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Insecurities and more insecurities
Guitar Player has an article on Ritchie Blackmore based on an interview he gave to the paper version of the magazine circa 1996.
That relentless, almost surgical pursuit of perfection was felt far beyond his own ranks; it reverberated through the generation of electric guitar players raised on his records. As Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins told Guitar Player in 1995, “Pound for pound, he’s one of the best soloists in history, but he’s such a dick that he’ll probably never get the credit he deserves.”
No one understood the paradox better than Blackmore himself. Asked one year later about his reputation for being difficult, he didn’t deflect. He indicted the entire enterprise.
“I hate show biz. I hate people who confine themselves to the system,” he told Guitar Player. “Why does everyone have to do the right interview at the right time, be on the right program, be politically correct, say the right things and be at the right parties? That gets up my nose. Why can’t I just play the guitar? It’s all I want to do.”
Read more in Guitar Player.
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
This:
“ Why can’t I just play the guitar? It’s all I want to do.”
Ohh, so right!
I hear ya mr. Blackmore!
And I have a notion that Ian somehow sees it the same way as RB:
“ I hate show biz. I hate people who confine themselves to the system,” he told Guitar Player. “Why does everyone have to do the right interview at the right time, be on the right program, be politically correct, say the right things and be at the right parties? That gets up my nose.”
– maybe Ian’s just more refined and polite.
It’s such a show… I love it when people are genuine and honest!
February 14th, 2026 at 05:00The pretending to be someone in the spotlight but not at home gets up my nose 😊
Oh my, it’s not too late for a few therapy sessions, Ritchie! 😘
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71kVR9T4pLL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg
I don’t think that any guitarist worth his salt has ever looked down on Ritchie as an instrumentalist, it’s the idiosyncrasies surrounding his persona that have raised eyebrows (or smirks) now and then. Ritchie might have never attained the status of Jimi Hendrix or EvH, but in the 70s he was always confortably in the upper echolons of British guitarists.
February 14th, 2026 at 05:34Give me Ritchie any day over the others, meaning Hendrix and EVH. It is what is in the pudding that matters. Poor ole Jimi, well he did ok at times and at least he has an iconic riff or two to annoy people in guitar stores. The same as Ritchie and a few others from the most innovative years in rock music. As for EVH, a fine guitarist he was, but seriously, can anyone name a riff or solo (please don’t mention Eruption) that stands alone and the test of time too within an iconic song or arrangement? No I didn’t think so. Billy Corgan surely was joking about Blackers, wouldn’t he love the accolades we think. Maybe not as he knows he would never be mentioned in that league. Blackmore prefers being out of the spotlight, he doesn’t care for all that hyped rubbish that media and others go on about. A lot of genuine musicians don’t. The musicians are not the ones trying desperately to spin a repetative story every day to earn crust. The Media will say anything, as long as it garners sensationalistic attention (even if a false narrative) and of course $ales etc. Cheers.
February 14th, 2026 at 11:42I love Ritchie, but what a naive statement to make.
Ritchie is also free to produce, release and promote his music at his own expense. Then he doesn’t need to give any interviews to promote his albums to the public.
But as long as someone else is footing the bill and investinging in his music, he is part of the “system”.
February 14th, 2026 at 12:55#3 MacGregor:
There are so many excellent Eddie solos that don’t need to be mentioned, many guitarists could name them better than us, I don’t think a guitarist’s quality is remembered for the number of iconic solos, but for the contribution he made to the history of rock, and Ritchie’s contribution was as huge as Eddie’s.
Today I listened again to nasty piece of work, and I have to say that Ritchie and Purple’s work even in 1993 was excellent and refined, perhaps I always underestimate TBRO, but if the general quality is perhaps inferior to PS & THOBL, I find it less boring than what Purple have done with Morse in the last 15 years.
then there is a famous phrase that says that “there is no bad Deep Purple album, but simply one album that is less good than the others”
February 14th, 2026 at 14:32Take it with a grain of salt. That’s Ritchie and his v-e-e-ery dry sense of humor.
February 14th, 2026 at 14:49“As for EVH, a fine guitarist he was, but seriously, can anyone name a riff or solo (please don’t mention Eruption) that stands alone and the test of time too within an iconic song or arrangement?”
This is what happens when you let drummers write about musicians. 😑😑😑 If you tolerate this, your children will be next …
Try the solos in Running With The Devil, Beat It and Jump for starters, Herr MacGregor. 😂 And then tell me who else could have come up with and played them.
I’m no EVH or Van Halen worshipper, but I’ve seen the man in concert (with Van Hagar in their heyday), he was an immaculate musician, never mind how personal and health issues marred his later life.
Billy Corgan is btw an absolute Ritchie fan, Made in Japan is for him a life-changing record, he deems him severely underrated, the quote from him has to be seen in the context of him explaining why Ritchie never got his due in general popularity. But then Chuck Berry was never perceived as a person particularly easy to get along with either.
February 14th, 2026 at 17:21You are missing my point Uwe. Eddie, bless him, does not have an iconic riff or solo that so many people when they hear it, they know what it is etc. That isn’t a slant on EVH from me, just saying how it is. He himself loathed all the media hype bullshit too, alway defending the tapping ‘invention’ crap that so many keep on keeping on with. He was a down to earth chap, and he was a later guitar innovator and he did very well indeed. But iconic in amongst all the hoopla, I don’t think so. Leave that to the 60’s to early 70’s guitarists. I am aware that Billy Corgan is a Ritchie acolyte, but to say Ritchie is not ‘up there’ because of his attitude is not really what it is. Cheers.
