A selection of bottled gins offered at a liquor store

Gin is a spirit which derives its predominant flavour from juniper berries (Juniperus communis). From its earliest beginnings in the Middle Ages, gin has evolved over the course of a millennium from an herbal medicine to an object of commerce in the spirits industry. Today, the gin category is one of the most popular and widely distributed range of spirits, and is represented by products of various origins, styles, and flavor profiles that all revolve around juniper as a common ingredient.

Etymology[link]

The name gin is derived from either the French genièvre or the Dutch jenever, which both mean "juniper".

Varieties[link]

Although several different styles of gin have evolved, it is legally differentiated into four categories in the European Union, with two of those four (Distilled Gin and Compound Gin) being officially recognised in the United States.^[1][2]

The official European Union classifications are as follows:

Juniper-Flavoured Spirit Drinks - This represents the earliest class of gin, which is produced by pot distilling alcoholic grain wash and redistilling it with botanicals to extract the aromatic compounds. Due to the use of pot stills, the alcohol content of the distillate is relatively low (e.g. 68% ABV). This type of gin is sometimes aged in wooden barrels, retains varying degrees of flavour from the grain as a result of its distillation method and may be bottled with a strength as low as 30% ABV. Geneva Gin or Holland Gin is the most prominent gin of this class.^[3]

Distilled gin - Distilled gin is produced exclusively by redistilling ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin with an initial strength of at least 96% ABV (the azeotrope of water and ethanol) in stills traditionally used for gin, in the presence of juniper berries and of other natural botanicals, provided that the juniper taste is predominant. Gin obtained simply by adding essences or flavourings to ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin is not distilled gin.

London gin - London gin is obtained exclusively from ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin with a maximum methanol content of 5 grams per hectolitre of 100% ABV, whose flavour is introduced exclusively through the re-distillation in traditional stills of ethyl alcohol in the presence of all the natural plant materials used, the resultant distillate of which contains at least 70% ABV. London gin may not contain added sweetening exceeding 0.1 gram of sugars per litre of the final product, nor colorants, nor any added ingredients other than water. The term London gin may be supplemented by the term "dry".

Gin - Gin or Compound gin is made by simply flavouring neutral spirit with essences and/or other 'natural flavourings' without re-distillation, and is not highly regarded.^[3]

The minimum bottled alcoholic strength for gin is 37.5% ABV in the EU, and 40% ABV in the U.S.^[1][2]

Some legal classifications of gin are defined only as originating from specific geographical areas (e.g. Plymouth gin, Ostfriesischer Korngenever, Slovenská borovička, Kraški Brinjevec, etc.), while other common descriptors refer to classic styles that are culturally recognized, but not legally defined (e.g., sloe gin, Wacholder and Old Tom gin).

History[link]

By the 11th century, Italian monks were flavouring crudely distilled spirits with juniper berries. During the Black Death, this drink was used, although ineffectively, as a remedy. As the science of distillation advanced from the Middle Ages into the Renaissance period, juniper was one of many botanicals employed by virtue of its perfume, flavour, and purported medicinal properties.^{[citation needed]}

The Dutch physician Franciscus Sylvius is credited with the invention of gin.^[4][5] By the mid 17th century, numerous small Dutch and Flemish distillers (some 400 in Amsterdam alone by 1663) had popularized the re-distillation of malt spirit or wine with juniper, anise, caraway, coriander, etc.,^[6] which were sold in pharmacies and used to treat such medical problems as kidney ailments, lumbago, stomach ailments, gallstones, and gout. It was found in Holland by English troops who were fighting against the Spanish in the Eighty Years War who noticed its calming effects before battle, which is the origin of the term Dutch courage.^{[citation needed]} Gin emerged in England in varying forms as of the early 17th century, and at the time of the Restoration, enjoyed a brief resurgence. When William of Orange, ruler of the Dutch Republic, occupied the British throne with his wife Mary in what has become known as the Glorious Revolution, gin became vastly more popular,^[7] particularly in crude, inferior forms, where it was more likely to be flavoured with turpentine^[8] as an alternative to juniper.

