Ritchie Blackmore The Minstrels Are Back Under A Violet Moon Please tell us about the songs from the new album "Under A Violet Moon"! When were they written, what kind of songs were they, who took part in the recording, etc. Let's start with the song "Under A Violet Moon". Ritchie: Okay, then you should see Candy. Candice: I feel like you should talk since you wrote most of the lyrics. Ritchie: Okay, I'll tell you. "Under A Violet Moon"... Interesting song... I like the word "Violet", that was my mother's name... and her maiden name was Moon. So this song has a double meaning. So "Under A Violet Moon" means that I am under my mother's wing, that's where the title comes from. We wrote "Under A Violet Moon" very quickly. I don't usually do this, but then I wrote some poetry and showed it to Candy. I wanted to give her a basis for her text, and I jotted down a few lines about the Renaissance fair and things like that. This song has a joyful mood, like an ordinary day from the Renaissance. We ended up leaving most of my text. I usually don't write texts, this was probably the first time she used my text. Candice: Yes. Also "Violet Moon" is a beautiful image. We wrote this song before the last tour. Many of the songs on the last album were very quiet. When Ritchie decides on a set list, he thinks about song order, keys, tempo, it's a very complex process. (Ritchie starts playing with Candice's hair.) Stop it (laughs). He makes faces all the time and makes a fool of himself during interviews. I revealed your secret (laughs). He noticed that the tempo of most of the songs on Shadow Of The Moon was too slow. So we wanted to record a more uptempo song that could get the crowd going. That's why we wrote it right before the tour. Right? Ritchie: Oh yes. We needed fast songs for the tour. Most of the songs on "Shadow Of The Moon" were quiet, the kind of music you could only eat fruit in the garden on a sunny day with (laughs). Candice: You're good at it. Ritchie: Exactly. The audience can participate in this song. They can clap to the beat and sing along. It's everyone's party, I don't want to go on stage to give music lessons. Let classical guitarists do this. We entertain the audience and try not to take it too seriously. Of course, this is serious music... because it is very difficult to play. Whose male voice is heard on backing vocals in this song? Ritchie: Probably someone who was in the studio at the time. Various people came to the studio to sing, we recorded them all, and when we listened to the result, we liked it. But I don't know who it is. Candice: Good question. We started recording a year ago, in February... Ritchie: 10 years ago? Candice: Indeed, it's like 10 years ago. Many musicians took part in the recording, many parts were rewritten, and as a result it is not clear who played what. But, for example, John Ford signed up with us. Ritchie: John Ford is our friend. But in this song he probably sang a tiny bit, or nothing at all. Candice: We also had Scott (Hazel - Blackmore's assistant) and Sue Goringer (friend of Ritchie and Candice) singing on the album. Ritchie: Right. We like to invite friends to record albums. We often play with them on Saturdays at the Normandie Inn, and we all sing together. Then we invited them to take part in the recording. Candice: We invite all our friends to the restaurant, we eat with them, it's one big party. When we started working in the studio, it seemed to us that the atmosphere was unnatural, everything was falling apart, and we decided to defuse the situation a little by inviting friends. The studio is always full of problems with producers, mixing, and equipment. Most likely, the male voice you are talking about belongs to Scott, who also sang on the song "Play Minstrel Play." Ritchie: Together with his girlfriend Sue. Jens Johansson also played on some songs, and overall there are a lot of guests on the album, but it still feels like a Ritchie and Candice album. Ritchie: That's interesting. It was just Candice and I who worked on the recording of "Shadow Of The Moon", inviting only Ian and Pat Regan, who played on one song. And more musicians worked on this album. Probably 10-12 people. So there are more musicians on this album than on the previous one. But the last time I interviewed you, Jessie was still working with you. Candice: Ritchie tries to introduce the rest of the musicians to the public as much as possible. Otherwise they might think of us as a folk duo. But when it comes to writing music, we work together. Right? Ritchie: What? Candice: Hey, are you even going to participate in the interview? Say something! Ritchie: This is great! I am delighted! Who plays percussion? Candice: As far as I remember, Kevin Dunn. Ritchie: Yes, Kevin. Will he go on tour with you? Candice: He was supposed to come with us, but he got sick. Alex Alexander will be going on tour with us. He also worked with the Gypsy Kings, right? Ritchie: Yes, he was the drummer in the Gypsy Kings. Candice: But Kevin Dunn played on the album. He played the marching rhythms well on "Avalon" and "Under A Violet Moon." Ritchie: Right. You started recording in February... Ritchie: Last year. But we were taking a break from touring and we had problems with the producer. This is an interesting case. One day, the producer simply disappeared with the master tapes after three months of working in the studio. He called us and said, "I won't give you back the tapes until they pay me $25,000!" Candice: He stole our tapes! Ritchie: We contacted the police, they took these tapes from him and returned them to us. Are you talking about Pat Regan? Ritchie: No, it's not Pat. I won't say his name. But this person is our former keyboard player. We were amazed. He seemed to have gone crazy. He's just an explosive person. Is this the keyboard player with whom you performed in Japan? Ritchie: Yes. He stole the tapes and ran away. This is the first time this has happened to me. He left a note saying that he had all the tapes, right behind the producer's panel. After that, I had to look for a new producer. Before that, we worked with a keyboard player who himself performed the parts of trumpets, flute and oboe. Most often these were not live parts; he played everything on a synthesizer. However, the producer we found later was not a keyboard player, and it took us more and more work to get everything right. It took a lot longer to record than we thought, all because of this guy who ran off with our tapes. I don't know what's wrong. When our lawyer asked him why he did this, he replied that he would only speak through his lawyer. When asked who his lawyer was, he replied that he did not know and that he did not have a lawyer at all! What nonsense! We tried to call him, and he shouted in a crazy voice: "I can't believe that you did this to me! I saw that you didn't list me as a co-author! That's why I stole the tapes!" Does he seriously think that everyone involved in a recording has anything to do with songwriting? This is wrong. We never talked about this. But he sobbed: "I can't believe you did this to me!" And he ran away. He was just a producer, what does he have to do