With his new band lineup established, Rory was back in the studio before Christmas to record what would be his fourth album, and one from which many of the tracks would go on to become minor classics and requested live songs. During this period Rory would also somehow fit in a tour of the USA, Canada, and Europe --- twice! Did the man have an army of clones? And of course he always made certain to tour his beloved native country, including Northern Ireland, even at the height of "The Troubles", when few if any bands from the south would venture north across the border. This dedication to his fans, bighearted bravery and a refusal to allow politics --- or even the risk of his own safety --- to affect his live schedule increased his army of admirers and solidified the almost messianic love those who already followed him lavished on him. Never a man to boast or brag, Rory shrugged his shoulders when asked about such things and replied that he just wanted to play, and see his fans. It really was as simple as that.
Even when, two years later, the popular Miami Showband were gunned down and killed near the border, and tensions between north and south reached breaking point, when no-one from the Republic would play in the Six Counties, Rory would buck the trend and continue his practice of playing venues like the King's Hall and Ulster University, almost oblivious to the danger, as if it had nothing to do with him. Perhaps inside he was worried, but if so he never showed it, and his fierce determination not to be scared out of playing the north made him a local and national hero.
Tattoo --- Rory Gallagher ---- 1973 (Polydor)
Building on the somewhat fuller sound of tracks like "Daughter of the Everglades", the title track --- well, sort of: it's called "Tattoo'd lady", but as close to a title track as you're going to get here --- starts us off in a sort of mid-paced tempo, definitely more guitar driven this time, though Lou Martin's piano still makes its presence felt, but Rory's firing up the Strat and letting it have its head. Martin's organ is let off the leash however for another song that would become a big favourite, "Cradle rock", which, er, rocks along at a great pace, Rory adding in a good dose of the ol' harmonica for effect. Not hard to see how this became a live favourite! Rory slips on the acoustic then for "20:20 vision", with Lou adding the piano lines, and some more harmonica finds its very welcome way into the tune.Gerry threads a great walking, almost swaggering bassline through the song, and it's a real swinger.
Sounding almost like the opening to "Grange Hill" (anyone remember it?) "They don't make them like you anymore" is another rocker, with a sort of lounge/cabaret feel to it, some fast piano and another great jazzy bassline from Gerry --- yeah, I could hear this in some upmarket club as the champagne glasses clink and people talk in the background. Sort of. "Livin' like a trucker" then is a harder, more stripped-down song, with some talkbox guitar from Rory and a funky rhythm, while "Sleep on a clothesline" has a twelve-bar blues beat that Status Quo would be proud of. Plenty of honkytonk piano and squealing guitar, then like a lone gunman riding into town it's Rory's Strat that leads the way on "Who's that coming?", joined shortly by bass and drums with plenty of slide and harmonica getting in on the act, and although the song is in fairness a little repetitive, there's something about it that makes its seven minute run not seem stretched too far. Great piano solo by Lou Martin helps, certainly, but I think it's kind of more the energy and just simple fun of the song that defies you to get bored of it. In fact, I'd probably listen to a couple more minutes of it!
Another big fan favourite then in "A million miles away", and another long song, the second on the album over seven minutes, it's a blues slowburner with a lot of soul and a sense of homesickness that translated really well to the live stage. This is the only track to feature Rory on his sax again, and I must say for once it actually works well here, adding to the sense of tension and loss in the song. I think I would have preferred the album to have ended on such a strong, powerful and later classic song, but there's one more to go, and it's "Admit it", which I will admit, is not that great an ender. It's not bad but you know... Interestingly, on this album Lou Martin is credited with also playing accordion, but I can't hear it anywhere. I guess it's there somewhere, but it just doesn't stand out to me.
