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Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow
Velodrom - Berlin, Germany April 18, 2018
Ritchie Blackmore in the Velodrom
He once wrote Deep Purple's legendary "Smoke on the Water" riff:
Ritchie Blackmore showed his virtuosity in the Velodrome.
Huge green eyes stare into the audience from the stage, the pupils have half a meter in diameter, in front of this gigantic projection Ritchie Blackmore stands with his band. Ritchie Blackmore, the man who wrote the memorable guitar riff for Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" before finally leaving the band and starting his own project with Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow.
As one of the first songs the band plays the Deep-Purple cover "Mistreated" in the Velodrom this evening. The band, which broke up twice since it was founded in 1975, has been active again since 2015. On stage is a complete reformation around the only permanent band member Blackmore. During his guitar solos in "Mistreated" Blackmore gets applause for individual notes, but not all band members have such easy time with the audience. When singer Ronnie Romero invites the audience to sing in his place, only inarticulate screaming follows. Briefly Romero puts his hand to his forehead, then it goes on.
The projections on the back wall of the stage sometimes show text animations, sometimes appealing graphics of rainbows in space, but most of the time are abstract shapes in all conceivable colors to see, reminiscent of Windows screensavers. Ritchie Blackmore plays almost on routine his solos, although these are not quite as exuberant and virtuoso as on concert recordings from the seventies, but you can not blame the 73-year-old.
During the song "Soldier of Fortune", the Chilean singer Romero once again tries to make the audience sing along, but when he holds the microphone in the crowd, it just answers with a yell of screaming. The band continues to play, strikingly often you can watch drunken people fall to the ground as the music speeds up. But they all get up again, shake each other for a short while, gouging their fingers in the air to signal that everything is alright, and keep dancing. No wonder hardly anyone sing along in the right places.
Unlike Romero Blackmore has the audience completely in his hand, during the song "Black Night" the crowd sings the relevant guitar riff so loudly that the band cheerfully leaves the stage and only after about a minute get back on.
This is followed by an interpretation of Beethoven's 9th Symphony "Ode to Joy", which contains a seemingly endless solo by keyboarder Jens Johansson. Then the band plays the hit "Long Live Rock'n'Roll", and finally Romero gets many-voiced support from the audience. "You can sing, at last," the singer calls into the microphone. At the latest, when the band plays "Smoke on the Water" a short time later, the whole hall sings, and they are happy with Romero that he still manages to win the audience's votes.
© Nils Neuhaus - Berliner Morgenpost
The old master on his knees
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow in Berlin: Riffs are only part of the art
With the new live album "Memories In Rock II" Ritchie Blackmore brings centuries-olds and virtuoso solos to Berlin in the Velodrome. He shows himself approachable and with a well-rehearsed band. But he does not dare to approach the first new song in over 20 years. There is no doubt that the concert evening is completely dedicated to (very) old rock music. While other bands prefer to play new fresh bands as their support act, The Lords opens for Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow in the Berlin Velodrome. Even the Rolling Stones have fewer annual rings. Stage announcements begin with Leo Lietz, Jupp Bauer, Bernd Zamulo and P.J.M. Seminara like this: "50 years ago we wrote a song ..."
At least the organizer does not respect old age. Unannounced, he shifts the stagetime for half an hour forward. Even later, the hall is not bursting at the seams, but The Lords begin their set to a truly sad small pile of early arrivals. When the band finishes the regular part of their performance at the originally planned start time of 8 pm, it is luckily a bit cuddlier in the audience, but after an encore hardly anyone shouts of confusion. Nevertheless, the musicians return and sing "Glory Glory Hallelujah". At least now the spark jumps over.
The one everyone is waiting for can then take their time. For a good three quarters of an hour, the audience has to make do with another guitar messiah: Jimi Hendrix sounds out of the speakers during the break. Eventually, however, the lights go out and an atmospheric searchlight light show plus "Land Of Hope And Glory" from tape played by Blackmore.
He welcomes his audience unexpectedly warmly: As soon as he stepped through the backstage curtain, he kneels for the first time on the edge of the stage and makes contact with his fans. Later he will go to handshakes, but first there is "Spotlight Kid" and "I Surrender". That means: game mode. Blackmore falls into his typically casual-bored fingerboard look. Motions he leaves to singer Ronnie Romero. He has the necessary presence and voice to entertain a tens of thousands of venues, but he also has a feeling that most of the viewers have eyes for the man, who is usually slightly behind him.
Romero proved in 2016 that he can fill the big footsteps of his well-known predecessors. Today, the first endurance test is already waiting for song number 4: After Blackmore flared his characteristic blues licks in "Mistreated", he started "Since You Been Gone". Romero exists with waving red flag band on the right thigh. He also masters the following Dio-showpiece "Man On The Silver Mountain".
After the groovy Deep Purple semi-ballad "Perfect Stranger" Blackmore switches to the acoustic guitar. It should be "Soldier Of Fortune". This is the first time in the evening, too clear signs of wear: Although the great dynamic increase of the number still works through the good interaction of the band, but the intimate imaginary beginning with Blackmore and Romero in a cozy togetherness on a dark stage gets tired today.
