Rory’s guitar ‘isn't for me to covet’

Cork was singing the blues this week when Rory Gallagher’s iconic Fender Stratocaster failed to make a Leeside appearance for the 30th anniversary of his death.

There was huge relief last year when the beloved guitar was donated to the state after going under the hammer in London amidst fears it would go to a private owner. However, the 1961 Fender Stratocaster is yet to make a public appearance since last October’s auction, despite many fans expecting it to be on display at an exhibition celebrating Rory’s anniversary which kicked off last Saturday.

Last year, Sheena Crowley, daughter of Mick Crowley who sold Rory his Strat in 1963, spearheaded a powerful campaign to help make sure the guitar stayed in Ireland, raising over €75,000.

She said she “got a bit of a shock” when she realised the instrument she had fought so hard to keep in the public domain was not going to appear at an exhibition of Rory’s instruments at the Cork Public Museum. “It isn't for me to covet,” she told the paper.

“I guess I have to admit too I made a huge assumption. Once the curator said to me he would get on to the National Museum about the Strat, I just thought it was all systems go because excitement was building.

“Someone said after travelling it needs time to re acclimatise, but I just think it was never coming at that point.

“I would have thought museum staff would have been thinking we must get this ready to go to Cork for the anniversary,” she added.

After the guitar was donated to the national collection, the National Museum of Ireland confirmed it would be exhibited in 2025 as part of ‘Changing Ireland’, a new permanent exhibition in Collins Barracks, Cork city, as well as being exhibited elsewhere in Cork.

Ms Crowley continued: “Someone is putting on a show in Collins Barracks and I’m sure they want the Strat to have the biggest impact possible – the big reveal.

“I think it’s incredible though that so many people gave their instruments to the museum for the 30th anniversary exhibit. So, I just want to think about the good things,” she said.

The money raised by Ms Crowley was used to buy a number of Rory’s instruments at the auction in October which are now on display at the Cork Public Museum in Fitzgerald’s Park.

The funds were also used to put on a four hour concert in honour of Rory’s memory last Saturday to mark the start of the anniversary.

Events will continue this week and beyond with a number of workshops taking place at Cork Public Museum this Saturday and on 28 June. For more information, visit crowleysmusiccentre.com.

A spokesperson for the National Museum of Ireland said the guitar arrived at the museum in May of this year and is currently being assessed to determine its condition before it can be exhibited or displayed in a museum setting with other objects.

“Through this process and by engaging with experts on musical instruments, our conservation and curatorial teams will also establish the best manner to care for the guitar on a long-term basis,” said the spokesperson.

They added: “’Changing Ireland’, a new floor of exhibition galleries will open in October 2025 and the guitar will feature in this exhibition.

“There has been interest expressed in exhibiting the guitar in Cork in the future. The National Museum of Ireland is supportive of ensuring loans occur of the national collection and regularly loans objects to museums and institutions both nationally and internationally.

“The conditions for exhibition are determined by the object and the standard security and environmental controls required,” added the spokesperson.