''Live! in Europe'' is the third album by Irish blues guitarist Rory Gallagher, released in 1972. It is a series of live recordings made during his

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an tour that year. Unusual for a live album, it contains only two songs previously recorded and released by Gallagher ("Laundromat" and "In Your Town"). The other songs are either new Gallagher songs or Gallagher's interpretation of traditional blues songs.

Recording

''Live! in Europe'' was released at the end of the British "blues boom" that began in the 1960s. Sparked by bands such as the

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, Yardbirds and

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, fans and musicians were fascinated by authentic Chicago blues artists such as

Muddy Waters McKinley Morganfield (April 4, 1913 April 30, 1983), known professionally as Muddy Waters, was an American blues singer and musician who was an important figure in the post-war blues scene, and is often cited as the "father of modern Chicago b ...

. Gallagher had an extensive knowledge of this kind of music, although he tended to play down arguments about what was "pure" blues. In an interview at the time he said: Rather than live versions of his most popular songs, there are only two songs on the album that were previously recorded by Gallagher in the studio, "Laundromat" from his first album and "In Your Town" from his ''

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'' album. All the other songs are Gallagher's versions of classic blues songs. The album starts with what was to become a

signature song A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a Handwriting, handwritten (and often Stylization, stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and ...

for Gallagher, Junior Wells' "Messin' With the Kid". The song "I Could've Had Religion" was Gallagher's salute to what he called the "redemption style blues" of the Robert Wilkins and Gary Davis. After hearing the song on this album

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expressed interest in recording it and assumed it was a traditional blues number rather than an original song by Gallagher. Blind Boy Fuller's "Pistol Slapper Blues" is next. Gallagher then shows his versatility, swapping his Stratocaster for a mandolin and performing the song "Going to My Hometown" with the audience stomping their feet and cheering in response as Gallagher sings "do you want to go?". The finale is the straight-ahead hard rocking "Bullfrog Blues" written by William Harris. Gallagher switches back to the electric guitar and the full band and gives bassist

Gerry McAvoy John Gerard McAvoy (born 19 December 1951) is a Northern Irish blues rock bass guitarist. He played with blues rock musician Rory Gallagher between 1970 and 1991, and then with Nine Below Zero until 2011. Biography McAvoy was born in Belfast, ...

and drummer Wilgar Campbell, a chance to solo. With the CD release, two additional blues songs were added: "What in the World" and "Hoodoo Man".

Critical reception and charts

Most critics agree that ''Live! in Europe'' is one of Gallagher's finest albums. Upon release, it entered the top ten album chart in the UK. It was Gallagher's highest charting album to date reaching 101 in the Billboard 200 for 1972. The album was his first major commercial success and his first solo top ten album. It won him his first Gold Disc.

Track listing

Side one # " Messin' with the Kid" (written by Mel London, originally recorded by Junior Wells) – 6:25 # "Laundromat" (Rory Gallagher) – 5:12 # "I Could've Had Religion" (Gallagher) – 8:35 # "Pistol Slapper Blues" ( Blind Boy Fuller) – 2:54 Side two # "Going to My Hometown" (Gallagher) – 5:46 # "In Your Town" (Gallagher) [from ''

''] – 10:03 # "Bullfrog Blues" (Traditional; arranged by Gallagher) – 6:47 CD bonus tracks #"What in the World" (Traditional; arranged by Gallagher) – 7:40 * #"Hoodoo Man" (Traditional; arranged by Gallagher) – 6:02 *

Performance recording dates and venues

*5 February 1972: College, Luton, England *12 February 1972: Teatro Lirico, Milan, Italy *14 February 1972: Space Electronic Club, Florence, Italy *5 March 1972: Scala Cinema, Ludwigsburg, Germany

Personnel

;Musicians *Rory Gallagher – guitars, harmonica, mandolin, vocals *

– bass guitar * Wilgar Campbell – drums ;Technical *

Mick Rock Michael David Rock (born Michael Edward Chester Smith; 21 November 1948 – 18 November 2021) was a British photographer. He photographed rock music acts such as Queen, David Bowie, Waylon Jennings, T. Rex, Syd Barrett, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop and ...

– liner notes, photography *Alan Perkins – recording engineer *Tony Arnold – remastering *Donal Gallagher – executive producer

References

{{Authority control Rory Gallagher albums 1972 live albums Albums produced by Rory Gallagher Albums with cover art by Mick Rock Buddah Records live albums