Here’s one of my favourite solos by Gary Moore. From his classic Corridors of Power album in 1982 – Always Gonna Love You.
Gary was one of my inspirations to take up the guitar in the first place and I’ve always loved the way he played. I think it’s a shame that most people only know him for his “blues” phase which started in 1990. Gary became tired of playing hard rock – or more likely, felt unable to compete with the new wave of young shred guitarists. Gary was always known for being “the fastest” back in the day, and if you play that game, there will always be somebody who comes along who is faster. But he was SO much more than that. I didn’t love his playing because he was fast, it was because of the emotion, the tone, the attitude – put simply – the music. It’s sad that he turned his back on his rock career – sure, the lyrics were cheesy and adolescent, but his playing had more depth and dynamics on just two of his 80s albums – Corridors of Power and Victims of the Future than everything he did from 1990 up until when he died in 2011 put together. And that’s not to say his “blues” playing was bad. Maybe he felt he had no more to say as a rock guitarist.
I like this solo in particular as it’s melodic and takes you on a journey. There aren’t many “flashy” parts in it, but the quick bits are deceptively difficult to play and beautifully phrased. The real standout from this solo is Gary’s beautiful bending and his vibrato – there was nobody to touch him when it came to that. And of course I don’t reproduce it the way Gary did – I’m not trying to be a tribute act, I’m just making a tribute to my hero.
Hope you like it.
As usual, I used my Laney Ironheart IRT Studio amp, with an Ibanez TS9 Tubescreamer overdrive.