Hogarth's Gin Lane

Gin became popular in England after the Government allowed unlicensed gin production and at the same time imposed a heavy duty on all imported spirits. This created a market for poor-quality grain that was unfit for brewing beer, and thousands of gin-shops sprang up throughout England, a period known as the Gin Craze. By 1740, it is thought by some, though not validated, the production of gin had increased to six times that of beer, although this would only include beer on which duty were paid and by default would not include “home brew” or illegally fermented beer, and is therefore an unreliable thought.^{[citation needed]} However, because of the relative price of gin , when compared with other drinks available at the same time and n the same geographic location, gin became popular with the poor. Of the 15,000 drinking establishments in London, not including coffee shops and ‘drinking chocolate shops, over half were gin shops. Beer maintained a healthy reputation as it was often safer to drink the brewed ale than unclean plain water. Gin, though, was blamed for various social problems, and it may have been a factor in the higher death rates which stabilized London's previously growing population, although there is no evidence for this and it is merely conjecture.^[7] The reputation of the two drinks was illustrated by William Hogarth in his engravings Beer Street and Gin Lane (1751). This negative reputation survives today in the English language, in terms like "gin mills" or the American phrase "gin joints" to describe disreputable bars or "gin-soaked" to refer to drunks, and in the phrase "mother's ruin", a common British name for gin. Paradoxically the "negative" connotations are now becoming associated with "positive" connotations - with the resurgence of gin, upmarket bars now frequently refer to "mother's ruin", "gin palaces", where printed copies of Hogarth paintings may sometimes be found.. Brief poem seen circa 1940, anonymous: "The principal sin, Of Gin, Is, among others, Ruining mothers".

The Gin Act 1736 imposed high taxes on retailers and led to riots in the streets. The prohibitive duty was gradually reduced and finally abolished in 1742. The Gin Act 1751 was more successful, however. It forced distillers to sell only to licensed retailers and brought gin shops under the jurisdiction of local magistrates.^[7] Gin in the 18th century was produced in pot stills, and was somewhat sweeter than the London gin known today.

In London in the early 18th century, much gin was distilled legally in residential houses (there were estimated to be 1,500 residential stills in 1726), and was often flavoured with turpentine - to generate resinous woody notes in addition to the juniper.^[9] As late as 1913, Webster's Dictionary states without further comment, " 'common gin' is usually flavoured with turpentine."^[10]

Another common variation was to distil in the presence of sulphuric acid. Although the acid itself does not distil, it imparts the additional aroma of diethyl ether to the resulting gin. Sulphuric acid subtracts one water molecule from 2 ethanol molecules to create diethyl ether, which also forms an azeotrope with ethanol, and therefore distils with it. The result is a sweeter spirit, and one that may have possessed additional analgesic/intoxicating effects - see Paracelsus.

Dutch or Belgian gin, also known as jenever or genever, evolved from malt wine spirits, and is a distinctly different drink from later styles of gin. Jenever is distilled at least partially from barley malt (and/or other grain) using a pot still, and is sometimes aged in wood. This typically lends a slightly malty flavour and/or a resemblance to whisky. Schiedam, a city in the province of South Holland, is famous for its jenever-producing history. It is typically lower in alcohol content and distinctly different from gins distilled strictly from neutral spirits (e.g. London dry gin). The oude (old) style of jenever remained very popular throughout the 19th century, where it was referred to as "Holland" or "Geneva" gin in popular, American, pre-Prohibition bartender guides.^[11]

The 19th century gave rise to a style of gin referred to as Old Tom Gin, which is a sweeter style of gin, often containing sugar. Old Tom gin faded in popularity by the early 20th century.