February 14th, 2026 at 18:59Here’s wishing Billy Corgan will be able to pull off a podcast with Ritchie…I like his podcast series, The Magnificent Others…
February 14th, 2026 at 20:28No iconic riffs?
https://preview.redd.it/vi4ldytkeajy.jpg?width=1080&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=7f850973d105038ca9090a4398912d142c9424ea
You can’t be serious!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5G4nc1Y1NE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzYPpaPf6eg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QL1DtPKhRAA
And if this keyboard riff (written by Eddie) isn’t iconic and exemplfies 80s music, then what the hell is?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezK02hIMxb0
You can’t go to a keyboard store to this day and listen to someone trying out a synth without hearing it – it’s to keyboarders what STH, SOTW or Enter Sandman are to guitarists!
Plus, lieber Herr MacGregor, granted, you might be one of the few people on this Earth who doesn’t own and never has heard Michael Jackson’s Thriller (the hardly known album, still most-sold in the world), but a negligible 70 million (most recent count) households do/have done. 🤣 And they all remember this solo …
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aplfy9YZcZs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRdxUFDoQe0 (slightly less than 30 seconds starting from 03:10 at the beginning of the knife fight)
And there we have it, I never thought I would be put in a position where I would have to speak up for EVH/Van Halen. 😑
February 14th, 2026 at 23:53@ 10 – Edward Lodewijk Van Halen did get his name up in lights after all then. Seriously, why would I ever listen to Michael Jackson? I was aware of that cameo though through the dreaded MTV era, I forgot about that session solo and I will give Eddie his due then, he he he, not too bad all things considered for a slap up solo. I did not know that members of Toto: Steve Lukather, Jeff and Steve Porcaro also performed on that MJ song. Getting back to the seriousness of ‘rock’ music and I was thinking of VH the band. What is this about keyboards? We were talking about guitar riffs the last time I looked. I did own all the DLR VH records back in the 1980’s and I liked some of it at the time, still don’t mind a song here and there. However I don’t ever recall thinking, gee that is a unique riff that one. We all hear what we hear as individuals. It is very rare to see Edward’s name up in those lights regarding ‘iconic guitar riffs’. I have plenty of respect for him though and he loathed all the hoopla from the media and the like. That 2015 performance in Hollywood Boulevard is grand. The one where DLR accidently smashed his nose before the first song, twirling the mike stand. Classic rock ‘n roll that performance from VH and it sounds really loud too. Wonderful. Cheers.
February 15th, 2026 at 07:53There have been many guitarists who have played great iconic riffs, past and present, some we know well and others not so much. But we constantly read the Highway Star because we love and admire all the musicians who have played with Deep Purple. I’m 67, and the 1970’s were my teenage years. Fireball, In Rock, Machine Head, Made in Japan and Burn just blew me away with the raw energy, musicianship and melody. I was at an impressionable age, and I thought everything they recorded was perfect and new. And Richie was the guitarist; his riffs were amazing. Was he moody? Yes, unpredictable, certainly, a control freak, probably, but he could do no wrong, and the band was mine for life.
February 15th, 2026 at 08:02Van Halen live 2015 Hollywood Boulevard. One of Eddie’s last live performances. Cheers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jw8kzmDtK3s&t=611s
February 15th, 2026 at 10:57#11 MacGregor:
February 15th, 2026 at 12:38If I had to choose an iconic Eddie riff I would definitely say Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love.
even Finish What Ya Started was an iconic VH riff and song in my youth
Ritchie‘s and Eddie‘s riffs are worlds apart because nearly all Blackmore riffs are in minor keys (something like Woman From Tokyo is an exception) while Van Halen‘s riffs are nearly all in major keys, that is why VH sound so upbeat and happy, weekend hard rock so to say. Blackmore‘s riffs also tend to be longer, Eddie is conciser and more to the point. And another thing is: If Blackmore came up with a riff, he‘d play it to death in an arrangement, making sure it was indelibly stamped into the listener‘s mind. The amount of riff repetitions in songs like SOTW and Burn are laughable and something critics of DP often pointed out as “stuffing one single idea down people’s throats”. I remember a Supertramp review from the mid 70s where one rock critic wrote: When DP have one good musical idea, they build an album around it, when Supertramp have an idea they use it sparingly once or twice in a song before moving on to something else. You get the gist. It is of course an oversimplification, but there is a grain of truth to it. Purple’s riffing relied on a maximum of repetition and Ritchie was the chief perpetrator of that. Not that I ever minded, I actually liked that aspect in their music which went side by side with the Gorgan-unison concept of Ritchie and Jon. “Steam hammer riffing”/Dampfhammerrock some people called it. 😂
https://youtu.be/wkhB6WEscl4
February 15th, 2026 at 17:06Billy Corgan was once asked why the music of the Smashing Pumpkins is more chord- than riff-heavy and he laughed: That is because all great riffs have already been written! “Whenever you think you have come up with a good riff on your own, you then listen by coincidence to something like Made in Japan and it is already there!”
February 15th, 2026 at 18:11@14 – “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” – yes, one of Eddie’s most memorable riffs. Along with the aforementioned “Running With the Devil” and “Panama”.
“Jamie’s Crying”, “Beautiful Girls”, “Dance the Night Away” and “Unchained” some of the other more unforgettable ones.
Agree that “Finish What Ya Started” is an enjoyable number, from the generally less entertaining Van Hagar era.
A considerable catalogue. Little doubt that EVH was one of the greatest riffers since Ritchie Blackmore.
February 15th, 2026 at 20:33Definitely a ‘party’ band Van Halen, raucous rock ‘n roll etc, even a sort of ‘cabaret’ or ‘circus’ act in some ways. A lot of ‘show business’ in their presentation. Younger peoples fun time music, it was and still is. Not as serious to me as many other bands or as explorative, but that is fine as that is who they are or were. They moulded their own and good on them for doing so. They impressed me as youngster, many of the newer bands and guitarists did at that time. However, it doesn’t sustain me as much as other acts do, melody and song strength wise etc etc. I am only a DLR VH fan, I couldn’t stand the Hagar version or the Cherone one. I stayed clear of the band for decades until Roth returned. Just get back together and stop messing about was how I looked at it. It was nice to see DLR back with them for the closure and for Wolfgang to play, record and enjoy quality time with his father. That is another reason I enjoy a few live songs on that 2015 tour, smiles all round from everyone. Cheers.
