Music Banter - View Single Post - Bitesize: Trollheart's Daily Album Mini-Reviews

Trollheart · 07-11-2012, 07:33 AM

Classic from the guitar god from Ballyshannon

Artiste: Rory Gallagher
Nationality: Irish
Album: Calling card
Year: 1976
Label: Chrysalis
Genre: Blues/Rock
Tracks
Do you read me
Country mile
Moonchild
Calling card
I'll admit you're gone
Jack-knife beat
Secret agent
Edged in blue
Barley and grape rag
Chronological position: Sixth album
Familiarity: “Deuce”, “Top priority”, “Photo finish”, “Stage struck”, “Against the grain”, “Defender”, “Jinx”.
Interesting Factoid: Deep Purple bass player Roger Glover co-produced the album with Rory
Impression: I can see how this is seen as a true classic.
Best track(s): Country mile, I'll admit you're gone, Moonchild, Edged in blue
Worst track(s): Rory? Bad tracks? You jest, surely?
Intention: Isn't there a new album out this year? Must have a listen to that.
Comments: I know, I know! I profess to be such a Rory fan, and yet I haven't heard what is arguably one of his finest albums. I only realise now, as I'm typing the “Familiarity” entry, how few Gallagher albums I have listened to all the way through. Sure, I know his standards, and have heard tracks from his many albums via playlists and on live recordings, but I really can only attest, now, to having fully listened to, what, six of his eleven studio albums (not including “Notes from San Francisco”) and one of his five live efforts. Some fan, eh? Well, I plan to address that wrong today, and you're right, it has been a long time coming.

First impressions of course are the expected guitar brilliance from Rory, ever a master of the blues, but what is different about this album, at least to me and at least on first listen, is the inclusion of piano, particularly on Country mile, where it comes across as very honky-tonk indeed, and on the title track, where it's pure blues heaven. Kudos to Lou Martin, whose last hurrah with Rory for fourteen years this would be, as he instigated the stripped-down, bare-bones lineup of guitar, drums and bass for his next two albums. Still, good as the piano is when Martin gets going, you can hear why Rory had decided to drop it, when you listen to tracks like the softly acoustic I'll admit you're gone or the harder, rockier Secret agent --- it's not needed! Sure, it adds something to some of the tracks, but let's be honest, with a massive and versatile talent like Rory unauguably was, he could make that guitar sound like just about anything, fill in any gap --- should any exist --- in a song, and if not, hell, there was always his trusty harmonica, as he demonstrates on the song I just mentioned. So perhaps piano was skewing the band dynamic.

And yet, this is generally accepted as one of his best albums. Against that, though, you have to measure the success that only really began to come commercially with albums like “Top priority” and “Photo finish”, neither of which used any piano or keyboards, although he then reintroduced them when he released “Jinx” in 1982 and they featured in the rest of his albums, Lou Martin even returning for Rory's final studio album before his death, 1990's “Fresh evidence”.

Yeah, I know this review is far from as short as I said these would be, but in my defence, it's Rory!

07-11-2012, 07:33 AM	#24 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,970	Classic from the guitar god from Ballyshannon Artiste: Rory Gallagher Nationality: Irish Album: Calling card Year: 1976 Label: Chrysalis Genre: Blues/Rock Tracks Do you read me Country mile Moonchild Calling card I'll admit you're gone Jack-knife beat Secret agent Edged in blue Barley and grape rag Chronological position: Sixth album Familiarity: “Deuce”, “Top priority”, “Photo finish”, “Stage struck”, “Against the grain”, “Defender”, “Jinx”. Interesting Factoid: Deep Purple bass player Roger Glover co-produced the album with Rory Impression: I can see how this is seen as a true classic. Best track(s): Country mile, I'll admit you're gone, Moonchild, Edged in blue Worst track(s): Rory? Bad tracks? You jest, surely? Intention: Isn't there a new album out this year? Must have a listen to that. Comments: I know, I know! I profess to be such a Rory fan, and yet I haven't heard what is arguably one of his finest albums. I only realise now, as I'm typing the “Familiarity” entry, how few Gallagher albums I have listened to all the way through. Sure, I know his standards, and have heard tracks from his many albums via playlists and on live recordings, but I really can only attest, now, to having fully listened to, what, six of his eleven studio albums (not including “Notes from San Francisco”) and one of his five live efforts. Some fan, eh? Well, I plan to address that wrong today, and you're right, it has been a long time coming. First impressions of course are the expected guitar brilliance from Rory, ever a master of the blues, but what is different about this album, at least to me and at least on first listen, is the inclusion of piano, particularly on Country mile, where it comes across as very honky-tonk indeed, and on the title track, where it's pure blues heaven. Kudos to Lou Martin, whose last hurrah with Rory for fourteen years this would be, as he instigated the stripped-down, bare-bones lineup of guitar, drums and bass for his next two albums. Still, good as the piano is when Martin gets going, you can hear why Rory had decided to drop it, when you listen to tracks like the softly acoustic I'll admit you're gone or the harder, rockier Secret agent --- it's not needed! Sure, it adds something to some of the tracks, but let's be honest, with a massive and versatile talent like Rory unauguably was, he could make that guitar sound like just about anything, fill in any gap --- should any exist --- in a song, and if not, hell, there was always his trusty harmonica, as he demonstrates on the song I just mentioned. So perhaps piano was skewing the band dynamic. And yet, this is generally accepted as one of his best albums. Against that, though, you have to measure the success that only really began to come commercially with albums like “Top priority” and “Photo finish”, neither of which used any piano or keyboards, although he then reintroduced them when he released “Jinx” in 1982 and they featured in the rest of his albums, Lou Martin even returning for Rory's final studio album before his death, 1990's “Fresh evidence”. Yeah, I know this review is far from as short as I said these would be, but in my defence, it's Rory! __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 05:25 AM.