Posted by Nick on Monday, August 18th, 2025,
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Cute story, stranded with Rainbow! Dog night, I’m so alone, a million miles out on my own, no one to talk to, no one to care,
searching for someone, they could be anywhere …
He appears to be referring to Rainbow’s 1982 gig at Alpine Valley: “Ritchie walked off stage after about half an hour, end of concert” https://rainbowfanclan.com/on-tour.html
“Alpine Valley is an outdoor venue, usually a good place to see a summer concert. However, evenings in June can get quite cool and the temperature probably was in the 40s [fahrenheit] that night. Poor Richie Blackmore: his fingers got cold, so he walked off stage after a half hour. He just walked off stage after a song and didn’t come back. We knew the show was over when we heard his helicopter leave.” https://rainbowfanclan.com/reviews/live/1982_usa.html#0506
Nice story about Billy Corgan, he has always been a cultured musician, and with personality…. I appreciated the freshness and refinement of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, their masterpiece that they have never equaled, an album full of poetry, very different from the grunge stuff that MTV was playing at the time.
I’m not surprised that Billy has the Purple family in his musical background
Billyis a huge RB fan as well as being a big fan of DP and Rainbow. He is also one hell of an interviewer!! Love his episodes where he interviews people in music business – Magnificent Others
Like the one with Sharon Osbourne – she mentions RB back in days where her dad was managing gene vincent and was great listening her experiences growing up as music industry started to kick in gear during 60s as well as post war UK https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQ8nouYy1u4
I always found that there are great similarities between Ritchie’s and Uli’s playing, the neo-classical scales & the Jimi Hendrix influence, the way their solos can take you on a journey, their sense of dynamics and drama. To me bringing up Uli as being liked by Billy Corgan too isn’t that far away from the Ritchie topic at all. Lots of things ultimately tie together if you take a step back.
Talking of Uli Jon Roth, he is in Australia very soon for the first time. Well, three cities, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. Bummer he isn’t dropping down to the netherworld of Tasmania. Most don’t venture here anyway, so no surprises there. It would be grand to catch him live in concert, such a respected guitarist and musician. A really good interview here with him. A nice chap, very relaxed and no doubt it would be a rather good concert. Playing heaps of Scorpions music that he was involved with. Much more than he ever does apparently. He is keen to catch up with some of our wildlife. Well if only he had known about down here and I am not talking about the humans either. Cheers.
That Scorpion song Sails Of Charon is very Dio style with the vocals. The song and the guitar are grand and all that I have ever heard from Malmsteen over the years owes so much to Uli Jon Roth, much more than anyone else. Poor young Yngwie, he was still wearing nappies back then. Interesting in that Australian interview, Roth says they are doing a ‘orchestral’ 15 minute version of that classic Scorpions track. He said that the Scorpions never performed that song live back in the day, it didn’t work out at all when they tried to get it together. Sounds a little like the Rainbow scenario with Gates of Babylon. Good to see Roth still playing all that music. As he says, there are not many older guitarists still playing that 60’s to 70’s rock music these days, with the guitar still cranked to the fore. Cheers.
The Scorpions in the 80s and onwards were a good stadium rock band, it is what Rudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine had always wanted to be and worked their asses off for.
The Scorpions with Uli Roth on lead guitar in the 70s were however (and even more so than with Michael Schenker) something very special. I saw him live back then, he was a mesmerizing player.
When Yngwie Malmsteen got fed up with all the Ritchie comparisons in the 80s, he did indeed change his narrative to say that he patterned himself more after Uli Jon Roth – and there is actually some truth to that, that Paganini style of guitar playing, while already toyed with by Ritchie, was very much fully developed by Uli.
You’re right, Herr MacGregor, Sails of Charon is reminiscent of Gates of Babylon. But it must have been a case of divine intervention both times because each song was likely recorded at a time when the other one had not yet been released, they both stem from recording sessions mostly in late spring/summer/fall of 1977, TBF came out in Dec 1977, LLRNR in April 1978. Though, given that some of LLRnR was only recorded in Dec 1977, Ritchie might have nicked some inspiration from the then just released Scorpions album … Anyway, I’m sure that Ritchie and Uli listened to what the other guy did, they come from a similar school of musical thinking.
