The Rory Gallagher Memorial At Rory Gallagher Place Off Paul Street In Cork City

Photographed May 2022

The Rory Gallagher Memorial At Rory Gallagher Place

Located off Paul Street in the heart of Cork City centre, Rory Gallagher Place serves as a permanent urban tribute to the legendary blues-rock guitarist. Formerly an unnamed pedestrian plaza beside the Paul Street Shopping Centre, the square was formally renamed by Cork Corporation to honour Cork’s most celebrated musical son.

The Memorial Sculpture

Unveiled on Saturday, 25 October 1997 during the Cork Jazz Festival, the bronze memorial was commissioned by Cork Corporation in close consultation with the Gallagher family. The piece was created by local sculptor and visual artist Geraldine Creedon, who had been a personal friend of Rory during their teenage years growing up in Cork.

Key details and design features of the monument include:

• Dual-Faceted Design: Rather than opting for a conventional figurative effigy, Creedon conceived a sculptural silhouette shaped on one side like Rory’s trademark, worn 1961 Sunburst Fender Stratocaster.
• Intertwined Lyrics: The reverse and edges of the bronze casting blend into an open, lyrical lattice featuring embossed fragments of lyrics taken from his 1982 album Jinx. Among the interwoven lines are poignant phrases including "Don't paint it all so sadly", "My heart's at peace, my soul's on fire", and "You used to fly and chase the wind".

Urban Setting & Cultural Trail: The free-standing bronze stands mounted in the paved square, surrounded by bustling cafes, bookshops, and laneways leading towards French Church Street. It forms one of the central civic stops on Cork City Council’s official Rory Gallagher ‘Stompin’ Ground’ Walking Trail, which guides visitors through key locations associated with his life, early gigs, and musical legacy across the city.

The Farewell to Rory Gallagher

• Rory Gallagher died on the morning of Wednesday 14 June 1995. He was admitted to London's King's College Hospital in March 1995, and it was only then that the extent of his ill health became apparent; his liver was failing and the doctors determined that, in spite of his relatively young age, a liver transplant was the only possible course of action.

• After thirteen weeks in intensive care, while waiting to be transferred to a convalescent home, his health suddenly worsened when he contracted a staphylococcal (MRSA) infection, and he died at the age of 47. News of Rory’s passing came as a shock to many, as his ill health had been kept private.

• His body was flown back to Cork on Friday 16 June, where he lay at the O'Connor Funeral Home in Temple Hill so that family, friends, and fans could say their last goodbyes. On the morning of Monday 19 June, Rory Gallagher was driven through the streets of the city where he grew up for the last time, passing MacCurtain Street to tears and rounds of affecting applause.

• At the Church of the Holy Spirit in Dennehy’s Cross, thousands of people turned up to fill the church and its grounds for Rory’s funeral Mass. Many musicians joined the crowds, including The Edge and Adam Clayton from U2, Martin Carthy, members of The Dubliners, Clannad, and Gary Moore. Band members from times past contributed tributes during the service: Mark Feltham played "Amazing Grace" on the harmonica, and Lou Martin performed a piano rendition of Rory's song "A Million Miles Away". Following the Mass, Rory—an inspiration and light to so many—was carried out to be laid to rest.

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STREET ART TRIBUTE TO RORY GALLAGHER

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