Jimi Hendrix was once asked how it felt to be the best guitarist in the world. Hendrix shrugged and replied: “I don’t know – ask Rory Gallagher.”

Not long after that Eric Clapton named Gallagher as the guitarist who got him back into the blues. He’s also been cited as an influence by guitarists as diverse as Slash, Brian May, Johnny Marr and The Edge.

For his part, Gallagher was not just a blues fan but a great admirer of British folk guitarists like Bert Jansch, Richard Thompson and Davy Graham.

The Rolling Stones also recognised his talent, auditioning him when Mick Taylor left, but Rory was always his own man, and would have been unlikely to fit in well.

I never got to see him perform, unlike my wife who saw his band Taste regularly while growing up in Ireland, though I did recently see a live celebration of his music.

I went to see the Band Of Friends, led by his old bass guitarist Gerry McAvoy and drummer Brendan O’Neill, with Davy Knowles taking the Gallagher role.

To be honest I never really got to appreciate Rory before his drinking condemned him to an early death in 1995 at the age of 47.

A Million Miles Away – taken from his fourth solo album Tattoo in 1973 – became his signature song and there are multiple live versions on YouTube showcasing his incendiary guitar playing.

But I’m going to post an earlier number, the almost jazzy blues ballad I Fall Apart, from his first self-titled solo album in 1971, with a solo that starts slow and introspective and builds to a powerful climax.