The column still was invented in 1832, making the distillation of neutral spirits practical and enabling the creation of the "London dry" style, which was developed later in the 19th century. London Dry gin is usually distilled in the presence of accenting citrus elements, such as lemon and bitter orange peel, as well as a subtle combination of other spices, including any of anise, angelica root and seed, orris root, licorice root, cinnamon, almond, cubeb, savory, lime peel, grapefruit peel, dragon eye, saffron, baobab, frankincense, coriander, grains of paradise, nutmeg and cassia bark.

In tropical British colonies gin was used to mask the bitter flavour of quinine, which was the only effective anti-malarial compound. Quinine was dissolved in carbonated water to form tonic water; the resulting mix became the origin of today's popular gin and tonic combination, although modern tonic water contains only a trace of quinine as a flavouring.

Gin is a popular base spirit for many classic mixed drinks, including the martini. Secretly produced "bathtub gin" was commonly available in the speakeasies and "blind pigs" of Prohibition-era America as a result of the relative simple production. Gin has remained popular as the basis of many cocktails after the repeal of the American Prohibition.

Sloe gin is traditionally described as a liqueur made by infusing sloes (the fruit of the blackthorn) in gin, although modern versions are almost always compounded from neutral spirits and flavourings. Similar infusions are possible with other fruits, such as damsons (damson gin).^{[citation needed]}

A ‘National Gin Museum’ can be found in is in Hasselt, Belgium. There are others.

Classic gin cocktails[link]

A well known gin cocktail is the martini, traditionally made with gin and dry vermouth. Several other notable gin-based drinks include:

Notable brands[link]

See also[link]

• List of cocktails

References[link]

• Deegan, Grant (Fall 1999). "From the bathtub to the boardroom: gin and its history". MY2K: Martini 2000 1 (1). http://www.mixology.com/issues/my2k/science/gin.htm. 
• Dillon, Patrick (2002). The Much-lamented Death of Madam Geneva: The Eighteenth-century Gin Craze. London: Headline Review. ISBN 0-7472-3545-7. 

External links[link]

• Greenhook Ginsmiths is New York City's Hottest Artisanal Gin, recently given a 94 point score by Tasting Panel Magazine
• [2] EU definition original source - scroll down to paras: 20 nand 21 of Annex II - Spirit Drinks

Look up gin in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Gin news page - Alcohol and Drugs History Society
• Gin in Victorian London

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Gin Wigmore
Background information
Birth name	Virginia Wigmore[1]
Also known as	Gin
Born	(1986-06-06) 6 June 1986 (age 26) Auckland, New Zealand
Genres	Folk rock Pop Pop rock
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, ukulele
Years active	2008–present
Labels	Island Records
Associated acts	Smashproof The Cardinals
Website	ginwigmore.com.au

Virginia "Gin" Wigmore (born 6 June 1986)^[2] is a New Zealand singer-songwriter. In 2009, she featured on the single "Brother" by Smashproof, which reached #1 on the RIANZ singles charts for 11 weeks.^[3] In 2009 she released her debut album Holy Smoke. On 7 November 2011, she released her second studio album Gravel and Wine.

Personal life[link]

Virginia Claire Wigmore, more commonly known as Gin Wigmore, was born in Auckland, New Zealand to Peter and Adrienne Wigmore. Wigmore has two siblings: an older brother Olly and Lucy Wigmore, a professional actress well known for starring as Justine Jones in the long running New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street and a role in "Underbelly: Razor".

While Wigmore was in Argentina at age 16, her father died of cancer. Upon her return to New Zealand, she articulated in song the pain of losing her father. One of those early songs, "Hallelujah", won the US-based International Songwriting Competition in 2004,^[4] when she beat 11,000 songwriting aspirants from 77 countries to become the youngest and only unsigned Grand Prize winner in the history of the ISC. "Hallelujah" was also featured in the season 6 finale of One Tree Hill.