with songwriting? How do you like it? He was bribed by Deep Purple (laughs)! It's all Bruce Payne (laughs)! Or maybe even Chris Curtis? Ritchie: Do you want to dig deeper (laughs)? I wanted to know why you didn't invite Pat Regan? Ritchie: I didn't work with Pat because I wanted to work with this keyboard player. Pat didn't steal the tapes. I won't name his name, but it's not him. He will sue if he sees his name in a magazine. And I didn't invite Pat because I wanted to work with this other producer. Pat is a perfectionist and does great things no matter the style of music. But it seemed to me that his perfectionism was detrimental to music. With him you have no room for error. It was so difficult for me to adjust to his perfectionism that I did not contact him. Pat is the best producer, but he's too pedantic for me. How did you meet Jeff Glicksman? Ritchie: (Looking at Candice) Once, she and I went to a gay club... Candice: I don't know anything about that! Ritchie: Candy and I went to a gay club... Candice: I wasn't there. Ritchie: I didn't want to go, but she constantly begged me: "Please take me to a gay club!" So we went to a gay club and met Jeff there. Candice: He was naked. Ritchie: No, he was dressed (laughs). This is weird. Usually in such places they dress in clothes of the opposite sex. I was surprised. He was a man and wore men's clothing. Maybe he is not a man at all? Perhaps he likes men. That's how we met him. I asked him: "Can you keep secrets?" He replied: "Yes." Then I invited him to become my friend. Candice: Amazing (laughs). Ritchie: Okay, that's a Monty Python joke. When they ask: "Are you from intelligence?", they answer him: "That's right. Can you keep secrets?" "Yes". "Let's be friends." But in reality everything was not like that. Candice: By the way, Jeff met his wife at a Rainbow concert. Ritchie: Really? I did not know that! Jeff Glicksman produced Kansas' "Dust In The Wind" and has also worked with many famous guitarists such as Yngwie and Gary Moore. I thought that there would be no problems with him either (laughs)! Jeff told me that Gary Moore and the other guitarists didn't want to work with him as a producer again, and that they all hated him, and that soon it would be the same with me (laughs)! Interesting! I agree with them. Did Jeff choose the studio too? Ritchie: Yes. Jeff is used to working in this studio. This is a large studio, perhaps the largest on Long Island. It has the most advanced technology. I like the studio owner. This is a doctor who is interested in sound recording; Sony approached him with an offer to buy this studio. I thought that only Mariah Carey could afford such a studio, but I wanted to record in it, and he said: "It's okay, this is a studio for artists, I don't need money." He doesn't want to get involved with monopoly companies. In my opinion, this is wonderful. I immediately decided that I would work in this studio. Usually in studios they say: "If you work for a year, please pay us a year in advance." But he said: "I don't need money, I'm opening a studio for those I like." Jens Johansson and Peter Rooth play on the song "Under A Violet Moon"? Ritchie: Who? Peter who? Candice: You know Peter. Ritchie: Who is Peter? Is that his name? I always address him impersonally. Candice: "Hey, you!" (laugh). Ritchie: Yes, that's what we call Peter. He's from Sweden. Everyone has their problems, and the Swedes especially. I like the Swedes. Many of my favorite musicians come from Sweden. ABBA has great songs. I also like "One More Time." But ABBA most of all. I don't know, for some reason I like Swedish music. They have wonderful melodies. Candice: Roxette. Ritchie: Roxette has nice melodies. Candice: It was Peter who introduced us to Jens. We were in a hurry when they came to us, we immediately took them to the studio, showed them that they needed to play "Under A Violet Moon", forced them to record without unpacking their luggage. Ritchie: After they finished, we sent them back, then took them to the station, and bought a ticket only to France. Candice: That's not true. They stayed with us for a Christmas party where they sang Swedish folk songs with us until seven in the morning! Ritchie: Exactly. They brought the Swedish spirit into our party. We had British, Germans and Swedes there. Jens and Peter got very drunk. We throw wonderful parties every year. You should visit at least one. I'm sure you'd enjoy a Christmas party. There was also a wonderful violinist Miri, who also appeared on the new album. She is a musician from Israel who studied with one of the best violinists in the world, Isaac Stern. For her success, he even gave her a violin. She plays just beautifully. We have the song "Morning Star", where she easily performed a part that no other violinist we knew could play before. All the violinists who claimed to play well, upon reading the score, said that they could not play it. Candice: One violinist even cried (laughs). Ritchie: Yes, I was just about to say this, she was crying. And then Miri appeared and played her with ease. She's the best in the business and she's only 22 years old. At first did Peter act simply as Jens' assistant? Ritchie: Yes. Did he tell you that Jens worked with Yngwie for a long time? Ritchie: Peter told me a lot (laughs). I asked: "How long has he been doing this business?" He replied: "Well... before... he worked with Yngwie." Then there was a long pause (laughs). When I said that he was right for us, he sighed with relief, apparently he was waiting for me to say: "What? With Yngwie? By the way, Peter had an accident with Yngwie, he still has a big scar on his lip. He told me that they went to get beer, but crashed into a tree. Candice: And Peter was driving a Ferrari. Ritchie: Peter is a workaholic. He is the best, he gives 100 percent. Tell me honestly, what do you think about Jens Johansson's performance? Ritchie: I think he's the best keyboard player I can imagine. But I'm surprised he can't read music. He is one of those musicians who is better at improvising. He plays great. And he did a wonderful arrangement of "Under A Violet Moon." I told him what I wanted to hear, he had to put in a string quartet, trumpets and so on. I liked it very much. Did you expect such an answer? Candice: He asked: "Honestly" (laughs). Ritchie: (Looks towards the departed journalist) Where did Arura go? Isn't that his name? No. His name is Akira. Ritchie: He didn't like our new album, we need to put pressure on him. He is also wearing a green jacket, this alone is enough to intimidate him. Candice: (Laughs). Tell us about the song "Castles And Dreams". Ritchie: We recorded it together. Just us and the keys. Are the strings also recorded through a synthesizer? Ritchie: Right. We recorded it in February. Candice: At home. Ritchie: Exactly. In our Minstrel Hall. Who played the keys? Ritchie: Maybe Joe James? Candice: The one who worked with us on tour. Ritchie: Let's not talk about him (laughs). What is this song about? Ritchie: "Castles And Dreams" is dedicated to Ronnie James Dio. Once, while playing football, he admitted to me that he was short, but dreamed of becoming taller. Do you