February 15th, 2026 at 21:25#18 MacGregor:
February 15th, 2026 at 23:49I can’t think of many other bands that can compete with VH in terms of melody… apart from Journey, who are the kings, I can think of Aerosmith, Kiss, Whitesnake from their glam period, and maybe Guns, but I can’t remember any other hard rock bands that have had the same series of melodic singles in the American charts and in the world as VH…
I’m a Sammy Hagar guy. I think it helps considerably if the lead singer in a band can do just that – sing and hit notes not just by accident. 🤣 DLR was only ever the third-best singer in the original line-up – after Michael Anthony (pristine) and Eddie (quite good).
Nearly all the songs written by Van Hagar would have been outside the grasp of DLR vocally even if he had a good day.
Ted Templeman, their producer remembers:
https://lamag.com/music/van-halen-ted-templeman/
“Van Halen’s biggest issue was one that as a producer I feared I couldn’t fix. The truth was that Dave’s performance in Sunset Sound only raised my anxieties about his abilities. Some of his vocal performances, to be frank, just weren’t acceptable. To be sure, he was distinctive as a singer; his train-whistle screams were identifiable in a good way. But every time I heard him get pitchy or completely miss a note, I worried that the public was going to be turned off by this band because of his limitations.
Donn picked up on the same things. Since I’d confided in him my thoughts on Sammy Hagar, he’d turn to me when we were both at the board and whisper, “You’ve gotta call Sam.” I’d nod and say under my breath, “You’re right.” He knew that Dave scared the shit out of me. Thinking back on that first go-around with Dave in the studio, I started wondering if I should stop talking about it and actually see about firing him. While he had his moments, he mostly just croaked along while the other guys played the most amazing shit. At first Van Halen was like a really terrible algebraic formula that you need to solve but don’t know how to. On the plus side, I had a great band with an incredible guitar player and a singer who did these screams that were different than anything I’d ever heard. I still don’t know how he did them. He also had this engaging personality and looked great onstage. But the fact remained that he really couldn’t sing well. Could I find a way to pull better performances out of him? I honestly didn’t know.”
But I’ll give it to DLR, he had other qualities that helped VH on their way to fame. In the studio his amusical (but immediately recognizable) voice’s limitations were contained through countless takes until he got it right and live he was a sight to see and could talk himself out of most situations as a frontman plus the people would recognize the songs the second Michael Anthony came in with his voice. But my gosh, DLR was and is technically a bad singer, I rate him below Iggy Pop.
February 16th, 2026 at 03:491996. It makes sense since around that year he decided to leave rock music and go into medieval adventure with Blackmore’s Night. Perhaps he had become disillusioned with music business entirely that’s why he said that line
To me Blackmore’s Night is not a musical career for him, it’s his home. He went back home
February 16th, 2026 at 04:55Eddie Van Halen was a huge fan of Deep Purple and Ritchie Blackmore, especially for the riffs.
Here is a link to footage of EVH backstage warming up to Hard Loving Man, Speed King, Space Truckin’, etc.:
https://youtu.be/GNAvYBfkfzE?si=8vnqpuHmOO23TRSi
Speaking of HLM, you can hear what sounds like quick references to/quotations of HLM in Van Halen’s Intruder, the instrumental piece in 1982’s album Diver Down that comes right before the cover of Pretty Woman.
https://youtu.be/0RZf-bV3aRE?si=v3nSlJ40Pgws33fi
And if the above bits and pieces are not enough, here are links to Van Halen performing Might Just Take Your Life and Maybe I’m a Leo in the early days (74/75) when they transitioned from backyard parties to the club scene on LA’s famous Sunset Strip:
https://youtu.be/2DdZxer8s1A?si=vJmUglLiOdj0cSuo
https://youtu.be/Ovw4AE43dmI?si=BXrl4V4JZVOXouEj
In addition, late in life, EVH listed Burn among his all-time favorite riffs, as you can see here:
https://youtu.be/MYFcThNOFOw?si=sDVr5nb8oaH1T0F1
I appreciate EVH very much for his musical capabilities, but I also respect him a great deal for his character. It is impressive to see EVH remain a fan of Blackmore throughout the decades even after the infamous, failed attempt by Don Airey to introduce a then up-and-coning EVH (and Gary Moore) to Blackmore at a Rainbow gig in the late 70s.
According to Airey, EVH was eager to meet Blackmore, but the MiB was not as cordial as he should have been, as Airey explains here:
https://youtu.be/3aYn0Ygg9o4?si=fQWb-ThJTxdBNbu6
Who knows exactly what happened? Was this an unfortunate, classic case of bad timing?
Did the encounter take place right before the start of the gig, with Blackmore eager to stay focused on the performance and get the show started? At the end of the day, I was very pleased to read Blackmore’s tribute, full of praise, to EVH when the “Dutch (born) Master” passed away:
https://blabbermouth.net/news/ritchie-blackmore-says-eddie-van-halen-was-the-ultimate-guitar-hero
Hopefully, when EVH left us, there were no open issues between these two legends.
February 16th, 2026 at 06:20@ 20 – Doesn’t matter what bullshit was talked Uwe, look what happened eh? It was much more than a just a decent singer required, was it not. And let’s face it, who ended up back there. It was about the spirit of the band, the act, the show and the hype. When Hagar the horrible joined, well people just rolled their eyes………… and were hanging out for Diamond Dave to be back as the court jester, the clown, the ringmaster, etc etc………..What songs do Van Halen fans really want to hear in concert whilst being entertained………………….Thought as much………..!
