Rory Gallagher’s 1950s Fender Twin Tweed

Rory used this amp around 1974/75 together with a Fender Bassman.

Around 1975, the amp caught fire on stage. From Rory’s words, it sounds like he ended up repairing it, but it is unknown whether this exact amp was ever used again. Do note that he did probably own more than just one Twin Tweed.

I turned around and realized that my amplifier had gone on fire. The flames were shooting out from it. There was a cooling fan at the back and that only helped spread the fire. I didn’t know what to do so I just stayed calm, hoped for the best and played on. The Towering Inferno wasn’t in it. The roadies came running onto the stage with extinguishers to try and put the fire out, and they managed to plug me into a spare amplifier.

Seeing my little amplifier on fire nearly broke my heart. The amp is about 20 years old, a real collector’s item. I insisted on having it repaired.

December 20, 1975 issue of Melody Maker