know the fairy tale "Jack and the Beanstalk?" This is a fairy tale about how a tree grew higher and higher, so Ronnie dreamed of becoming taller himself. This is what the song is about. When we played football, he had to wear high shoes to compensate for his short height. That is, this is a song about Ronnie James Dio's shoes. Did we manage to creatively present the theme of Ronnie James Dio's shoes? Candice: Interesting story. Ritchie: I thought so. Candice: I would like to learn how to talk like that. Ritchie: In fact, this song has nothing to do with my story. She wrote the text. Candice: Did you look at the melody from Chopin? Ritchie: Right. But I don't remember at all what this song is about. Tell me, you know better than me. Candice: Tell me about how you wrote it. Ritchie: Okay. I was inspired by Chopin's music. John Chopin, not Frederic Chopin. Candice: Our neighbor (laughs). Ritchie: Right. Chopin is our neighbor. Chopin's Ballade No. 1 is my favorite piece for piano. Gone are the days when I adored Bach. Of course I love Bach. But there is a special spirit in Chopin's music; he has wonderful arrangements of Polish songs. One of these songs has a part that's reminiscent of "Castles And Dreams" (sings). Then Chopin moves on to a completely different melody. But this is where I took the basis. Candice: I love this song. But the text in it is quite gloomy, because the past year has been difficult for us. There were a lot of good things, but there were also a lot of problems. Ritchie had to sue. Ritchie: I try to think about creativity, but at the same time I have to be cynical in dealing with management and the courts. I've been busy with the lawsuit for the last couple of years, but recently we were informed that almost everything was decided in our favor. I'm glad. Candice: We found out that some of our employees were stealing money from Ritchie! Of course, we stopped this immediately. We're just exhausted with this process. I wrote this text in despair, I was so amazed that people close to us could do this. The text has nothing to do with the trial, I just wrote it while in a depressed state. Ritchie: It's strange that death greatly stimulates creativity. When they die, people write their best work. But in happiness, on the contrary, sometimes you can't write anything. Sometimes it's good to be sad. You already played this song on last year's tour in the fall, but you composed it back in February? Ritchie: (Points to the corner) Is this a spider? Or a ghost? Yes, we started writing it in February. We recorded most of the songs then, and then we had to re-record everything. We remade some songs three times. Candice: Ritchie and I are together all the time, so we can always write music. When he comes up with something, he simply calls me from another room. Ritchie: Right. We are constantly writing new songs. Candice: We already have 5 new songs ready for the next album. Ritchie: One of them was intended for this album. We wrote it specifically for Japan, but we didn't have enough time to record it. We'll play it later. She sings it great. What is it called? Candice: "Benzai-Ten". The next question is about the song "Bread And Fishes", which you called "All Of Mankind". Candice: This is a John Ford song. When we auditioned him, he brought us his CD, and Ritchie really liked the song. That captivated him so much that he couldn't get it out of his head for days. Ritchie: Yes, I was furious (laughs). Because of this song, I couldn't be sad at all - I was furious! Candice: We changed the text a little. The original version had more hints of religion... Ritchie: It was a song about Mary and Joseph. Candice: We don't want to preach religious views. Ritchie: Right. Candice: That's why they changed the name. Ritchie: Yes, to "Whole Lotta Love". Candice: Maybe we should have called it Bagels and Lobsters. Ritchie: Or "Fish & Chips" for Britain. Let's talk about John Ford's audition... Ritchie: Let's get straight to the point. When we contacted John, I asked him to bring the cat, he brought it, what was his name? Is this what you wanted to know? Not really. Ritchie: Perhaps I didn't catch the meaning of your words (laughs). Why did you decide to take John into the group? Will you go on tour with him? Ritchie: He has this British thoughtfulness. He's been playing guitar for a long time; I remember going to an Elmer Gantry's Velvet Opera concert in the 1960s. I knew about him even before I formed Deep Purple. He then played guitar in The Strawbs and several other bands. He wrote the song "Part Of The Union", which reached number one in the UK chart. Candice: John has to play it four times a night. Ritchie: Right: "John, you have to play this song." Candice: He has a very folky voice. Ritchie: He has a typical English voice. Nowadays it is difficult to find musicians playing such music. Everyone wants to be a rock 'n' roll star. But we don't want to play rock and roll. We want to perform Renaissance and folk with rock elements, it is very difficult to find suitable musicians. We tried to find musicians here, but Americans don't understand what we do. They all want to sound like Sheryl Crow. This doesn't make sense to me at all. But John is not like that. He understands perfectly what we are playing. I've always loved The Strawbs' song "Witchwood". I met him through a woman I knew who interviewed him. She told me that he would like to work with us. He's not one of those who considers himself superior to everyone else, but he doesn't listen to other people's music that often either. He also lives in America, but it seems to me that his heart is still in Europe, in the folk world. I was happy to hear that he liked our music and that he wanted to work with us. We also listened to his work and decided to accept cooperation. Quite a long time has passed, and now I'm trying to put together a real group. At first we had a lot of different musicians, guitarists and bassists, who said: "It's good music, I like it, but I don't feel it in my heart." John, on the other hand, understands our music. It's a big difference. Will he go on tour with you? Ritchie: As far as I know, they are preparing for The Strawbs reunion. We're going on tour in June-May, but The Strawbs' reunion will happen around that time. I would like to perform with him, but it may turn out that he will be busy working with other musicians. But it's possible. Candice, have you heard The Strawbs before? Candice: No. Ritchie introduced me to this group. It's funny that they knew about each other for many years, but never met. Ritchie: It's great that he became part of the group. It looks perfect with a guitar, doesn't it? Candice: There are no problems with him. Ritchie: We had problems with the guitarist before. We just couldn't get along, so I played all the rhythm parts and solos myself. But John plays rhythm very well. Did he record rhythm parts for the album? Ritchie: No, I played the rhythm on the album. If he comes on tour with us, he'll play rhythm. His strong rhythm guitar will greatly influence the band's sound. Candice: Have you never played like this before? Ritchie: Never. So he came to the audition, said