February 16th, 2026 at 07:50@ 22- thanks for the Blackmore and EVH links. I was thinking of venturing down that road but I have decided to keep focus on Uwe’s pro Hagar the horrible raves. We had this out recently here at THS and I do apologise to the moderators here for igniting the flames again. This shouldn’t be a Roth v Hagar forum at all…………that is a tired well worn path and one of the reasons I stayed clear of all things VH for a few decades…………..Still, we did notice they were all smiles again with Dave’s return…………..Musicians should be able to enjoy the occasion along with the audience. Many music lovers don’t seem to mind ‘dodgy’ vocals at times. Dylan is one that springs to mind, Iggy another as Uwe reminded us. There are others out there…….What do the audience want or need? A good time, good songs etc. Cheers.
I would also opt for “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” as EVHs most iconic riff.
As for Hendrix, I would vote for “Highway Chile”. Maybe not his most famous song, but this riff has something so archetypal. If aliens ever come and ask us (and they *will* ask!) “OK, what is an electric guitar riff?”, I may have it on the top of my list to give as an example.
Like them or not, Jimi defined the electric guitar of late 60ies and 70ies, and Van Halen that of the 80ies. I would vote for Ritchie over them any time, but both of them were great.
February 16th, 2026 at 09:58@23 I was at the 2015 VH concert at MSG featuring Diamond Dave on vocals and Wolfgang on bass. I remember it as being great fun, with people pretty much staying up for the entire show.
February 16th, 2026 at 10:09“Musicians should be able to enjoy the occasion along with the audience. Many music lovers don’t seem to mind ‘dodgy’ vocals at times.”
Exactly, look at Alice Cooper… he’s no Sinatra by any means, but he still packs ’em in.
February 16th, 2026 at 10:47@23 Look, MG, saying that VH is all about Dave is like saying DP is all about MkII. Yep, each band has its classic era and once it’s over, fans crave for its return. It doesn’t mean other eras are bad, tho.
Just for the record, being a kid from the ’80s, the only two tracks by VH I can reliably recall are ‘Why Can’t This Be Love’ with its guitar synth riff and ‘When It’s Love’ with a memorable pop melody. That’s it. Neither Dave’s vocals, nor Eddie’s solos stuck in my mind.
February 16th, 2026 at 11:51Alice Cooper even at the height of his drug abuse was a much better singer than DLR in technical terms. Alice has a limited range (as he freely admits), but he’s never been tone-deaf. DLR starts a song in a wrong key and never even notices throughout.
I’m not saying that Hagar was the better, more entrancing frontman, he was just the better singer and writer, more in tune with Eddie’s and Michael’s inherent musicality. He wasn’t a conferencier like Diamond Dave indisputably was.
My view might be tarnished by having seen VH at Nassau Coliseum in 1988, I went as a sceptic (I didn‘t much care for VH one way or another, but thought I might see them if they are playing not too far from NYC), but came away as a fresh convert, it was that good. Not just Hagar, the whole band.
February 16th, 2026 at 16:47@24 – ” If aliens ever come and ask us (and they *will* ask!)” He he he, I thought Jimi had already been in contact with them Manic. The second track off Axis ; Bold as Love, “Up From The Skies”.
Weren’t the lyrics taken from the perspective of a space alien visiting, or rather returning to Earth and being curious as to how life has evolved. Cheers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wagVqW_cD5c&t=1s
February 16th, 2026 at 21:31Third Stone From The Sun would be better suited though for some ‘Alien’ communication from Jimi and the lads.
A wonderful spoken word ‘instrumental’ indeed. Have to love Mitch Mitchell’s jazz chops and a bit of swing there. A good bass guitar groove from Noel Redding. Below are the lyrics, apparently the first verse speeded up reveals the ‘hidden’ words. Cheers.
‘Star fleet to scout ship, please give your position. over’
‘I am in orbit around the third planet from the star called the sun. over’
‘you mean it’s the earth? over.’
Positive. it is know to have some form of intelligent species. over’
‘I think we should take a look.’
Strange beautiful grass of green
With your majestic silken seas
Your mysterious mountains
I wish to see closer
May I land my kinky machine
Although your world wonders me
With you majestic superior cackling hen
Your people I do not understand
So to you I wish to put and end
And you’ll never hear surf music again
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zts332Y-nyg&list=RDZts332Y-nyg&start_radio=1
February 17th, 2026 at 00:34#28. With all due respect, the discussion of who’s the most technically skilled vocalist (DLR or Alice Cooper) is pointless. DLR was just about as important to the original VH as EVH was. His voice (yes) and swagger in general. It’s a bit like wishing IP was in Rainbow 🙂 I agree it’s close to impossible to sit through current performance footage of DLR but this doesn’t take away from what he brought to the band originally.
February 17th, 2026 at 06:54@29 MacGregor
heh, it is indeed probably the other way around: what if Jimi is the alien that came to teach us what an electric guitar riff is…
February 17th, 2026 at 15:33It seems Ritchie’s Miles Davis phase was still ongoing in 1987. Sometimes noise playing can be very exciting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtOx8VIdG5M
February 17th, 2026 at 19:08@ 33 – thanks for that, wonderful first thing in the morning with my coffee, a nice way to start the day, bliss. Cheers.
February 17th, 2026 at 20:27Blackers teases nicely into the song, but I hate how he then proceeds to race poor Lazy to death. It ruins the song for me, all the flow goes out of it.
It’s murder on the dance floor, but you better not kill the groove …
https://youtu.be/hAx6mYeC6pY
February 18th, 2026 at 00:10Hello.
Ritchie at his best (at the time). Thank You Daniel @33.
Uwe. “Not quite my tempo” (Whiplash, anyone?) I understand your point very well. I think Ritchie is just a bit too eager at times. But isn´t he just amazing and very entertaining?
1987 was the year I finally (and very luckily) saw MkII live for the very first time. Actually it was on the 19th of August, and You all of course know what date that is. The place was full packed Icehall in Helsinki. Great and very memorable gig, indeed. The always so lucky Swedes had already had DP touring in Sweden in 1985, but we here in Finland had to wait until 1987 to see our heroes here. And You know what? I still have the big tour poster intact at our rehearsal place.