That's when it comes down to two numbers with a long jam part: "Black Night" and "Difficult To Cure". Especially "Black Night" reminds us that one of the most influential figures in rock history is on stage here. This is also apparent to the soundman, because meanwhile Blackmore's guitar sounds so loud that neither keyboarder Jens Johansson nor Romero on the mic reasonably arrive against it. However, the magical effect of the world-famous riff does not seem to cloud it, so that it continues loudly through the throats of the fans, while the band can disappear without too much attention or further guidance from the stage.
In addition to his iconic riffs, Ritchie Blackmore is also known for virtuoso solos. In a rush of speed he plays with his 73 years now (four days before the show he celebrated his birthday) no more; Also, his lead game was before a lot more impressing and imaginative. But technical finesses such as two-handed tapping flash over and over again and he still wears his own gentle yet powerful feeling in his fingers.
In addition to Blackmore, Johansson plays also extensively solos. In "Difficult To Cure" his fellow musicians leave him a spotlight for several minutes and leave the stage again. Previously, he delivers an amusing duel with bassist Bob Nouveau, who also gets room for a solo in the following song. For as Blackmore waddles along with his oversized setlist panel towards the front row, a few moments later it is clear: it is "Child In Time" turn.
The timeless Purple classic then evolves into Romero's masterpiece this evening. Sovereign he conquers the famous harmony vocals in the first section of the song. By contrast, even the subsequent "Rising" opus "Stargazer" fades. The final double "Smoke On The Water" / "Burn" turns out to be less fiery than its content. Although the most famous riff ever written is a powerhouse itself, it reveals clear deficits against Blackmore's ex-colleague Deep Purple. Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow looks like a cover band in comparison - albeit with a star guitarist.
What a pity that Blackmore does not counter this coverband status with the first new Rainbow song for over 20 years. After all, he released on the occasion, published on 6 April, the live album "Memories In Rock II" with the brand new track "Waiting For A Sign". One wonders why he excludes this track on this tour. Alone, because Romero proves his abilities beyond his Dio / Bonnet / Turner / White replacement role in this song, the track deserves a place in the setlist. Maybe Blackmore prefers to write a complete album around this new song right away and tour again. Hope allowed. Let's just wait for a sign.
© Manuel Berger - Regio Active
Ritchie Blackmore was here
Rainbow presented themselves as a joyous Deep Purple
tribute band at their only Germany concert in Berlin
The coolness of a rock band was always readable, how long they let their fans wait at the concert. For example, Pete Doherty came to Berlin shortly before one o'clock on stage. But things in rock have changed. Today you usually start on time, which especially the oldest in the audience expects. Ritchie Blackmore, 50 years in the business and creator of the world's most famous guitar riff, makes it different again. He wants to start the only German concert of his band Rainbow on Wednesday in the Berlin Velodrom just half an hour earlier, which is why the opening act The Lords has to get out earlier. At the end of the day Rainbow will come on stage as planned at 9 pm and nobody knows what that would be like. Maybe Blackmore has finished his drink in peace, because on stage he is always a little bit puzzled, as he reported recently.
Anyway, he does not care what people think about him anyway (see also his medieval music project Blackmore's Night). He has already pulled his boots through at Deep Purple, where there was always trouble, especially with singer Ian Gillan. That's why he founded his own Rainbow band in 1975 and led them through the decades with dozens of band members on the hire-and-fire principle.
But that is less important than before, because in principle, the fans come only because of Blackmore and in the hope that he plays as many Purple hits as possible. Even those who Deep Purple do not play anymore, because singer Ian Gillan does not want to sing out of stubbornness or because he does not come up with the vocals anymore. Which is not a problem for the young Rainbow singer Ronnie Romero, a Chilean. By the way, he also earns a Spartakiade medal for the discipline classic Rockstar posing, which is his boss, who finds such behavior rather ridiculous, but also banana. He stands in his corner or in front of the drums and plays his guitar. As hoped by the approximately 7,000 fans, he agrees in addition to Rainbow hits such as "I Surrender" and "Since You Been Gone" also plenty of Purple music, from all phases of the band: "Mistreated", "Perfect Strangers", "Black Night "- all without alienation, as Robert Plant does in his concerts with old Led Zeppelin songs. In that sense, today's Rainbow are more like a Purple tribute band with a Purple original member.
A look in the round in front of the stage, however, leaves no doubt that the fans of Blackmore's couldn't-care-less attitude are included. The heads, that are still present, scream, the beer sloshing in the cups, and the eyes roll blissfully.
Only one thing missing: The monster riff of "Smoke On The Water". It comes, unprepared, because the vocal lines from the vocalist begin with the introduction before Blackmore smashes the most famous guitar riff in rock history onto his steel strings. It roars through the hall, in which all sorts of air guitar players fall into disarray. And then Ritchie Blackmore just stops in the middle of the song and leaves the stage. That would have been a pretty cool final act. But such double bottom things the 73-year-old does not shears. So he comes back and now plays with his band "Burn" and "Child In Time", which drives the vocals in the audience again to new heights. Oh yes, in between there's Beethoven's monster reef from the Ninth, which Blackmore has retired to the instrumental title "Difficult to Cure". Cheesy, but that's just how he is, that's Ritchie. He can do everything, and does everything.