“Hallelujah was my way of telling my family I had dealt with dad's passing and honestly. I didn't want to share these feelings with anyone else. I wanted the moment for myself and my family.” --- Gin Wigmore ^[5]

Career[link]

[edit] Extended Play

Extended Play was Wigmore's first EP. It was produced by Tony Buchen (Blue King Brown, The Whitlams, Macromantics, Kid Confucius) and contains the tracks "Hallelujah", "These Roses", "SOS", "Under My Skin", and "Easy Come Easy Go". Released in 2008, it has peaked at number ten in the New Zealand charts. The EP was certified Platinum in New Zealand on 2 May 2010, selling over 15,000 copies.^[6]

Extended Play was released in Australia on 2 August 2008 by Island Records. Wigmore was the first artist signed with Island Records, a partner company with Universal Music Group, Australia.^[5]

Wigmore's hit single "Under My Skin" was featured on an Air New Zealand advertising campaign, Nothing to Hide.

The EP features renowned Australian musician John Butler on ukulele on Wigmore's song "SOS".^[5]

Wigmore toured with Australian artist, Pete Murray, on his national tour in August/September 2008. Wigmore toured in 2008, including at the Cross Town Revue in Auckland, New Zealand, and in December 2008, toured with musicians John Mellencamp and Sheryl Crow in New Zealand.

[edit] Holy Smoke

Recent work has seen her featured in the song and video of the new group, Smashproof, also from Auckland, New Zealand. The song, "Brother", was released in early 2009.

In 2009, Wigmore released her full length debut album, Holy Smoke, recorded with The Cardinals of Ryan Adams & the Cardinals fame.^[7] The first single from the album, "Oh My", debuted on the New Zealand Singles Chart at number twenty-one on 24 August 2009, moving to number seven the following week. It peaked at number four.

Three other singles were released during 2010, 'I Do' charted at no.14 on the Official New Zealand Singles Chart, while third single 'Hey Ho' missed out on a top 20 position by charting just outside at no.21. The fourth single taken from Holy Smoke was 'Too Late For Lovers', and despite hitting no.3 on the NZ40 Airplay chart, the single failed to crack the national Top 40.

During the week of 30 May 2010, all four of Wigmore's singles from Holy Smoke appeared on the NZ40 Airplay Chart^[8] 'Too Late For Lovers' #7, 'Oh My' #23, 'Hey Ho' #24, 'I Do' #37

The single "Oh My" is the theme track for the series The Almighty Johnsons.

Wigmore's single "Hey Ho" appeared during the closing scenes of the Weeds Season 6 Finale.

In September 2011, Home Improvement Retailer Lowe's began a new brand campaign featuring Wigmore's single "Don't Stop."^[9]

Her song "Stealing Happiness" appeared in the TV movie "Tangiwai".

[edit] Gravel & Wine

In September 2011, Wigmore revealed the title and release of her new album, Gravel & Wine on her official Facebook page.^[10] The first single from this album is slated to be "Black Sheep", and was released 26 September 2011 and peaked so far at #13, while the album's full release will be on 7 November 2011 in New Zealand, followed by later dates in other territories.^[11]

Wigmore's single "Black Sheep" appeared in episode 12, season 8 of Grey's Anatomy. Wigmore also released music videos for Man Like That & If Only

Tours[link]

• Holy Smoke Tour (2010)
• The Grave Train National Tour (2010)
• Gin Wigmore (2011)
• The Winery Tour (2012)
• Gravel and Wine Tour (2012)

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Extended plays[link]

"—" denotes releases that did not chart. 2011 Gravel and Wine. released No 7, 2011

Singles[link]

As featured artist[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

Music videos[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gin Wigmore

• Gin Wigmore Official Website
• Gin Wigmore Official MySpace
• Interview with New Zealand's Sunday Star Times
• Review - The Vine
• Island Records
• RIANZ Website
• Radio NZ interview with Kim Hill
• SOS music video

A black sheep stands out from the flock

The Black Sheep, from a 1901 edition of Mother Goose by William Wallace Denslow.