This, on the other hand, has been one of my favourite versions of the song. And yes, it´s one of my desert island choices as a song in particular.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eP6kgO0MRbg&list=RDeP6kgO0MRbg&start_radio=1
My third sto….cup of kahvi (now you learn it in Finnish) is almost gone. 1, 2, 3…more !
Kippis.
February 18th, 2026 at 09:12@33 Daniel
thanks indeed for this. Too fast, but fun to watch.
At 4.15 the video is blurry, but is it a bit like “let’s try this tapping technique everyone fusses about” and 2 seconds later “well… better not…”?
February 18th, 2026 at 11:56Daniel, I never heard that before. Thanks for sharing. Very interesting indeed.
February 18th, 2026 at 12:14I saw DP twice on the THOBL tour too, the first one was an inspired gig, the second one was at some open air (Monsters of Rock?), still good, but with a shorter and less adventurous set as you would expect at such an event.
I had by then – sigh! – come to terms with the fact that Ritchie was rushing both Lazy and the middle shuffle of Child In Time to death.
February 18th, 2026 at 15:21And to think it was poor ole Cozy getting the blame for the ‘hamfisted’ tempo of Lazy back in the day. It was always Ritchie commencing the song too quick, which of course leads the other musicians astray. I wonder if anyone was ever game to say, ‘Ritchie ole son, wind it back a little, please’. Maybe he consumed too much coffee or something else before each gig. Cheers.
February 18th, 2026 at 16:16@33
Ohhh I like it! Thank you 🙏🏼
@36
Whiplash – 🤣🤣 good one!
@38
February 18th, 2026 at 16:57I have never heard that particular piece before, even though I’m vacuuming YouTube for interesting material 😊
#36. TBRO tour is often praised but they had more energy on the HOBL tour to my eyes and ears at least. This recording from Vienna is a good illustration of that. The atmospheric medieval intro nicely setting the tone for the festivities to follow. Ritchie the disruptor in his own bubble to some extent, not necessarily playing for the team, but this creates the required tension. Possibly a source of frustration for the rest of the band but the sparks are flying as a result. Paicey relentless. Letting IG go in favour of JLT criminal. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJCHseei5yc
February 18th, 2026 at 19:04Cozy of course never rushed any song. 😑
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k__qsVNMcP0
Perish the thought!
“TBRO tour is often praised but they had more energy on the HOBL tour to my eyes and ears at least.”
Finally, someone says it! There was something of a last hurray to the 1993 tour.
February 19th, 2026 at 02:29@20 – Uwe – once a producer starts meddling with a band’s lineup, he is really overstepping the mark. However – though it’s been awhile since I read the book – seem to recall that in subsequent pages Templeman acknowledged that DLR *was* the right singer for the band.
Lucky for VH that TT didn’t try to force another singer on them! DLR’s showmanship and unique delivery defined the sound of the band as much as any other element. As Daniel @31 pointed out. Not to mention his lyrics, far more clever and less cliche-ridden than Hagar’s.
Given how bland the Van Hagar records are, one doubts the group, had they debuted sans Dave, would have had as large an impact.
Dave is a force of nature like Johnny Rotten or Jim Dandy. “Good” singer or not, he sounds fantastic on all six VH records. Not that different from how he sounded on the pre-Templeman demos, either – merely a little more polished with the advantage of more studio time. Even on the albums, some things like “Could This Be Magic” sound like they may be pretty much live off the floor in any case, given all the extraneous noises on the track.
His first couple of solo LPs were also very good, the second one, notably, without the benefit of Templeman’s production.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxhA5GGP7xY&list=PLsmCJjObFV0fUdjN7fRo_G3-5ISIGJYu2&index=5
Would think the all-time most off-key singer is Lou Reed, surely?
Sammy is undoubtedly a powerful vocalist. The records he made with Montrose and some of his early solo ones were entertaining. His take on “Catch The Wind” was one of the more interesting Donovan remakes since DP’s version of “Lalena”. He seemed like the logical choice to succeed Roth. Yet when he joined, 99% of the fun seemed to evaporate from the band overnight.
One recalls how jarring some of the funky and downtempo material on “Stormbringer” seemed, after the hard rock majesty of “Burn”. But as primary school kids my friends and I accepted tunes like “You Can’t Do It Right”, “Holy Man” and “Hold On” right away.
Maybe by the time Hagar replaced DLR we’d become too hidebound or obtuse to appreciate great art. If that’s what Van Hagar was.
February 19th, 2026 at 05:06Or maybe as Georgivs @27 suggests, by then we had become aware that groups had a “classic era” and that VH’s was over.
the outfit Blackmore is wearing in 1991 is comical and clearly he has been associating with JLT far too much. All that leather, they look almost worse for wear than Judas Priest did at that time. What is it with leather??? Perhaps we better not go there eh? Get out the whips and chains everybody, I am getting out of here. Cheers.
February 19th, 2026 at 07:31Skippy, I agree that DLR was the more charismatic frontman and stage gyrations athlete, had the more perceptive wit plus better lyrical ideas and that he was indispensable for VH’s success: the Van Halen brothers might have been making the music and Michael Anthony might have commercially honed it with his trademark backing vocals, but DLR sold it to the world and kept the band in the papers.
