Blues

I "discovered" Rory Gallagher about ten years ago and was floored by his guitar playing and song crafting. I assembled everything I could and enjoyed both the studio and live cd's that were available. Top Priority was my all time favorite. My question is- where has this been all these years?!!! This collection of studio, acoustic, and live performances has blown me away and left me astonished! Rory Gallagher is the definitive greatest blues guitarist of the 20th century! I grew up on SRV and Buddy Guy and Rory Gallagher mixes the old with the new and stands head and shoulders above them all. The first of the 3 cd's contains studio tracks and the stand out in the lot is A Millions Miles Away. He jams like Zeppelin & Willie Dixon combined and lays down the blues like none of his contemporaries could do. The second cd is all acoustic tracks. I love Who's That Coming and Bankers Blues. I never have heard this stuff before. It's incredible and shows the depths of Rory's talent. The 3rd cd is live performances. What In The World is one of the best jams I have ever heard. My only suggestion would have been to include Rory's jam of Politician with Jack Bruce instead of Born Under A Bad Sign. I cannot add any superlatives to this collection. It is far and away the best set of Rory Gallagher blues and the best collection of blues I have ever heard!

I've long been a huge Rory Gallagher fan. What I typically am NOT a big fan of is compilations of songs by artists whose careers ended years ago - most of the really good material has already been released elsewhere. This 3-CD set is a gigantic exception to that rule. This is a phenomenal collection of songs showcasing Rory doing what he does best - the blues. The guy was simply a killer guitar player, and he could play rock, jazz, country, even the occasional ballad. But the blues, oh my God, that's where he simply soared. Almost all the cuts on the CD were new to me - either songs I'd never heard him perform, or different versions of songs, such as an acoustic version of a song that I'd seen him do electrically. Many of the songs are performed in front of an audience, and this is where Rory was a total wildman. Listening to several of the cuts on CD 3 took me right back to when we'd see him tearing some joint up in Chicago, and we'd just stand there with our mouths hanging open in wonder at his amazing energy and how he wrenched those notes out of that beaten up Stratocaster. Buy the 3-CD set, not the shorter version. That's how you'll get the fullest idea of how he approached the blues from a number of angles - electric, acoustic, slide, etc. Congratulations to Rory's brother, Donal, and all others involved in the making of this CD set - you really nailed this one. It re-ignited my passion for Rory's playing, and made me wish more than ever that he was still around to make even more great music.

I am a lifelong fan of Rory Gallagher, and have been listening to his music since the early 1970’s, nearly 50 years. I have practically everything ever released, on Lp, CD and DVD. I am passionate about Rory’s playing and music, and his style and unique sound. He was a true talent, very under-appreciated, and his legacy speaks for itself. He is one of the greatest, most accomplished guitar players to ever live. If you’re like me, and own a sizeable chunk of Rory’s recordings, you may ask yourself, “Why should I buy this?” Quite simply, this is probably the finest, most complete snapshot of Rory Gallagher that has ever been assembled and released. Rory’s brother Donal continues to oversee these posthumous releases, and this one is truly phenomenal…. the best. First of all, it’s on the Chess label, it sounds great, and consists of three packed CD’s. CD One is studio, CD Two is acoustic, and CD Three are live recordings. All three discs feature mostly unreleased material, and the sequencing of tracks on each disc has been done masterfully. Each disc flows very smoothly and organically, and each one feels and sounds like a complete statement or piece. There are so many highlights on each disc, it is difficult to single things out. But the live piece with Jack Bruce is really good, and gives you a sense of what Rory would have sounded like had he taken the guitar spot left open when Clapton left Cream. It’s just great. I strongly recommend this CD, the package, liner notes, and production is superior.

I'll leave the details to those who can write a decent review. What I have to say is this: I waited a month for this 3CD-set to make its way on a slow boat across the Atlantic. When it finally arrived in my mailbox I immediately disinfected the mailer and CD package then got about to listening - It was well worth the wait. This is one of the best Blues sets I own. I rank Rory right up there with the greats: Muddy, Buddy, BB, Howlin' Wolf, Johnny Winter...you name 'em. It's just too bad that Rory, in his lifetime, never received the recognition he deserved. This is a GREAT compilation. If you are a Blues aficionado and don't have this in your collection, you have a huge hole that needs filling. Great from start to finish. Buy it!

