Audio CD review:
Rory Gallagher - Photo-Finish

Rory Gallagher - Photo-Finish

Band: Rory Gallagher Title: Photo-Finish Rating: Release Date: 14 September, 1999 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Shin Kicker 2: Brute Force & Ignorance 3: Cruise On Out 4: Cloak & Dagger 5: Overnight Bag 6: Shadow Play 7: The Mississippi Sheiks 8: The Last Of The Independants 9: Fuel To The Fire 10: Early Warning (Bonus Track) 11: Juke Box Annie (Bonus Track)

Customer Reviews blues rocker w/o peer "Photo Finish" is a showcase for Gallagher's incredible virtuosity, running the gamut from pedal-to-the-metal ravers to slow, reflective pieces. I'll second everything in the previous reviews. "Shin Kicker" and "Brute Force" are personal favorites, but there is not a weak track to be found. I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing Rory after a show at Toad's Place near Yale U in the late 70s, on the "Top Priority" tour, absolutely smoking performance. He played one of Jimi Hendrix' old Strats that still had burn marks on it. I own practically everything he ever recorded, including some old Taste LPs; I even named my son Rory!. Rory Gallagher at his best Earlier, I had the Gallagher exposure in his former band Taste & the Isle Of Wight video & I started liking him when i saw the performance of Sinner Boy in that video. Yeah, it's indeed an honor for me to become the first reviewer of this great album. Photo-Finish, in a word, is a perfect blues-rock album one can expect from a genius gutarist like Gallagher. Gallagher's vocals & guitaring in this album are very attractive & matured & all tracks are full of catchy hooks. The album kicks off with Shin Kicker which is a bluesy rocker. There are various mood swings you can feel on this disc. . . sometimes loose, bluesy feel & at other times uptempo adrenilizing rockers which make this album charming & balanced as well. Tracks like Brute Force & Ignorance, Cruise On Out, Mississippi Sheiks will give you an ample scope to explore the music in Rory Gallagher. But the most shining moment of the disc is Shadow Play, a powerful, uptempo rocker with great groove, tight rhythm, upper register singing & killer hooks which will set your feet a-rolling. In fact, all tracks including the bonus ones are equally enjoyable. The production is slick, the music is catchy & charming, so what are you waiting for? Just go & grab it, fellas !!!. Blues-rock masterwork This, along with the follow-up album Top Priority, was the finest hour of one of the great musicians in blues/rock history. It's hard to describe a work of this magnitude without resorting to hyperbole. For anyone who is unfamiliar with the man's music it's a perfect place to start. For those who love his music but know little about the man, check out Dan Muise's book on Rory (plus Marriott, Derringer & Trower). It provides great insight into the sorrow that seems to have fuelled much of the songwriting. The book implies that Rory had a heartbreak in his life that he never fully recovered from. You can hear and feel the pain in songs like 'Overnight Bag' and 'Fuel to the Fire'. But there is also a lot of energy and joy to be found here, like on 'Shin Kicker' and 'Brute Force and Ignorance'. As for the guitar playing, it is nothing short of incredible. Gallagher was one of those who prove that when you have complete command of the instrument, you don't have to play at 200 MPH to be thrilling. His solos can take you to faraway places in your heart & mind. I know, I know, the hyperbole. But listening is believing. . You can see a complete list of all Rory Gallagher discography, or go back to the Rory Gallagher tabs