© Gunnar Leue - Freie Presse
On our way to the only concert of Ritchie in Germany
Despite Ritchie's reluctance if he will give anymore concerts on our mainland, we (Theo Feldman, Ron Leder, Wim Weijts and I) were honored to see Rainbow at work in Berlin. Beforehand we had already heard from Wim Weijts, who was also present in Helsinki, that Rainbow was doing well, only they did not play an encore there. The cause was probably an inappropriate comment from the bassist Bob who wanted to put Ritchie in the spotlight he apparently had no appreciation for, resulting in no encore.
Nevertheless, I drove to Berlin in good spirits. The atmosphere was very good and there was a lot of attention at the futuristic Velodrome early in the afternoon. As a support act Ritchie had invited 'the Lords' who only played old Rock' n Roll.
Finally, after the introtape of Ritchie's own version of 'Land of Hope and Glory' at 21.10 hours, Rainbow started a two-hour show that was filled with only real Memories of Rock, highlights from the first Rainbow / Deep Purple period. It is also not possible to play everything because they would have to fill three evenings. Despite the promise to play more Rainbow songs, six Purple songs were played. Personally I would have liked to hear more Rainbow songs like Ariel, Catch the Rainbow, Black Masquerade or Still I'm Sad.
The band opened with the well-known 'Spotlight Kid' followed by 'I Surrender'. Ritchie looked very relaxed and was immediately in his element. Ronnie also did his best to made the fans enthusiastic immediately. The stage was equipped with a life-size video screen on which the album covers of Rainbow were to be seen. The third song 'Mistreated' was used with a short introduction. Here it was clear to hear that Ritchie was no longer looking for speed in his solo but was making the melody sound more. This will undoubtedly have to do with his fingers that have suffered joint wear after 73 years. Nevertheless, he plays his songs with ease.
With the Down to Earth background 'Since you have been gone' was used. Then came the song written for Ronnie, 'Man on the Silver Mountain'. I keep in mind that with this song Ronnie has convinced Ritchie to choose him as a singer. Ronnie performs all Dio songs perfectly with the right passion that makes you feel like a fan like Dio is still there. Despite all the criticisms on this line up, we must be grateful to Ritchie for seeing Rainbow live. As I wrote, there was also a lot of Purple material to hear. So 'Perfect Strangers' and 'Smoke on the Water' were not skipped. Songs that were also always discussed in the real Rainbow period. Blackmore without the riffs of Smoke means the concert is not complete.
This time also no tribute to Jon Lord but 'Soldier of Fortune' which Ritchie played entirely acoustically with the whole hall singing along. Nice to hear and goose bumps when this song is played. Ritchie continues with his own version of the masterpiece of Beethoven's ninth, 'Difficult to Cure', after which he starts a sing-along 'Black Night'. The audience sings along with them in full chest. The wish of the 'All Night Long' thought makes you dream that the evening will remain infinitely long. Although I missed Graham's voice here, the mood was right. This song was followed by 'Child in Time', a song that Ronnie also sing with passion.
Eventually the tones of 'Stargazer' were used and the Rising background appeared. You immediately felt in higher spheres as the magic of Rainbow was in its early years. As if it was not possible, 'Long Live Rock' n 'Roll' was done and a beautiful blue pen drawing of the Long Live Rock 'n Roll album cover appeared in the background.
In contrast to the futuristic 'rainbow' background from 2016, the video wall with the various album covers made you feel like you were watching a 1977 concert. The show ended with 'Smoke on the Water' and after a short break 'Burn' was played as an encore. After more than two hours the hall lights went on and we were back on the ground with both feet. We had another 'Memory of Rock' that can not be taken away.
The line up played significantly better than in 2016. The band is better used to each other. Although I can not stop myself from saying that a reunion with the old Rainbow members like the Michael Schenker Fest did was probably better. In the end, Ritchie does not call it Memories of Rock for nothing, right? Although the master does not look that dynamic anymore, he still manages to give his fans an unforgettable evening. Now the question remains: does he come back again? ...... Maybe Next Time!
© Henk van Schijndel
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow - Berlin 2018
April 18, 2018. For the 3rd year in a row, Ritchie Blackmore resurrects Rainbow. No Birmingham this time, We take the direction of Germany, his adopted country and direction to Berlin, the capital for a concert that promises ROCK.
We often say "never two without three", this time it will be without. No Birmingham this year for this Rainbow version 2018. We go to Germany at the Velodrom (as if I had a head to ride a bike). Another atmosphere, another concert? We'll see that...
Since 1 year and our last Rainbow concert in Birmingham, things have changed a bit and our friend often not very talkative in the press is a little more and develops his ideas... Things change, Ritchie pushes for the reunification of Deep Purple for a single date but things seem very complicated, especially with Ian Gillan who refuses him categorically.