He just didn’t sing so well (I’m not even saying that he didn’t have a voice, but he had real intonation issues) and in a hard rock environment that often showed painfully live (Ted Templeman gave DLR’s voice a fine setting on the studio albums). DLR just was no Ian Gillan, Rober Plant, Paul Rodgers, Jon Anderson, Freddie Mercury, Lou Gramm, Steven Tyler, Robert Halford, Geoff Tate or Steve Perry, let’s agree on that. Against that background, the combination with a guitarist as thoroughly virtuoso and musicianly as Eddie was certainly unusual, but maybe it was the magic recipe. Imagine if Eddie had played guitar like DLR sang live. 😎
If you’re fronting a band like Velvet Underground, The Pretenders or Talking Heads and your pitching is less than perfect, then that can all be part of the alt rock charm, but singing hard rock or heavy metal with (mostly) a tenor voice in stadiums is demanding and unforgiving. Put differently, I’m not aware of any hard rock/heavy metal singer in a major league band of the 70s and 80s that was in live performances technically as bad and limited a singer as DLR, Paul Di’Anno before Iron Maiden fired him maybe excepted (we’re not talking about people like Lemmy or Cronos of Venom!).
February 19th, 2026 at 10:06It’s a strange discussion. If he had sung like Steve Perry he would not have been David Lee Roth. Both are great at what they do. Also, how do you define singing well? Entirely subjective. “Technically well” is probably more accurate. But Steve Perry would not have been right for Van Halen, the same way Mick Jones would not have been right for Rainbow.
February 19th, 2026 at 11:36Jon Lord is on record saying that TBRO tour had some of the best gigs MK II Purple ever performed, I will try and find the video. Yes, at least on THOBL tour Gillan and Blackmore seem to be still getting along ok. Not that I have ever witnessed any of THOBL tour, until these recent clips actually and thank you to the aficionados here for posting those links. When Roger Glover was using a Steinberger bass guitar, even Geddy Lee of Rush fame used one. Not a good sound from where I am sitting, but what would I know. And talking of Roger and on his site from 2003 the right reverend Uwe Hornung asked a few questions that Roger dutifully answered. Has Uwe been infiltrating websites for that long. That is twenty three years ago, something must be done about this, he he he. Regarding poor ol Cozy getting hassled from the ‘other’ side, I am also looking into a ‘leave Cozy Powell alone’ gofundme campaign set up. All proceeds will go to the ‘oops, I don’t recall ever saying that’ website. A rather short term memory site that will be for some. Below is a lengthy and interesting interview with Jon Lord from THS that was lifted from Keyboard magazine by the look of it, 1994. He doesn’t like the Slaves and Masters stint, we all know that one. However a little surprise comment about the Coverdale/Page shenanigans. Jon did not like either, not surprising. He even talks about Led Zeppelin a little, in good way. I was initially looking for the video interview where he praises the band on TBRO tour, it is a easily found one but I have been distracted in these early morning hours, too tired now, will find it later on. Cheers
https://www.thehighwaystar.com/interviews/lord/jl199401xx_1.html
https://www.rogerglover.com/bass-players-question-time/equipment/.
https://equipboard.com/pros/roger-glover?gear=bass-guitars
February 19th, 2026 at 14:48#40 MacGregor:
I’m sorry to say this, but Ritchie literally massacred Lazy for 10 years (and also Child in Time on the Réunion tours, except for the TBRO tour), his Miles Davis period, however musically justified it may be, left us with songs that to our ears can ultimately be defined as “artistic crap” or “senseless fun” or “the comparison with made in Japan is embarrassing”…. Ritchie, Ritchie….
#45 MacGregor:
Don’t touch Ritchie’s 80’s leather look!….he was Top of the “The Man in Black” charm 100% better than any other guitarist on the planet!
http://www.deep-purple.net/features/knebworth/deep-purple-knebworth-3.html
#46 Uwe:
It’s true, David was technically out of tune, but there are many successful out of tune singers who sing in a unique and recognizable way, like Diamond Dave sings!
actually singing VH MKI songs is difficult for this very reason, because you have to give that “off-key” feel to the song that makes it special!…Dave also had some natural high trills that are technically very difficult to repeat exactly.
Sammy was technically better as a singer, that’s beyond question, but he didn’t have those high-pitched trills that only Dave and a few others could do.
Not that Sammy didn’t have some high notes in his tessitura, but he didn’t have Dave’s peaks (which Dave obviously lost over the years).
I put the VH mkI and MkII on exactly the same level as AC/DC with Scott or Johnson…for me, overall, the VH with Hagar and the AC/DC with Johnson are of higher quality, also due to a question of the age of the musicians and the maturity of the band.
February 19th, 2026 at 22:49Of course for purists the original lineup of VH and AC/DC is exactly like Purple MKII
Careful what you say about Chrissie…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7aDqXPtnG0
Because she’s, you know, Special…
February 20th, 2026 at 03:02Hello.
Thank you again, MacGregor @48.
Blackmore and Gillan did have some hilarious time on THOBL-tour gig I witnessed and mentioned you earlier (@36). For example, Ritchie tried to knock Ian´s “backdoor” with his Strat. I guess I don´t need to describe that manoeuvre more? : )
I was there, exactly the same venue, on 17th of November 1993, too. That very historical date. If we just had known. Ritchie and Big Ian did not have a single eye-to-eye contact during the whole concert. And for some reason (almost just right before this internet thing spread its´wings) we had heard some rumours from somewhere that everything was not right in the DP camp. And like they say, the rest is history. Very sad.
Fla@49. I share your opinion. I think the leather outfit suited Ritchie just well at the time, in 1991. (On the other hand, never understood the Priest, but I guess it´s just that the taste of music is personal and I´ve rarely liked the music that´s popular.)
It will be just a couple of weeks until 4th of March. And… YES, You guessed right! The S&M tour with JLT, 1991. The very same venue again. We sure had some mixed emotions before that event. People roared “Gillan lavalle – (Gillan on stage that is)” before the band begin their set and the opening number was….BURN! What? But the gig was OK and we did see Roger playing the harp during Lazy and his bass solo was very entertaining, too. White Marshalls and that black leather.
JLT did what he could, but he wasn´t at home (English is only my 2nd language, sorry) and he improvised the lyrics of the old stuff too much. He kind of “performed” too much too, and that hassle on Little Ian´s drumriser all the time…. But all and all, good gig as a whole and some wonderful playing from all the band. Little Ian got finally his spot during SOTW.
