Gary Moore (born April 4, 1952 as Robert William Gary Moore in Belfast, Nor… Read Full Bio ↴Gary Moore (born April 4, 1952 as Robert William Gary Moore in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom; died February 6, 2011 in Malaga, Spain) is acknowledged as one of the finest guitarists to have originated in Ireland. He was a virtuoso guitarist and is considered by his fans to be one of the best guitar players ever.

In a career dating back to the 1960s he has played with bands including Thin Lizzy, Colosseum II, Greg Lake and Skid Row as well as having a successful solo career.

Moore started performing from a young age and got his first good guitar at the age of 14. In a career lasting over 30 years he has demonstrated that he is a fine musician, and his unique style of playing has adapted to very different music genres, including jazz rock jazz, blues, electric blues, hard rock, celtic rock and heavy metal.

One of his most famous non-blues records is Wild Frontier, his first studio album after a trip back to his native Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1985, this album has several songs about Ireland and even the music itself is steeped in Celtic roots. The title track was intended to be sung by Phil Lynott, however Lynott's death in January 1986 prevented that. The album is dedicated to Lynott's memory, with the words "For Philip" on the rear cover.

Wild Frontier contains the hit "Over the Hills and Far Away", which reached #20 in the UK as well as a cover of the Australian band The Easybeats' hit of the middle of the 1960s, "Friday on My Mind". The Max Middleton-penned "The Loner" was originally recorded by Cozy Powell for his Over the Top album in 1979 (which Moore did perform on, albeit not on Powell's recording of "The Loner"), but was substantially altered by Moore for his own recording, thus he was credited as a co-writer.

For blues fans, Moore's best recorded, live performance on video is "LIVE BLUES" recorded in a small night club in London and was released in 1992 on VHS. It is now available on DVD as well. "LIVE BLUES" also features two songs with B.B. King appearing on stage with Moore. "The Thrill Is Gone" on this recording is probably the best version of this, complete with More's Midnight Horns, female backup singers and dueling guitars. Many of Moore's standard songs are on this 90 minute show and were mixed better than most of the studio versions of the same tunes for a very rich and full sound. Even Moore's voice sounds better than it usually does in the studio. Moore did not seem interested in touring the United States.

Connection with Peter Green

According to numerous interviews he has given to guitar magazines, he was the protege of British Blues pioneer Peter Green, whom he had always admired ever since the Bluesbreakers days. When Green quit Fleetwood Mac and the entire music scene, he sold his famous nasal-sounding 1959 Gibson Les Paul to Moore for the same price that Moore had managed to sell his then guitar (a Gibson SG) for. The nasal sound of the neck pickup on Green's guitar was not, as used to be believed, the result of the pickup having been turned backwards, but instead its two coils had been - perhaps accidentally - reconnected in parallel and out of phase, as per the "in between" positions of a Fender Stratocaster. Moore has used this guitar in the recordings of some songs of his albums Still Got The Blues, After Hours and Blues For Greeny. Green and Moore also reportedly had a disagreement regarding what guitar the former was playing in the song "Albatross". Moore insists it was the Les Paul, because the guitar tone was particularly warm and rich in the bass, while Peter Green maintains he was using a Strat, as the vibrato in that song was not finger vibrato, but subtle tremolo arm vibrato. Up to the day of his death, Green and Moore remained good friends.

Guitars used

Over the years Gary has used numerous guitars. These include: Peter Green's 1959 Gibson Les Paul, Peter Green's 1961 Fender Stratocaster and 1950s Gibson Les Paul Junior. He has also used guitars from Charvel, Ibanez, Hamer, Jackson and Heritage. Amplification has generally come from Marshall, though Soldanos and Fender have also been used, as well as transistor-driven Dean Markley units (especially in the studio). He also has used numerous effects over the years. these include; Delay units such as the Echoplex, Overdrive/Booster units such as the Boss DS-1, Ibanez Tubescreamer variants, Marshall Bluesbreaker and Guv'nor pedals as well as Wah-Wah pedals such as the Vox Wah. He appears nowadays to favour Gibson and Fender Guitars through Marshall amps with any of the above Overdrive pedals and Wah pedals to make his sound.

Solo career

In 1973 he released his first solo album as the Gary Moore Band. In 1979 his solo career started again with help from Phil Lynott, the combination of Gary's blues based guitar and Phil's voice produced "Parisenne Walkways" which reached the UK Top Ten in April 1979 and the no.2 album 'Black Rose'. After a series of powerful rock records Gary returned to blues music with Still Got the Blues, with contributions from B. B. King, Albert King and Albert Collins the album was well received by fans and a huge success. Gary stayed with the blues format until 1997 when he decided to experiment with modern dance beats in Dark Days In Paradise; this left many fans as well as the music press confused. Back to the Blues saw Gary return to the tried and tested blues format.

