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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZBLACKMORE, Ritchie(b 14 April '45, Weston- Super-Mare, England) UK heavy metal guitarist, graduated from skiffle. With Screaming Lord Sutch's Savages '62; then Joe Meek's Outlaws house band '62--4 (with Chas Hodges, bass; Ken Lundgren, rhythm guitar; Mick Underwood, drums); toured UK behind Jerry Lee Lewis, Gene Vincent etc; short spell with Meek prot‚g‚ Heinz; spent most of '65--8 in Germany: cut fuzz-guitar-led single 'Getaway'/'Little Brown Jug' for Oriole '65; backed Neil Christian in Crusaders; Sutch again; formed Three Musketeers with Jimmy Evans, drums and Avid Anderson, bass. Returned to UK '68, joined Deep Purple until April '75, leaving because of funk musical direction favoured by Purple's new members. He already had solo LP Rainbow in the can, recorded with members of Elf, an NYC band contracted to Purple label; he ousted Elf guitarist Steve Edwards and renamed band Rainbow. First lineup: vocalist Ronnie James Dio (b Ronald Padavona, 10 July '49, Cortland NY); Mickey Lee Soule, keyboards; Craig Gruber, bass; Gary Driscoll, drums. The album reached no. 11 UK/30 USA; at Nov. live debut only Dio was left, with drummer Cozy Powell (b 29 Dec. '47, Cirencester; d 5 April '98 in car crash), Jimmy Bain, Tony Carey on bass and keyboards replacing others. Rainbow Rising '76 first LP by new band, remains Blackmore's best solo work: songs co-written with Dio remained the core of the live act for years, showcased on live On Stage '77 which also incl. instrumental version of 'Over The Rainbow'. USA chart status waned, but Rising equalled predecessor's chart entry in UK; next LP (live and studio) Long Live Rock'n'Roll '78 made no. 7 UK, also adding ex-Widowmaker bassist Bob Daisley, ex- Symphonic Slam keyboardist David Stone. Personnel changes went on: newcomers ousted by former Purple colleague Roger Glover (b 30 Nov. '45, Brecon, Wales) on bass and ex-Cozy Powell's Hammer keyboardist Don Airey. Dio left halfway through recording Down To Earth '79; ex-Marbles vocalist Graham Bonnet recruited; it made no. 6 UK, crisp prod. by Glover yielding hit singles in Russ Ballard's 'Since You've Been Gone', and 'All Night Long'. Bonnet's departure to Michael Shenker and Powell to Whitesnake were taken in stride; repacements Joe Lynn Turner on vocals, Bobby Rondinelli on drums (both Americans) debuted on Difficult To Cure '81, which followed trend by having less hard-rock feel than predecessors, had hit single in Ballard's 'I Surrender', at no. 3 UK the band's biggest hit. After Straight Between The Eyes and Bent Out Of Shape '82--3 and despite finally cracking USA top 40 with 'Stone Cold', Blackmore called it a day and re-formed Deep Purple, a move he said he'd never make. Rainbow's sound was remarkably consistent depite personnel changes; combined heavy metal fire-and-brimstone with rare commercial appeal and formed missing link between classics of HM genre and so-called New Wave of British Heavy Metal (Iron Maiden, Def Leppard etc). |