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Ritchie Blackmore spoke to a Russian paper about playing older material. Would you consider a reunion of the Mk III Purple?

Ian Paice: That wouldn't interest me at all. Ritchie may be a changed character but he will always bring problems. Life within Deep Purple right now is really sweet. At this stage in my life the last thing I want to be in unhappy.

Classic Rock Magazine UK - November Issue 2013






Was working with Ritchie Blackmore as exasperating as the media made it out to be?

Graham Bonnet: No. Ritchie, he's great! (laughing.) He and I became sort of close on the road when we first went out on tour. I don't know what it is. He... Rich is one of those guys... What can I say? Yeah sometimes he is a bit anti-social and he picks his friends way carefully and he only has a few friends that he can really get close to. That was a part of him being stand-offish or whatever, but I never found him like that at all. He was just the opposite. he's very shy, he has a very shy personality and people often mistake that for being obnoxious or whatever that may be.

But no. he was friends with my dad and that whole kind of thing while we were on tour in England. He used to hang out with my dad, you know? So yeah... He has that reputation, the man in black and all that, but he... (laughs) I don't know if he minds me saying all this but he is a really sweet guy! He really is.

The Bigfoot Diaries - April 2013     [For the full interview click here]




Uriah Heep’s classic song "Lady in Black" has been covered by Blackmore's Night on their latest CD titled "Dancer and the Moon".

Mick Box: It is a real pleasure to have this song covered by Blackmore’s Night, and Ritchie Blackmore is a guitarist, writer and performer, that I rate very highly indeed, and now the “Man in Black,” is playing “Lady in Black,” and that is so cool!


Friends of Uriah Heep on Facebook - April 2013




What does Ken Hensley thinks about Blackmore's Night doing a cover of Uriah Heep's perennial “Lady In Black”?

Ken Hensley: Well, I have to say that it’s a real honor any time that any artist covers one of my songs, but to have Ritchie include “Lady In Black” on his new album is very special, because he and I ran on totally parallel rock ‘n’ roll roads for so long, even rehearsing in the same building in West London in the very early days. I am a Deep Purple fan, of course, but I also respect Ritchie’s new direction and his willingness to explore and experiment with new musical adventures. Thanks Ritchie, I am humbled.

Dmitry M. Epstein, Let It Rock/DME - April 11, 2013




David Coverdale has got a copy of the California Jam Photo Book signed by Ritchie Blackmore.

David Coverdale: Richie, God bless him, has just signed the big “California Jam” book for my son and his beautiful wife Candice was very gracious in sending it back to me. In fact, let me tell you this. I´m sitting next to Doug Aldrich and I´m e-mailing on my iPad with Richie and my iPhone suddenly gets a text from Jimmy Page, and Doug Aldrich goes “Fuck man! Nobody on the planet can say they´re e-mailing Richie Blackmore and texting Jimmy Page at the same fucking time!”. Richie said to say hi to Jimmy and Jimmy sent a hello back and I was like an international fucking operator here.” (laughs)

Darker Than Blue/DPAS - March 2013     [For the full article click here]




Tell me something, have you ever had any contact with Ritchie Blackmore? Has he commented on your playing?

Steve Morse: I've had no contact with him, but he has made some comments which I thought were remarkably…restrained. He's certainly had perfect opportunities to say whatever he wants, negative or otherwise. I realize I could be one giant target for him. And not just Ritchie, but for many, many fans out there. There's still lots of people who want the band to be the original guys. I understand all of that.

But I'm really relieved that he hasn't said anything harsh about me. The most he ever said, and I'm paraphrasing, is something like, 'This guy plays very well and does a lot of different things. I'm not sure if he's right for Deep Purple...' He said something to that effect. But you know, how can anybody replace Ritchie Blackmore in Deep Purple?

Music Radar - June 27, 2011     [For the full interview click here]




David Coverdale wants to clear the air after a year in which he lost an aunt, a brother-in-law and Deep Purple keyboardist Jon Lord.

David Coverdale: It’s just not worthwhile carrying the excess emotional baggage of grudges or negative energy. There is just no room for it in my life. I’m reaching out – Ritchie Blackmore and I are communicating in the most positive way, and I truly appreciate that. Life is too short to hold a grudge.

Classic Rock Magazine - March 15, 2013     [For the full article click here]





Have you ever met Ritchie Blackmore?

Craig Goldy: I met him a couple of times when Giuffria toured with Deep Purple. On the very last night, I ended up in his private dressing room and we talked quite a bit. He was a really nice guy. I think a lot of it was that he knew the only reason I played guitar was because of him. I told him what a huge fan I was and meant every word of it. I think he's used to people using him and say, “Oh, I'm a big fan," but I meant it. I think he understood that and that meant something to him I think. He was really cool.

Guitar World - March 14, 2013     [For the full article click here]





Do you still keep in touch with Ritchie?

Joe Lynn Turner: Not much, it’s pretty difficult with the whole personality thing. It could be one line in an email. I could send an email saying congratulations on this or that and he would write back “thanks” [Laughing].


Guitar International - November 2012     [For the full interview click here]





Who does Candice remind you of that you worked with in the past. Does she remind you off working with Coverdale, Gillan or Dio?

Ritchie Blackmore: She reminds me of David Coverdale because she is always shouting at me and calling me baby.

103.9 WRCN-FM, The Rock of Long Island - October 27, 2012     [For the full audio interview click here]