# Rory Gallagher discography

The discography of Rory Gallagher, an Irish guitarist and singer-songwriter, consists of 11 studio albums, 6 live albums, 13 compilations, and 5 singles. Gallagher was a solo artist for much of his career and collaborated with artists such as Muddy Waters and Jerry Lee Lewis. Before his career as a solo artist, Gallagher was the guitarist, vocalist, and saxophonist for the Irish rock trio Taste.

## Taste

Having completed a musical apprenticeship in the Irish showbands, and influenced by the increasing popularity of beat groups during the early 1960s, Gallagher formed Taste, a blues rock and R&B power trio, in 1966. Initially, the band was composed of Gallagher and two Cork musicians, Norman Damery and Eric Kitteringham, however, by 1968, they were replaced with two musicians from Belfast, featuring Gallagher on guitar and vocals, drummer John Wilson, and bassist Richard McCracken. Performing extensively in the United Kingdom, the group played regularly at the Marquee Club, supporting both Cream at their Royal Albert Hall farewell concert, and the blues supergroup Blind Faith on a tour of North America. Managed by Eddie Kennedy, the trio released the albums Taste and On The Boards, and two live recordings, Live Taste and Live at the Isle of Wight. The latter appeared long after the band's break-up, which occurred shortly after their appearance at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival.

## Solo career

After the break-up of Taste, Gallagher toured under his own name, hiring former Deep Joy bass player Gerry McAvoy to play on his eponymous debut album, Rory Gallagher. It was the beginning of a twenty-year musical relationship between Gallagher and McAvoy; the other band member was drummer Wilgar Campbell. The 1970s were Gallagher's most prolific period. He produced ten albums in that decade, including two live albums, Live in Europe and Irish Tour '74. November 1971 saw the release of his album, Deuce. Around the same time, he was voted Melody Maker's International Top Musician of the Year, ahead of Eric Clapton. However, despite a number of his albums from this period reaching the UK Albums Chart, Gallagher did not attain major star status.
Gallagher is documented in the 1974 film Irish Tour '74, directed by Tony Palmer. During the heightened periods of political unrest in Ireland, as other artists were warned not to tour, Gallagher was resolute about touring Ireland at least once a year during his career, winning him the dedication of thousands of fans, and in the process, becoming a role model for other aspiring young Irish musicians. The line-up for the Irish Tour which included Rod de'Ath on drums and Lou Martin on keyboards, performed together between 1973 and 1976. Releases from that period include Blueprint, Tattoo, Irish Tour '74, Against the Grain and Calling Card. This Gallagher band performed several TV and radio shows across Europe, including Beat-Club in Bremen, Germany and the Old Grey Whistle Test. Gallagher recorded two Peel Sessions, both in February 1973 and containing the same tracks, but only the first was broadcast. Along with Little Feat and Roger McGuinn, Gallagher performed the first Rockpalast live concert at the Grugahalle, Essen, Germany in 1977.
In 1978 Gallagher trimmed his band down to just guitar, bass and drums, and the act became a power trio as Taste had been. This line-up produced Photo-Finish, Top Priority, Jinx, Defender, and Fresh Evidence. During this period Gallagher was often obsessive over details and plagued by self-doubt yet he retained a loyal fan base.

## Collaborations and posthumous releases

Gallagher collaborated with Jerry Lee Lewis and Muddy Waters on their respective London Sessions in the mid-1970s. He played on Lonnie Donegan's final album. He was David Coverdale's second choice (after Jeff Beck) to replace Ritchie Blackmore in Deep Purple although Gallagher chose to remain a solo artist. When former members of the Yardbirds (Chris Dreja, Paul Samwell-Smith, and Jim McCarty) reunited to create the band Box of Frogs Gallagher was invited to record with them on their first album.
Gallagher's career was cut short due to his untimely death on 14 June 1995. He died from complications after a liver transplant. Several posthumous albums have emerged since his death. Two of the most notable are Wheels Within Wheels, a compilation of acoustic folk and blues music released in 2003 and Notes From San Francisco, an album of unreleased studio tracks and a San Francisco 1979 concert released in 2011.

