Oct 28 2012
Rory Gallagher Live at The Mayflower — October 17, 1987
A couple of months ago a Rory Gallagher fan sent me a cassette tape of a Rory Gallagher show that he had recorded at the Mayflower Theatre in Southhampton, England in 1987. I noticed last week that John Ganjamie of RoryOn.com had posted to the official Rory Gallagher facebook page notice of the 25th anniversary of that show at The Mayflower. So in honor of that anniversary I have decided to upload one of the songs from that concert to youtube. I chose one of my favourites from the show, Moonchild.
It was the last time I saw Rory live and I was living in Southampton so was able to get a nice seat. I recall there was a good crowd who were able to get in front of the stage for the end of the show. As I am no bootlegger I messed up the recordings, I lost the middle section of the show and ran out of tape at the end!!!! — remarks from the taper
The Mayflower lies in the heart of Southampton and holds roughly 2000 and had recently undergone a major refurbishment to the historic building. Rory too had done some major retooling. For starters he had just set up his own independent label, Capo Records, and he had finally released his 10th studio album, Defender, his first album in 5 years. A long time to wait for a new Rory Gallagher album. And the album seemed a musical shift as well, a return back to his more bluesy roots. An album he would call his favourite.
“Well, the album was gonna be called Loanshark Blues, which is my favourite track on the album, and I was stuck with that, for a long while, but then, in the last… the eleventh hour, I was reading the back of an LP I have at home, by Billy Boy Arnold, who was a singer/harmonica player, who had a couple of great blues hits way back when, but I read on the back of the sleeve, in the sleeve notes, that he sold a newspaper, or newsletter, called Defender, in Chicago, when he was 10 or 11, to get enough money to buy harmonicas, in a pawnshop. And the name just stood out, and… added to the fact that there was quite a direct linking up with the blues roots, whatever that is, on this album, even though there are a lot of rock tracks and other influences, but it’s pretty much a blues tone to the album, and Defender just hit me in the face, and I went with that.
With a new Defender album under his belt, Rory hit the road to promote it. His stop in Southampton occurred a couple of months into the Defender tour. I haven’t been able to find any pictures taken from the show at The Mayflower; however, Wolfgang Gürster of Rock-Shot.com has kindly allowed me to use his pictures of Rory taken a month later at the Cirkus Krone in Münich. Thanks Wolfgang! Be sure to check out his pictures of Rory and other noted musicians on his website.
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“I was allowed at that special concert, to photograph onstage, which was a very big privilege. I wont forget those feelings my whole life…to be allowed to stand right beside Rory on stage where he and the band were rocking. Rory knew of my photos of him, because I was able to give them to him after each show. Many of them were used for the DEUCE magazine in earlier years and Donal also used some of my pictures for media releases and such. You know, I’m no photographer, I’m only a rock ‘n roll fan and I love Rory’s music sooooo much and this was always a very big honour for me when Rory or Saxon or Uriah Heep, or Nazareth or Willy DeVille or Phil Shöenfelt or Status Quo or many other bands used my photos.” — Wolfgang Gürster — Rock-Shot.com |
So without further ado, here’s my slide show of Wolfgang Gürster’s pictures of Rory coupled with the song Moonchild from the show at The Mayflower on October 17, 1987:
one of my favourite rory songs, enjoyed that, its a pity the sound was a bit low , but rory was masterful.
Master at his work. Beautiful both inside AND outside.. an honest and true man….. so REAL. I will love his music.. And him Forever.
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