Rainbow (also known as Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow or Blackmore’s Rainbow) were a British hard rock band formed in Hertford in 1975 by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore. Established after Blackmore’s first departure from Deep Purple, the band initially featured four members of the American rock group Elf, including singer Ronnie James Dio. After the self‑titled debut album, Blackmore dismissed all members except Dio and recruited drummer Cozy Powell, bassist Jimmy Bain, and keyboardist Tony Carey. This line‑up recorded the band’s second album Rising (1976). For Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll (1978), Bob Daisley and David Stone replaced Bain and Carey. Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll was also the final album with Dio, who left in 1979 to join Black Sabbath. Rainbow’s early work featured mystical lyrics within a hard rock/heavy metal style, later shifting toward a more pop‑rock direction after Dio’s departure. In 1979, Blackmore and Powell revamped the group, adding three new members: singer Graham Bonnet, keyboardist Don Airey, and former Deep Purple bassist Roger Glover. This line‑up gave the band their commercial breakthrough with the single “Since You Been Gone” from their fourth studio album Down to Earth. With Joe Lynn Turner, who replaced Bonnet in 1980, Rainbow recorded three more albums — Difficult to Cure (1981), Straight Between the Eyes (1982), and Bent Out of Shape (1983) — all achieving commercial success similar to earlier releases. Other members during this period included drummers Bobby Rondinelli and Chuck Burgi, and keyboardist David Rosenthal. The band split in 1984, when Blackmore and Glover rejoined Deep Purple.
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Stargazer
Mistreated
‘Carry On…Jon’
Catch The Rainbow
Beethoven’s Ninth
Gates Of Babylon
Long Live Rock N Roll
All Night Long
Difficult To Cure
Black Masquerade
Man On The Silver Mountain
The Temple Of The King
Tarot Woman
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