Can't say he impacted me in any way personally, but I'm sure alot of the music I love wouldn't be around if it wasn't for him. Also, losing musicians always sucks, no matter who they are.
I literally grew up listening to his rock songs, Wild Frontier was the second Compact Disc I bought back in 1988 (anybody remember vinyl?).
Black Rose, Parisienne Walkways, Military Man & Out In The Fields with Phil Lynott, Shapes Of Things To Come, Empty Rooms, Over The Hills And Far Away, Wild Frontier, The Loner, After The War, Blood Of Emeralds... Classic, timeless music with some of the best rock guitar playing ever recorded. Mikael Åkerfeldt was totally right, one of the best hard rock guitar players EVER.
Last year Gary Moore played a very special hardrock set on the Sweden Rock Festival, even incorporating some new celtic rock songs reminescent of Wild Frontier. I was so looking forward to this planned new rock album to be released this year.
And now these horrible news. 10 more years and the rock world will be a much, much darker place.
Keep up the good work, Mr. Devin Townsend, in my music world you are one of the legitimate successors of legends like Gary Moore.