This year the rainbow has dropped its colors to the east. 5 dates this year with Moscow, St. Petersburg, Helsinki, Berlin and Prague. Not surprising choice when we know that Russians, northerners and Germans are among the biggest fans of Rainbow. But oddly I'll bet on a mini tour in Japan... maybe next year...
There's a lot of people around, and the Berlin walls give pride of place to our group with posters plastered all over the city. Surprisingly, the posters are white and the most beautiful effect. Too bad that posters of the event were not for sale.
Fans came in numbers with beautiful outfits. Obviously the (good) beer is flowing and the "Rainbow", "Dio", or "Deep Purple" patches on the sleeveless jeans jackets have made their way out of the year. Elegance and good taste are waiting for you! The queue is huge in front of the Velodrom! Why? The reason: A body search, for everybody!
Can not get any camera in, as small as it is. The Germans do not skimp with security, to my dismay :-(. So it will be videos to the smartphone ... without interest I grant you especially since I am far in the stands .... I'll do some screenshots ... to the smartphone.
German group The Lords in the first part tonight. Not so interesting ... I take the opportunity to do the tour of the Velodrom (on foot because I do not have my bike :-)). A lot of beer stand and junk food: The happiness of fat and calories.
The setlist has not changed much since the last 2 tours. A title more or less, beyond but nothing new. Anyway we go for what? To take a big dose of Blackmore! A sound, an inimitable style. Even with a slow tempo, much less inspired or technical solos, Ritchie remains Ritchie and emotion at the slightest note from his guitar is well worth the trip.
Same band, same lights. Decidedly it is far from Rainbow times with Ronnie James Dio where the setlist evolve every night according to the moods of MONSIEUR Blackmore. No Smoke On The Water tonight. It can be read in interviews that his arthritis could push him not to play certain titles and shorten a concert. Tonight it will be Smoke On The Water. Too bad for us.
It was not the best of Rainbow tonight. For that, see the reviews of concerts 2016 and especially 2017 in Birmingham.
Will they be back in 2019?...
The concert does not end at Velodrom, outside, a wild scene rose with two guitarists (a very good level). they make us re-live the biggest hits of Deep Purple and Rainbow...
© Elian Poupard, I-Was-There
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow - Berlin 2018
Waiting For A Sign Tour 2018, Berlin Velodrom, April 18, 2018
Today I am allowed to attend the only German concert by Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow. I arrive at the Berlin Velodrom relatively early. At first it is unclear where the press entrance is. After some back and forth, the entrance for guests and VIPs is also opened to the press and the necessary formalities are completed. Bag checks, then everyone is personally accompanied to the ticket booth in case I could run into the hall without permission... As it is still a good half hour until official admission, I have a look around. This is where the six-day cycling races usually take place. Now the track is well covered and there is room for a good 11,000 spectators. According to the organizers, several thousand more tickets could easily have been sold. But the new group led by 73-year-old Ritchie Blackmore cannot attract as many people to Berlin. After the first sign of life from the newly reformed band after 17 years of inactivity caused a stir in 2015, the euphoria quickly died down. After all, the old master has relied exclusively on new collaborators, which has not always resulted in a positive response. So now, after last year's German performances at the Loreley and in Bietigheim-Bissingen (Stuttgart), the only concert in Germany.
The opening act is the even older The Lords. They are probably there to make Ritchie look younger. This beat and rock band has existed since 1959 and is therefore older than the Stones. On closer inspection, I can only think of one song by them: Poor Boy from 1966. But that's it. What the gentlemen deliver on stage is rather mediocre, but they can still play the instruments pretty well. They definitely bring out their rock side. And now it gets strange. The official start is supposed to be at 7 p.m., but the Lords are already on stage half an hour earlier. The reason: the guitar master would like to start at 8:30 a.m., hence the earlier start of the concert – but nobody was informed about it. So there are no photos of the Lords except for those that can be taken from inside the hall. Ritchie wanted to perform at 8:30 p.m., but then changed his mind at the last minute and the show will now start at 9:00 p.m. That means a long wait. The other news is that photos can only be taken of the first two songs. So be quick. Since we have to wait so long, we have had some nice conversations with local and national photographers. One of them, who used to work for Rock Hard Magazine, tells a few anecdotes from previous interviews with big names like Lemmy, Blackmore and German bands. Exciting.
It is now five past nine, and after the obligatory intro Over The Rainbow has been played, Messrs Blackmore, Ronnie Romero, Bob Nouveau, David Keith and Jens Johansson enter the tidied stage. Spotlight Kid is played first. Ritchie kneels down at the edge of the stage and looks out into the audience in his typical manner, but he no longer seems as aloof as he used to. Ronnie Romero on the microphone, with a red scarf tied around his thigh, is in good voice and the track sounds like Rainbow. Thanks to SetList FM, the song order is known and it is almost identical to that on the live album Memories In Rock II , which was released recently. I Surrender follows and then the photographers all have to leave the hall before they can go back in. Many don't stay, but of course I don't miss it. This means I get to enjoy hearing the rest of Mistreated. A challenge for any singer, but Ronnie masters it brilliantly and is almost as good as Dio or Gillan. The old master on his Fender Stratocaster casually plucks the strings on his fingerboard and then what makes him so unique comes through. The typical characteristic blues licks fired into the audience from the wrist. We all want to see and especially hear that and for that he gets applause.
