Rory Gallagher: The Legendary 1961 Fender Stratocaster Electric Guitar, Serial no. 64351 stamped on neckplate,

guitar 38 1/2in (98cm) long

Footnotes

"It was Rory that gave me my sound. He was just a magician, he's one of the very few people of that time who could make his guitar do anything it seemed. It just seemed to be magic. I remember looking at that battered Stratocaster and thinking "how does that come out of there?"
-Brian May

One of The World's Most Recognisable Fender Stratocasters

The Fender Stratocaster, celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2024, has helped define the career and image of some of the greatest rock guitarists of all time - Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, David Gilmour and Jeff Beck, to name a few. The guitar offered here was Rory Gallagher's No.1 instrument through four decades, played continuously both onstage and in the recording studio. This led to the guitar's most distinctive feature, its unusually worn appearance, which has made it for many years, one of the most instantly recognisable guitars in the world.

Rory bought this guitar in 1963 for £100, from Crowley's Music Store in Cork, Ireland. Rory was still at school but managed to save up for a deposit and purchased it on HP (hire-purchase/credit). It was second-hand at the time, having previously been owned by Jim Conlon, the guitarist with leading Irish showband, The Royal Showband. Jim had allegedly ordered a Stratocaster in Fiesta Red finish from the USA (the same as that made famous by Hank Marvin of The Shadows), but a sunburst finish example arrived instead. Jim used this guitar for some months before the red Strat finally arrived and the sunburst was put up for sale at Crowley's. It has been suggested, although as yet unproven, that this sunburst was the very first Strat to arrive in Ireland: a post-war embargo on the import of US-made instruments was only lifted in 1959, so young guitarists at the time, caught up in the burgeoning rock 'n' roll phenomenon, had to rely on guitars that were brought in mainly from Europe, with some coming from Japan. In the early 60s therefore, US brands such as Fender and Gibson, were rare and relatively expensive.

Making it Rory: The Modifications

Naturally, an instrument that has seen as much use as this, particularly for Rory's extensive touring, would have undergone extensive modifications. The three original single-coil pickups remained in the guitar until around the mid-1970s, when two of them malfunctioned and had to be replaced. Quoted in International Musician And Recording World magazine in April 1975, Rory explained: "I sweat a lot when I play and over the years the body's absorbed a lot of moisture. I've often thought that it's come to the end of its life. Recently two pickups packed up together, they just cut out when I was playing. I was terrified that I wouldn't be able to get new pickups to sound the same, but fortunately, they matched perfectly."

Based on photographic evidence, the pickups remained the same until around July 1982, when the bridge pickup appeared with a black plastic cover. This had gone by the beginning of 1984, either by the cover being changed or a new pickup altogether being fitted. In the early to mid-2000s, Kent Armstrong examined the pickups and concluded that two were mid-70s stock Fenders with one DiMarzio FatStrat pickup.

Due to heavy sweat absorption, the neck was removed and dried out periodically during the late 1970s. As a result, between December 1979 and August 1982, the guitar was sometimes seen with a neck that appeared brand new. The exact timeline is unclear, but it is likely that the original 1961 neck was removed and reattached multiple times during this period. After spending several months in a warm, dry environment, it would then be reattached. The original 1961 neck remains on the guitar today.

In 1985 Rory stated, "I've had to take the neck off occasionally and dry it out - it was getting damp with doing so many gigs and I started to have tuning problems"- Rory Gallagher, Guitarist, 1985. According to Rory's nephew, Daniel, the family is only aware of one spare neck, which Rory obtained from Fender in the late 70s. This neck was gifted by Rory's brother, Dónal, to a fan in the USA. Rory had the original 1961 neck re-fretted a few times, with standard Fender fret wire, and the tuners underwent several changes over time.

The original Klusons were replaced by Schallers, which were then later changed to Sperzels, five of which remain on the guitar, with a Gotoh on the bottom E string. Other changes include the pickguard, replaced around the mid to late 60s after the original had become distorted. The tremolo unit has also been blocked off with a piece of wood to help the guitar stay in tune. As well as the pickup mods, Rory had the tone controls rewired to have the bottom pot as the one master tone, disconnecting the middle pot, and leaving the volume control as it was. A five-way selector was also installed to replace the original three-way switch.

A 'Lucky Charm'

In 1966, the guitar was stolen, together with a Fender Telecaster that Rory had borrowed from a friend. Rory contacted a local TV show, 'Garda Patrol' to ask for the viewers' help in locating the guitars. After a few days, the guitars were recovered from a ditch. Once reunited with his guitar, it rarely left Rory's side, and became his 'lucky charm'.