A black sheep (Hebridean)

In the English language, black sheep is an idiom used to describe an odd or disreputable member of a group, especially within a family. The term has typically been given negative implications, implying waywardness.^[1] It derived from the atypical and unwanted presence of other black individuals in flocks of white sheep.

In psychology, the black sheep effect refers to the tendency of group members to judge likeable ingroup members more positively and deviant ingroup member more negatively than comparable outgroup members.^[2]

Idiomatic usage[link]

The term originated from the occasional black sheep which are born into a flock of white sheep due to a genetic process of recessive traits. Black wool was considered commercially undesirable because it could not be dyed.^[1] In 18th and 19th century England, the black color of the sheep was seen as the mark of the devil.^[3] In modern usage, the expression has lost some of its negative connotations, though the term is usually given to the member of a group who has certain characteristics or lack thereof deemed undesirable by that group.^[4]

The idiom is also found in other languages, e.g., French, Serbian, Bulgarian, Hebrew, Portuguese, Bosnian, Greek, Turkish, Dutch, Afrikaans, Swedish, Danish, Spanish, Czech, Slovak, Romanian and Polish. The same concept is illustrated in some other languages by the phrase "white crow": for example belaya vorona (белая ворона) in Russian and kalag-e sefid (کلاغ سفید) in Persian. A variant form of black sheep, "the red sheep of the family", was used by Jessica Mitford to describe herself, a communist in a family of aristocratic fascists.^[5]

Biological origin[link]

In sheep, a white fleece is not albinism but a dominant gene that actively switches color production off, thus obscuring any other color that may be present.^{[citation needed]} As a result, a black fleece in most sheep is recessive, so if a white ram and a white ewe are each heterozygous for black, in about 25% of cases they will produce a black lamb. In fact in most white sheep breeds only a few white sheep are heterozygous for black, so black lambs are usually much rarer than this. Some breeds of sheep (such as the Hebridean, Ouessant, Black Welsh Mountain and Karakul) are normally black.

Black sheep effect (Psychology)[link]

Overview[link]

In 1988, Marques, Yzerbyt and Leyens^[2] conducted an experiment where Belgian students rated the following groups according to trait-descriptors (e.g., sociable, polite, violent, cold): unlikeable Belgian students, unlikeable North African students, likeable Belgian students, and likeable North African students. The results provided support that the favourability is the highest for likeable ingroup members and the lowest for unlikeable ingroup members, whereas the favourability of unlikeable and likeable outgroup members is between the both former ones. These extreme judgements of likeable and unlikeable (i.e., deviant) ingroup members, relatively to comparable outgroup members is called “black sheep effect”. This effect has been shown in various intergroup contexts and under a variety of conditions, and in many experiments manipulating likeability and norm deviance (e.g., Branscombe, Wann, Noel, & Coleman, 1993;^[6] Coull, Yzerbyt, Castano, Paladino, & Leemans, 2001;^[7] Khan & Lambert, 1998;^[8] Pinto, Marques, Levine, & Abrams, 2010).^[9]

Explanations[link]

A prominent explanation of the black sheep effect derives from the social identity approach (see social identity theory, Tajfel & Turner, 1979;^[10] and self-categorization theory, Turner, Hogg, Oakes, Reicher, & Wetherell, 1987).^[11] Group members are motivated to sustain a positive and distinctice social identity and, as a consequence, group members emphasize likeable members and evaluate them more positve than outgroup members, bolstering the positive image of their ingroup (see ingroup bias). Furthermore, the positive social identity may be threatened by group members who deviate from a relevant group norm. To protect the positive group image, ingroup members derogate ingroup deviants more harshly than deviants of an outgroup (Marques, Abrams, Páez, & Hogg, 2001).^[12] In addition, Eidelman and Biernat (2003)^[13] have shown that personal identities are also threatened through deviant ingroup members. They argue that devaluation of deviant members is an individual response of interpersonal differentiation. Khan and Lambert (1998)^[8] suggest that cognitive processes like assimilation and contrast, which may underline the effect, should be examined.