True fact: Uli had an offer to join Manfred Mann’s Earth Band in the latish 70s after ze Scorps had opened for MMEB and Uli caught Mann’s attention. Uli preferred to stay even though at that point MMEB were at their commercial peak in especially Germany, riding high in the album and singles charts with every release and selling out the largest halls.
Roth was varied as a player, I also loved this very Hendrixesque track, even though devotional rock music is generally not my cuppa …
Although that recent interview wasn’t focusing on Uli’s influences that much, I thought it a little odd that he didn’t mention Ritchie at all. Especially with that ‘wall of sound’ comment regarding the very loud amplifiers way back then. Hendrix was mentioned a few different times, of course the interviewer mentioned the lady friend of Hendrix and later to be Uli’s partner. I am glad it didn’t go too much into that ‘soap’ drama and they stayed with the music. But the ‘classical’ influence in Uli’s playing within a rock context. I was almost waiting (being a true Blackmore worshipper, he he he) for Uli to start mentioning Ritchie, even if only as a reference point. Not to worry, long live the king, the king is not dead, long live the king. Sorry about that, just a little worshipping at the shrine that I couldn’t resist. I couldn’t imagine Uli in Manfred’s Mann’s Earth Band at all. Cheers.
Not that Mick Rogers was in any way a slouch on lead guitar and I liked his voice too, but when Uli was approached it was clear that Mick Rogers would be leaving and that the vocalist/lead guitarist slot he had would be split and given to two people going forward.
Some of the early, more ballady and introspective Scorpions stuff was quite similar in its Teutonic drama:
@ 17 – Yes indeed the Manfred’s Mann Earth Band earlier material would open the door a little more for a guitarist like Uli. Thanks for the interview regarding the older style guitar players versus the shredders. I watched the Tokyo Tapes 2017 performance of the 16 minute Fly to the Rainbow track. A impressive band and something different to get the ears into. I have looked into the issues of getting to Melbourne for that gig next week, alas too much messing about for me this days. That little ole rocking chair is getting harder to leave all on its lonesome. Bummer eh. Years ago I would have jumped at the travelling etc, to witness musicians performing on that level. Cheers.
I wouldn’t call the Scorpions ingenious, Klaus’ Realschule-Englisch and Rudolf’s rudimentary approach to rhythm guitar, there was always a slightly cringe cheese factor to them, but while Uli Roth was around, that was being balanced by his virtuosity, his esoteric Hendrixisms and neo-classical interests. Eventually they ditched that because it wasn’t needed to conquer US stadiums – Matthias Jabs becoming their Ronnie Wood to the Mick Taylor Uli had been. (Jabs is technically a fine guitarist, but he doesn’t have much to say on the instrument.)
![[hand]](/hs-pics/portraits/hands/morse9.jpg)
![[face]](/hs-pics/portraits/faces/airey.jpg)
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
Cute story, stranded with Rainbow! Dog night, I’m so alone, a million miles out on my own, no one to talk to, no one to care,
searching for someone, they could be anywhere …
https://youtu.be/NJvLT55iL5w
August 19th, 2025 at 01:20He appears to be referring to Rainbow’s 1982 gig at Alpine Valley: “Ritchie walked off stage after about half an hour, end of concert” https://rainbowfanclan.com/on-tour.html
August 19th, 2025 at 10:08“Alpine Valley is an outdoor venue, usually a good place to see a summer concert. However, evenings in June can get quite cool and the temperature probably was in the 40s [fahrenheit] that night. Poor Richie Blackmore: his fingers got cold, so he walked off stage after a half hour. He just walked off stage after a song and didn’t come back. We knew the show was over when we heard his helicopter leave.” https://rainbowfanclan.com/reviews/live/1982_usa.html#0506
August 19th, 2025 at 10:11Must have been more than 30 minutes given the songs performed on the night: https://rainbowfanclan.com/bootlegs/boots/boots-1982.html#0506
August 19th, 2025 at 10:13Great story from Billy! How a missed ride turns into discovering MIJ.
August 19th, 2025 at 14:48Nice story about Billy Corgan, he has always been a cultured musician, and with personality…. I appreciated the freshness and refinement of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, their masterpiece that they have never equaled, an album full of poetry, very different from the grunge stuff that MTV was playing at the time.