Albums

* Grinding Stone, 1973
* Parisienne Walkways, 1977
* Back on the Streets, 1978
* Corridors of Power, 1982
* Live at the Marquee, 1983
* Rockin' Every Night - Live in Japan, 1983
* Victims of the Future, 1983
* Dirty Fingers, 1984
* We Want Moore, 1984
* Run for Cover, 1985
* Wild Frontier, 1987
* After the War, 1989
* Still Got the Blues, 1990
* After Hours, 1992
* Blues Alive, 1993
* Ballads & Blues 1982-1994, 1994
* Blues For Greeny, 1995
* Dark Days in Paradise, 1997
* Out in the Fields - The Very Best of Part 1, 1998
* Blood of Emeralds - The Very Best of Part 2, 1999
* A Different Beat, 1999
* Back to the Blues, 2001
* Power Of The Blues, 2004
* Old New Ballads Blues, 2006
* Close As You Get, 2007
* Bad For You Baby, 2008

Singles

* Parisienne Walkways
* Out in the Fields
* Empty Rooms
* Wild Frontier
* Still Got the Blues

The Future (2005-present)

Later on in 2006, Gary will support BB King on his 'Farewell UK Tour'. It unfortunately did not lead to a tour of the United States with BB King.

The studio album entitled 'Old New Ballads Blues' was a follow up of 2004's 'Power of the Blues' and it featured new material as well as new versions of fan favourites 'Midnight Blues' and 'All your Love'

Gary Moore has also sold his Les Paul that was given to him by Peter Green to a private owner.

On February 6th 2011, he died from a heart attack in his sleep while on holiday in Spain.

External links

* The Official Gary Moore World Wide Website: http://www.gary-moore.com/

* The Lord Of The Strings - World Wide Gary Moore Fansite: http://www.garymoore.hu/eng.htm Thanks for the music.

Too Tired
Gary Moore Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I laid down last night, too tired to wait
I had a chill this mornin', too tired to shake
I got a good poker hand, too tired to win
I could hear my baby knockin', too tired to let her in

I'm tired, yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm tired
Too tired, too tired for anything

Too tired to walk, too tired to run
I can hear my baby callin', too tired, too tired

Too tired, yes I'm tired
I'm tired, too tired for anything

I'm tired of prosperity, tired of luck
Sittin' on a pin, I'm too tired to get up

I'm tired, I declare, I declare, I'm tired
Too tired, tired, too tired for anything

I'm tired, baby!

Hey!

Overall Meaning

Gary Moore's song "Too Tired" is a blues rock classic that depicts a man who is completely exhausted and lacking the energy to do anything. The opening lines suggest that the singer is so drained that he cannot even wait and falls asleep. The subsequent lines highlight various symptoms of his fatigue such as chills and weakness, which make him feel too tired to move. He also mentions having a good hand at poker, but lacking the energy to win, and his lover knocking at the door, but being too tired to let her in.

Throughout the song, Moore repeats the phrase "I'm tired" to emphasize the theme of exhaustion. He also suggests that his tiredness is not limited to physical fatigue but extends to other aspects of his life. He reveals that he's tired of prosperity and luck, and even sitting on a pin feels like a challenge because of his tiredness. The song ends with the singer expressing his exhaustion and declaring that he's tired of everything.

"Too Tired" has a classic blues structure with a repetitive riff that creates a hypnotic effect. The guitar solo adds to the mood of the song, and Moore’s gritty voice complements the lyrics, bringing out the bluesy feel of the track. It is worth noting that "Too Tired" was originally written and recorded by Johnny "Guitar" Watson in 1955, and Gary Moore only covered it in 1990. However, Moore's cover is considered one of the most iconic versions of the song to date.

Line by Line Meaning

I laid down last night, too tired to wait
I was so exhausted that I went to bed early without waiting up

I had a chill this mornin', too tired to shake
Despite feeling cold in the morning, I was too weary to shiver

I got a good poker hand, too tired to win
Although I had a winning hand in poker, I was too fatigued to capitalize on it

I could hear my baby knockin', too tired to let her in
Even though my beloved was knocking on my door, I didn't have the energy to go answer it

I'm tired, yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm tired
I'm exhausted and drained, there's no denying it

Too tired, too tired for anything
My fatigue is so extreme that I can't do anything at all

Too tired to walk, too tired to run
I lack the vigour and stamina to either walk or run

I can hear my baby callin', too tired, too tired
Despite wanting to answer my lover's call, I don't have the strength to get up

Too tired, yes I'm tired
My exhaustion is a fact that I can't deny

I'm tired of prosperity, tired of luck
I'm even tired of being successful and lucky, if that's possible

Sittin' on a pin, I'm too tired to get up
I can't even summon the energy to move, like when you're sitting on a pin and it hurts, but you can't find the motivation to stand up and take it out

I'm tired, I declare, I declare, I'm tired
I'm not just tired, but I'm really, really tired

Too tired, tired, too tired for anything
Nothing can motivate me because I'm too drained and have no energy left

I'm tired, baby!
I'm tired, my love!

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JOHNNY GUITAR WATSON, MAXWELL DAVIS, SAUL BIHARI

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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