Ghost Blues: The Story of Rory Gallagher & the Beat Club Sessions

Ghost Blues The Story Of Rory Gallagher is a must have for any Rory Gallagher fan or for anyone who simply loves the great Blues guitarists! This fantastic 2 disc dvd set covers the life of Rory Gallagher from his childhood in Ireland to his untimely death in England at the young age of 47. Born William Rory Gallagher on March 2, 1948, Rory was the first child of Daniel and Monica Gallagher, who both were musically talented with not only singing, but Daniel also played accordian. At around age 5 or 6, Rory loved to sing and play his songs on a little dimestore plastic ukelele. It wasn't long before Rory's parents bought him his first real wood guitar at the young age of 9. Rory quickly showed his natural talent and began winning talent contests, using the prize money to buy yet a better guitar. In 1961 Rory's parents bought him the very first Fender Stratocaster guitar in Ireland- a Sunburst model which cost 100 pounds. Rory's younger brother Donal tells many great stories about Rory on this dvd and about how this guitar might as well have cost 100 million pounds, as his parents went into great debt to afford this gift for Rory. Rory used this very famous guitar through every decade up until his death in 1995.

There are many very rare pictures, films and stories on this tremendous dvd about Rory. He was the first great Blues guitarist in Ireland who opened the doors for all the other great Irish bands such as Thin Lizzy, U2 and many others. There are also many great photos, stories and films from Rory's first band from the sixties, The Taste. Besides many great commentaries and stories from his brother Donal, we also hear from Bob Geldof, Bill Wyman, Cameron Crowe, his bandmates, many others and Rory himself on this dvd. The stories from his brother Donal are wonderful, as we hear how there were no blues bands in Ireland, so Rory had to learn everything from listening to Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly and other blues greats on the radio and tv. Rory's genius didn't stop with just the guitar, he also played slide guitar, alto saxophone, bass, mandolin, banjo, harmonica and coral sitar. He was well known playing at the Marquee Club in the U.K. sharing the stage with other greats such as Cream.

On the second dvd are rare, never before seen performances from The Beat Club Sessions in 1971 and 1972. These early, rare performances have been cleaned up so the picture looks absolutely fantastic with crisp colors and superb sound! The cameras showcase Rory's early guitar work and is a real treat to see up close! A very young Rory is joined by Gerry McAvoy on bass guitar and Wilgar Campbell on drums playing the following songs:
1. Laundromat
2. Hands Up
3. Sinnerboy
4. Just The Smile
5. Used To Be
6. In Your Town
7. Should've Learned My Lesson
8. Crest Of A Wave
9. Toredown
10. Pistol Slapper Blues
11. I Don't Know Where I'm Going
12. Going To My Hometown
13. I Could've Had Religion
14. McAvoy Boogie
15. Hoodoo Man
16. Messin' With The Kid

In the late 80's, Rory began to have health problems and in 1995 he had a successful liver transplant. Just before being released from the hospital, Rory developed a MRSA infection. His health quickly deteriorated and he died on June 14, 1995. Ireland lost their leader of the Irish rock movement and the world lost a great blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and bandleader. This dvd set is a fitting tribute to Rory Gallagher whose life was too short, but whose tremendous talent will live on forever through his great trailblazing blues music!

Rory Gallagher has been "well represented" on DVD releases over the past 10 years. "Rockpalast", "Montreaux", and "Irish Tour '74" to name a few...With the new release of "Ghost Blues" and "Beat Club Sessions" we finally have a release of the Vintage Rory 1971-1972 era! I am a huge fan and love all of Rory's Music. Yet if I was forced (at gunpoint) to pick a favorite era, I would have to say his first two solo albums, "Rory Gallagher" and "Deuce" are my favorites!

Disc two is 90 minutes of pristine quality great performances from those two records! Sound & picture quality are Fantastic, the only minor glitsch is the backgrounds for the "Beat Club" show can be a little annoying at times. Rory plays fantastic, as does his band of Gerry McAvoy on Bass and Wilgar Campbell on Drums.
Highlight include "Hands Up", "Sinner Boy", "Just the Smile", "Crest of a Wave" and "Messing with the Kid". I can't even begin to describe the great feeling that this timeless, high quality Music provides. Rory was a master and this is a fine document to surface some 38 years later!!! He would be proud of how well it sounds today!

Disc One is the "Rory Story" and it is the first such attempt at that and is a pretty good job. I'd have liked to see more Rory interviews, but will not complain as I feel that they did a good job and I learned a lot!
Now if only they can secure the rights to the entire film of Taste at Isle of Wight! I know that they're trying!
If you Love Rory then this set is a must.

I was fortunate to see Rory Gallagher perform live twice and talk to him briefly. What an amazing talent and soulful, humble guy. I have read biographies and watched several concert videos. "Ghost Blues" is a wonderful collection of live performance footage ... some of which I have never seen before. The interviews are interesting and give a perspective of Rory -- the person, the musician -- as well as how he fit in with the tremendous changes taking place in the music world, Ireland, and popular culture. For fellow guitarists, the Beat Club sessions are very clearly filmed "live studio" performances where you can really see the fundamentals of Rory's technique. Overall, there are many moments in this collection that capture the sheer energy and excitement that Rory generated in his live performances.

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