ARTIST · HARD ROCK / METAL

Rainbow

Neo-classical drama with blues underpinnings—virtuosity serving haunted storytelling.

Hard rock
Heavy metal

Updated 27 October 2026

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Biography

Rising and Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll proved fantasy motifs could anchor arena riff science.

Line-up rotations kept the project volatile yet musically uncompromising.

Stargazer remains a benchmark for ambitious 1970s metal arrangement.

High-bitrate streams separate Hammond swells, Leslie guitar shimmer, and double-kick clarity.

Ritchie Blackmore left Deep Purple in 1975 and formed Rainbow with singer Ronnie James Dio, whose fantasy lyrics became a hallmark. Rising (1976) is considered a classic of the genre, and Long Live Rock ’n’ Roll (1978) followed.

Dio left in 1979 and Graham Bonnet sang on Down to Earth (1979), which included Since You Been Gone. Joe Lynn Turner sang on later albums. Blackmore revived Rainbow for live shows in 2016.

Interesting facts about Rainbow

01 British-American hard rock band formed by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore after Deep Purple.
02 Rising (1976) included Stargazer and A Light in the Black among fan-favourite epics.
03 Multiple acclaimed albums across the 1970s with shifting vocalists including Ronnie James Dio and Graham Bonnet.
04 Ronnie James Dio sang on Rising (1976).
05 Graham Bonnet sang Since You Been Gone.