TRACKLISTING
1. Tattoo'd lady
2. Cradle rock
3. 20:20 vision
4. They don't make them like you anymore
5. Livin' like a trucker
6. Sleep on a clothesline
7. Who's that coming
8. A million miles away
9. Admit it
Irish Tour '74 --- Rory Gallagher --- 1974 (Polydor)
Acknowledged as one of the finest and most honest live albums by a rock artiste, this album shows Rory's determination to tour Ireland during the troubled times of the mid-seventies, when few bands would even contemplate crossing the border into Northern Ireland. Rory played Dublin, Cork and Belfast, and this album is a testament to how his audience and his fans rewarded his dedication to them, and, it has to be said, his bravery in facing what was a very turbulent time in Ireland with the stoicism and everyman courage that coloured his entire career.
The album is made up of half material from his previous albums, three covers and one song that resulted from a jam session, and ends with a tiny little instrumental. "Cradle rock" starts us off, as it would many of his shows, and although the announcer again gets his name wrong, calling him Galla-ger instead of Galla-her, the crowd reacts with passion and he's obviously seen as a folk hero, especially in Belfast, who at the time would have been starved of acts to play in Ulster Hall. A version of Muddy Waters's "I wonder who" is next, after Rory has introduced the band. It's a real opportunity for him to pay homage to his heroes and also to show what he can really do on that beat-up old Stratocaster! A great organ solo too from Lou Martin, then we're into "Tattoo'd lady", another song that would become a favourite at live shows.
Another cover then, in J.B. Hutto's "Too much alcohol", which goes down really well with the (probably slightly pissed anyway) crowd, then he keeps the tributes going with Tony Joe White's "As the crow flies", with some fine individual skill on the Strat, playing it almost like a banjo at times. Rory also breaks out the harmonica, which fits in really well with the kind of folk/bluegrass feel of the song. It's Rory originals though from this point on, with the immense "A million miles away" getting us started, which Rory introduces as "a new song". Well, given that "Tattoo" was only released in November of 1973 and this tour took place in January of '74, I guess not too many people would have had the chance to have heard it, so yeah, from that point of view it could be seen as a new song.
Rory extends the song by about three minutes in this live performance, and it's a joy to hear. Martin plays his usual flawless part, and it really goes down well with the crowd. Ratcheting the tempo right back up then with "Walk on hot coals", another extended version (seriously extended: an extra four minutes compared to the version on "Blueprint"!) --- okay, let's be honest: it's overstretched but you can forgive that when it's live. I remember attending a Rory gig once where he "finished" a song about six times, jumping up and down with his Strat and each time as what we took to be the last chords were hit, running off into another verse or chorus. It's showmanship, it's entertainment, and you expect it at the gigs. Nobody wants to go to a concert and hear the songs played the way they are on their albums: why go if that were the case? What would be the point?
With that in mind, a ten-minute version of "Who's that comin'?" (original length just over seven) is perfectly acceptable, and to be honest, the more Rory you could have the better. No-one ever wanted his concerts to end, I'm sure, and like Springsteen at his height, Rory gave his all every gig, playing for two, sometimes three hours, and nobody complained. Rory crammed everything into his live performances, from his music to his personality and from his talent to his very soul, and I cannot believe anyone ever went home from any of his gigs feeling anything other than exhausted and satisfied.
As indeed are these guys as they chant "Nice one Rory, nice one son! Nice one Rory, let's have another one!" And he obliges, coming back for the encore with the jamfest "Back on my stompin' ground (After hours)" which I don't think is available on any other album, so those lucky people got a brand new song there that night in January seventy-four. And that's it, apart from a little fifties-style instrumental of less than a minute. A storming gig no doubt and if you were lucky enough to have been there be thankful. I did get to see Rory live as I say (I touched his boot!) so certainly consider myself blessed. This album has rightly gone down as one of his best live performances and taken its place among the live albums you must hear before you die.
TRACKLISTING
1. Cradle rock
2. I wonder who (gonna be your sweet man now)
3. Tattoo'd lady
4. Too much alcohol
5. As the crow flies
6. A million miles away
7. Walk on hot coals
8. Who's that comin'?
9. Back on my stompin' ground (After hours)
10. Maritime