How It Was Recorded

Gary Moore · Album, 1979

Back on the Streets

This is an album-level record: the sources describe how the album as a whole was recorded, not one song. Where a detail belongs to a single song, the row says so.

Songs this record stands for: Parisienne Walkways. We found nothing specific to this song, so this album record is the closest account we have.

Lead and harmony vocalsGuitarBassDrumsStringsVerified7Reported7

What the sources do and do not say

Sound On Sound Classic Tracks interview with engineer and co-producer Chris Tsangarides. Vocals, mandolin-style Rickenbacker, Solina and the solo echo plate are tied to this song; the live-room rig for guitar, bass and drums is described for three songs including this one but the sentences do not name it, so those rows are album-level. The EMT 140 plates are listed as studio gear only and are not linked to the solo.

Lead and harmony vocals

Phil Lynott and Gary Moore

Microphone

Neumann U 87

VerifiedOne song

Microphone for both Lynott's lead vocal and Moore's harmony vocal.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. Microphone-modelling plugins only work with their own matched hardware microphone, so there is no plugin to link. Placement and the room matter more than the model.

Input chain

UREI 1176

VerifiedOne song

Limited both the lead and the harmony vocal while recording.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

Emulation of this unit

Universal Audio 1176 Classic Limiter Collection

compressor

Models several revisions of the 1176, including the blackface units.

Get the plugin ↗What else it stands in for

Also worth a look: Waves CLA-76 Compressor / Limiter (Models two 1176 revisions (blacky and bluey)).

Guitar

Gary Moore

Instrument

Gibson 1959 Les Paul Standard

Reported

Moore's 1959 Les Paul Standard, which he got from Peter Green.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. A guitar is the source of the sound, not a process applied to it. No plugin stands in for it.

Rickenbacker 12-string semi-acoustic guitar (model not stated)

VerifiedOne song

Strummed by Moore as a stand-in for a mandolin sound, as an overdub.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. A guitar is the source of the sound, not a process applied to it. No plugin stands in for it.

Amplifier

Mesa/Boogie Combo (model not stated)

Reported

Amp that Moore's Les Paul was played through, feeding a 4x12 cabinet.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

Covers this kind of unit

IK Multimedia AmpliTube 5

amp and cabinet simulator

An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear.

Get the plugin ↗What else it stands in for

Also worth a look: Native Instruments Guitar Rig 7 Pro (An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear).

Microphone

Neumann U 87

Reported

Microphone on the 4x12 cabinet for Moore's guitar.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. Microphone-modelling plugins only work with their own matched hardware microphone, so there is no plugin to link. Placement and the room matter more than the model.

Mix effects

Unidentified Plate reverb (model not stated)

VerifiedOne song

Tsangarides says the only thing he added to the solo, with its double-track and harmony, was echo plate.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

Close match

Universal Audio EMT 140 Classic Plate Reverberator

reverb

Models EMT 140 plates. The source does not name the plate used.

Get the plugin ↗What else it stands in for

Also worth a look: Waves Abbey Road Reverb Plates (Models the EMT 140 plates at Abbey Road. The source does not name the plate used).

Bass

Phil Lynott

Instrument

Fender Precision Bass

Reported

Lynott's bass, recorded both direct and via amps.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. A bass guitar is the source of the sound, not a process applied to it. No plugin stands in for it.

Amplifier

Recorded direct (DI), no amplifier

Reported

The bass was also taken direct, alongside the miked amps.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. Recorded direct, so there is no amp to model. Leave the amp simulator off.

Ampeg Portaflex

Reported

One of the amps the bass was recorded from, in combination with Marshall amps and cabinets.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

Covers this kind of unit

IK Multimedia AmpliTube 5

amp and cabinet simulator

An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear.

Get the plugin ↗What else it stands in for

Also worth a look: Native Instruments Guitar Rig 7 Pro (An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear).

Marshall Amps and cabinets (model not stated)

Reported

Marshall amps and cabinets were combined with the Ampeg for recording the bass.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

Covers this kind of unit

IK Multimedia AmpliTube 5

amp and cabinet simulator

An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear.

Get the plugin ↗What else it stands in for

Also worth a look: Native Instruments Guitar Rig 7 Pro (An amp and cabinet simulator that covers a wide range of amplifiers and speaker cabinets of this kind. It is not a model of this unit, so pick the nearest one in it by ear).

Drums

Brian Downey

Microphone

Neumann U 47

Verified

Microphone on Downey's bass drum for the live rhythm tracks.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. Microphone-modelling plugins only work with their own matched hardware microphone, so there is no plugin to link. Placement and the room matter more than the model.

Neumann KM 84

Verified

Microphone on Downey's snare for the live rhythm tracks.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

No plugin suggested. Microphone-modelling plugins only work with their own matched hardware microphone, so there is no plugin to link. Placement and the room matter more than the model.

Strings

Gary Moore

Instrument

ARP Solina String Ensemble

VerifiedOne song

Moore played it as an overdub on the track.

Source: Sound On Sound, accessed 15 Nov 2026

Emulation of this unit

Arturia Solina V

instrument

An emulation of the Solina String Ensemble.

Get the plugin ↗What else it stands in for

Sources

  1. Classic Tracks: Gary Moore 'Parisienne Walkways', Sound On Sound, 2012-07. Accessed 15 Nov 2026.
Verified

Stated by the engineer, producer or artist, or by the manufacturer.

Reported

Stated by a reputable secondary source.

Inferred

An educated suggestion, not a documented fact.

Disclosure: plugin links currently go straight to the maker and earn us nothing. If that changes, affiliate links will be marked here. Suggestions are chosen on fit, never on commission, and are kept separate from the recording facts. More.