<![CDATA[ Latest from Guitar Player in Ritchie-blackmore ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/tag/ritchie-blackmore Tue, 12 May 2026 17:24:20 +0000 en <![CDATA[ “They didn’t know what it was!” Ritchie Blackmore on the mysterious illness that took him out of Deep Purple — and brought in Christopher Cross ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/the-night-christopher-cross-played-with-deep-purple vPoEm88AKw4QZRBK2ckkh3 Tue, 12 May 2026 17:24:20 +0000 Wed, 13 May 2026 11:56:09 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He needed to drink to socialize.” Ritchie Blackmore on his backstage encounters with Eddie Van Halen ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-onhis-backstage-encoutners-with-eddie-van-halen g92ftbi2QHmxBXEqWtpVYW Thu, 23 Apr 2026 19:36:53 +0000 Fri, 24 Apr 2026 18:08:02 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I thought, ‘My God, who the hell is this?’ This shouldn't be allowed.” Ritchie Blackmore explains how Jeff Beck “cheated” — and set the tone for a generation of players to follow ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-the-guitarist-who-cheats eVusGd6YkpE8aMS8rRfLHJ Tue, 21 Apr 2026 16:39:10 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He was such a nice guy, I couldn't believe he was a guitarist!” Ritchie Blackmore claims “most guitar players aren't nice people” and names the one exception ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-most-guitarists-arent-nice-people 6VX6BgJHxqsX3ttDCrCiWG Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:12:14 +0000 Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:18:53 +0000 <![CDATA[ “It hit me more than I thought it would.” Ritchie Blackmore on the one musician he was closest to — and what drove a wedge between them ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-jon-lord qyPb34JWXTUr7rrvB9fp25 Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:54:32 +0000 Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:55:01 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I kept Cozy in the band because he would bring stacks and stacks of English chocolates...” In a brand-new interview, Ritchie Blackmore reflects on Deep Purple, Ronnie James Dio and the band that remains his greatest creation ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-reflects-on-deep-purple-ronnie-james-dio-and-the-band-that-remains-his-greatest-creation CH4rAqrgtw8s3WJ6S4rD4D Fri, 20 Mar 2026 17:07:49 +0000 Fri, 20 Mar 2026 18:18:34 +0000 <![CDATA[ “An owl meeting a bumblebee in mid-flight.” Ritchie Blackmore on crafting the perfect Deep Purple–era guitar tone ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-jim-marshall-leo-fender-and-his-perfect-guitar-tone rD6vk9hBz3SVFE4ck8fvve Fri, 06 Mar 2026 13:17:53 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He’s such a d*** that he’ll probably never get the credit he deserves.” Billy Corgan on the paradox of being Ritchie Blackmore ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-eric-clapton-show-business-and-the-anxiety-he-couldnt-outrun 6BvQfxFMRpC8bNCKzErV73 Fri, 13 Feb 2026 15:01:44 +0000 <![CDATA[ “When he was around, he would hear something and say, ‘That’s a little bit leftfield, but what if we do this?’” Steve Morse says 95 percent of his ideas for Deep Purple were dismissed, but he found a kindred spirit in one member ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/steve-morse-on-writing-with-deep-purple-and-jon-lord TT9jvpZBm9gu27Vb7UeJu4 Wed, 10 Dec 2025 16:08:46 +0000 <![CDATA[ “It made much more sense than Chuck Berry playing ‘Sweet Little Sixteen.’” Did this novelty act inspire the greatest guitar riff of all time? Ritchie Blackmore on the band that made “Smoke on the Water” possible ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/the-gimmick-band-that-inspired-a-teenage-ritchie-blackmore-to-meld-rock-with-classical bVftNDbV9VepkDuJ38K8b7 Fri, 28 Nov 2025 13:57:31 +0000 Sat, 29 Nov 2025 00:34:35 +0000 <![CDATA[ “The room wouldn’t stop spinning. Ambulance was called.” Ritchie Blackmore explains the health scare that forced him to cancel his 2025 tour ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-health-scare-blackmore-s-night-tour-cancellation y4zauRV4A3MGh8Lk9V4Q63 Mon, 24 Nov 2025 12:39:26 +0000 Mon, 24 Nov 2025 12:40:31 +0000 <![CDATA[ “All Blackmore’s Night shows postponed at this point.” Ritchie Blackmore cancels Blackmore’s Night tour as new health concerns arise ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-health-concerns-as-blackmores-night-postpones-tour Yhi3ETtxGnvj3RTCJUSASS Wed, 19 Nov 2025 16:39:49 +0000 Wed, 19 Nov 2025 16:40:06 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He was beyond belief. Nobody could play like that in those days.” Queen’s Brian May on the “fireball” guitarist who affected him like no other ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/brian-may-on-the-fireball-guitarist-ritchie-blackmore QTQS2WgsAwnEtAmvpBUg4L Fri, 14 Nov 2025 17:01:50 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He was always reaching for something he couldn’t find.” Ritchie Blackmore on the thing that made Jeff Beck special — but kept him from realizing his own talent ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-jeff-beck Ux7uH43HHrMWewNCv9hHBJ Mon, 03 Nov 2025 17:26:05 +0000 Mon, 03 Nov 2025 17:31:28 +0000 <![CDATA[ “It was more what Ritchie wanted to do. The rest of us grumbled and moaned. But we did it.” Ritchie Blackmore decapitated Deep Purple. With Rainbow, he had another tactic at his disposal ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/why-ritchie-blackmore-was-the-leader-in-rainbow pqWUiEuKCRAbiQmVUyBi9h Tue, 28 Oct 2025 18:50:26 +0000 <![CDATA[ "It's a slowed-down way of doing it. But I'd rather take something than nothing at all." Ritchie Blackmore is heading out on tour after his health scares. Here's how he plans to do it ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-blackmores-night-tour-november-2025 yJq3G4WCWxNaoMTJtz6thN Wed, 08 Oct 2025 16:29:00 +0000 <![CDATA[ “We still respected each other, but we never got on. We just couldn't be in the same room.” Ritchie Blackmore on why Deep Purple couldn't survive with him and Ian Gillan onboard ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-the-end-of-the-deep-purple-mark-ii-line-up wgqQ8uaf8ohE7neHdwoJq9 Tue, 30 Sep 2025 21:29:21 +0000 <![CDATA[ "The police were banging on the door. The roadies held them shut until we’d finished the take." Ritchie Blackmore, Roger Glover and Ian Paice on the creation and legacy of Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/music/albums-singles/deep-purple-on-the-writing-and-legacy-of-smoke-on-the-water FqvreWDnTMf3sjJ5iGb5bd Wed, 20 Aug 2025 17:15:00 +0000 <![CDATA[ “There’s three main issues with him that are going on.” Candice Night says Ritchie Blackmore is facing health problems and gives an update on touring plans for Blackmore’s Night ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/candice-night-issues-ritchie-blackmore-health-update KWTMxmdLuRtVRAQqK5M2pe Thu, 07 Aug 2025 15:41:03 +0000 <![CDATA[ “You can play these riffs on one string, that's how iconic they are.” Zakk Wylde on Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page and the five greatest riffs in rock history ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/zakk-wyldes-five-greatest-riffs ptFYF7JwKL34uiSfCNXWSH Wed, 09 Jul 2025 10:57:44 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He goes, ‘Play, boy,’ in that very southern way. I start taking my solo, sweating: ‘He’s going to hit me! I know it’s coming.’” How Jerry Lee Lewis terrorized Rory Gallagher, Dave Davies and Ritchie Blackmore ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-jerry-lee-lewis KEAv5dnWA7XP5TD76ZnfoP Fri, 18 Apr 2025 20:17:11 +0000 Sat, 19 Apr 2025 12:43:48 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I knew he was going to be somebody then. He had that star quality”: Ritchie Blackmore on his first meeting with Jimmy Page and early recording sessions with Jeff Beck ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-on-meeting-jimmy-page-and-recording-with-jeff-beck LyxdMEPxTWqm2zZqXWv6fX Tue, 15 Apr 2025 16:41:36 +0000 <![CDATA[ "Why can't we have more Django Reinhardts going, 'F*** everybody. I'll turn up when I feel like turning up'?" Happy birthday to Ritchie Blackmore. The guitar legend looks back on his career in an interview from our December 1996 issue ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-looks-back-at-his-career-in-1996 BDQmfvFH6BKFnptUoBHjG7 Mon, 14 Apr 2025 15:27:31 +0000 Mon, 14 Apr 2025 15:31:55 +0000 <![CDATA[ "When they left town, I went to the airport and got to meet Ritchie, and he thanked me for covering for him." Christopher Cross recalls filling in for a sick Ritchie Blackmore on Deep Purple's first-ever show in the U.S. ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/music/christopher-cross-filled-in-for-a-sick-ritchie-blackmore FFBEbvmjdvAwcNW9Xg58Po Fri, 11 Apr 2025 15:47:15 +0000 <![CDATA[ "Ritchiehas actually been told by his cardiologist not to get in a plane." Ritchie Blackmore suffered a heart attack a year and a half year ago and has been warned not to travel by air ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/ritchie-blackmore-heart-attack kFyweU98rP5S9iQJvGsaNa Fri, 04 Apr 2025 13:48:33 +0000 <![CDATA[ "George Lynch, Van Halen and a couple of different people saw me doing it." Harvey Mandel says he wants credit for introducing Eddie Van Halen to two-handed tapping ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/harvey-mandel-on-two-handed-tapping-and-eddie-van-halen 67bWpVa9gvzkUR2FRNWqqQ Wed, 19 Feb 2025 13:32:09 +0000 Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:19:25 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Jimmy Page, Ritchie Blackmore and Jimi Hendrix were great at writing them. Now the guitar riff has disappeared from popular music." Dweezil Zappa laments the absence of riffs in modern music and what it means for future guitar players ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitars/electric-guitars/dweezil-zappa-the-on-lack-of-riffs-in-modern-music Fv69XqT4kNW5mnLAMXJH8C Wed, 05 Feb 2025 12:52:50 +0000 Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:19:26 +0000 <![CDATA[ “They said if I told anyone, they would deny it.” Ritchie Blackmore got the loudest amp Marshall ever made. All he had to do was keep two secrets ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/gear/how-ritchie-blackmore-got-the-worlds-loudest-marshall-amp MdNpz8SXkc92JiZ5QnU8Ne Mon, 03 Feb 2025 00:01:34 +0000 Thu, 05 Mar 2026 23:22:28 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I thought, Why do they want me in the front row?” Ritchie Blackmore on Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and the time Ian Anderson pranked him at a Jethro Tull concert ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/ritchie-blackmore-on-jethro-tull skWuJwkLeUEgYsxpzEFa3P Mon, 02 Dec 2024 21:12:04 +0000 Thu, 12 Dec 2024 11:57:45 +0000 <![CDATA[ “After a half hour sales pitch, he said, 'Forget the Gretsch! That's a toy. You'll appreciate the Gibson 335 much more later in life.' ” Ritchie Blackmore tells how amp-maker Jim Marshall sold him the guitar he used to launch Deep Purple ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/ritchie-blackmore-jim-marshall-es-335 uXaW962e5dMU5KCNcWnkSN Thu, 31 Oct 2024 19:50:06 +0000 Tue, 19 Nov 2024 16:42:18 +0000 <![CDATA[ "They sort of appear as if they are out there in the air. The best ones do. But I don’t know how they get there." David Gilmour talks soloing in Guitar Player's guide to the Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/the-greatest-guitar-solos-of-all-time gviGFZB7g47jARwMjHQS8g Sun, 27 Oct 2024 18:09:56 +0000 Tue, 23 Sep 2025 10:24:52 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He said to me very politely, 'Can I get onstage with you and use your guitar?' ” Ritchie Blackmore recalls when Deep Purple jammed with George Harrison — and how he marveled at the size of his feet ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/ritchie-blackmore-george-harrison-jam-australia-1984 XoRewgXy5SPn5E45tSESt9 Thu, 10 Oct 2024 18:47:03 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:10:13 +0000 <![CDATA[ “We brought in some Marshalls and stacked them, and my friend started playing some bad blues”: Ritchie Blackmore once protested hotel construction by cranking his amps at 3 a.m. – but didn't know that Eric Clapton was in the room next door ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/ritchie-blackmore-marshall-stack-hotel-room-eric-clapton 8B5B3WBpvnmB6nwXJ58gN9 Thu, 12 Sep 2024 16:36:55 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:09:52 +0000 <![CDATA[ “There's a lot of chromatic stuff, and slides in a very tight space, within three or four frets”: Deep Purple guitarist Simon McBride reveals the Ritchie Blackmore lick that's given him the most trouble ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/simon-mcbride-hardest-ritchie-blackmore-lick yAZqTBvcRPLW2FzGFAY5vL Wed, 17 Jul 2024 16:20:27 +0000 <![CDATA[ “It burned all through the night and there it was, gone”: Watch Deep Purple give a very literal performance of Smoke on the Water atop a burning Lake Geneva ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/deep-purple-smoke-on-the-water-lake-geneva