William Rory Gallagher (/ˈrɔːri ˈɡæləhər/ GAL-ə-hər; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish blues-rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, and raised in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, after forming the band Taste during the late 1960s. He was a talented guitarist known for his charismatic performances and dedication to his craft. Gallagher's albums have sold in excess of 30 million copies worldwide. Gallagher received a liver transplant in 1995, but died of complications later that year in London, UK at the age of 47.
Although primarily known for playing a Fender Stratocaster, he owned and played numerous guitars, including a Fender Esquire, Fender Telecaster, Gibson Les Paul and a Gretsch Corvette, which his brother Donal Gallagher bought in a pawn shop in Los Angeles.
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Born in Donegal, he grew up in Cork City.
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Lived in London for most of his career, although he once moved to Belgium for tax reasons.
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After he moved from Ireland to London, he was at one time considered for membership in The Rolling Stones.
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Although known primarily as an ace guitarist, he was also an excellent saxophonist, like Van Morrison. Also like Morrison, he began his career playing in a series of Irish show bands before abandoning them to concentrate on playing the kind of music he really wanted to play--heavily blues-oriented rock.
His most well-known albums were "Tattoo", "Against the Grain", "Calling Card" and "Jinx".
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Although Irish, Rory was often considered one of the greatest "British Blues" guitarists of all time, alongside Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Peter Green.
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