Gary Moore | Live At Montreux 2010
by Marc C.
Staff Writer —
Gary Moore was born in 1952 Belfast, Ireland. Heavily influenced by Fleetwood Mac’s Peter Green, he joined Skid Row (not to be confused with the American band of the same name) as a teenaged phenomenon in 1969 for three albums before going solo, joining Thin Lizzy, and going solo again. His hit single “Parisienne Walkways” catapulted him into the hearts and minds of discerning music lovers around the globe and subsequent forays into Celtic (Wild Frontier, 1987) and blues (Still Got The Blues, 1990) preceded an album with Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce in 1994. Much more blues would follow, most notably Power Of The Blues in 2004. Through it all, he maintained the highest level of musicianship and became revered for his constant searching and the redefining of his own artistry.
What makes Gary Moore so compelling is his innate ability to make a guitar sing like so few can or could. Moore was recognized as an influence by some of the most revered guitarists of the last 30 years including but not limited to; Randy Rhoads, Paul Gilbert, Zakk Wylde, John Sykes, Vivian Campbell, John Norum, Slash, Adrian Smith & Kirk Hammett. While not as popular on U.S. shores Gary Moore’s acclaim and success throughout the rest of the world was undeniable. His collaborations also included a broad range of who’s who in the music world from Phil Lynott to George Harrison, B.B. King to Bob Dylan and more. He was also not afraid to experiment exploring all musical genres. From Blues to Metal and everything in between his style was unmistakable and he still remains one of the few guitarists who has the gift of making a guitar cry along with the listener.
While Gary was a guitar virtuoso he was also not afraid to speak his mind and stood strong in his personal beliefs going so far in taking a stand during the cultural boycott of Israel. During a press conference he stated he would not visit the “criminal state” of Israel “because of its racist policies against the Palestinian people.”
Sadly Gary Moore passed away at the young age of 58 on February 6th 2011 while vacationing in Spain. Shortly following his passing comments flooded Twitter and from some of the most popular names in music. From Ozzy Ozbourne; “We’ve lost a phenomenal musician, to Eric Singer; “I have to say the one thing that always stood out to me about Gary was his absolute passion and intensity as a guitarist.”
What makes this release so compelling is the inclusion of three never-before-released gems, “Days Of Heroes,” “Where Are You Now” and “Oh Wild One,” that he previewed for the Montreux audience and had fully intended to put on the album he was writing and recording at the time. The rest of the set is heavy on the ’80s rock he pioneered solo, as well as his late 60s/70s work with Phil Lynott in Thin Lizzy and Skid Row. And, of course, some blues.
Live At Montreux 2010 strikingly shows a major return-to-rock for the musician who spent years exploring the blues. In fact, in the last days of his life Moore was working on a new rock album.
Included on the CD version are such classics as “Over The Hills And Far Away,” “Out In The Fields” and of course the one that truly propelled him to stardom “Parisienne Walkways.” The DVD and Blu-Ray version includes “Thunder Rising” and “Still Got The Blues.” For all you budding guitarists and even those of you who may be seasoned professionals this is an album than requires listening. It’s an 11 track guitar, song writing & emotional lesson in how the guitar should be played. The shame of it all is that there was another album to follow and Lord only knows how many more years of Gary’s exquisite playing laid ahead. It should be noted that Gary was no slouch on vocals as well and aside from his time with Thin Lizzy and various other projects he handled all of the vocals and more often than not with no backing assistance. He truly was a one man wrecking machine.
Gary Moore is a perfect example of how the good do die young and sadly the world again lost one of the greatest musicians of our time.
Label: Eagle Rock Entertainment
Track Listing:
CD:
1. Over The Hills And Far Away
2. Military Man
3. Days Of Heroes
4. Where Are You Now?
5. So Far Away/Empty Rooms
6. Oh Wild One
7. Blood Of Emeralds
8. Out In The Fields
9. Walking By Myself
10. Johnny Boy
11. Parisienne Walkways
DVD/Blu-ray:
1. Over The Hills And Far Away
2. Thunder Rising
3. Military Man
4. Days Of Heroes
5. Where Are You Now?
6. So Far Away/Empty Rooms
7. Oh Wild One
8. Blood Of Emeralds
9. Out In The Fields
10. Still Got The Blues
11. Walking By Myself
12. Johnny Boy
13. Parisienne Walkways
Website: http://www.gary-moore.com/index.html
Hardrock Haven rating: 100/10
So sad that he drank himself to death, so sad that he supported the cultural boycott of Israel but never said anything about any other conflict in the world.