lark by the Lee, Everyman’s Theatre and the Regional Technical College Arts Festival. The book concludes with an epilogue reflecting upon Gallagher’s legacy in the 21st century, particularly amongst a new generation of fans.
697 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 4, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 5, 2025
Τα 5 αστέρια είναι λίγα. Η δουλειά που έκαναν οι δύο συγγραφείς είναι πανεπιστημιακού επιπέδου, λεπτομερής και αναλυτικότατη. Τα τελευταία χρόνια του Rory φωτίζονται μοναδικά.
Rory continues to rise...
Rory continues to rise...
October 19, 2024
Even as a long time Rory fan, his later years were the dark ages as far as my knowledge of his career goes. This book changes that and then some. It's a very in depth dive into those final years, where what little I knew seemed to be more myth than reality. The authors really set the record straight on many aspects of this part of his career, and despite the sadness and poignancy surrounding his untimely death, you're left with a very positive and uplifting view of what Rory was achieving during that final few years. If you're a fan, then this is a must read. I've given it a 5 star rating. To give it any less would be doing the authors, and ultimately Rory himself, an injustice.
December 16, 2024
It’s hard to imagine the research and effort that went into writing Rory Gallagher – The Later Years. Authors Lauren Alex O’Hagan and Rayne Morales set out with a specific goal in mind, to set the record straight on the final decade of Rory Gallagher’s illustrious musical career.
“We were tired of the constant focus on the 1970s in publications, of repeatedly hearing the same ‘rise and fall’ narrative, of press articles and biographies splitting Gallagher’s career into before and after periods, with Defender—or even Jinx—frequently marked as the start of a downward spiral simply based on the fact that Gallagher’s health worsened during the recording of the albums,” write O’Hagan and Morales in the introduction. (The pair met via the Rory Gallagher Instagram community.) “And we were saddened to find similar claims made by many fans on social media that Gallagher’s ‘best years’ were behind him in the mid-1980s.”
If you’re a fan of music, or if you’re a fan of Rory Gallagher, this was an invaluable mission and the authors tackle the challenge with verve, passion, enthusiasm, and keen attention to detail. No claim goes unfounded, no fact goes without a footnote. O’Hagan and Morales treat their analysis like a PhD thesis that requires grounding every assertion in solid, irrefutable proof. Every chapter is accompanied by dozens and dozens of references to the source material. You might think this argument would be best suited for a late-night bar over a couple of pints and you might think this is a matter of subjectivity, certainly not objectivity, but O’Hagan and Morales come prepared like a couple of high-priced legal beagles walking into the toughest court on the planet to defend their slandered client.
But don’t think “stiff” or “dry” about this scholarly work. There’s too much rock and roll on every page for that to be an issue. In fact, The Later Years will fire up any Rory fan (I’m a big one) and should intrigue those who aren’t familiar with his incredible output.
Drawn from a series of essays for a blog called Rewriting Rory, The Later Years is organized in a nifty fashion. First, a detailed look at his last three studio albums (Jinx, Defender, and Fresh Evidence). Second, a detailed look at this touring schedule from 1985 through 1991. Third, the reconfiguration of Rory’s traveling band and its final tours from 1992 to 1995. And in the fourth part, simply titled “Ireland,” we get a smattering of related articles and anecdotes about Rory’s impact and further details about Rory’s final months and days. Chapters in this section include “He Came, He Saw and He Certainly Conquered: Cork Opera House 1987,” “Just A Man with a Mission (and a Guitar): The 1988 Irish Tour,” and “Carrying the Celtic Blues Torch: Television Interviews and Recordings, 1992-1994.”
While the book’s focus leans heavily toward the last decade, it’s impossible to not touch on what preceded that era of Rory’s life and what emerges from The Later Years is a fully three-dimensional portrait of a artist who cut his own path. Often compared to the likes of Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Gary Moore, Jeff Beck and others, Gallagher was very much someone who approached the stage, the studio, and the music industry with his own strong beliefs and values. He was a perfectionist and O’Hagan and Morales show us in gritty fashion how this took a toll on both his artistic process and his mental health (an issue that never reached the mainstream press back in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, when Rory was widely written about).
