Rory Could Change a String Mid-Song?

[folkdeejay]

Not that i doubt any of the stories per se - but in maybe a dozen shows seeing Rory right up till the early 90's , he ALWAYS used cables - albeit long ones. Stories on that link from the 80's (before there were wireless kits for guitars - or before there were many, anyway) about him going out of doors, up stairs, round the back of venues etc... it seems improbable, given the tangle that would occur, even if there was a spare 50m of cable.

Maybe memory clouds they years, and his all over-the-stage-show got beefed up a bit.

[Jay Jay]

Not that i doubt any of the stories per se - but in maybe a dozen shows seeing Rory right up till the early 90's , he ALWAYS used cables - albeit long ones. Stories on that link from the 80's (before there were wireless kits for guitars - or before there were many, anyway) about him going out of doors, up stairs, round the back of venues etc... it seems improbable, given the tangle that would occur, even if there was a spare 50m of cable.
Maybe memory clouds they years, and his all over-the-stage-show got beefed up a bit.

Yes folkdeejay,
I know exactly where you're coming from. Some of these stories have been elaborated on as the years have gone by.

Although as I put earlier in topic, I'm sure Rory has done this feat of changing a string mid song. One theory of how Rory did it so quickly, is that he used to have a spare string ready underneath in behind the plate at back of strat. Already with the string sticking out slightly through the bridge??

PS.I'll have to question Donal about this next time I see him. If I can remember?

[RobertaSparrow]

Ok, first, I do believe Rory could change a string during a song if he had a mind to, and I believe the people who say they saw him change one, did see it. But . . . I cannot accept that he had a string fed through the back of the strat on standby just in case, because, 1) that would mean he could accurately predict which of the strings would break, or 2) that he had six strings set on standby in case, and if so, what would keep them from tangling up before he needed one of them- Rory was not exactly the most non-animated guitarist on stage.

I think on those occasions where he did it it was because he happened to have access to an acceptable gauge of string at the moment one broke, and he knew exactly when would be the right moment to make the switch without interrupting the song. But usually, he was in mid solo, and would either just grab the errant string and tear it out, or wrap it around the headstock out of the way.

But it's a good story, nonetheless.

[AnnaMaria]

I read somewhere that he used to change strings every third Concert. Was that because he would break them? Or they end up in a knot? There are quite a lot of him breaking strings on Youtube.

[RobertaSparrow]

He worked the strings pretty hard. Probably knew from experience how long a set would last him, and most likely did that to prevent a lot of broken strings mid-set.

[AnnaMaria]

Listening to Taste "I´m moving on" I`ve always thought it sounds like he´s breaking a string there...somewhere in the middle. (of the song I mean not the guitar)