Music | 13 June 2006

Ritchie Blackmore, Ronnie James Dio, Cozy Powell

Rainbow was formed by Ritchie Blackmore in 1975 after he left Deep Purple at the height of their fame. They were instantly successful and released a string of hit albums, with an ever-changing line up, between 1975 and 1983 when Blackmore broke up the group to join the reformed Deep Purple. This concert from their European tour in 1977 features the line up responsible for the "Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll" album released later that year, including vocalist Ronnie James Dio and drummer Cozy Powell. Blackmore had to be smuggled out of Austria after trouble with the police at a gig two nights earlier, and was very late arriving in Munich, all of which seemed to inspire both the band and the audience to create a truly remarkable gig.