Rory refused to play the game of writing or releasing singles. He believed in the idea of “the album.” He was relentlessly loyal to his bandmates, in particular long-time bassist Gerry McAvoy. He put on three-hour shows when two probably would have done the trick. He toured as hard as any guitar player out there. At least, that is, around his studio time and to the extent that his flying phobia would allow.
Even his songs tackled different topics than the standard rock fare, especially when it comes to some of his more introspective lyrics.
“In ‘Easy Come Easy Go,’ Gallagher reflects on how he is ‘lost inside’ himself, ‘just hears sad notes lately’ and how to ‘break out soon,’ before reassuring himself not to ‘paint it all so sadly’ and ‘burn out completely.’ Similar themes emerge in ‘Jinxed’ as Gallagher states that he ‘feel(s) like a lost child searching in the dark’ and is ‘sinking down into an endless sea,’ as well as rhetorically asking if the ‘heavy weather’ that he is going through will ever end,” write O’Hagan and Morales.
Yes, some of the argument from O’Hagan and Morales is based on personal opinion but they draw from dozens and dozens of thoughtful comments, reviews, and interviews from those who observed Rory close-up and who had the ability to compare the output of his last ten years with the more celebrated recordings and performances of the work in his 20’s and 30’s. (Rory was 18 years old when he formed the blues trio Taste, which drew comparisons to Cream and opened for Blind Faith on its tour of the United States in1969. He was 20 when he dropped his first solo album and it’s a jaw-dropping piece of work.)
The portrait that emerges of Gallagher in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s is one of an artist going full-bore, particularly in their detailed recaps of performances in Bonn (1992) and the Montreux Jazz Festival (1994). O’Hagan and Morales appropriately chastise those who critique Gallagher’s Montreux gig for the way Rory appeared, not how he played. The writing here is particularly vivid and colorful, dissecting musical moments and drawing on comments from those who were on stage with Rory and could attest to his mastery and touch. It’s impossible to read about the last few years of Rory’s life and not think about how hard it must have been for him on a physical basis.
“Watching Gallagher’s 1994 performances is to see a man clearly still in love with what he does, but that is not to say that it always came easy for him at this stage in his career,” they write. “”While Gallagher may have lived by the mantra ‘whatever you do, don’t show that hurt,’ it seemed to become increasingly difficult for him to do so when in the public eye.”
In the end, Rory Gallagher – The Later Years not only demonstrates that Rory Gallagher was working at a high artistic level but that it’s very likely the best was yet to come. Kudos to O’Hagan and Morales for bringing fresh evidence to an important issue regarding the legacy for one of the finest rock and blues guitarists of all time.
“We were tired of the constant focus on the 1970s in publications, of repeatedly hearing the same ‘rise and fall’ narrative, of press articles and biographies splitting Gallagher’s career into before and after periods, with Defender—or even Jinx—frequently marked as the start of a downward spiral simply based on the fact that Gallagher’s health worsened during the recording of the albums,” write O’Hagan and Morales in the introduction. (The pair met via the Rory Gallagher Instagram community.) “And we were saddened to find similar claims made by many fans on social media that Gallagher’s ‘best years’ were behind him in the mid-1980s.”
If you’re a fan of music, or if you’re a fan of Rory Gallagher, this was an invaluable mission and the authors tackle the challenge with verve, passion, enthusiasm, and keen attention to detail. No claim goes unfounded, no fact goes without a footnote. O’Hagan and Morales treat their analysis like a PhD thesis that requires grounding every assertion in solid, irrefutable proof. Every chapter is accompanied by dozens and dozens of references to the source material. You might think this argument would be best suited for a late-night bar over a couple of pints and you might think this is a matter of subjectivity, certainly not objectivity, but O’Hagan and Morales come prepared like a couple of high-priced legal beagles walking into the toughest court on the planet to defend their slandered client.