that he used to play in The Strawbs, and that was enough? Ritchie: There was no audition. We were introduced to each other by a mutual friend. He listened to our music and said he liked it. By the way, we met him for the first time at the Normandie Inn and played several songs. Candice: That's it for the audition. Ritchie: I asked him: "Can you keep secrets?" Candice: (Laughs) He was watching Monty Python. Ritchie: It is very important to be able to keep secrets. Without this there will be problems. "March The Heroes Home"... Ritchie: No, it's called "Masa Itoh's Home". Good name. Were you at his home? His house is full of soldiers. In honor of this, we composed this song. This song contains horns, bagpipes, etc. Ritchie: The bagpipes are played by Des Geyers Schwarzer Haufen, my friends from Germany. I'm on good terms with them. They expressed interest in being on our album when I told them we had a song that would feature bagpipes. When I asked them about money, they said they didn't need money, and I said, "Great, let's do it." They worked for free. This is good. It's always important to me when musicians don't ask for money (laughs). They recorded trumpets and bagpipes. I am very glad. The bagpipes are difficult to tune, you had to be very careful. The bagpipe is a very natural and loud instrument, and in the song it was important not to ruin its soft sound. We had a lot of problems with the setup, but everything worked out. I really like their second album. This is my favorite album. There was a song written by Michael Praetorius from the 17th century, I liked it so much that I decided to record it myself. I came up with the intro because I had to start somewhere (sings). Candice: Where did you get it from? Ritchie: I won't tell. It's a secret. Did Candice write the poems? Ritchie: Yes, but what's interesting is that there were songs in which we switched roles. On "Now And Then" she wrote both the music and lyrics, and on "Under A Violet Moon" I wrote the music and lyrics, which is my first song where I wrote the lyrics myself. Candice: For March The Heroes Home, Ritchie asked me to write lyrics about the war. I couldn't imagine a war song with such a melody. But Ritchie loves war tapes, especially those about World War II. Ritchie: No, World War I. (Looks out the window) Oh, John is coming. Are the strings in "Beyond The Sunset" also played on a synthesizer? Ritchie: Yes, it's all a synthesizer. They were played by Joe James. Candice: You didn't play bass? Ritchie: No. I didn't play bass on this song. Does the title of the song have any special meaning? Ritchie: No. I wrote a theme based on a Bach melody. I came up with the name after I composed this music. You already played the song "Malaguena" on tour, I heard it on a bootleg. Ritchie: Yes, bootleggers record concerts and make money from it, which spoils the surprise for others. Candice: But this time the bootleg helped us. We recorded this song, we didn't really like the result, we went on tour, where we performed it at concerts much faster. Ritchie: Exactly. Candice: Did the keyboards sound different at first too? Ritchie: The keys were the same, but there was a different drum rhythm. Candice: Anyway, they sent us a bootleg of one of the concerts. We listened to it and the result was much better than what we first recorded. It was a matter of tempo - it needs to be played quickly. It's good that we tested it at concerts first. Ritchie: I have a bad habit of playing everything too fast. I'm aware of this, which is why I consciously try to play slower in the studio. Because of this, I focus more and don't play freely. As a result, the music doesn't come out the way I intended. I had the same problems with this song. It's good that I listened to the bootleg. On stage we played it very quickly. In the studio we recorded it too slow at first, it sounded bad. It seems to me that you somehow have a lot of bootlegs. Ritchie: Right. Candice: I don't know of any artist who has as many bootlegs as Ritchie. Ritchie: That's why we don't play new songs anymore. I know they will all be recorded. I like to present new ideas to the fans, but all the surprise is lost due to bootleggers. I'm sorry. I would like to perform more new songs, but because of them it is impossible. Who plays the violin in this song? Candice: Miri. Ritchie: Right. Only she could play these parts. She did a great job... I'm also sure Jens is playing along with her there. I heard that "Past Times With Good Company" was written by Henry VIII? Ritchie: Right. Candice: It was Ritchie who introduced me to this song. Ritchie: I introduced her to Henry 400 years ago (laughs). Henry VIII was a very talented musician. He wrote many songs. Perhaps he executed the musician who wrote all these songs and took away the copyright (laughs). This still happens today. Candice: Many managers do this. Ritchie: But I think that Heinrich really was an excellent musician. It wasn't easy for us to record this song. Playing the flute and guitar live is easy, but in the studio it becomes a challenge. It was difficult to write it down. (John Ford enters). John: Came to show that I'm here. Ritchie: Come in. This is John. Candice: Was "Past Times With Good Company" written in the 17th century? Ritchie: No, in the 16th. Candice: You also came up with a new introduction. Ritchie: Yes, I changed it a little. Candice: There is excellent text there. Ritchie: I think the original text is difficult to understand. This is old English. Who played the horn? Ritchie: And the horn is played on a synthesizer, there is also a trumpet sound. He played the trumpet... I forgot his name. In any case, he only played the trumpet, everything else was played on the synthesizer. In "Avalon" the flute sounds... Ritchie: What about "Catherine Howard's Fate"? Candice: Do you want to say something about music? Ritchie: Let's move on to "Avalon." Do you play the flute in it? Candice: No. I played Bread And Fishes. Ritchie: Then who? Candice: Synthesizer? Ritchie: Exactly. This is not a flute. Most likely it's Joe James. You wrote it three years ago? Ritchie: Did we play it in Japan? Candice: Most likely. Ritchie: No, we didn't play it. Candice: We wrote it back in 1996... How did you compose it? Ritchie: It's based on 16th century music that I had on tape, but I didn't know who was playing it. This is an old Swedish melody. Many of these songs are written by unknown authors, which suits me because I don't have to pay them. It's a joke. Candice: We wrote the middle part ourselves. Ritchie: Today you look like an egg. Candice: Thank you. But what is this for? Ritchie: Do you know what boiled eggs say? They put two eggs to boil, one egg says to the other: "Everything is burning inside me, it's getting hotter." The other egg replies: "Better be patient, if you get out, they'll break your head." Candice: What? Ritchie: Got it? Candice: No. Ritchie: Two eggs. One says: "It's so hot, everything is burning inside," the other replies: "It's better to sit here, if you get out, they'll break your head." In England we crack the top of the egg with a spoon. John Ford: Boiled eggs are not very popular here. Candice: Boiled eggs are popular, but such jokes are not popular. Ritchie: (Addressing the waiter) Did you hear what I said? Which egg is this? Candice: That's enough. John Ford: I don't understand what came over him. Ritchie: In England we crack... (Addresses the waiter) How many ears did Davy Crocket have? Waiter: Two. Ritchie: Right, how do you know? Candice: Enough, stop. John, since you're here, tell us about working with Ritchie and Candice. John Ford: Ritchie plays a mixture between renaissance, classical and pop music, which is great. And Candice's poems are real poems. Ritchie: John is more of a fan of Candice than of me. Like many others... maybe it's because I don't have such a nice face (laughs). I'm glad John recognizes Candy's talent. She has only been singing for four years, but her achievements are incredible. She began to sing confidently. The first time we played in Japan, she had to perform in front of a crowd of five thousand, and she had never sung in public before! I was very nervous. She went on stage without resorting to alcohol, and I was drunk. John Ford: I really like playing with them. Ritchie: It's mutual. It's great to play with him too. Have you ever thought about working with Ritchie? Ritchie: He dreamed about me (laughs). John Ford: Of course, I heard about Ritchie, but we never met. Ritchie: I always knew about his group. Ask if John likes boiled eggs. When did you move to America? John Ford: The Migration Service won't hear us (laughs)? Ritchie: Tell them how you avoid taxes. John Ford: I am wanted (laughs). I came here in 1986. Right now The Strawbs are still active, but I'm more focused on my solo career. Are you planning to go on tour? John Ford: No. There are no such plans yet. First I want to finish the album. Ritchie: What? Aren't you going on tour with us? John Ford: What? Oh, are you talking about the Blackmore's Night tour? Sorry (laughs). I thought you meant my own tour. Of course I hope I'll go with them. Tell us about the song "Morning Star". Ritchie: As for the music, there is a very complex riff. It's not that difficult to play on guitar, but I wanted it to be played on violin, so I turned to Miri. She did great. I wanted it to be an energetic song in the Hungarian spirit. Many of our songs are gypsy dances around a fire. I want to write songs that can be easily played on an acoustic guitar, like The Beatles songs. Our music is inspired by Germany, Hungary, Poland and other European countries, the same feeling is conveyed in this song. But in "Morning Star" I added Turkish scales, so it has a bit of a Turkish feel. I'm European, but I like to experiment with this theme sometimes. Many songs come from different countries - Hungary, Germany, France and Spain. "Malaguena" from Spain, "Morning Star" has something of Turkish and Romanian music. I also wanted the audience to be able to sing along with her. Everyone can clap to the beat. It's not too loud, but not too quiet either. This is exactly what I was looking for. But, of course, the audience must be drunk. These are all the songs on the new album. John Ford: All songs are dedicated to beer. Ritchie: Yes, we give them beer, and they are happy. We always perform on stage drunk. They also love to tap their feet to the beat. But of course I'll play quiet stuff too, like "Minstrel Hall". When you play such songs, it's immediately clear how many sober spectators are in the hall (laughs). When I start playing "Minstrel Hall," I can immediately hear someone coughing. Of course, I don't mind, but sometimes I pay attention to it, it's such a job. It seems that you are now more interested in folk than in the music of the 16th century. Ritchie: That's true. But folk is also medieval music. During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance there was already folk music! When we recorded the first album, all our songs were quiet. But on stage I realized that we also needed fast songs. This album mainly consists of rhythmic songs. The next one will probably be quieter. But for concerts you need rhythmic things. I don't want to give Renaissance music classes. I love Renaissance music, but I want to play something a little different. That's what we did. Candice: Yes, and on the last album there were only four purely Renaissance songs - "The Clock Ticks On", "Renaissance Faire", "Magical World" and "Greensleeves". Ritchie: Also "Play Minstrel Play." Five. Candice: On this album it's "March The Heroes Home"... Ritchie: "Catherine Howard's Fate", "Avalon", "Past Times With Good Company". Candice: But overall the album has a different atmosphere. Ritchie: Right. There are a lot of rhythmic songs on it. In the studio, I found it difficult to resist playing the electric guitar. I try to play acoustic, but sometimes I really want to play electric guitar. Are you consciously trying to use an electric guitar less? Ritchie: Candy says that if I play the electric guitar, she will hit me on the head. It's a joke, it depends on the song, some of them I play electric guitar. For many songs I recorded electric guitar first, but after listening I realized they sounded better acoustically. Will you be using an electric guitar on tour? Ritchie: Of course. At the end of the performance I will improvise on the electric guitar. But there are also viewers who don't like this. We have more and more new fans. In Japan, everyone wants to hear rock and roll, but in Europe, depending on the country, we have a lot of older audiences, and sometimes I only play acoustic. Rachel Birkin played with you on your last European tour, did she take part in the recording? Ritchie: No, she is a good violinist, but Miri is better. Anyway, Rachel is still playing with us, but Jessie has left the group. Why did Jessie leave? Ritchie: She prefers rock and roll in the spirit of Sheryl Crow. I prefer to work with musicians who love our music. John loves folk music and has been doing it for years, which suits us. With Jesse it was different. It seems to me that male backing vocals will be better than female ones. Ritchie: I don't agree. It's possible that I'll add a couple of female voices for backing vocals. I love it when Candice has backup singers singing along. Candice: You can still go shopping with them (laughs). Ritchie: This is very important. Tell us about the song "Fool's Gold". Ritchie: I wrote it in the toilet during the last Japanese tour. Candy came up with the poems later, let's talk about it. Candice: Let's talk about music. There we used interesting tools. Ritchie: Really? I forgot. Candice: I think there was an oboe there. Okay, let's talk about the lyrics... Remember the song we wrote on the plane during our trip to Arizona? Ritchie: Yes, this is Renaissance Faire? Candice: Right. Then I began to think about the burden of carrying great power. Only two percent of the world's population has all the wealth, but what can they do against the rest? Interestingly, it is among these two percent that suicides most often occur. Now let's talk about music. Ritchie: I wrote it in the key of B, it suits Candy's voice. She can sing lower than most girls and has a very loud voice. Enough? Do you think that tours help Candice grow as a vocalist? Ritchie: Yes, she sings more and more confidently. Candice: Ritchie helps me too, working with him on the same stage gives me confidence. Ritchie: Is this sarcasm? Candice: No. Many people come to your concerts in suits. Ritchie: Those who come in Renaissance costumes pay practically nothing for admission (laughs). In Germany and other European countries, people in costumes dance with us near the stage. In Greece, everyone knew the songs from "Shadow Of The Moon" and sang along with us. My favorite song is "Now And Then". Ritchie: It was entirely written by Candy. I just added an element from Bach's Prelude in C to the introduction, and she composed the lyrics and melody. At first I was hesitant about including it on the album because it sounds modern and not at all renaissance or medieval, but then everyone started saying that they really liked the song, and of course she sings it beautifully. I'm very glad that everyone likes her song. Candice: I'm also very glad that Ritchie appreciated my music. Everyone mostly knows him as a guitarist, but in reality he is a musician first and foremost. Ritchie: And an egg lover. Candice: The lyrics to this song are inspired by a story Jessie told me. We then performed in the same club, and I saw that she was in great sadness. She told me it was because of her divorce from her husband. Ritchie: And I thought that it was I who said something rude to her then. Candice: No. It turned out that this whole story with her husband happened right before the tour, and she practically didn't show it. She just repeated: "Everything will be okay." When I got home, I wrote the song on the piano and Ritchie heard it. Ritchie: When I first heard it, I thought it sounded very modern. Candice: And when I returned home from the store, he was playing it on the guitar! This is the best compliment for me. Ritchie: I'd rather play this song on the guitar than go to the store. Candice: The Bach motif he added sounds just great. Ritchie: I made the song as simple as possible. It is very quiet and private. Plus, it's a song with sad lyrics that everyone can sympathize with. Candice: With experience, composing music becomes easier. Ritchie: Right. After six months, muscles begin to grow (laughs). Bach's motif also sounded in "Weiss Heim"... Ritchie: Exactly, we like this piece, but I only use the first three bars of Bach so that no one can judge me. Candice: Sebastian Bach needs only this... Ritchie: He will beat me. You also have the instrumental "On The Way To The Bach's House" ("Durch Den Wald Zum Bach Haus"). Ritchie: No, it's called "On The Way to Bat's House." This is a song about Batman and Robin, about how Robin goes to visit Batman. Candice: In fact, it's true about the Bach house. Ritchie: That's right, when I came to Eisenach, Bach's birthplace, I stayed at the beautiful Wartburg Castle. I could see Bach's house from there, but to get to it I had to go through the forest. Most tourists go down there along the road, but I decided to walk through the forest, it was a beautiful summer day, I went to Bach's house. He is my idol. That summer I wrote this melody. When I got there, there was a sign at the entrance: "Do not enter." Bach didn't want to see me. Candice: But you came in anyway. Ritchie: Yes, I did. Beautiful place. I also took a stone from the garden, I keep it in my wallet. This is the Bach stone. Candice: Tell them about the dog. Ritchie: A dog? Exactly. As I was walking through the forest, enjoying the fresh air and humming this tune, suddenly a giant dog jumped out of the forest. Her owner was desperately trying to keep the dog on a leash. I was very scared - I didn't want to be mauled to death by a dog on the way to Bach's house. When I walked back, I constantly looked around so as not to meet this dog. Incredibly big dog. Excellent day! In Bach's house I listened to various ancient instruments, and this alone pleasantly surprised me. It felt like I was back in the 1680s. All this inspired me, and I wrote this music, but there is no special meaning in it, it is just a rhythmic composition. It is not written in the style of Bach; if he had heard it, he would have been angry: "What does that have to do with me?" Maybe they should have changed the title to "Running Away From The Hound". Another instrumental is called "Return Of Possum". Ritchie: I came up with the name when I was finishing recording the guitar part. As I was recording it, I looked out the window and saw a possum that looked inside and ran away. Do you know possums? These are animals with a big nose, with a face like David Coverdale (laughs). It's interesting that he came to watch the session. But there was nothing to eat in the studio, and he was not interested in music, so he ran away. When I later told my friends about this, I saw an owl that flew right over our car. I hope the possum managed to escape and didn't become his victim (laughs). That's the whole story of Return Of Possum. I also see that there is a song on the disc "Gone With The Wind", which I have not heard yet. Ritchie: It's about Candice's grandmother, who lived in Russia. The Cossacks burned her house and she had to emigrate. It is based on the old Russian song "Polyushko-Pole". On tour you played "The Temple Of The King", and recorded "Self Portrait" on the album. Ritchie: At concerts we often play old Rainbow songs. She sings "The Temple Of The King" perfectly. A mutual friend of ours once said that songs like "Perfect Strangers" and "Self Portrait" wouldn't suit her, but she does them well. So much so that Ian Gillan should be on his guard - she could take his place in Deep Purple (laughs). Candice: We have a completely different interpretation. I'm not a rock singer. Ritchie: But still, she sings "Self Portrait" great. She also sings "Street Of Dreams" well and I'm thinking about playing that song with John. John doesn't know about it yet, but we can play "Street Of Dreams" and a couple of other Rainbow songs. I wanted to re-record a few more songs, but we ran out of time and space, I wanted more new songs on the album. "Self Portrait" can be regarded as a bonus. For the same reason, you did not record "Mr. Tambourine Man"? Ritchie: For the same reason. We might play more cover songs on stage, maybe we'll record "Mr. Tambourine Man" and will add a live version of it to the next album. The good thing about this band is that we can play whatever we like. If we like the music, we play it. There are musicians who hate playing other people's songs. It doesn't matter how good the songs are... that's what Deep Purple did. In the end, it was all about money. This is silly. You also played the song "I Think It's Going To Rain Today." Ritchie: This is a cover... who performed the original? Candice: It's famously sung by Bette Middler, but I think it was written by someone else. Ritchie: But it doesn't sound the way I would have recorded it. There are many songs that I could play, I have to choose. This was not possible in previous groups. Here, on the contrary, we have an extensive repertoire. It's fun, it's nice. Who exactly will go on tour with you? Ritchie: It might be worth getting the old members together. Ian Gillan and David Coverdale will sing backing vocals. Gillan loves to dress up. Who else will be in the group? Candice: John. Ritchie: Yes, John. Candice: Alex Alexander, Miri. Ritchie: Yes, it's possible. We are still thinking about the rest, but most likely they will be some musicians living in the neighborhood. Candice: Adam on keys. Ritchie: And Adam too. Candice: Adam Forgione. Ritchie: He has already worked with us. He smiles constantly. Why? I smile all the time because I don't pay him. When are you going to go on tour? Ritchie: In May or June, we'll start in May and finish in October. By the way, did you see this? (Raises his foot and points to a white sock with a Snoopy design.) This is the dark side of Ritchie Blackmore. Candice: This is his main secret! But it's not just Snoopy, it's Snoopy with sunglasses. Ritchie: Don't tell anyone. Candice: This will become a sensation. In this group, you also constantly change the line-up. Ritchie: I'm always looking for new blood. Musicians also have a bad habit of asking for money. When they start asking to be paid, I fire them and look for new ones. I myself am in debt to managers, why would I spend money on them? I still have to pay off to managers and record companies. But, jokes aside, it is very difficult to find musicians who would suit this group. We had good musicians, but finding the right ones was not so easy. I finally found John... Forming a band is not that easy. At first I was quite casual about this issue, but now I want to approach it more professionally. John Ford: In America it's generally difficult to find musicians for this kind of music. Ritchie: Right. In America, everyone listens to country and western and rock and roll. What we play... what do they call it? Music for drinking? Candice: (Laughs). Ritchie: Acoustic music for drinking. With elements of the Renaissance and the Middle Ages. How was the last tour? Candice: More women began to come. Ritchie: I think it's women's music, so that's for the best. Men usually want rock and roll, but women prefer gentle music, they understand what we play. For us, it's like traveling to another world. Everything is very natural and fresh. I started to get tired of rock and roll. I like good rock and roll, I like to play it, but... I'm tired of it. Candice: And everyone can share this world with us. Ritchie: Right. Take off your clothes and sing to the moon. This music is perfect for Ian Gillan - he loves to take his clothes off. I would like to ask about a possible Rainbow reunion. Ritchie: I like Ronnie James Dio and Joe Lynn Turner, so I might do some nostalgic concerts with one of them for our fans. But nothing serious. Of course, I understand the desire of fans to plunge into nostalgia, however... There is a rumor that a major record company has offered you a contract for two Rainbow albums. Ritchie: I heard about it. But I didn't sign any contract. They say that all this is kept a big secret. Ritchie: This will remain a secret forever (laughs). Ronnie said that if Cozy were alive, you could get together. Does this mean that this is now impossible? Ritchie: Even if we do something with Ronnie, it will be a one-time project. I'm finally content and happy with my new music and have no interest in going back to Rainbow again. For nostalgia's sake I might do it. Sometimes I miss the old days. However, label money plays a big role here. Only they make money from all this. Ronnie and Joe are both nice guys. But I don't think about it seriously. But I won't say that this is impossible. There's also a rumor going around that Bob Daisley's manager is planning to put Rainbow together with Don Airey on keys, Bob on bass, and record an album with Ronnie on vocals and a guest appearance from Joe on one song. Ritchie: I haven't talked to Bob Daisley or his manager. It's all a lie. Has Carol talked to Wendy Dio about the reunion? Ritchie: About five minutes. But right now I have no other plans other than my current music. It seems to me that this is more interesting for businessmen. Ritchie: Exactly. These are all labels. Money is important. But I already had a case where I sold out for money and went back to Deep Purple, I won't let that happen again. I only did it for the money. What I do now, I do for myself. I understand. By the way, a couple of years ago you appeared on a Hank Marvin tribute album... Ritchie: Yes, in the song "Apache". Did you choose it because it is your favorite song? Ritchie: Because I could only play that. It's a joke. Yeah, because it's my favorite Hank Marvin thing. But, to be honest, I didn't do very well. During the recording there were problems with the sound, so I only had 10 minutes left for the recording itself. So I couldn't play it or arrange it properly. I'm not happy with the result, it turned out mediocre. Have you imitated The Shadows in the past? Ritchie: Yes. That's what everyone did. And what was this expressed in? Ritchie: I wore a business suit, glasses and played the guitar. Just kidding, he was the first guitarist in Britain to play the same guitar as Buddy Holly, with a tremolo arm. It was from him that I first saw such a guitar. I went to a Hank Marvin concert when I was 13 or 14 years old. He had a very clear sound, he understood what he was doing. Very clear sound, emotional playing. Great guitarist. What do you think about Robin Trower, who played in Procul Harum? Ritchie: I didn't like the guitar in Procul Harum. I think Robin Trower's later work was better. I don't remember the name of the group, he played there with some bass player, in the spirit of Hendrix, that's what I liked. And Matthew Fisher is a genius. He is an excellent musician and an excellent producer. I would love to work with Matthew as a producer. He worked with the European group Mediæval Bæbes. Matthew is one of my favorite musicians. He wrote "Whiter Shade Of Pale" but still won't admit it! Instead of saying that he is glad that he wrote such a good song, he denies everything! But when we rehearsed with him two years before Procul Harum, he was already playing this song. I liked it and immediately remembered this topic. It is based on Bach's Aria in G. Usually it's quite the opposite; musicians take credit for other people's achievements. This is weird. When you founded Deep Purple, which British guitarist did you consider exemplary in terms of technique? Ritchie: This was around 1968, right? Eric Clapton was very popular back then, but his playing never struck me as anything special. He's a good guitarist, but not a great one. There was also Albert Lee. He was great. There were many others, but mostly they were all from America. Of the English people, of course, I liked Jeff Beck the most. He's an excellent guitarist. There was also a great guitarist named Gordon Giltrap back then, but I hadn't heard of him yet. I'll leave your question unanswered. There were too many guitarists. How do you rate Jimmy Page? Ritchie: I have known him since 1961. We crossed paths while touring. He was playing Gretch guitar at the time, and he played great, much better than in Led Zeppelin. We alternated working