## Albums
### Taste albums

| Year | Album | Chart position |
| Year | Album | UK |
| 1969 | London Invasion Label: Pontiac Records | |
| 1969 | Taste Label: Polydor | |
| 1970 | On the Boards Label: Polydor | 18 |
| 1971 | Live Taste (live album) Label: Polydor | 14 |
| 1972 | Live at the Isle of Wight (live album) Label: Polydor | 41 |
| 1972 | Taste First (recorded in 1967; released in 1974 as In the Beginning and again in 1976 as Take It Easy Baby) Label: BASF | |
| 1994 | The Best of Taste (compilation album) Label: Polydor | |
| 2015 | "Hail" The Collection (compilation album) Label: Spectrum Music | |

### Solo albums

| Year | Album | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | BPI Certification |
| Year | Album | UK | US | BPI Certification |
| 1971 | Rory Gallagher Released: 21 May 1971 Label: Polydor | 32 | — | Gold |
| 1971 | Deuce Released: November 1971 Label: Polydor | 39 | — | Gold |
| 1972 | Live in Europe (live) Released: May 1972 Label: Polydor | 9 | — | Gold |
| 1973 | Blueprint Released: February 1973 Label: Polydor | 12 | 147 | Gold |
| 1973 | Tattoo Released: November 1973 Label: Polydor | 32 | 186 | Gold |
| 1974 | Irish Tour '74 (live) Released: July 1974 Label: Polydor | 36 | — | Gold |
| 1975 | Against the Grain Released: October 1975 Label: Chrysalis | — | 121 | Gold |
| 1976 | Calling Card Released: October 1976 Label: Chrysalis | 32 | 163 | Silver |
| 1978 | Photo-Finish Released: 13 October 1978 Label: Chrysalis | — | 116 | Silver |
| 1979 | Top Priority Released: September 1979 Label: Chrysalis | 56 | 140 | Silver |
| 1980 | Stage Struck (live) Released: October 1980 Label: Chrysalis | 40 | — | Silver |
| 1982 | Jinx Released: April 1982 Label: Chrysalis | 68 | — | Silver |
| 1987 | Defender Released: July 1987 Label: Capo/Demon | — | — | Silver |
| 1990 | Fresh Evidence Released: 4 June 1990 Label: Capo | — | — | Silver |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. ||||

### Posthumous albums

| Year | Album | Chart position |
| Year | Album | UK |
| 2003 | Meeting with the G-Man (live) Released: 22 November 2003 Label: Capo/RCA | — |
| 2006 | Live at Montreux (live) Released: 31 July 2006 Label: Eagle | — |
| 2011 | Notes From San Francisco (studio & live) Released: 17 May 2011 Label: Capo/Legacy/Eagle | 44 |
| 2020 | Check Shirt Wizard: Live in '77 (live) Released: 6 March 2020 Label: Cadet Concept/Universal Music | 26 |
| 2023 | All Around Man: Live in London (live) Released: 7 July 2023 Label: Cadet Concept/Universal Music | — |

### Compilation albums

| Year | Album | Chart position |
| Year | Album | UK |
| 1974 | The Story So Far | |
| 1975 | Sinner... And Saint also released as Rory Gallagher (compilation of tracks taken from Rory Gallagher and Deuce) | |
| 1975 | Rory Gallagher (Flashback series) | |
| 1976 | Rory Gallagher Live (Flashback series) | |
| 1976 | Take It Easy Baby (Taste demo sessions) | |
| 1992 | Edged in Blue (BPI: 60,000) | |
| 1995 | A Blue Day for the Blues Released: 1995 Label: I.R.S. | |
| 1995 | Last of the Independents | |
| 1999 | BBC Sessions (one live disc and one studio disc) Released: 7 August 1999 Label: Capo | |
| 2003 | Wheels Within Wheels (acoustic) Released: 8 March 2003 Label: Capo | |
| 2005 | Big Guns: The Very Best of Rory Gallagher Released: 13 June 2005 Label: Capo/RCA | 31 |
| 2008 | The Essential Rory Gallagher Released: 10 March 2008 Label: Capo/Legacy/Sony BMG | |
| 2009 | Crest of a Wave: The Best of Rory Gallagher Released: 25 August 2009 Label: Capo/Eagle | |
| 2010 | The Beat Club Sessions Recorded: 1971/72 Released: 13 September 2010 Label: Capo/Eagle | |
| 2012 | The Rory Gallagher Collection (re-release of The Essential Rory Gallagher) Released: 18 June 2012 Label: Capo/Camden Deluxe/Legacy/Sony Music | |
| 2019 | Blues Released: 31 May 2019 Label: Chess/Universal Music | 17 |
| 2020 | The Best of Rory Gallagher Released: 9 October 2020 Label: Universal Music | -- |