But don’t think “stiff” or “dry” about this scholarly work. There’s too much rock and roll on every page for that to be an issue. In fact, The Later Years will fire up any Rory fan (I’m a big one) and should intrigue those who aren’t familiar with his incredible output.
Drawn from a series of essays for a blog called Rewriting Rory, The Later Years is organized in a nifty fashion. First, a detailed look at his last three studio albums (Jinx, Defender, and Fresh Evidence). Second, a detailed look at this touring schedule from 1985 through 1991. Third, the reconfiguration of Rory’s traveling band and its final tours from 1992 to 1995. And in the fourth part, simply titled “Ireland,” we get a smattering of related articles and anecdotes about Rory’s impact and further details about Rory’s final months and days. Chapters in this section include “He Came, He Saw and He Certainly Conquered: Cork Opera House 1987,” “Just A Man with a Mission (and a Guitar): The 1988 Irish Tour,” and “Carrying the Celtic Blues Torch: Television Interviews and Recordings, 1992-1994.”
While the book’s focus leans heavily toward the last decade, it’s impossible to not touch on what preceded that era of Rory’s life and what emerges from The Later Years is a fully three-dimensional portrait of a artist who cut his own path. Often compared to the likes of Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Gary Moore, Jeff Beck and others, Gallagher was very much someone who approached the stage, the studio, and the music industry with his own strong beliefs and values. He was a perfectionist and O’Hagan and Morales show us in gritty fashion how this took a toll on both his artistic process and his mental health (an issue that never reached the mainstream press back in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, when Rory was widely written about).
Rory refused to play the game of writing or releasing singles. He believed in the idea of “the album.” He was relentlessly loyal to his bandmates, in particular long-time bassist Gerry McAvoy. He put on three-hour shows when two probably would have done the trick. He toured as hard as any guitar player out there. At least, that is, around his studio time and to the extent that his flying phobia would allow.
Even his songs tackled different topics than the standard rock fare, especially when it comes to some of his more introspective lyrics.
“In ‘Easy Come Easy Go,’ Gallagher reflects on how he is ‘lost inside’ himself, ‘just hears sad notes lately’ and how to ‘break out soon,’ before reassuring himself not to ‘paint it all so sadly’ and ‘burn out completely.’ Similar themes emerge in ‘Jinxed’ as Gallagher states that he ‘feel(s) like a lost child searching in the dark’ and is ‘sinking down into an endless sea,’ as well as rhetorically asking if the ‘heavy weather’ that he is going through will ever end,” write O’Hagan and Morales.
Yes, some of the argument from O’Hagan and Morales is based on personal opinion but they draw from dozens and dozens of thoughtful comments, reviews, and interviews from those who observed Rory close-up and who had the ability to compare the output of his last ten years with the more celebrated recordings and performances of the work in his 20’s and 30’s. (Rory was 18 years old when he formed the blues trio Taste, which drew comparisons to Cream and opened for Blind Faith on its tour of the United States in1969. He was 20 when he dropped his first solo album and it’s a jaw-dropping piece of work.)
The portrait that emerges of Gallagher in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s is one of an artist going full-bore, particularly in their detailed recaps of performances in Bonn (1992) and the Montreux Jazz Festival (1994). O’Hagan and Morales appropriately chastise those who critique Gallagher’s Montreux gig for the way Rory appeared, not how he played. The writing here is particularly vivid and colorful, dissecting musical moments and drawing on comments from those who were on stage with Rory and could attest to his mastery and touch. It’s impossible to read about the last few years of Rory’s life and not think about how hard it must have been for him on a physical basis.
“Watching Gallagher’s 1994 performances is to see a man clearly still in love with what he does, but that is not to say that it always came easy for him at this stage in his career,” they write. “”While Gallagher may have lived by the mantra ‘whatever you do, don’t show that hurt,’ it seemed to become increasingly difficult for him to do so when in the public eye.”
In the end, Rory Gallagher – The Later Years not only demonstrates that Rory Gallagher was working at a high artistic level but that it’s very likely the best was yet to come. Kudos to O’Hagan and Morales for bringing fresh evidence to an important issue regarding the legacy for one of the finest rock and blues guitarists of all time.