Unfortunately he lacks some of the virtuosity of earlier years. He recently celebrated his 73rd birthday and his fingers are not as fast anymore. Since You Been Gone follows. In the background, on the huge screen, you can admire the LED rainbow or the large, bright, oversized eyes that you will probably know from the Straight Between The Eyes CD. Otherwise, the imagery relies on a wide variety of rainbow variations, text fragments or projections similar to Windows screen savers.
Man On The Silver Mountain, including a detour to Woman From Tokyo , is the next song. The Chilean Ronnie Romero masters this Dio showpiece flawlessly and is the moving entity on stage. Everyone else is rather static and even the guitar god rarely moves much. Only his fingers are agile and coax the notes from the Fender that everyone wants. Everyone recognizes the organ intro that follows and what follows is the Deep Purple semi-ballad Perfect Strangers. If you take a closer look at the setlist at this point, the attentive reader and connoisseur of Purple/Rainbow songs will notice that a lot of Deep Purple songs are played. Half of them, to be precise. But whatever. This is about the guitarist, who again appears in friendly black, but wears comfortable ankle boots. Ritchie switches to the acoustic guitar. Oh no, not a Blackmore's Night song? After all, Candice is in the background choir. No, it's Soldier Of Fortune. It's just Blackmore and Romero standing together on a dark stage, which is supposed to create a good atmosphere, but it's very tired. The attempt to get the crowd to sing along also fails. This is the second time that it doesn't work despite the animation.
The first longer jam section can be heard in Difficult To Cure. Beethoven's Ode to Joy heralds this and Jens Johansson 's minute-long solo unfortunately does not come close to the genius of well-known former organ artists such as Jon Lord or Deep Purple's Don Airey. The preceding interlude with bassist Bob Nouveau is still quite good and is reminiscent of the duels of the former guitar/organ faction. And extensive jams were a characteristic of earlier concerts. Now Black Night follows and it fits again. Here the audience knows the lyrics and is in the mood to sing. And now they are singing along so loudly that the musicians leave the stage. At first they think they're stopping after an hour - but after a minute they come back and it becomes very clear who is on stage. One of the most influential guitarists in rock history. These inimitable riffs made the man famous. For that alone it was worth being here. Unfortunately, the guitar tone is set so high that neither the keyboard nor the singer can cope with it. The sound engineer means well by Mr. Blackmore.
Luckily he corrects that and Child In Time follows , which Deep Purple hasn't played for years, Ian Gillan's voice just can't keep up with it anymore. Ronnie Romero, on the other hand, shines here and that must have been today's highlight. He masters the harmony vocals brilliantly, especially in the first part, and brings the whole piece effortlessly over his lips. He also manages the high parts without any effort. Ritchie shows his virtuosity on the six-string here and so the powerful feeling is completely convincing here. Overall, however, he was more lively and imaginative. Stargazer from the Rizing CD follows.
After Child in Time, however, this piece completely fades away. Before Smoke On The Water heralds the obligatory end, Long Live Rock'n'Roll is a must. Here Ronnie Romero is again given extensive support by the audience, because everyone seems to know it and can also shout the long chorus. The mostly more sedate gentlemen, some of whom have already got into the mood with the appropriate Berlin beer, are becoming young again here. It happens as it must and one of the most famous riffs in the world sounds. Smoke on the water, fire in the sky, who doesn't know it. The gentlemen from Deep Purple do it much better and the encore Burn also lacks fire. Rainbow seems more like a mediocre cover band with a star guitarist. What I unfortunately miss is the only new song, which the tour was named after. Waiting For A Sign is not played, perhaps it will be saved until there is a completely new CD, including the tour.
My conclusion about this evening is therefore rather ambivalent. On the one hand, it was brilliant, on the other, it was rather so-so. The less than ideal organization did lead to a discordant note. The rather mediocre band around Ritchie Blackmore also left a slight disappointment. The music is great and timeless and without a doubt Ronnie Romero is a winner and perhaps you should also check out his main band Lords Of Black. It is nice, however, that Ritchie is once again committed to electric music and not just in tights and acoustically indulging in medieval folk with Candice . But for fans of the old master, it was a piece of nostalgia.
© Kay L, Time For Metal - April 24, 2018
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow - Berlin 2018
Rainbow remain victorious in the fight against the sound of the Velodrome
The compositions, the presentation, the sound - in this order the participants crossed the finish line on April 19th. It was to be expected that the sound would once again end up in last place in the Velodrom. But the location alone is not to blame for the fact that you couldn't hear Ronnie Romero's singing at times. The man at the mixing desk certainly had a part to play in that. In some places that may even have been a mercy, because Romero had to perform songs that were originally by the trio of gods Dio - Gillan - Coverdale.