If You MacGregor (@48) give a kick (of course) start for that fund of Cozy´s, I´m in ! Because I just can´t understand where´s our decent, official, physical (and commercial DVD / Blu-Ray) documentary of the late drum Legend! Sponsors around the globe – wake up!
Kippis.
February 20th, 2026 at 10:48I think she’s great, but hardly pitch-perfect!
February 20th, 2026 at 13:04They should have had autotune and pitch correction back in the day……………………..We would have been ‘saved’ from all that nasty rock ‘n roll eh? Cheers.
February 20th, 2026 at 20:08@49 – greetings Flay76. I am well aware of Ritchie playing Lazy too fast, he commenced doing that with Rainbow in 1976. Poor ole Cozy got the blame when it was Blackmore on fire, starting the song or instrumental at the Rainbow time and then he continued that with the Deep Purple reunion period. Looking at most popular artists over time, especially in rock music and we do often hear certain music performed too quick, or even too slow. Adrenalin, substance abuse or perhaps just a different attitude at the time of the performance. Regarding the Van Halen and AC-DC scenario. We do find the original has that extra panache when compared to the follow up………..horses for courses. Much better songs to my ears on the earlier original material of both of those bands. Anything else after sounded desperate to me. However as I am not a follower of both Johnson and Hagar, I would say that. Both bands had to keep on rolling, it is the way of things. History shows us that it is impossible to replace an original singer of popular classics with another……..it will always be a second choice or after thought or a cover. At least Hagar was a good singer compared to Johnson’s screech and shout……I am not a big fan of Bon Scott either, however he fitted the songs so much better. Cheers.
February 20th, 2026 at 20:43@ 51 – thanks Hiza. Regarding a Cozy Powell documentary or even a book, I have suggested that we get Cozy’s number one fan Uwe Hornung to do the narrative for both of them. Or if he cannot or simple refuses to, he he he, at least a forward or introduction for a book? Or perhaps that is the very reason nothing has ever happened as yet? Cheers.
February 20th, 2026 at 21:52You bet your ass that had autotune been around in the 70s and 80s, Ted Templeman plus all other VH members would have sternly advised DLR to use it! 😂
February 21st, 2026 at 06:27Hello all DP family…????
February 21st, 2026 at 10:43In other 50 comments here how many time the name Van Halen is written.?
Is this a Van Halen website or Deep Purple and Ritchie Blackmore one?
Richard Legris.
In all the thousands and thousands of post, comments and pages on this site, how many times are the DO family mentioned. I can’t be arsed to count but I’m going out on a limb and say that mentions of VH are a very small part of the content. Move on.
(But with that said, yes, off topic discussions can annoy me too, and as a moderator I have to read it ALL. But it all originates from info about the DP family and that really just shows how great the DP world is, right?)
February 21st, 2026 at 11:08Truthfully, I always considered VH conceptually a bit of a second coming of Montrose. And Montrose was to me one of those rare American bands that had a stronger Purple than Zeppelin influence. When once asked in a, I think, Hit Parader interview with which dream musicians he would like to play, Ronnie Montrose simply said: Deep Purple – without Ritchie Blackmore!
So in the grand scheme of things it’s all related, roots and branches. Bands don’t just exist in a vacuum. They are parts of movements and fashions, they influence and are influenced, they leave music culture imprints.
February 21st, 2026 at 14:07@ 56 – exactly my point too Uwe. And then all the other vocalists in rock ‘n roll would have to also use it and then every song we would hear would then be perfect, including Deep Purple and affiliated bands in the studio and most importantly live in concert. Cheers.
February 21st, 2026 at 21:29@52
I guess the not-so subtle humor of my post went right over your head.
February 22nd, 2026 at 00:32The early Montrose that I heard some time ago sounded much more Zeppelin than Purple influenced. Especially Hagar, the vocal and mannerisms of Percy big time going on there. Maybe I need to have another listen. Well I just re-watched a few of those Midnight Special live clips, still Led Zeppelin influenced to my ears. I also recall media saying that over the years. We all hear some things differently at times. Cheers.
February 22nd, 2026 at 03:23I’m with MacGregor. Rock Candy = LZ not DP.
February 22nd, 2026 at 13:29Hi guys
Totally off topic but I wanted to ask about Jon Lords Before We Forget.
Wasnt it the plan to ship it early february?
I didnt receive anything as yet.
February 22nd, 2026 at 21:17Russ, Chrissie Hynde has created an art form around not being on pitch and it’s part of the Pretenders’ charm, I would never knock her for it just like I’m not bothered by Ian Hunter, Bob Dylan or Lucinda Williams being flat most of the time. But none of them sing with Van Halen. If you’re with a band like that you better hit those notes well, some aspects of virtuoso hard rock are demanding.
Most of VH’s music has a much too straightforward rhythm bed for me to think of LZ. The way that rhythm section of Alex and Michael used to chug along reminded me more of Paice/Glover than Bonham/Jones. And EVH‘s precise rhythm playing is also often more a nod to Ritchie circa Machine Head than to Page‘s billowing guitar atmospherics.
February 23rd, 2026 at 01:12Rock @ 64 – a paragraph from the email I received from Ovais on 15 February in regard to the book Before We Forget.
February 23rd, 2026 at 22:06“Paul Mann and I signed the numbered signature sheets on a freezing afternoon in Manchester on Thursday 8 January and we are very glad to let you know that we are now close to completion in our printing and binding process, one that is taking place with a superb specialist printing house in Wales. We envisage delivery in late-February and very early-March, which is as per our original plan.”