November 30, 2024
Let me start by saying I have been a long time fan of Rory Gallagher - fifty four years and counting.
I have read quite a bit about his life and times and wrote a few things myself including an interview he kindly gave me in London in 1980. So I come to this book with some investment in the topic. This new book sets out to re-balance the narrative of the Irish musician's life from the 80s until his early death in 1995. Although not an intended goal, the authors show up how lazy some of the rock journalism was at the time in relation to the guitarist's musical journey. What was the goal however was to demonstrate that both onstage and in the studio Rory Gallagher was producing great music, rooted in the blues, but interwoven with a wide range of influences including the music of Ireland. The amount of research that has gone into this by the authors is astounding. They have reached out to musicians, promoters, producers, photographers, family members and importantly fans to gauge the veracity of the generally accepted accounts of Rory's life and work. Special for me were the revelations of his contributions to the music of others. I will finish this review with a personal tale in a moment, but I guess it's true that this is a book for Rory Gallagher fans but it is more than that - it is a book about music and the complex interplay of all of us in our responses. And now the tale: when I first heard Rory's last LP release called Fresh Evidence I was amazed. And one track in particular which doesn't get much press was King of Zydeco. When I first heard Rory's solo on that track I understood here was a guitarist at the absolute top of his game because he could wind things back and go much deeper in feeling. Then I read this book and found out about his guitar contribution to a track by the Irishman Phil Coulter. First the dignity, skill, sensitivity, restraint and intuitive understanding by Rory blew me away. Brought me to tears and still does. This book has gems like this throughout. A stand out piece of musical journalism full of passion, determination, belief and at heart, justice.
I have read quite a bit about his life and times and wrote a few things myself including an interview he kindly gave me in London in 1980. So I come to this book with some investment in the topic. This new book sets out to re-balance the narrative of the Irish musician's life from the 80s until his early death in 1995. Although not an intended goal, the authors show up how lazy some of the rock journalism was at the time in relation to the guitarist's musical journey. What was the goal however was to demonstrate that both onstage and in the studio Rory Gallagher was producing great music, rooted in the blues, but interwoven with a wide range of influences including the music of Ireland. The amount of research that has gone into this by the authors is astounding. They have reached out to musicians, promoters, producers, photographers, family members and importantly fans to gauge the veracity of the generally accepted accounts of Rory's life and work. Special for me were the revelations of his contributions to the music of others. I will finish this review with a personal tale in a moment, but I guess it's true that this is a book for Rory Gallagher fans but it is more than that - it is a book about music and the complex interplay of all of us in our responses. And now the tale: when I first heard Rory's last LP release called Fresh Evidence I was amazed. And one track in particular which doesn't get much press was King of Zydeco. When I first heard Rory's solo on that track I understood here was a guitarist at the absolute top of his game because he could wind things back and go much deeper in feeling. Then I read this book and found out about his guitar contribution to a track by the Irishman Phil Coulter. First the dignity, skill, sensitivity, restraint and intuitive understanding by Rory blew me away. Brought me to tears and still does. This book has gems like this throughout. A stand out piece of musical journalism full of passion, determination, belief and at heart, justice.
March 19, 2025
Very good book
I enjoyed reading this book I knew Rory struggled in his later years and this book puts it into context. Well worth a read.
I always remember 1969 a young Rory Gallagher walking on to the stage at Bromley college with Taste at the end of the first song I was a life long fan.
I enjoyed reading this book I knew Rory struggled in his later years and this book puts it into context. Well worth a read.
I always remember 1969 a young Rory Gallagher walking on to the stage at Bromley college with Taste at the end of the first song I was a life long fan.
October 21, 2025
This book is such a detailed collection of research, definitely a book for fans maybe more so than someone who is being introduced to Rory. i absolutely loved how how much effort the authors took to source as many interviews as possible!! I learned so much about this whole other era of Rory's career that's often misunderstood
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews