Ritchie Blackmore open to more Rainbow shows featuring fewer Deep Purple tracks

Buoyed by their triumphant Birmingham Genting Arena gig last month, Ritchie says that of the three concerts they played that show in particular has piqued his interest in playing live again.

However, unlike the Birmingham gig that featured eight Deep Purple tracks in the 15-song setlist, Ritchie says the focus would have to be almost entirely on Rainbow songs due to the rapturous response they received.

Asked by Dutch radio station Radio Veronica about whether they’ve had offers for more shows, Ritchie said: "Yes. Many. But I wanted to see how the three went. If they were disastrous and we had accepted more, it was going to be awkward. We might do a few more shows again.”

He continued: "I enjoyed especially the last one in England. The first two (at Germany’s Monsters of Rock) were a little bit intense, because we hadn't played together.  We hadn't done a lot of rehearsing, so the first two shows were a bit hectic and chaotic. But the last one in Birmingham, obviously, we'd played two shows at that point, and that seemed to work, to me.”

Ever humble, he added: “It was great to see all the old people… I think it was twenty thousand people… It sold out in fifteen minutes. And I kind of wondered who they thought was playing, 'cause when I got to the auditorium, it was so vast that I thought, 'Maybe somebody else is playing this show tonight.'”

Reflecting upon the setlist, Ritchie said: “Some of the fans said, 'Why did you do those Deep Purple songs?' And I would say, 'Why not?' And they said, 'Well, we thought it was just gonna be Rainbow. We would prefer to hear Rainbow songs.'

“Which I thought was kind of ironic again. I'm thinking, 'Wow! We just threw three songs in by Deep Purple when they wanted more Rainbow’. And I noticed when they clapped, they weren't clapping so hard for Deep Purple. They said, 'We hear that every year,' 'cause (the current line-up of) Purple goes around on tour.

“So the next time, if we go out and we do anything, I would do probably ninety-five percent Rainbow songs; that's what they seem to want to hear. And it didn't occur to me. I just naturally assumed they wanted to hear everything."

Earlier this month, current Rainbow singer Ronnie Romero told Finland’s The Magic of Metal: “I really hope that we can do some more shows, maybe next year. I have a really great feeling about the band and about this relationship with Ritchie.

“He's really happy with the results, he's really happy with the audience (reaction). And maybe we can make some more shows next year."

You can read Planet Rock’s full report on Rainbow’s Birmingham show, together with the setlist and video footage, right here.