Rainbow - Rising

You know you’re old school or just plain old if you’re into this album. I’ve known and loved it for years but recently picked up the excellent LP reissue on England’s Back On Black label and it’s been on non-stop rotation on my turntable. Talk about classic! Everything about this 1976 album is perfect. The striking front cover artwork by Ken Kelly is truly denim jacket worthy. The classy black and white band shots are powerful and mysterious. Martin Birch’s production is outstanding. But, most important, is the incredible songs and the superpowers of the musicians who created them.

After leaving Deep Purple, guitar wizard Ritchie Blackmore formed Rainbow with the one and only Ronnie James Dio to form one of the greatest alliances in all of heavy rock. Both men made great music before and after Rainbow Rising but this might be the peak for both of them. Then when you add the powerhouse drumming of Cozy Powell that’s a lot of talent and sky scraper egos in one unit.

“Tarot Woman” starts off with some atmospheric keyboards from Tony Carey. Right off the bat you know this was not meant to be a clone of Deep Purple, Jon Lord would never play like this. Not better or worse, but very different. When the band comes, the rhythm section of Cozy and bassist Jimmy Bain stomp hard and leave plenty of room for Blackmore’s guitar and Dio’s vocals. “Run With The Wolf” is another mid-paced rocker with a nice bluesy solo from Ritchie. Side one wraps up with the ass kicking “Starstruck.” Featuring an awesome riff that gets stuck in your head as soon as you hear it and a great arrangement, Dio’s vocals are so powerful.

Side two opens with the raunchy “Do You Close Your Eyes.” Dio’s lyrics are usually fantasy oriented but rarely sexual in nature and it’s a lot of fun to hear him howling “when you’re making sweet LOOOOOOVE to me!” on the chorus. It’s also a great lead in for the centerpiece of the album – “Stargazer.” The overused term “epic” really does apply here. Here’s a song that rivals Zep’s “Kashmir” in full on exotic heaviness. Cozy’s drum intro is breathtaking and Ritchie’s riff is one of the heaviest of all time. On the inside of the gatefold sleeve this is the only song that has the lyrics printed. If used the inside of the gatefold sleeve correctly then by the time this song came on your attitude had been properly adjusted and you could bug out on the amazing tale that Ronnie relates. The production on this song is majestic. There’s tons of phasing effects on all the instruments and towards the end the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra make this heavy song even heavier. It’s impossible to follow up this song, but the fast headbanger “A Light In The Black” wraps up the album nicely.

It’s a short album, only a little over half an hour that leaves you wanting more but it’s perfect as an LP. The Back On Black reissue is pressed on heavy duty vinyl and the short sides mean there’s plenty of room to spread the grooves for maximum fidelity. I’ve been listening to this album for many, many years and it’s never sounded better. It ain’t cheap but when you’re cranking it twice a day you’re definitely getting your money’s worth.

  --Woody

Deep Purple – Phoenix Rising

It’s too bad this country is so damn big. My first viewing of this should have been with Racer and Pope since one of the reasons I started Rippling is because those clowns love Tommy Bolin-era Deep Purple even more than I do. But it’s a long way from Brooklyn to California so I had to settle for the next best thing. My friend Vinny lives three blocks away and has a huge TV and also loves Deep Purple. It’s a hell of a lot easier to walk over there with a 12 pack of Bud talls then to deal with airport security to go space truckin to the west coast.

Phoenix Rising is a DVD/CD documenting the polarizing Deep Purple Mk.IV era. You either love Come Taste The Band or you think it’s heresy. I resisted for a long time but finally succumbed to its powers a few years back though I do tend to agree with a statement that Jon Lord makes that it’s a great rock album but not necessarily a Deep Purple album. Even if you’re not a fan you’ll find most of the documentary pretty interesting. Glenn Hughes was the driving force behind the band at this point, as well as the drug abuse, and he does a lot of the talking. Jon Lord provides more of a voice of reason behind the madness. Ian Paice is represented through an archival interview from 1976 and there are some interview clips with Bolin as well. David Coverdale was probably too busy counting his money or shampooing his hair to have been involved in any recent commentary on this part of his career.

One thing that the 80 minute documentary makes very clear is that Deep Purple was HUUUGE in the 1970’s. Millions of album sold, arena tours, private jets, mega egos and tons of drugs. Deep Purple was always more of a drinking band but Glenn Hughes had a major cocaine habit and Tommy Bolin was deeply involved in heroin. The fact that they made a great album and Glenn is still alive is truly astounding. Among the fun facts revealed is that Glenn was sent home from Munich when they were recording because his drug use was so out of control. He says that back then the treatment was large doses of valium. To add intrigue to the story, there’s an incident that took place in Jakarta that resulted in the death of a roadie. Glenn is adamant it was murder, though there’s a disclaimer at the end saying that Coverdale does not agree with this statement. By the time the band reached Japan things were really starting to unravel. Tommy Bolin arrived with his left hand basically useless. The story is that he fell asleep on his hand on a weird angle and woke up unable to play. Whatever the truth is it’s pretty certain that drugs were involved. The band was planning on a triumphant return to Japan and had to work extra hard to pick up the slack to cover for Bolin. Mk.IV ended on kind of a funny note. While on tour in Europe, after the last show Lord and Paice decided to break up the band. Right after they made the decision, Coverdale entered their dressing room to tell them he was quitting. Sadly, not long after Tommy Bolin overdosed ending a career that had a long way to go. Personally, I found the entire thing interesting but I’m a freak. It’s probably about 20 minutes too long and really could have used some other perspective, especially from Coverdale.

The live footage from Japan has been around for years but never in this good quality. All 5 songs from the original VHS are here with excellent fidelity. This was filmed during the final concert at Budokan Hall and it’s obvious that Bolin is sub-par but still pretty damn good. Jon Lord works really hard at picking up the slack and his playing is incredible. The rhythm section of Hughes and Paice is unbelievably tight and Coverdale’s vocals are spot on. What a killer band. There’s a kick ass version of “Burn” and great versions of “Love Child” and “You Keep On Moving” from Come Taste The Band. Mk.II standards “Smoke On the Water” and “Highway Star” get played but the jams are lengthy and self indulgent. And who allowed Glenn sing “Georgia On My Mind” in the middle of “Smoke On The Water?”

There’s also a 70 minute live CD made up from recordings from Japan and a much better concert in Long Beach, California. You get audio of the five songs from the DVD (though “Burn” is from Long Beach) plus “Getting’ Tighter,” “Lazy,” “Stormbringer” and “Homeward Strut” from Bolin’s Teaser album. And if that wasn’t enough, there are two fat, full color booklets. One contains a band history of DP Mk.IV with lots of photos and vintage press clippings. The other booklet is a reproduction of a 28 page Deep Purple magazine produced in 1976 with articles and interviews with Mk.IV as well as Blackmore, Ian Gillan and Roger Glover. You even get interviews with managers, booking agents and roadies. The packaging is great and even if you don’t watch the movie part of it more than once, this is a great value.

 --Woody

Buy here: Phoenix Rising [DVD/CD Combo]
Buy here: Phoenix Rising [Blu-ray]