Overall, he did a more than acceptable job. But he was actually strongest and most authentic when he performed material from the 80s, when Rainbow clearly steered the hard rock steamer towards the AOR coastal regions.
As has been the case since the surprise reactivation of Rainbow in 2016, the program presented under Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow banner was an almost equal mix of Rainbow and Deep Purple material. In principle, it was an abridged version of the current live double CD Memories in Rock II plus "Burn" as an encore. This can be seen as a positive thing, since the identity of main man Ritchie Blackmore is at least as much influenced by Deep Purple as by Rainbow. And with a full playing time of 2 hours net, there was as much Rainbow material on the line as one would expect from other bands in a complete concert. On the other hand, I would have preferred to hear songs like "Tarot Woman", "Starstruck", "The Temple of the King", "Gates of Babylon", "Kill the King" and of course "Catch the Rainbow" in a Rainbow concert than "Mistreated", "Perfect Strangers" or "Woman from Tokyo" - as much as I love these songs.
The visual presentation was designed with a video screen as a backdrop and a rather opulent light show. The screen was not on all the time, but occasionally showed record covers for Rainbow songs and backgrounds that matched the lyrics for Deep Purple songs – for example, a wall of fire for "Burn", a surface of water with a kind of mist above it for "Smoke on the Water" , and a starry sky reminiscent of Christmas wrapping paper for "Black Night". The alienation of the cover of Long Live Rock'n'Roll was very nice. While all the other covers were shown in their original form, this one was a kind of negative representation, which ensured that the then legendary line-up with Dio and Cozy Powell did not appear to be in competition with the current line-up quite so clearly. Mostly, however, there were mainly color effects, sometimes just supported by the light show, sometimes by the screen – and sometimes so intense and "loud" that they competed with the music. The visual maelstrom that perfectly supported the wild instrumental part of "Child in Time" was fantastic. In "Since you've been gone", however, it was quite clear that the intended synchronicity between image and sound simply didn't work.
"Since you've been gone" fits into the first part of the concert, where the concert had to find its feet. The spark didn't really fly, certainly because the vocals were often almost non-existent, and Blackmore didn't even try to cover up the technical problems when switching to the acoustic guitar. Nevertheless, "Soldiers of Fortune", which followed after the guitar change, became the first highlight of the evening. Performed with just an acoustic guitar and vocals, the sound problems suddenly disappeared. The classic ballad came out of the speakers crystal clear. Romero's attempt to repeat Coverdale's high screams at the end of the piece failed miserably. But that didn't spoil the mood - and "Black Night" finally broke the deadlock. The band and audience were now a unit, and they enthusiastically stormed through some of the greatest classics in hard rock history.
The sound problems weren't completely resolved, though. For example, I only heard the two background singers acoustically once on one song ( "All Night long" ). But the pull of the songs pulled the concert along on wide heels over this potholed track of sound technology. At no point did Blackmore play the diva who always has to be the center of attention. Of course, his guitar solos dominated the concert and for a man who celebrated his 73rd birthday four days before this concert, he was incredibly agile, emotional and precise. But his performance seemed rather modest and reserved and he gave the other musicians in the band plenty of opportunity to be in the spotlight themselves.
So he left the stage after he had introduced "Difficult to cure" with his interpretation of Beethoven's Fifth. Rainbow became a trio, with David Keith laying the foundation for a wild organ-bass duel. And then Jens Johansson stood alone on stage. Bathed in golden light, he celebrated a long organ solo, or rather organ concerto - and in this light he seemed more like Rick Wakeman than Jon Lord. Great 70s show.
But nothing compared to what began a few minutes later with bass and organ in the quiet intro, which was a bit too heavy. "Child in Time" becomes a fantastic firework display from the whole band. Strongest with Blackmore at the centre. But even when he lets others go first, jaws drop - a cathedral of a song! For other bands this furioso would be the end of it, but with Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow it goes on and on. One unbeatable trump card after another hits the table. "Stargazer" , one of Rainbow 's great epics , is introduced with a short drum solo. "Long live Rock'n'Roll" is one of the band's great party songs - and then Blackmore can afford to simply ignore one of the most famous opening riffs in music history and let the audience open "Smoke on the Water" with a sing-along. Nothing more can come now.
And yet it does. After a short break, the band burns up even brighter with "Burn" and sends a much too well-behaved audience off into one of the first beautiful, warm nights of the year. In the past, at this level of tension, anyone would have done anything to clap out an unplanned encore.
After these furious two hours, the opening act was almost completely forgotten. And yet they had certainly been able to win over the Rainbow fans. They had started under the worst possible conditions. The concert was scheduled to start at 8 p.m., but The Lords were sent on stage at 7:15 p.m. The hall was still very sparsely filled. And before any questions arise: Yes. It really was the German rock'n'roll legend, founded well before Rainbow and Deep Purple at the end of the 50s, and half of the band's members are still from that time.
