Ritchie Blackmore has recovered from his recent health scares and is set to return to the road with Blackmore’s Night in November.
The British-American neomedieval folk-rock band, which he formed with his wife, Candice Night, will play six shows across November, starting in Alexandria, Virginia on November 9, and concluding in Tarrytown, New York 20 days later.
The news comes after Night had revealed the extent of the former Deep Purple and Rainbow guitarist's health issues. The famed electric guitarist had been sidelined from touring in the wake of a heart attack suffered several years ago, while other problems further complicated touring plans.
“There are three main issues with him,” Night had explained to the Iron City Rocks podcast (via Rayo). “He had a heart attack a couple of years ago, so we stay on top of that. He's got gout, [which is] affecting his feet really badly, and it's starting in his forefinger, so it's hurting the mobility in that. He just had an injection for that. And his back, of course, which has always been an issue.”
She went on to detail how flying to gigs is now off the table, as jet lag is known to stress the heart. For that reason, the couple has booked shows within driving distance of their home on Long Island.
While they're touring possibilities are limited, it makes their quiet life happier. Blackmore turned 80 in April and needs a slower pace.
“We don't have a tour bus, and we don't have private planes. If we go someplace, I'm driving,” Night had said. “So it's like a mini road trip. You get to the venue, you go back, you get a good night's sleep that night.
“It's a very slowed-down way of doing it. But honestly, I'd much rather take something than nothing at all.”
As per an Instagram post from Blackmore, the guitarist had been in attendance, along with Night, at a recent private event held by Metallica. Put together to celebrate the band’s new channel on SiriusXM, Paul McCartney and Al Di Meola were on the guest list. The latter made the most of the evening, having gotten his hands on Kirk Hammett’s infamous Greeny Les Paul for a short while.
Hammett is the guitar's third famous owner, after Peter Green made his name in Fleetwood Mac with it, before handing it over to the late Gary Moore. Joe Bonamassa has since revealed he had the chance to buy it, but ultimately passed, believing Hammett to be its rightful adoptee.
Elsewhere, Blackmore has been in a retrospective mood. He's looked back on his first meeting with Jimmy Page and recording with Jeff Beck before either of them had become household names.
He's also revealed how he or vocalist Ian Gillan had to leave Deep Purple for the band to survive, with their two egos making their respective tenures in the British rock giants untenable.
Irish guitarist Simon McBride is the latest shredder to fill his sizable shoes in Deep Purple, and he's revealed the hardest Blackmore lick to master, while the band's two mainstays have reflected on writing the band's biggest hit and how it came together amid chaos.