I’m not surprised that Billy has the Purple family in his musical background
August 19th, 2025 at 21:27Billy has always praised Blackmore, saying that Ritchie wrote all the great riffs already and there is no point in attempting new ones.
And my countryman Uli of course:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FQhMxJ2pm0
Even playing Robot Man with him @ 07:50. 😂
August 20th, 2025 at 06:43Billyis a huge RB fan as well as being a big fan of DP and Rainbow. He is also one hell of an interviewer!! Love his episodes where he interviews people in music business – Magnificent Others
Like the one with Sharon Osbourne – she mentions RB back in days where her dad was managing gene vincent and was great listening her experiences growing up as music industry started to kick in gear during 60s as well as post war UK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQ8nouYy1u4
Lastest with Steve Vai is good too. love hearing about the Zappa days and how he viewed DLR days as inferior to VH
August 20th, 2025 at 16:16https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkntBbRuUm4
#7 Uwe:
Your ramblings on the topic are really strange and sometimes surprising.
like this one, I never thought I’d see Billy Corgan and Uli together, but evidently when two musicians are excellent, this is possible!
August 20th, 2025 at 19:07I always found that there are great similarities between Ritchie’s and Uli’s playing, the neo-classical scales & the Jimi Hendrix influence, the way their solos can take you on a journey, their sense of dynamics and drama. To me bringing up Uli as being liked by Billy Corgan too isn’t that far away from the Ritchie topic at all. Lots of things ultimately tie together if you take a step back.
https://youtu.be/Zs5NOrYYV2s
https://youtu.be/GcueSCIhVwI
Re Billy Corgan, I liked what he did with Zwan, that was good cerebral pop:
https://youtu.be/NLPgz9K4D20
https://youtu.be/CwmUMySSNQc
Ok, admittedly, the bassist girl was très cute too, like Karin I am a slave to my endorphins! 🤗
August 20th, 2025 at 22:26@10
“like Karin I am a slave to my endorphins! 🤗”
Everybody is Uwe! Every single one of us 😃
August 21st, 2025 at 08:56Talking of Uli Jon Roth, he is in Australia very soon for the first time. Well, three cities, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. Bummer he isn’t dropping down to the netherworld of Tasmania. Most don’t venture here anyway, so no surprises there. It would be grand to catch him live in concert, such a respected guitarist and musician. A really good interview here with him. A nice chap, very relaxed and no doubt it would be a rather good concert. Playing heaps of Scorpions music that he was involved with. Much more than he ever does apparently. He is keen to catch up with some of our wildlife. Well if only he had known about down here and I am not talking about the humans either. Cheers.
https://www.noise11.com/vinterviews/uli-jon-roth
August 23rd, 2025 at 10:11That Scorpion song Sails Of Charon is very Dio style with the vocals. The song and the guitar are grand and all that I have ever heard from Malmsteen over the years owes so much to Uli Jon Roth, much more than anyone else. Poor young Yngwie, he was still wearing nappies back then. Interesting in that Australian interview, Roth says they are doing a ‘orchestral’ 15 minute version of that classic Scorpions track. He said that the Scorpions never performed that song live back in the day, it didn’t work out at all when they tried to get it together. Sounds a little like the Rainbow scenario with Gates of Babylon. Good to see Roth still playing all that music. As he says, there are not many older guitarists still playing that 60’s to 70’s rock music these days, with the guitar still cranked to the fore. Cheers.
August 23rd, 2025 at 22:04The Scorpions in the 80s and onwards were a good stadium rock band, it is what Rudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine had always wanted to be and worked their asses off for.
The Scorpions with Uli Roth on lead guitar in the 70s were however (and even more so than with Michael Schenker) something very special. I saw him live back then, he was a mesmerizing player.
When Yngwie Malmsteen got fed up with all the Ritchie comparisons in the 80s, he did indeed change his narrative to say that he patterned himself more after Uli Jon Roth – and there is actually some truth to that, that Paganini style of guitar playing, while already toyed with by Ritchie, was very much fully developed by Uli.