After three or four songs came their biggest hit "Poor Boy" , a long rock'n'roll medley and after half an hour an epic piece at the end. But that was by no means the end. What followed was more of a second set than an encore – more geared towards gospel and Americana. At the end The Lords had played for a full hour and were bid farewell by the now well-filled hall with lively applause right up to the back of the audience. Many bands often have to do without this – especially before a legend like Rainbow. Incidentally, they are said to have been given the job as opening act at Blackmore's express request. He may have known them personally from a time before Deep Purple, when he played with smaller rock'n'roll and beat bands such as Heinz and The Outlaws and toured Germany, among other places. Back then, The Lords had success after success here as "the German Beatles".
© Norbert von Fransecky, Musik an sich - April 19, 2018
Photo: © Andreas Lemke
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow - Berlin 2018
No, he didn't hit a camera with his guitar and he didn't set one of his Marshall towers on fire. (That happened in 1974 with Deep Purple). At 73, exceptional guitarist Ritchie Blackmore has also reached calmer waters.
On Wednesday (April 18, 2018), Blackmore gave his only German concert of 2018 with Rainbow in the Berlin Velodrom as part of his "Memories in Rock" tour. Unfortunately, the venue wasn't completely sold out, whether it was because of the ticket prices (from around 80 euros), the Wednesday itself or some other reason, you would have thought that when one of the best 50 guitarists in the world is performing, the place would be packed. The concert was certainly well attended, but there were still tickets available at the box office.
The evening then began in total chaos. The support act was actually scheduled for 8:00 p.m., but was brought forward because Blackmore'S Rainbow wanted to start at 8:30 p.m. instead of 9:00 p.m. So "The Lords" started their support act earlier and in front of almost empty stands. Unfortunately, I personally didn't see much of it, as I didn't arrive at the hall until 8:00 p.m. By then, Germany's longest-serving rock band had almost finished their set. In order to get a few photos, the organizer quickly guided us to the pit, only to then have to tell the photographers that photography was only possible from the audience. Ummm, yes. "The Lords" from the audience. You can forgive me for not doing that.
But the farce was far from over. Because in the meantime, it was announced that the main act would not start until 9:00 p.m. Without further ado, THE LORDS were sent back on stage. They were clearly overwhelmed by the back and forth, as their set list simply did not allow for such an "encore", and ultimately saved themselves with "Glory, Glory Hallelujah". In fact, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
It took almost an hour until Ritchie Blackmore finally took the stage with Rainbow. When Blackmore revived Rainbow in 2016, there was harsh criticism of the line-up, as not a single former band member was among the "chosen ones". Continuing this discussion at this point is pointless, especially since the new "Rainbow's" are now running more smoothly than they were two years ago. Nevertheless, it cannot be overlooked that Ronnie Romero on vocals in particular finds it difficult to animate the audience. Ritchie Blackmore himself was completely different, beginning the concert by kneeling in front of and shaking hands with his audience.
Blackmore's Rainbow set then opened with "Spotlight Kid" and "I Surrender". Typical: the master's bored look, which doesn't detract from his virtuoso guitar playing. Of course. When you're over 70, you're not quite as fast, not quite as dynamic on the strings. But it's still world class.
"Soldier Of Fortune" seemed a bit tired when Blackmore picked up the acoustic guitar. But that was immediately revised with the following "Black Night". However, the sound engineer liked the riffs so much that he turned the guitar up so high that you couldn't really hear the vocals or the keyboard. The fans didn't seem to mind, however, and sang along loudly. Loud enough that the band could leave the stage and only came back after a minute. The mood had been rather lukewarm up until then (of course the master was given several rounds of applause during his solos), but now they had finally arrived. Forget the inarticulate screaming of the fans when Ronnie Romero first tried to get the audience to sing along.
But since we're on the subject of sound, the sound wasn't really convincing throughout the whole concert. There was definitely room for improvement. The light show, on the other hand, was convincing overall.
The screens behind the stage sometimes featured oversized green eyes, sometimes graphics of rainbows and universes, sometimes just some abstract shapes. Oh well.
Jens Johansson on keyboards gets just as much space for his solo (far too long for my taste), as does Bob Nouveau on bass. With "Long Live Rock'n'Roll" Romero finally managed it and got the full support of the audience.
"Smoke On The Water" and "Burn" at the end of the setlist unfortunately turn out to be a disappointment again. I had the honor of seeing Deep Purple live in Berlin two years ago. The fire and passion they put into the two songs, Rainbow could not even begin to bring to the stage. Overall, a rather mixed concert with a star guitarist who is nevertheless above all criticism. Not quite as fast and virtuosic as before, but still an absolute must.
© Jens, Lady Metal
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow at the Berlin Velodrome
A Great Back to Basics
Rainbow delighted an audience from all over the world in Berlin. For the third year in a row, offering the best of Deep Purple and Rainbow hits, Ritchie Blackmore, the master of the Stratocaster, demonstrated that the Hard Rock machine he had stopped in 1995 was still going strong. This year, it was more powerful than ever...