for Neil Christian and his band The Crusaders, then I played there, then he, then Albert Lee, then Jeff Beck. The same thing happened with Screaming Lord Sutch and The Savages, whoever played there. Page is a good guitarist and plays thoughtfully. He writes good songs like "Kashmir". Technically he is quite weak, but on the other hand there are guitarists with great technique who play without substance, for example Steve Vai has amazing technique but no music. As far as I know, your teacher, Big Jim Sullivan, had excellent technique." And Jimmy Page was called Little Jim. Ritchie: Right. Big Jim Sullivan taught me to play the guitar, it was a long time ago, about 50 years ago, in 1959 he was already a respected musician. I thought he was the best guitarist in Britain. But, for some reason, his talent remained without recognition. When Big Jim recorded a solo, Jimmy Page would say that he played it, and that's what everyone started thinking. But it was actually BIG Jim who played those solos. For example, in the song "The Crying Game" by Dave Berry, Jim plays. Jimmy Page claims to have played on this single from 1963 or 1964, although in fact he only played rhythm on it. Jim doesn't want to admit it. Jimmy Page is already a big star, it's not clear why he needs to lie like that. Big Jim said that you didn't do sessions often because you were busy working with groups. Ritchie: That's right, I didn't play that much in the sessions. Besides, I couldn't read music. Big Jim did. I was recording 2-3 sessions a week, and Jim Sullivan had 10 to 12. I was in a band called The Outlaws at the time. He said that Jimmy Page recorded much more often than you. Ritchie: Yes, he's right. Page recorded an incredible amount of sessions, and I only recorded a couple of days a week, 2-3 times a day, but it drove me crazy. I wasn't a session musician. Big Jim was the best, Page recorded a lot too. But Page played the rhythm most of the time. And I practically didn't do this. Joe Lynn Turner recently recorded his version of "Lady Double Dealer." He said he tried to get Purple to perform the song in 1991, but you were against the idea. Ritchie: I don't remember such a song. Familiar title, but... I think this is not the best song. So yeah, even if Joe wanted to do it, I could say something like, "Why do you need to do that?" Well, it's not an important song for me. He's probably right. I think this is one of those songs that we recorded in Deep Purple just to increase the number of tracks on the album. The death of Cozy Powell was a very sad event. What can you tell us about him? Ritchie: Yes, I have a lot of good memories of Cozy. He was a bully. Candice: How are you? Ritchie: At Rainbow rehearsals in '75, I played "Renaissance Faire" all the time. He didn't like it then, and he started banging on the drums in irritation. The last time we met, a couple of years ago, he really liked our new album "Shadow Of The Moon". I asked him if he remembered the song "Renaissance Faire" and he said, "Of course I remember the fucking song!" (laughs). As a drummer, he didn't like this song then. I played it all the time at Rainbow rehearsals, and he didn't think it was right for us. And then, two years ago, he liked it. You and Cozy had a strange relationship. Ritchie: He, like me, had a strong character. Therefore, when we agreed, everything was fine, but when we argued, it was terrible. This was a problem. When Cozy got to Rainbow, he already had an impressive career. Ritchie: Right. But, although he was a good show drummer, he could be criticized from a musical point of view - he did not always keep the tempo. He had a bad habit of losing his pace. But he didn't really notice it, and I tried not to talk about it. Did the fact that he previously played with Jeff Beck influence you? Ritchie: Of course, he played in Jeff Beck's band, but that's not why I took him. I knew that Jeff Beck's band toured all the time, so he must be a good drummer. Have you ever wanted to work with Carmine Appice? Ritchie: I don't think so. But anything is possible. Carmine was a good drummer... I don't remember whether I met him or not. Which of your drummers can you call the best? Ritchie: Ian Paice is a good drummer when it comes to fast tempo, but he's a mess when it comes to mid-tempo. He hated playing at medium tempo. Chuck Burgi keeps the rhythm best. He was great. And Cozy was more of a lead drummer. Joe Lynn Turner said that you were unhappy with Paice's drum part in "Cut Runs Deep", and replaced the live drums with computer ones. Did you only do that on this song? Ritchie: I think only this one. Exactly. I completely forgot. Paice didn't like playing to the click. But this is necessary to keep an even pace. Paice couldn't keep up the tempo on "Cut Runs Deep" and kept playing faster. In the end, everything sounded too fast. Yes, I completely forgot. Don't you think that Ian Paice played much better in the 70s than in the 80s? Ritchie: That's true. When I met Paice in Hamburg in '67, I wanted to get him into the group at any cost. I invited him to work together, but I didn't have a group at the time. A year later I contacted Paice and he joined the group. His style suited our music at that time perfectly. But in the 80s he began to play carelessly and lost all his enthusiasm. At the end of the tour he was usually playing around, but after the tour he didn't seem to work out at all, so he was out of shape all the time in the studio. I remember how angry I was with him: "Do you need two days to play the drums?" (Suddenly Fool's Gold starts playing.) I wrote this song in a dressing room in Japan, I felt bad then, my stomach hurt. I wanted to go to the toilet. My stomach hurt sharply, I wanted to go to the toilet, I ran to the toilet, but all the seats were occupied. I don't know if it's worth talking about this... I ran in search of a toilet in other rooms, it was nowhere to be found. It was time to go on stage, and I found some kind of container... I relieved myself there and took it to the band's dressing room - I left a surprise. John O'Reilly had an interesting face when he saw me enter the room. He began to wonder: "Why did Ritchie come here?" I asked him some stupid question, something like: "How old are you?" John was puzzled. I left, no one noticed anything, but after five minutes a terrible smell began to appear. Everyone started saying: "What is this?" That was incredible. Apparently there was something wrong with my stomach. That's what the song is about. "I want to go to the toilet" (sings to the tune of the song). Candice: It was just a nightmare, when we returned from the stage, there was a terrible smell backstage. And Ritchie walked around with an innocent look, as if he didn't understand what was going on. Ritchie: I just wanted to leave there. What a wonderful story (laughs). Ritchie: A romantic story about the creation of a song. How did you feel on stage afterwards? Ritchie: I don't remember. I remember that that evening I played faster than usual. John Ford: Now this song will always remind you of that concert. Ritchie: I already want to go to the toilet (laughs). Burrn magazine, Japan - April 1999