Blackmore at His Peak
Recorded at the Nürnberg Messezentrum Halle on 28 September 1976, this concert captures one of the greatest Rainbow line-ups during an extraordinarily important period in Ritchie Blackmore’s career.
It is now being released on vinyl for the first time as a three-LP set, newly mastered by Andy Pearce and Matt Wortham. It follows the vinyl releases of Rainbow’s 1976 concerts in Cologne and Düsseldorf and completes this remarkable trio of German shows.
The vinyl package
I have the black vinyl edition, although an opaque green version is also available through selected retailers.
The three records are housed in a wide-spine outer sleeve rather than a gatefold or fold-out package. The records themselves sound wonderful, but I do feel the presentation could have been taken further.
There is a considerable amount of unused space on the inner sleeves. Even one large period photograph on each sleeve would have transformed this into a much more luxurious and desirable package. There must be some wonderful photographs of Rainbow from this tour, and anyone who owns the original On Stage album will know how much those live images contribute to the atmosphere.
Of course, licensing photographs and producing a more elaborate sleeve would have increased the cost. I understand that. But physical music is about the complete sensory experience. As collectors, we buy with our eyes before we listen with our ears.
These triple-vinyl releases are not inexpensive, so a little more historical context, an essay or a selection of photographs would have made a significant difference.
That is my main criticism, because when it comes to the actual records, the news is extremely positive. The pressings sound excellent and the music has been mastered very successfully for vinyl.
Do you need it if you own the CDs?
This concert has previously been available on CD, both as an individual release and as part of the Japanese Deutschland Tournee 1976 six-CD collection. It is also included in the recent nine-CD anthology The Temple of the King: Rainbow 1975–1976.
If you already own that box set and are completely satisfied with the CDs, you do not need to buy these concerts again. I am always conscious that my role is not simply to encourage people to keep buying different versions of the same music.
However, for those of us who love this band and this particular period, the opportunity to own these complete concerts on vinyl may be impossible to resist. I freely admit that I am one of those people.
Of the three German concerts, Nürnberg has always been my favourite. Some of the performances are slightly shorter than those from Cologne or Düsseldorf, but there is something about the feel of this night. There is a particular intensity to the playing and to Ronnie James Dio’s singing that makes this concert very special.
Ritchie Blackmore at his most liberated
In 1976, Ritchie Blackmore sounded completely free.
He had stepped away from Deep Purple and was no longer restricted by the expectations surrounding that band. Rainbow gave him the freedom to follow his instincts, extend the songs and take the music wherever he wanted it to go.
This concert contains some of the most thrilling guitar playing Blackmore ever committed to tape. His sound, phrasing and ability to move from delicacy to sheer aggression are astonishing. You never quite know what he is going to do next, but every extended passage feels as though it has a purpose.
That unpredictability is one of the qualities that made Blackmore so exciting. During this period, it felt as though he could do anything.
The set includes Rainbow classics such as “Kill the King,” “Mistreated,” “Catch the Rainbow,” “Man on the Silver Mountain” and “Stargazer,” before concluding with the enormous live workouts of “Still I’m Sad” and “Do You Close Your Eyes.”
These were not performances designed to reproduce the studio albums precisely. The songs were starting points from which the band could explore.
This was a phenomenal band
I keep talking about Ritchie Blackmore, but this recording also demonstrates what an extraordinary group of musicians Rainbow had assembled.
Ronnie James Dio was already completely in command. Only a few years earlier he had been fronting Elf, but by the time of this tour he had become one of the greatest rock vocalists in the world. There is authority, drama and incredible power in his performance.
Cozy Powell was already a formidable drummer, but within Rainbow he seemed to become even more powerful. His playing gives this music its thunderous physical impact while still responding to every twist and turn taken by Blackmore.
Jimmy Bain holds everything together on bass, while Tony Carey establishes his own identity on keyboards. He is not trying to be Jon Lord because Rainbow was not attempting to be Deep Purple. His atmospheric introduction to “Stargazer” is particularly effective and shows a musician completely confident in his role.
This line-up was:
- Ritchie Blackmore – guitar
- Ronnie James Dio – vocals
- Cozy Powell – drums
- Jimmy Bain – bass
- Tony Carey – keyboards
Everything aligned for Rainbow in 1976: the musicians, the songs, Blackmore’s guitar sound and the sense that this band was capable of going anywhere.
What Rainbow meant in 1976
It is difficult to explain to someone who wasn’t there just how important Rainbow felt at this point.
We had already heard Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow, which whetted our appetite, but Rising was something else entirely. I remember going into Virgin Records and seeing people ahead of me in the queue buying it. There were people behind me buying it as well, and even people carrying copies on the bus home.
There was no internet, social media or instant group messaging. We went home, played the record and then met our friends to talk about what we had heard.
I can still remember hearing “Stargazer” and “A Light in the Black” for the first time.
I saw Rainbow at Birmingham Odeon on 11 September 1976, just over two weeks before this Nürnberg concert was recorded. It was one of those shows that stays with you for the rest of your life. When Blackmore sent the slide up the neck of his guitar during “Stargazer,” the sheer volume almost lifted us out of our seats.
Incidentally, my programme from that night was signed by Robert Plant—but that is another story!
Blackmore was enormous in the UK at that time. Although punk was waiting around the corner, it did not feel as though anything could touch Rainbow. For those of us who were there, these recordings allow us to return to that moment.
Track listing
LP One
- Kill the King
- Mistreated
- Sixteenth Century Greensleeves
- Catch the Rainbow
LP Two
- Man on the Silver Mountain
- Stargazer
LP Three
- Still I’m Sad
- Do You Close Your Eyes
Live in Nürnberg 1976 is a magnificent document of Rainbow during one of the most exciting periods in the band’s history.
I would have liked more photographs, sleeve notes and historical context. The presentation does not quite reflect the scale and importance of the music contained within it. Nevertheless, the records themselves sound fantastic, and hearing this concert spread across six sides of vinyl is an exhilarating experience.
If you already own The Temple of the King: Rainbow 1975–1976 and are happy with the CDs, that collection may be all you need. In fact, if you do not own any of these concerts, the nine-CD set remains the most comprehensive and cost-effective place to start.
But if you love this period of Rainbow and have always dreamed of owning these concerts on vinyl, this release is going to be extremely tempting.
This is Ritchie Blackmore playing with complete freedom, Ronnie James Dio approaching the height of his powers, and Cozy Powell, Jimmy Bain and Tony Carey helping to create a band capable of producing something genuinely monumental.
It is exciting, emotional and historically important music.
As I always say, music is the healer and the doctor—and Live in Nürnberg 1976 is very good medicine indeed.
Thank you for all your support
Phil Aston | Now Spinning Magazine