The colors of the rainbow have regained all their brilliance! After two years of touring at a very high level, the first single from this new Rainbow line-up, “Waiting For A Sign”, released in spring 2018, had already announced the color: the electric guitar playing of the master Blackmore as we knew it in the golden age of Deep Purple and Rainbow, in the 1970s/1980s is back.
This concert was the sign that we were waiting for, and that we perceived. Blackmore is well and truly back on top! After two dates in Russia, one of which even attracted Russian Prime Minister Dimitri Medvedev, and one in Finland, Rainbow set down its suitcases, speakers and guitars in Berlin. No surprise for the proven Germanophile that is Ritchie Blackmore, who has lived in Germany for part of his life. Since 1997, it is also there that he has toured almost exclusively, every year, with Blackmores Night, the medieval music group that he formed with his partner Candice Night. Although he alternated between the two groups over the last two years, Ritchie decided to focus his efforts on Rainbow in 2018, which was once again very noticeable in the magnificent performance he gave us...
Coming from Italy, Spain, Iceland, England or even France (Rock 'n' Roll cocorico?) spectators from all over the world are present in mass to mingle with the German public. They fill the 5000 seats of the Velodrome which is also sold out. From mid-afternoon, gathered in the shade in front of the entrance doors, curious as well as purists, everyone chats in a good-natured atmosphere, each mastering the alliance of languages ??almost as well as Ritchie the alliance of styles.
At 6 p.m., the doors open. A little race for the best seat is necessary before continuing the discussions in the pit for some, going to drink a beer for others. The first part comes on stage very early. It's The Lords. The group formed in 1959 plays a few songs that made them famous in the 1960s, especially in England and Germany: "Poor Boy", "Glory Land"... before starting a medley of covers of the greatest Rock 'n' Roll hits. A forgotten but completely crazy group. To listen to urgently!
But everyone is obviously there to cheer on one of the greatest guitarists in activity, the one who helped propel David Coverdale or Ronnie James Dio to stardom as the founder and legendary guitarist of Rainbow and Deep Purple (the group is also celebrating its 50th anniversary): Mr. Ritchie Blackmore! If he's keeping us waiting, it's because the kick-off is scheduled for 9 p.m. And at 9 p.m.: nothing! We still have to wait, to put up with a few songs that have nothing to do with what the audience expects... When suddenly the anthem "Land of Hope and Glory" rings out!
Ritchie comes back on stage, quickly, humbly, to first greet his fans in the 1st row, riding the photographers present for the first 2 songs (and no more, they know that "The Man In Black" has always mistreated them: at best a glass of water, at worst the camera broken with blows from a guitar). The last notes of the anthem disappear, Ritchie moves back towards the center of the stage, and lets out the overpowering sound of his Stratocaster a thunderous "Spotlight Kid". The sound of the guitar is violent, aggressive, and dominates the rest of the other instruments. A delight. Ritchie, smiling, then plays the great ultra-melodious hits of Deep Purple and Rainbow, without much surprise but for the greatest pleasure: “I Surrender”, “Man On Silver Mountain”, “Since You’ve Been Gone”, “Black Night”, sung in unison by the audience, or slower tracks, like “Mistreated” or “Soldier Of Fortune”, offering a sustained rhythm to a concert of real quality. The only point on which the latter was to be desired remains the setlist, almost unchanged since 2016.
It is very easy to see that Ritchie's hard rock playing has regained more and more fluidity and harmony, especially in the solos. What was most striking was his technical and melodic ability to improvise that he has always been known for, improvisation pushed to the point of staging, Ritchie going so far as to allow himself the luxury of kneeling down to turn his guitar over by rubbing it on the corner of the stage to make it scream as he did so well in the 1970s. Ritchie Blackmore in all his splendor!
As for the musicians, nothing to complain about. Everyone is in place. We feel that the group has gained confidence. Ritchie plays the conductor, controlling his musicians, through more or less obscure signs, while giving them the opportunity to indulge in solo parts, sometimes lasting a few minutes, like that of keyboardist Jens Johansson (ex-Yngwie Malmsteen, Stratovarius): between classical flights and returns to very electronic sounds.
Ritchie has always known how to surround himself with the best, or at least those who meet his requirements. Because we don't joke with music. On vocals, Ronnie Romero (Lords Of Black), on stage like a fish in water, excels, capable of singing the complete repertoire of the various bands that Rainbow and Deep Purple have known, while preserving his vocal originality, situated between Ronnie James Dio and Freddie Mercury. Bob Nouveau (ex-Blackmore's Night) provides the bass lines and solos, while David Keith (Blackmore's Night) perfectly masters his drums. The backing singers, Candice Night (Blackmore’s Night), and Christina Lynn (Blackmore’s Night), give power and depth to songs such as “Difficult To Cure” or “Child In Time”. All in a staging that remains very sober, unfortunately without the immense LED rainbow of Memories In Rock 2016, which Ritchie almost made us forget with this memorable demonstration of 2h15 of pure nostalgia, always reviving the colors of the eternal Rainbow...
© Paul Maugis, Refrains
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