Gary Moore Band

Gary Moore remains one of my all-time favorite lead guitarists. When I first heard his work in the mid-1980s, his style was completely unlike all the other shredders that were dominating metal and hard rock at the time. With Moore it was never a matter of cramming in as many notes and flashy tricks into his solos. He injected them with simple Irish soul. Along with such expressiveness, though, was a commanding presence while he did so. He played with force and clarity, those full Les Paul notes resonating. Add the fact that he wrote and recorded so much great material over the years with Thin Lizzy, Skid Row, Colosseum II, and most significantly as a solo artist, first in rock and then the blues, and you’ve got a singer/songwriter/gu​itarist who truly deserves the “legend” tag.

This live album, recorded circa 1980 at London's Marquee Club, is a mixed bag, featuring material from Gary Moore's 1979 solo album Back on the Streets and his band project G Force. Most impressive, perhaps, is the incredible musicianship in this performance from Moore and drummer Tommy Aldridge. Besides rocking out with "Back on the Streets" and "Run to Your Mama," the band locks into a great groove on "She's Got You." But they reach an absolute peak with a beautiful rendition of Moore's first U.K. hit, the instrumental ballad "Parisienne Walkways," a melody so lovely that Moore plagiarized himself 12 years later, tweaking it only slightly to create his hit "Still Got the Blues."

Robert William Gary Moore was a Northern Irish guitarist and singer-songwriter. During his teenage years in the 1960's, Moore played in the line up of a number of local Belfast based bands, before a move to Dublin, Ireland, after being asked to join the Irish band Skid Row, whose soon to depart lead singer, was one Phil Lynott. Later on, Moore could be seen playing in the likes of Thin Lizzy and British jazz-rock fusion band Colosseum II, as well as having his own, highly successful solo career split between the genres of heavy metal and blues. Moore shared the stage with such blues and rock musicians as B.B. King, Albert King, John Mayall, Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, Albert Collins, George Harrison, and Greg Lake.

Robert William Gary Moore was a Northern Irish guitarist and singer-songwriter. During his teenage years in the 1960's, Moore played in the line up of a number of local Belfast based bands, before a move to Dublin, Ireland, after being asked to join the Irish band Skid Row, whose soon to depart lead singer, was one Phil Lynott. Later on, Moore could be seen playing in the likes of Thin Lizzy and British jazz-rock fusion band Colosseum II, as well as having his own, highly successful solo career split between the genres of heavy metal and blues. Moore shared the stage with such blues and rock musicians as B.B. King, Albert King, John Mayall, Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, Albert Collins, George Harrison, and Greg Lake.

This five-disc box collects as many complete concerts by Irish blues-rock guitarist Gary Moore, recorded in 1990, 1995, 1997, 1999, and 2001 at the Montreux Jazz Festival…