dLJmjrz2zf9asnebaoHZRC Wed, 10 Jul 2024 20:51:13 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Eric Clapton’s roadie came by the house, and he brought a Strat with him... He said, ‘I’ll sell it to you for £60’”: Ritchie Blackmore's first Strat came from Eric Clapton's collection ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/ritchie-blackmore-bought-eric-claptons-strat oJhtb8cbcmsGJHLZbFriGd Tue, 11 Jun 2024 19:16:03 +0000 <![CDATA[ “The chord progression in the Highway Star solo – Bm, to a Db, C, and then G – is a Bach progression”: Ritchie Blackmore on Steve Howe, Jimi Hendrix, classical influences and more ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/ritchie-blackmore-1973-interview spdZQyavmq8s88UNi8qv4c Fri, 19 Apr 2024 09:00:00 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:10:18 +0000 <![CDATA[ Watch Ritchie Blackmore Savagely Obliterate His Fender Stratocaster ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/ritchie-blackmore-rainbow-1977-stratocaster-smash 83KVoGJbT74qrC92vZ3Enf Tue, 13 Jun 2023 17:17:15 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:08:54 +0000 <![CDATA[ The 40 Most Important Guitar Solos of the 20th Century ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/the-40-most-important-guitar-solos-of-the-20th-century RGtTzStEoDw26KeEmWJ7tW Wed, 28 Dec 2022 12:00:15 +0000 Tue, 03 Jan 2023 18:13:40 +0000 <![CDATA[ The Best Guitar Moments of 1972 ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/lessons/the-best-guitar-moments-of-1972 5TQE9E3iu9Ri79wgXwpKX9 Thu, 24 Nov 2022 15:05:13 +0000 <![CDATA[ Deep Purple Guitarist Simon McBride Shares His Mesmerizing Guitar Approaches ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/deep-purple-guitarist-simon-mcbride-shares-his-mesmerizing-guitar-approaches wWUQCyNR4QBmj4SyDNRbuc Thu, 10 Nov 2022 10:00:29 +0000 <![CDATA[ “You Don't Have to Blow Your Cookies in the First Bar”: Tommy Bolin on the Art of Guitar Solos ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/you-dont-have-to-blow-your-cookies-in-the-first-bar-tommy-bolin-on-the-art-of-guitar-solos Bif9HXupmqDLyUxUeUaXkH Wed, 03 Aug 2022 19:28:50 +0000 <![CDATA[ Watch Ritchie Blackmore Attack a Cameraman and Smash up His Rig Before Blowing a Hole in the Stage ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/watch-ritchie-blackmore-attack-a-cameraman-and-smash-up-his-rig-before-blowing-a-hole-in-the-stage UV6TCpEXaFrL5eppyauLGH Wed, 03 Aug 2022 17:02:05 +0000 <![CDATA[ Watch Bryan Adams’ New “Never Gonna Rain” Music Video and Discover What His “First Real Six-String” Really Was ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/watch-bryan-adams-new-never-gonna-rain-music-video-and-discover-what-his-first-real-six-string-really-was VWhAVFt9dstfLFVud36qyP Fri, 28 Jan 2022 15:19:31 +0000 <![CDATA[ Classic Tones: “Smoke On the Water” – Deep Purple ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/classic-tones-smoke-on-the-water-deep-purple pqRc8uPbJpbWu6nEvZUWK5 Thu, 22 Jul 2021 14:21:34 +0000 Thu, 22 Jul 2021 14:25:48 +0000 <![CDATA[ Catalinbread Pays Homage to Ritchie Blackmore with Dual-Pedal Box Set ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/catalinbread-pays-homage-to-ritchie-blackmore-with-dual-pedal-box-set KiqNJvdyEe96Mt8BqbsKth Tue, 29 Jun 2021 12:05:01 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:10:12 +0000 <![CDATA[ Hear Ritchie Blackmore Plug in on New Blackmore's Night Instrumental, "Der letzte Musketier (The Last Musketeer)" ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/hear-ritchie-blackmore-plug-in-on-new-blackmores-night-instrumental-der-letzte-musketier-the-last-musketeer JdwK5CNhE4w4ndkud93ZgS Fri, 12 Mar 2021 16:52:07 +0000 <![CDATA[ The Unstoppable Rise of Ritchie Blackmore and the Making of 'Deep Purple in Rock' ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/the-unstoppable-rise-of-ritchie-blackmore-and-the-making-of-deep-purple-in-rock iVatt3UEW3tM4qfCJQKvRi Wed, 10 Mar 2021 21:19:45 +0000 <![CDATA[ Go Inside Ritchie Blackmore's Guitar Collection ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/gear/go-inside-ritchie-blackmores-guitar-collection o4NevyTFfW49EHcncpaKqG Thu, 18 Feb 2021 17:42:33 +0000 <![CDATA[ Hear Ritchie Blackmore Team Up with William Shatner to Cover "The Thrill Is Gone" ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/hear-ritchie-blackmore-team-up-with-william-shatner-to-cover-the-thrill-is-gone Eids4Z7YgotpcE52RytmkF Wed, 26 Aug 2020 16:00:51 +0000