I don’t expect a band like The Pretenders to have perfect vocals either… Hell, compared to Patti Smith, Chrissie Hynde is Linda Ronstadt.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5vqQiv-4UA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OvQ5bs9aJM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXSeisgMKb0
February 23rd, 2026 at 23:41Any Pat Travers fans here? Purple could have called him when Bolin didn’t work out on the CTTB tour and they could have made the follow-up to CTTB with him. Has the funk in him but was never into drugs to my knowledge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryigsqDXywY
February 24th, 2026 at 19:48@68 – Pat Travers was and still is an impressive player, but still relatively little-known at the time DP broke up, his first LP yet to be released when DP called it quits. Wonder if they would have known about him.
As well, after the band’s touring experiences with Bolin, looking for a replacement was likely the last thing on their minds. IIRC Lord even said that, in hindsight, it might have been wiser to split up when Blackmore left.
Interesting that the publication of Travers’ sizeable catalogue of major-label material, some of it quite good, coincided exactly with DP’s lengthy break from 1976-84.
For a guitar hero, he was also a pretty good keyboard player. Leaving the guitars to future Glenn Hughes collaborator Pat Thrall on this one:
February 25th, 2026 at 02:11https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzZSA0S4_OM&list=RDTzZSA0S4_OM&start_radio=1
@ 68 – excellent that one from Pat Travers, a highly respected guitarist indeed. I haven’t followed him at all over the decades but I have always read about him and heard the odd bits and pieces online in more recent years. That Stratocaster tone again, to die for. I probably should word that differently as a few have died for it back in the early to mid 70’s. Thanks for the link. Cheers
February 25th, 2026 at 06:15To me, this song by Pat Travers (featuring a Moog solo by Tony Carey) has a strong Private Eyes Bolin vibe to it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQBl0gCi-Ms
It would have been interesting to hear what they could have cooked up together. DP still had unfinished business after CTTB considering how musically refined they had become. Some of this potential carried onto PAL, but they were slightly limited by what Ashton and Marsden could do. The focus was not on extended improvisation. Bolin had that ability along with Travers. It would have been interesting to see how far they could have taken it on a follow-up to CTTB.
February 25th, 2026 at 11:46Interesting to hear Nicko McBrain on the those rather dry sounding drums on that Pat Travers instrumental. A good instrumental and yes that does have a Tommy Bolin vibe to it. Good to hear Tony Carey on the Moog synth. Thanks for that Daniel. Cheers.
February 25th, 2026 at 20:13Well, at least Glenn knew who Pat Travers was, Pat guested on Glenn’s Play Me Out first solo album and Glenn returned the favor on a track of Travers’ 1977 sophomore effort here at 05:13, you hear him distinctly:
https://youtu.be/eOIm-Pnn1CM
In 1977, Pat gained some notoriety in the punk-drunk English music press by publicly challenging the Sex Pistols that his trio would outplay them live even if he had only three strings on his guitar, the bassist just two and the drum set were reduced to just hi-hat, snare and bass drum. Of course, Johnny Rotten, himself a master at working the public, did not take the bait, but the challenge (and some very anti-punk interviews) kept Pat in the press for a few weeks.
Travers is a good mix of organic playing and open ears & mind, he likely wouldn’t have done bad in Purple, but I think he wanted to sing himself.
Pat Thrall of course was great with the unjustly forgotten Automatic Man featuring also Michael Shrieve.
https://youtu.be/f-zhE8x1kAc
https://youtu.be/YtVubPSPyzQ
Their music had undeniable parallels to IGB, maybe that is why I immediately took to them.
And you’re right Daniel, that Travers track you linked is very Bolin’esqe.
February 25th, 2026 at 22:21With or without Tommy Bolin, even with Blackmore staying in the fold, DP would have found it hard going to maintain their popularity in the second half of the 70s had they continued. Punk and New Wave, formatted radio, former hard rock branching into AOR with strong commercial harmony vocals (not Purple’s forte as even DC and GH sang together less and less on their albums) and emerging heavy metal, I think it would have been diminishing returns for them. There is a chance they could have retreated to being mainly a US arena filler while album sales dwindled, surviving on that for a few more years, but I doubt whether a DP sans the 1976 breakup would have been in 1984/85 more popular than a reunited Mk II with the absence-makes-the-heart-grow-fonder-, nostalgia- and general public curiosity-benefactors for their reunion.
This tried and trusted concept of regular line-up changes to help them reinvent themselves (and satisfy Ritchie’s whims) which had served Purple so well in the past – you can only do that so many times before alienating your core audience and by 1972/73, the SOTW-sound and affiliated expectations had become quite an albatross around their necks. I don’t even think that Mk III, for all their initial sales success with Burn and filling American stadiums in the mid 70s, really managed to carry forward the initial Sturm & Drang momentum of Mk II, Mk III was living off borrowed time in that sense.
Musically, CTTB was by all means a strong (and by the press even largely positively reviewed, that is often forgotten) album as well, but it struggled commercially as Purple’s brand of riff-centric arena rock was no longer flavor of the month. 1976 was the year of Frampton Comes Alive!, not of Made in Japan or Made in Europe, public interest in DP had waned.
I think Jon and Little Ian felt that in 1976 when they called it quits – with exhaustion from half a decade on the road and comfortable private financial situations playing a role in their decision as well.
February 26th, 2026 at 12:13With regard to the early 1970’s British behemoth bands in the USA, yes indeed, the later 70’s showed it all dropping away big time. Look at Black Sabbath, stayed around far too long and were getting blown off stage by their support acts. Led Zeppelin were gone for different reasons, family and other issues. ELP were done and dusted, too much excess of everything and anything. Deep Purple were much better off ‘retreating’ and look at Ritchie and Rainbow. As we know the riff based Rainbow with Dio at the helm was being quickly left behind. I think Jethro Tull and Yes were still hanging in there during the later 70’s, at least for another year or two at the very end of it all. Time waits for no-one. The emergence of evolving and or new acts was the way of things. Sink or swim, one way to look at it. Cheers.
February 26th, 2026 at 18:34