### Box sets

| Year | Album |
| 1992 | The G-Man Bootleg Series Vol.1 (3 disc set) Label: Strange Music |
| 2001 | Let's Go to Work (4 disc set, featuring Live in Europe, Irish Tour '74, Stage Struck and Meeting with the G-Man) Released: 15 October 2001 Label: Capo/RCA |
| 2008 | Original Album Classics (5 disc set, featuring Deuce, Calling Card, Top Priority, Jinx and Fresh Evidence) Released: 31 October 2008 Label: Capo/Sony BMG |
| 2015 | I'll Remember: A Box of Taste (4 disc set) Released: August 2015 Label: Polydor |

## Singles
### With Taste

* "Blister on the Moon" / "Born on the Wrong Side of Time" – UK 1968
* "Born on the Wrong Side of Time" / "Same Old Story" – UK/ EU/ JPN, 1969
* "What's Going On" / "Railway and Gun" – EU 1970 NL #22
* "If I Don't Sing I'll Cry" / "I'll Remember" – ESP 1970
* "Wee Wee Baby" / "You've Got to Play" – GER 1972
* "Blister on the Moon" / "Sugar Mama" / "Catfish" / "On the Boards" – UK 1982

### Solo

* "Moonchild" / Calling Card" – GER/ NL 1977
* "Shadow Play" / "Brute Force and Ignorance" / "Souped-up Ford" – UK/ IRL #24, 1979
* "Philby" / "Hellcat" / "Country Mile" – UK/ EU/ AUS 1979
* "Wayward Child" (live) / "Keychain" – UK/ IRL 1980
* "Big Guns" / "The Devil Made Me Do It" – UK/ IRL 1982
notes;
* a^ – re-released in 1970 with the sides reversed.
* b^ – b/w "Morning Sun" in some countries.
* c^ – standard two-track single in some countries.

## Videography
### All titles released on the DVD format.

| 1995 | Message to Love Recording of "Sinner Boy" and "Gamblin' Blues"; with Taste |
| 2000 | Irish Tour '74 |
| 2003 | The Old Grey Whistle Test: Vol. 1 Album track: "Hands Off"; 1973 |
| 2004 | At Rockpalast German release |
| 2005 | The Complete Rockpalast Collection 3 disc, German release |
| 2005 | Songs & Stories: New York Remembers Rory Gallagher Biography |
| 2006 | Live at Cork Opera House UK release |
| 2006 | Live in Cork US release |
| 2006 | Live at Montreux 2 disc set |
| 2007 | Live at Rockpalast (5 Concerts 1976 – 1990) 3 disc, US release |
| 2007 | Shadow Play (5 Concerts 1976 – 1990) 3 disc, UK release |
| 2010 | Ghost Blues Biography of Gallagher with concert footage and interviews with The Edge, Slash,... |

## Guest appearances

| Year | Album | Artist |
| 1971 | Bring It Back Home | Mike Vernon |
| 1972 | The London Muddy Waters Sessions | Muddy Waters |
| 1973 | The Session | Jerry Lee Lewis |
| 1974 | Drat That Fratle Rat | Chris Barber |
| 1974 | London Revisited | Muddy Waters |
| 1977 | Gaodhal's Vision | Joe O'Donnell (electric fiddle player) |
| 1977 | Albert Live | Albert King |
| 1978 | Tarot Suite | Mike Batt |
| 1978 | Puttin' On The Style | Lonnie Donegan |
| 1983 | Jammin` With Albert | Albert Collins & The Icebreakers |
| 1984 | Box of Frogs | Box of Frogs |
| 1989 | The Scattering | The Fureys and Davey Arthur |
| 1989 | Out of the Air | Davy Spillane Band |
| 1989 | Words and Music | Phil Coulter |
| 1990 | Shadow Hunter | Davy Spillane |
| 1990 | Politician (at Montreux) | Jack Bruce and Rory Gallagher |
| 1991 | Flags & Emblems | Stiff Little Fingers |
| 1992 | 30 Years A-Greying | The Dubliners |
| 1993 | The Outstanding | Chris Barber and Band |
| 2007 | Kindred Spirits | Eamonn McCormack |