'It's also a good luck thing. It was stolen one time and it came back, it's kind of a lucky charm; the guitar is a part of me. BB King might have several Lucilles, but I've only got the one Strat. I don't even call it a woman's name. It's what it is. I still play it every day, I just love playing it.'
- Rory Gallagher, The Guitar Magazine, 1998.

Rory believed that the guitar's worn appearance added to its distinctive sound and almost mystical quality. 'It's a 1961 model,' he recalled in 1990,'It was £100, which was an absolute fortune at the time. It was in good condition then, but it's got so battered now it's got a kind of tattoo quality about it. There's now a theory that the less paint or varnish on a guitar, acoustic or electric, the better. The wood breathes more. But it's all psychological. I just like the sound of it.' Video footage shows that much of the wear was already visible when Rory performed with Taste at the Isle of Wight Festival in August 1970, demonstrating that this was the guitar's appearance throughout Rory's international career. For many fans, this 1961 Fender Stratocaster has become inseparable from Rory's legacy.

Lasting Legacy

The influence of this important guitar is extensive. In 2004, Fender paid its own tribute to Rory's use of the guitar by introducing the Rory Gallagher Tribute Stratocaster. It has featured on the front cover of countless guitar magazines over the years and graced the cover of the Guitarist magazine's 500th edition, in August 2023. The guitar and the collection subsequently featured on the cover and in a twenty page spread of the August 2024 issue of Guitarist magazine.

"The man who changed my musical life was Rory Gallagher, I picked up a guitar because of him."
- Johnny Marr

Many leading guitarists have expressed their admiration for Rory's playing and the profound influence he had upon their musical careers. Notably, Sir Brian May recalls in a filmed interview his weekly visits to see Rory perform with his Stratocaster at London's Marquee Club in the late '60s, describing his awe at Rory's talent. Few musicians have had the privilege of playing this legendary guitar; aside from Rory, it has been played by Joe Bonamassa, Johnny Marr and Barry Cadogan (Little Barry). Rory's enduring legacy is not just in his music but in the lasting impact he has left on the world of guitar, inspiring generations of musicians to follow in his footsteps.

"He was my hero armed with nothing but passion and a beat up 1961 Fender Stratocaster."
-Joe Bonamassa

Provenance
Jim Conlon, The Royal Showband.
Crowley's Music Store in Cork, Ireland, from whom purchased by
Rory Gallagher, 1963.

Notable Live Performances
Taste, Isle of Wight Festival, 28th August 1970, www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNV0wpErolQ.
Rory Gallagher's, Irish Tour, 1974, www.youtube.com/watch?v=z08xHsGHLoM.
Rockpalast, German TV, 1976 & 1979, www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAebwB7XnR4.
Old Grey Whistle Test Special, BBC TV, 1976, www.youtube.com/watch?v=An_W1duIDe0.
Montreux Music Festival in Switzerland 1979, www.youtube.com/watch?v=go9J9REtfdA.
Cork Opera House, Ireland, 1987, www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8niRLuFXrk.
Brian May, Interview on Taste and Rory Gallagher, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xG4mnm0bBQ.
Joe Bonamassa, playing Rory's Stratocaster at the Royal Albert Hall, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AceOp5sYHg.
Johnny Marr, playing Rory's Stratocaster, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yt0XlQ1uMDA

Exhibited
'Play It Loud: Instruments Of Rock & Roll', The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, USA 2019-2021.
'The UK Guitar Show', Olympia, London, 2018.
'Born To Rock', National Museum of Ireland, Dublin; Harrods, London, 2006-2007.

Literature
Ray Hammond, 'Strat Stories', International Musician And Recording World, April 1975, www.roryon.com/hammond265.html
'1961 Fender Stratocaster', Guitarist, February 1985, www.rorygallagher.com/1961-stratocaster.
Michael Leonard, 'The Spotlight Kid: Rory Gallagher', The Guitar Magazine, December, 1998, www.roryon.com/spotlight.html.
'Hands on with the Rigs he played at his Legendary Gigs', Guitarist, 500th edition, August 2023.

Many 1970s performances feature on: The Best Of Rory Gallagher At The BBC and The BBC Collection, vinyl and CD sets due for release on the 11th October 2024. www.shopuk.rorygallagher.com/products/the-best-of-rory-gallagher-at-the-bbc-vinyl-3lp


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