Limitations[link]

Even though there is widely support for the black sheep effect, the opposite pattern has been found, for example, that White participants judge unqualified Black targets more negative than comparable White targets (e.g., Feldman, 1972;^[14] Linville & Jones, 1980).^[15] Consequentely, there are several factors which influence the black sheep effect. For instance, the higher the identification with the ingroup, and the higher the entitativity of the ingroup, the more the black sheep effect emerges (e.g., Castano, Paladino, Coull, & Yzerbyt, 2002;^[16] Lewis & Sherman, 2010).^[17] Even situational factors explaining the deviance have an influence whether the black sheep effect occurs (De Cremer & Vanbeselaere, 1999).^[18]

See also[link]

Look up black sheep in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Black swan theory
• Glossary of sheep husbandry: see entry for "black wool".
• Scapegoat
• The Ugly Duckling

References[link]

External links[link]

• Exploration of the etymology of the phrase "black sheep of the family"
• "The black sheep effect: Judgmental extremity towards ingroup members in inter-and intra-group situations". European Journal of Social Psychology (Science Direct) 18 (3): 287–292. DOI:10.1002/ejsp.2420180308. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00221031. Retrieved 2008-01-04. 

Clara Lago

Clara Lago Grau (born March 6, 1990 in Madrid, Spain) is a Spanish actress.

Lago portrayed Eva, a leading role, in the 2011 Spanish thriller Fin.^[1]

Filmography[link]

• Tengo ganas de ti (2012)
• The End (2012)
• La Cara Oculta (2011)
• El Mal Ajeno (2010)
• El Juego Del Ahorcado (2009)
• El club de los suicidas (2007)
• Arena en los Bolsillos (película)|Arena en los Bolsillos (2006)
• La vida que te espera (2004)
• El viaje de Carol (2002)
• Terca vida (2000)

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Clara Lago at the Internet Movie Database

Rory Gallagher
Gallagher, at the Manchester Apollo in 1982
Background information
Birth name	William Rory Gallagher
Also known as	Liam Rory Gallagher
Born	(1948-03-02)2 March 1948 Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Ireland
Died	14 June 1995(1995-06-14) (aged 47) London, England
Genres	Blues, blues-rock, hard rock, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, jazz, folk, skiffle
Occupations	Musician, songwriter, bandleader, producer
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, bass, mandolin, saxophone, sitar, harmonica, banjo, dulcimer, dobro
Years active	1963–1995
Labels	Polydor, Chrysalis, Buddah, Castle
Associated acts	Taste
Website	www.rorygallagher.com
Notable instruments
1961 Sunburst Fender Stratocaster

William Rory Gallagher,  /ˈrɔriː ˈɡæləhər/ GAL-ə-hər; 2 March 1948  – 14 June 1995,^[1][2] was an Irish blues-rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Ireland,^[3] and raised in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, after forming the band Taste during the late 1960s. 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.^[4][5] Gallagher received a liver transplant in 1995, but died of complications later that year in London, England at the age of 47.^[6]

Biography[link]

Gallagher was born in Ballyshannon, Co. Donegal; his father, Daniel, was employed by the Irish Electricity Supply Board, who were constructing a hydro-electric power plant on the Erne River above the town. The family moved, first to Derry City, where his younger brother Dónal was born in 1949, and then to Cork, where the two brothers were raised, and where Rory attended the North Monastery School. Their father had played the accordion and sang with the Tir Chonaill Ceile Band whilst in Donegal; their mother Monica was a singer and acted with the Abbey Players in Ballyshannon. The Theatre in Ballyshannon where Monica once acted is now called the Rory Gallagher Theatre.

