The Moshville Times - Joe Bonamassa celebrates Rory Gallagher with new live album and film

The titan of modern blues-rock, Joe Bonamassa, has just announced a project that’s clearly very close to his heart. On 19th June, he’ll be releasing The Spirit Of Rory Live From Cork via J&R Adventures. It’s a massive tribute to the legendary Rory Gallagher, recorded right in Rory’s hometown of Cork during a run of sold-out shows last summer.

Joe’s been a fan of the Irish guitar hero since he was a kid, and you can tell he didn’t take this lightly. He’s admitted he was actually pretty nervous about trying to fill those massive shoes in front of a Cork crowd. He needn’t have worried, though; the initial plan for a single gig turned into a three-night residency because the demand from the locals was so high. We’ve seen Joe plenty of times over the years, including this cracking night in Cardiff back in 2022, so we know he’s more than up to the task.

The album features 14 tracks that cover the best of Gallagher’s career. To get things moving, Joe has already dropped three live singles: “Walk On Hot Coals”, “Bullfrog Blues”, and “Who’s That Coming?”. One of the coolest moments on the record is Joe playing “As The Crow Flies” using Rory’s actual 1930 National Triolian resonator guitar, which was on loan from the Cork Public Museum. That’s a proper bit of history right there.

The release is coming out on just about every format you could want, including a double red marble vinyl set. The DVD and Blu-ray versions also pack in some bonus chats with Brian May and Slash about why Rory was such an inspiration. If you want to catch the man himself in the flesh, he’s heading to the Big Smoke this May for two nights at the Royal Albert Hall.

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