Rising - RAINBOW****

Tarot Woman/Run With The Wolf/Starstruck/Do You Close Your Eyes/Stargazer/A Light In The Black

Rising was the well regarded follow up album from the heavy metal band Rainbow, created by ex Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore. Their popularity would continue well into the next decade. (US:48 UK:11)

“This is a consistently good hard rock release. The vocals by Dio are epic; they are the album highlight as they simply rule every single song doing everything I expect from a hard rock album.”

“This landmark LP proved to be a turning point in the careers of all involved, but most particularly of Ritchie Blackmore and Dio. It not only established Rainbow as a credible band, rather than a vanity project of Blackmore's, but it also saw Dio join the first rank of metal front men. It would not be an exaggeration to say that most of Dio's subsequent career would be based around refining and perfecting the fantasy metal blueprint provided by this album.”

“Spectacular, over-the-top hard rock with progressive moves, graced with tight playing by some of the most talented musicians of the time: Blackmore's intense guitar playing, Ronnie Dio at his best (both in vocals and lyrics) plus Cozy Powell's extraordinary performance.”

“Smooth hard rock mixed with a good dose of early heavy metal and some progressive rock as well. A very well written and solid album, which Dio brings up to a whole new level. It does feel a bit short, but then again the good thing is that there is no filler on it either.”

“Rainbow Rising is the most perfect moment of Ritchie Blackmore in the studio. The album brings the powerful voice of Ronnie James Dio, the strength of Cozy Powell on drums and the magic guitar of Blackmore after the Deep Purple break-up. Mixing classical moments as in Stargazer and the hard rock explosion as in Tarot Woman, this recording is a rare moment in heavy metal history.”

“On a par with any of his stuff with Deep Purple, this is Ritchie Blackmore's masterpiece with Rainbow. This rocks all the way through and Blackmore's guitar work is out of this world. An excellent rock band with a bunch of great musicians.”