Both sons were musically inclined and encouraged by their parents: at age nine, Gallagher received his first guitar from them. He built on his burgeoning ability on ukelele in teaching himself to play the guitar and perform at minor functions. After winning a talent contest when he was twelve, Gallagher began performing in his adolescence with both his acoustic guitar, and an electric guitar he bought with his prize money. However, it was his purchase three years later of a 1961 Fender Stratocaster for £100 that became his primary instrument most associated with him for the span of his lifetime.^[7]

Gallagher was initially attracted to skiffle after hearing Lonnie Donegan on the radio. Donegan frequently covered blues and folk performers from the United States. He relied entirely on radio programs and television. Occasionally, the jazz programs from the BBC would play some blues numbers, and he slowly found some song books for guitar, where he found the names of the actual composers of blues pieces. While still in school, playing songs by Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran, he discovered his greatest influence in Muddy Waters. Subsequently, Gallagher began experimenting with folk, blues, and rock music. Unable to find or afford record albums, Gallagher stayed up late to hear Radio Luxembourg and AFN where the radio brought him his only exposure to the actual songwriters and musicians whose music moved him most.^[8] Influences he discovered, and cited as he progressed, included Woody Guthrie, Big Bill Broonzy, and Lead Belly. Initially, Gallagher struck out after just an acoustic sound.^[7] Singing and later using a brace for his harmonica, Gallagher taught himself to play slide guitar. Further, throughout the next few years of his musical development, Gallagher began learning to play alto saxophone, bass, mandolin, banjo, and the coral sitar with varying degrees of proficiency.^[9] By his mid-teens, he began experimenting heavily with different blues styles.^[10]

Gallagher began playing after school with Irish showbands, while still a young teenager. In 1963,^[11] he joined one named Fontana, a sextet playing the popular hit songs of the day.^[12] The band toured Ireland and the United Kingdom, earning the money for the payments that were due on his Stratocaster guitar. Gallagher began to influence the band's repertoire, beginning its transition from popular music, skirting along some of Chuck Berry's songs and by 1965, he had successfully molded Fontana into "The Impact", with a change in their lineup into an R&B group that played gigs in Ireland and Spain until disbanding in London.^[9] Gallagher left with the bassist and drummer to perform as a trio in Hamburg, Germany.^[11] In 1966, Gallagher returned to Ireland and, experimenting with other musicians back home in Cork, decided to form his own band.

Taste[link]

Gallagher on acoustic guitar, March 1976, Breda, Netherlands

Having completed a musical apprenticeship in the showbands, and influenced by the increasing popularity of beat groups during the early 1960s, Gallagher formed "The Taste", which was later renamed simply, "Taste", a blues rock and R&B power trio, in 1966.^[13] Initially, the band was composed of Gallagher and two Cork musicians, Norman Damery and Eric Kitteringham, however, by 1968, they were replaced with two musicians from Belfast, featuring Gallagher on guitar and vocals, drummer John Wilson, and bassist Richard McCracken.^[13] Performing extensively in the United Kingdom, the group played regularly at the Marquee Club, supporting both Cream at their Royal Albert Hall farewell concert, and the blues supergroup Blind Faith on a tour of North America. Managed by Eddie Kennedy, the trio released the albums Taste and On The Boards, and two live recordings, Live Taste and Live at the Isle of Wight.^[13] The latter appeared long after the band's break-up, which occurred shortly after their appearance at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival.^[14]

Solo career[link]

After the break-up of Taste, Gallagher toured under his own name, hiring former Deep Joy bass player Gerry McAvoy to play on Gallagher's self-titled debut album, Rory Gallagher.^[15] It was the beginning of a twenty-year musical relationship between Gallagher and McAvoy; the other band member was drummer Wilgar Campbell.^[13] The 1970s were Gallagher's most prolific period. He produced ten albums in that decade, including two live albums, Live in Europe and Irish Tour '74. November 1971 saw the release of his album, Deuce.^[15] In the same year he was voted Melody Maker's International Top Musician of the Year, ahead of Eric Clapton.^[16] However, despite a number of his albums from this period reaching the UK Albums Chart, Gallagher did not attain major star status.^[13]