What does it take to make Rory Gallagher come alive? A labor of love like this package. Much of the 3-CD set is acoustic. Sound quality is first-rate. On the acoustic numbers, picture a bar venue with well wishers throwing coins (or bills) into the hat. Several good power numbers reminiscent of Rory's 'golden period' from the 'Blueprint' release through 'Calling Card', then on to the seminal 'Irish Tour'. I knock off a star because I prefer the hard-driving Rory (arguably the greatest rock r&b blues guitarist ever). That said, there are some smoking numbers here, unreleased previously, starting CD3, and the first half of CD1. All-in-all this is a worthwhile set, priceless for fans of Rory. Rory returns for an encore! Note: past-peak Rory is absolutely great on the 1981 cuts starting CD3.

Quelle bonne idée d'avoir en 3 CD réuni 36 morceaux blues de Rory Gallagher, dont 32 inédits! Un joli plaisir pour les fans! Malheureusement, ce guitariste génial qu'était Rory me semble un peu oublié du grand public aujourd'hui et pourtant quel son inimitable! On y retrouve des classiques électriques (CD1) , acoustiques (CD2) et live (CD3): Bullfrog Blues, Messin' with the kid, Secret Agent...En plus, des duos avec Muddy Waters (I'm ready), Jack Bruce (Born under a bad sign fantastique!), Albert King (You upset me baby) et 2 artistes qui ont beaucoup fait pour la diffusion du blues en Grande Bretagne: Lonnie Donegan et Chris Barber. On se régale d'autant plus que le son est excellent, on a vraiment l'impression que tout ça a été enregistré hier. Ce coffret est un bon moyen de rappeler une évidence: Rory était bien un des meilleurs guitaristes de sa génération et sans doute au-delà aussi! Pourquoi pas découvrir Rory à cette occasion? Tiens, dans le registre des concerts encore inédits et qui feraient plaisir aux fans, il reste entre autres le concert à La Villette en 1983, extraordinaire, pourquoi pas une sortie officielle?

Quel triple album de se guitariste héros en la personne du virtuose rory gallagher. Du vrai blues comme on l'aime à l'état brut.Vous avez l'immense talent de se musicien en guitare electrique et acoustique folk et live en se coffret de 3 cd. Indispensable pour tous les amoureux de blues.Superbe article à un prix incroyable que propose Amazon. Envois rapide et impeccable

From the vaults of the Gallagher estate’s tape archive comes this collection of unreleased recordings from 1971 to 1994. Ranging from never heard before tracks to special guest sessions with legendary blues artists (Muddy Waters, Albert King, Jack Bruce, Lonnie Donegan and Chris Barber) showcasing Rory’s virtuoso performances of electric and acoustic live blues. For the fans of Rory and the 3 Cd set is simply fantastic.

Muito bom!!!

Since his death in 1995, there have been a number of great posthumous releases from Rory Gallagher. These releases have featured long lost session tapes, live recordings and even a full album. As a fairly new fan of Gallagher's music, I have picked up every disc I could get my hands on and I have always been impressed at how consistently good these later album have been. However, none of them even come close to this box-set titled, Blues. Blues is a fairly extensive three disc compilation album that has anything and everything that a blues rock fan will want. Each disc has its own theme and they're all of very high standard in terms of performance and sound. The first disc features a number of unreleased tracks from albums such as Jinx, Against The Grain, Blue Print and (my personal favourite) Tattoo as well as radio sessions and guest appearances on two tracks by Lonnie Donegan's Puttin' On the Style and Muddy Waters' I'm Ready. The second disc is a good bit shorter than the other two sitting at around forty seven minutes. This disc is much like the previous one in that it features a lot of unreleased album sessions, outtakes, television and radio performances. The catch is, it's all acoustic. Here you'll find some dirty raw slide guitar work that could match anyone out there. I can see it being over looked but is a gem in its own right. The third disc is a compilation of live tracks from the years, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1982, 1989 and 1991. A few of these tracks feature guest performances from the likes of the legendary Jack Bruce and Albert King. There is a fair bit of consistency throughout the entire collection. There are a few numbers that sound quite different from the others. Some recordings sound a bit more sterile, others sound very heavy on reverb and some are just straight up raw. You'll hear some over driven microphones, tension in the strings as Gallagher pulls out beautiful blues bends and a lot of twanging from acoustic guitars as he slides up and down the fret board. It's quite a nice compared to modern recordings which come across as quite lifeless by comparison. Everything sounds very down to Earth and quite genuine. Not once does the actual audio quality dip. Everything is quite clear and consistent through out. People who are already fans of Rory Gallagher's music should consider this a must buy item. Forget about the single disc edition and get the full three discs. There's not a single bad song or performance here and it is worth every penny. If you're new or have never heard Gallagher's music but find yourself enjoying old fashioned blues and rock similar to Gary Moore, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Buddy Guy, this is well worth a purchase. You'll get a fantastic idea what this man is about and is a great starting point. Blues is a superb collection and I hope many people check it out.