A statue of Irish rock and blues legend Rory Gallagher has been unveiled in Belfast.
It is located at the Ulster Hall, one of the singer songwriter's favourite venues where he ended a series of New Year concert tours.
On this date alone, 4 January, he performed there several times on this date over the years.
Rory Gallagher was a true music great, selling more than 30 million albums worldwide.
Many of the world's best guitarists, including Jimi Hendrix, hailed him as the greatest of them all.
Hundreds of fans gathered today as a bronze statue of their hero was unveiled beside the venue he played many times, even during the height of the Troubles when many others refused to perform in the city.
His concerts brought together people from across Northern Ireland's religious divide.
"The day couldn't be more apt given that Rory played here on the fourth of January four or five times," said his nephew Eoin Gallagher.
"As you can see from the size of the crowd he's still held in great affection. His music is timeless, there's very kind of universal themes everyone can identify with.
"It doesn't matter where you come from, whatever your background music unites, art unites, culture unites, and Rory was really a wonderful ambassador for that."
The statue, by Bronze Art Ireland, is the culmination of years of campaigning and fundraising.
"It was his adopted city, but Rory adopted Belfast as much as he adopted Belfast and there's a love for Rory that you can see coming from this crowd because during the darkest days of the Troubles Rory made a point of always coming to the Ulster Hall, particularly at this time of year," said Frank Girvan of the Rory Gallagher Statute Trust Project.
"That was really appreciated by people of my generation, it meant a lot and you can see that today."
Born in Donegal, Gallagher spent many of his formative years in Cork when his family moved there in the 1950s before he moved to Belfast in 1967.
Cork city's Lord Mayor councillor Dan Boyle, also a fan, was one of the guest speakers at today's unveiling.
"I was actually in a band once upon a time and we called ourselves Blue Print which was the name of a Rory Gallagher LP, so Rory is very much thought of as an artistic God in Cork and I know it's feeling that's shared in Belfast and indeed throughout the world," he said.
"Rory's Christmas and New Year concerts in Cork and Belfast really united people across the island."
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Fans will gather in the Ulster Hall this evening to watch a documentary about their hero, including footage of him on stage there.
He is now a permanent fixture at a venue he loved as much as his fans loved him.