You’re right, Herr MacGregor, Sails of Charon is reminiscent of Gates of Babylon. But it must have been a case of divine intervention both times because each song was likely recorded at a time when the other one had not yet been released, they both stem from recording sessions mostly in late spring/summer/fall of 1977, TBF came out in Dec 1977, LLRNR in April 1978. Though, given that some of LLRnR was only recorded in Dec 1977, Ritchie might have nicked some inspiration from the then just released Scorpions album … Anyway, I’m sure that Ritchie and Uli listened to what the other guy did, they come from a similar school of musical thinking.
True fact: Uli had an offer to join Manfred Mann’s Earth Band in the latish 70s after ze Scorps had opened for MMEB and Uli caught Mann’s attention. Uli preferred to stay even though at that point MMEB were at their commercial peak in especially Germany, riding high in the album and singles charts with every release and selling out the largest halls.
Roth was varied as a player, I also loved this very Hendrixesque track, even though devotional rock music is generally not my cuppa …
https://youtu.be/PzKqNTZyCSw
August 24th, 2025 at 13:27Although that recent interview wasn’t focusing on Uli’s influences that much, I thought it a little odd that he didn’t mention Ritchie at all. Especially with that ‘wall of sound’ comment regarding the very loud amplifiers way back then. Hendrix was mentioned a few different times, of course the interviewer mentioned the lady friend of Hendrix and later to be Uli’s partner. I am glad it didn’t go too much into that ‘soap’ drama and they stayed with the music. But the ‘classical’ influence in Uli’s playing within a rock context. I was almost waiting (being a true Blackmore worshipper, he he he) for Uli to start mentioning Ritchie, even if only as a reference point. Not to worry, long live the king, the king is not dead, long live the king. Sorry about that, just a little worshipping at the shrine that I couldn’t resist. I couldn’t imagine Uli in Manfred’s Mann’s Earth Band at all. Cheers.
August 24th, 2025 at 21:51I was almost waiting (being a true Blackmore worshipper, he he he) for Uli to start mentioning Ritchie, even if only as a reference point.
Sigh, why don’t you summon me with stuff like that, Herr MacGregor, you know I am your Germanic genie! Your wish is herewith granted:
https://earofnewt.com/2016/03/11/hey-david-gilmour-ritchie-blackmore-and-jeff-beck-uli-jon-roth-wants-to-jam/
https://youtu.be/szECpTGoXFk
August 26th, 2025 at 13:58And for dessert:
https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/interviews/too_many_players_play_without_meaning_uli_jon_roth_explains_why_he_prefers_70s_guitarists_over_modern-day_shredders.html
That’s one hell of an interview and I tend to agree with all of it.
BTW: Mid-70s MMEB were quite a bit more prog than their later singles and I could easily imagine Uli playing on a track like this:
https://youtu.be/jlEX6cTTE7M
Not that Mick Rogers was in any way a slouch on lead guitar and I liked his voice too, but when Uli was approached it was clear that Mick Rogers would be leaving and that the vocalist/lead guitarist slot he had would be split and given to two people going forward.
Some of the early, more ballady and introspective Scorpions stuff was quite similar in its Teutonic drama:
https://youtu.be/icAybQ91wRw
August 26th, 2025 at 14:25@ 17 – Yes indeed the Manfred’s Mann Earth Band earlier material would open the door a little more for a guitarist like Uli. Thanks for the interview regarding the older style guitar players versus the shredders. I watched the Tokyo Tapes 2017 performance of the 16 minute Fly to the Rainbow track. A impressive band and something different to get the ears into. I have looked into the issues of getting to Melbourne for that gig next week, alas too much messing about for me this days. That little ole rocking chair is getting harder to leave all on its lonesome. Bummer eh. Years ago I would have jumped at the travelling etc, to witness musicians performing on that level. Cheers.
August 27th, 2025 at 21:52I wouldn’t call the Scorpions ingenious, Klaus’ Realschule-Englisch and Rudolf’s rudimentary approach to rhythm guitar, there was always a slightly cringe cheese factor to them, but while Uli Roth was around, that was being balanced by his virtuosity, his esoteric Hendrixisms and neo-classical interests. Eventually they ditched that because it wasn’t needed to conquer US stadiums – Matthias Jabs becoming their Ronnie Wood to the Mick Taylor Uli had been. (Jabs is technically a fine guitarist, but he doesn’t have much to say on the instrument.)
August 28th, 2025 at 13:50