best Rory Gallagher songs (A-Z) ↓↓↓

Rory Gallagher info & bio

William Rory Gallagher ( GAL-ə-hər; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. He is known for his virtuosic style of guitar playing and live performances, and has sometimes been referred to as "the greatest guitarist you've never heard of".

Gallagher gained international recognition in the late 1960s as the frontman and lead guitarist of the blues rock power trio Taste. Following the band's break-up in 1970, he launched a solo career and was voted Guitarist of the Year by Melody Maker magazine in 1972. Throughout his career, Gallagher performed over 2,000 concerts worldwide, including many in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. He had global record sales exceeding 30 million.

In the 1980s, Gallagher's health gradually declined, resulting in a liver transplant in March 1995 at King's College Hospital in London. Following the operation, he contracted a staphylococcal infection (MRSA) and died three months later at the age of 47.

A number of guitarists in the world of rock and blues cite Gallagher as an influence, including Alex Lifeson (Rush), Brian May (Queen), Johnny Marr (The Smiths), Glenn Tipton (Judas Priest) Robert Smith (The Cure), The Edge (U2), Slash (Guns N' Roses), Jake Burns (Stiff Little Fingers), Janick Gers (Iron Maiden), James Dean Bradfield (Manic Street Preachers), Vivian Campbell (Def Leppard), Gary Moore and Joe Bonamassa.

In 2013, he was posthumously honoured with the Tommy Vance Inspiration award at the Classic Rock Roll of Honour Awards, while in 2025, he received the 'in memoriam' Cork Person of the Year award. He is also commemorated with statues in Ballyshannon and Belfast and a memorial sculpture in Cork.