

“It was a grand work, which required intense concentration, and even though Moore could’ve played all the guitar parts himself, it was touching to see him painstakingly teach Scott Gorham the second harmony parts. “Phil Lynott had outdone himself with writing a true Celtic rock opus, the seven-minute ‘Roison Dubh (Black Rose),’” he said. Visconti, in his own memoir Bowie, Bolan & the Brooklyn Boy, remembered that the album transcended all of the rock ‘n’ roll excess that was present during its making.
THIN LIZZY BLACK ROSE HOW TO
At that point, it might sound odd to say, but we had started to learn how to record albums, 17 or whatever albums in! I thought Gary brought some good discipline into it…he and I started to work together really well.” ‘Phil Lynott had outdone himself’ “I’d rate it that way too, Jailbreak then Black Rose,” he said. A still relatively unknown Huey Lewis played harmonica on the track. Energy and sensitivity side by sideīlack Rose was a fine showcase for both Lizzy’s pure rock energy, on tracks like the British Top 10 single “Waiting For An Alibi.” Their more sensitive side was on display too, as on Phil Lynott’s collaboration with Moore, “Sarah.” Inspired by Phil’s new baby daughter and added in London after the Paris sessions, the song was originally intended for a Lynott solo album, before he decided to add it to Black Rose. Now they chose to record at the Pathé Marconi Studios on the outskirts of Paris largely because, the previous year, the Rolling Stoneshad made their Some Girls album there. The album was another collaboration with Tony Visconti, the already vastly-experienced producer who had overseen their 1977 set Bad Reputation and the following year’s Live and Dangerous concert LP. Black Rose (A Rock Legend) was released in the UK on April 13, 1979, and the results did not disappoint. With it came a determination to return from the French capital with a great record. We could probably all do with a long, hot summer night right now, and this is a genuine feelgood song.When Thin Lizzywent to Paris to start recording what would become their ninth studio album, they did so with Gary Moore starting his third stint in the band. He’d play you Dancing in the Moonlight on the acoustic guitar and you’d go, ‘Is that it?’ Then you’d hear the finished thing and understand what he’d been so enthusiastic about because he was hearing it as the finished thing in his head.” “Phil would spend more time on the words because he found the music not that difficult,” recalled Gary Moore.“They were very simple songs. It’s one of Lizzy’s best loved tunes, and it’s interesting to note that the parent album Bad Reputation was probably the band’s last throw of the dice, one that, finally, came good thanks to Lynott’s songwriting prowess.

THIN LIZZY BLACK ROSE FULL
Gorham’s solo is well worth spending some time with too as it features many of his trademarks a lovely full tone, George Benson-style sliding octaves, that shimmering vibrato, and phrases that are the perfect accompaniment to the main melody. Peppered throughout with the saxophone of Supertramp’s John Helliwell, the rhythm guitars are restrained, clean and to the point.
