Blackmore’s Night will have their annual appearance at the ZDF Fernsehgarten show on 22nd July. The show should begin around 10.45 local time, but check www.zdf.de if in doubt.

Thanks to Mike Garrett and Rainer Klos for the info.

Norwegian TV has broadcast a short pre-show interview with Jon Lord. Luckily it has neither been dubbed or subtitled, so click along and enjoy: Jon Lord on Norwegian TV.

Here is the interview on YouTube:

Although we have no official data as to how well “They All Came Down To Montreux — Live At Montreux 2006” DVD have sold, here are the highest Amazon chart positions (in Music DVDs category) that this release have achieved since early June:

• #14 in the UK, (amazon.co.uk)
• #1 in the Canada (amazon.ca)
• #5 in Germany (amazon.de)
• #21 in the USA (amazon.com)

Mind you, Amazon charts are updated hourly and are extremely volatile. For example, #1 at the Canadian Amazon was observed yesterday, July 1 (Go, Canada!), but as of the time of this writing it’s not even in Top 100 Music DVDs and only at #21 in Classic Rock DVDs. But that’s the best data that we have.

You can order the DVD from an Amazon store near you:

Thanks to George Kikonishvili for the info.

The setlist poll is closed and here are the results:

• Highway Star (58%, 1,040 Votes)
• Perfect Strangers (56%, 1,006 Votes)
• Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming (48%, 874 Votes)
• Smoke On The Water (44%, 796 Votes)
• The Battle Rages On (42%, 763 Votes)
• Rapture Of The Deep (41%, 746 Votes)
• Knocking At Your Back Door (41%, 740 Votes)
• Fireball (37%, 675 Votes)
• Fools (37%, 674 Votes)
• Lazy (37%, 667 Votes)
• Anya (36%, 652 Votes)
• Pictures Of Home (36%, 644 Votes)
• Speed King (35%, 640 Votes)
• Child In Time (35%, 626 Votes)
• Black Night (33%, 601 Votes)
• Rat Bat Blue (33%, 601 Votes)
• When A Blind Man Cries (33%, 599 Votes)
• Space Truckin’ (30%, 534 Votes)
• Strange Kind Of Woman (27%, 490 Votes)
• Demon’s Eye (27%, 486 Votes)

Continue Reading »

A Village Lanterne CD, autographed by Ritchie Blackmore and Candice Night, is one of several prizes at a charity raffle being held in Kent (UK), on the 21st July 2007. British Academy of Dance and Drama (B.A.D.D.) Productions, together with 14 other youth drama/theatre groups in the Maidstone/North Kent area, are attempting to raise £100,000 by June 2008, for the Macmillan Cancer Trust.

The ultimate goal of this campaign is to see the establishment of a dedicated Chemotherapy Unit, at Medway Hospital, Kent (UK), which will cost approximately £4,000,000. If the youth drama groups reach their target £100,000 total, Macmillan has promised to add £300,000 to that total, from their main fund. The local government authorities will also then, add £600,000 to that total. The NHS Trust has said, once they see that first £1,000,000 raised, they will add the remaining £3,000,000 to the fund.

The Blackmores Night CD, will appear as part of the selection of charity Raffle prizes, at the B.A.D.D. production of “Alice in Wonderland”, taking place at New Brompton College, Gillingham, Kent, on the 21st July 2007. The Czech medieval band Gothien, have also donated an autographed CD.

The Blackmores Night CD was autographed backstage on the recent UK Tour. There will also be the usual assortment of everyday Raffle prizes that one might expect. If fans would like to buy one or more raffle tickets, priced at 50 pence each, please send a cheque or crossed postal order (payable to B.A.D.D.) to the following address:
B.A.D.D.
c/o: 35 Paget Street
Gillingham
Kent
ME7 5EP

If you would like the raffle tickets sending to you, please also enclosed a stamped addressed envelope. Alternatively, the Raffle ticket numbers can be sent to you, via email or SMS mobile phone text (Requests for emails would be preferable, as it costs the charity nothing).

We are being assured that this is a legitimate charity fundraising and not a scam. The person at the mailing address above, is a trusted member of the Blackmore’s
Night UK Street Team.

Thanks to Mike Garrett for the info.

Here are two short video clips from Ian Paice’s birthday party. It happened after the show last Friday (June 29) in Montodine (Italy). Continue Reading »

Trondheim, Norway. Saturday saw Jon Lord and his entourage move into the city’s Nidaros cathedral in preparation for what looks like another Norwegian Jon Lord extravaganza.

The show – which will be his second at the cathedral – will consist of pieces from his solo albums, performed by himself on piano, the Trondheim Soloists (a string orchestra) and singers Jorn Lande and Thor Inge Falch with Nathalie Lorichs and Nina Brovoll on backing vocals. The second half of the concert will also include a Norwegian children’s choir.

Saturday’s rehearsals included the still-to-be-recorded ‘From Darkness To Light’ (a 25-minutes piece for string orchestra and children’s choir), ‘One from the Meadow’ from Lord’s ‘Beyond The Notes’ album and a stunning version of ‘Pictured Within’ with Jorn Lande on vocal (below).

To add to the evening, Norwegian artist Anya has created a number of paintings inspired by Jon Lord’s music. All ticket holders will at the show be presented with a full colour coffee table-sized book of Anya’s work. The production costs were sponsored by local Trondheim businesses.

Outside the cathedral Jon Lord was surrounded by a group of very young female fans wanting autographs.

Jon Lord says he has recently rediscovered his love for the Hammond organ. He hopes to play it a lot more in the future and to this end he plans to write more musical pieces that cross over from rock to classical.

The Nidaros concert is part of this year’s Norwegian Deep Purple Family Festival, sorry – Hell Music Festival, in the village of Hell outside Trondheim.

Saturday evening at the Hell Music Festival grounds saw Glenn Hughes perform a blistering 65-minutes set of all Purple songs plus two of his own songs; ‘You got soul’ and ‘Soul mover’. The funky wailer was in top form and reassured the crowd that he’ll be back in Norway over the summer.


Photos: Rasmus Heide

Also check out Christer Lorichs’ excellent photos:
Jon Lord rehearsing at Nidaros.
Glenn Hughes at Hell Music festival 2007.

Joe Lynn Turner’s latest solo album Second Hand Life will be released in USA on August 28 on Friday Music label (distributed by RYKO). It is currently available in the US for online purchase at the Apple iTunes store, including bonus tracks from the European and Japanese releases. According to JLT management’s press release, the actual American CD will come as “deluxe edition” that will include an additional bonus track called “Freedom’s Wings”. We have no info if this will be available for online purchase as well.

The album includes three tracks that have a Purple connection.

Currently, Turner is on tour with Brian Johnson and Cliff Williams of AC/DC, The John Entwistle Band and other artists as part of Classic Rock Cares.

Thanks to Gustavo Solinas for the info.

This is an episode of the Old Grey Whistle Test from 1987. The show includes TV crew following UK fans of a trip to Paris, brief interviews with Roger and Ritchie and some overdubbed concert footage (with Ritchie tasting a bit of his own poison): Continue Reading »

It looks like the band has developed a great relationship with French and Italian promoters. This November they will be returning to France for the fourth time in less than 12 months with an 11-date tour (plus another date in Belgium). A little bird told us recently that another tour of Italy might also be in the works. Now we have the first sign of it appearing in public sources: 3 dates in November have been published by the promoter BarleyArts on their website:

• 09.11.2007 DEEP PURPLE – Pordenone
• 10.11.2007 DEEP PURPLE – Mantova
• 12.11.2007 DEEP PURPLE – Varese

As usual, be sure to come back and check our tourdates list for any further developments.

Thanks to Samanta Ruiz for the info.