RITCHIE BLACKMORE: 'Most Guitar Players Aren't Nice People'

To celebrate his 81st birthday earlier today (Tuesday, April 14),DEEP PURPLE and RAINBOW guitar legend Ritchie Blackmore took part in a surprise Instagram livestream where he answered a number of fan-submitted questions from his home in Long Island, New York. You can now watch the nearly one-hour discussion — hosted by Ritchie's wife/music partner Candice Night — below.

Asked for his opinion of Tommy Bolin, who replaced Blackmore on lead guitar in DEEP PURPLE more than 50 years ago, Ritchie said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I knew him more as a friend. And he was such a nice guy that I couldn't believe he was a guitar player, because most guitar players aren't nice people. He was so nice, and he was an Indian — I think Sioux Indian or something — and I would go around his house, and we'd oftenhave fun just talking to each other. There was never ever any envy, no competition whatsoever.

"I said to Tommy once, 'When did you last change your strings?'" Blackmore recalled. "And he looked at me, like, 'I should change them?' And I said, 'Well, yeah.' And he said, 'Well, probably about five years ago,' 'cause they were so caked in dirt and grit. He was a brilliant player, a great player, but he never changed his guitar strings."

As for whether he still keeps in contact with the members of DEEP PURPLE, Ritchie said: "Yes. [DEEP PURPLE drummer] Ian Paice sends me regards now and again, and I talked to [DEEP PURPLE singer] Ian Gillan and [former DEEP PURPLE vocalist] David Coverdale. But I don't know the new people in the band. I mean, obviously [current DEEP PURPLE keyboardist] Don Airey was in RAINBOW. Don is a brilliant keyboard player, but he has been in every band in the business."

After one fan suggested that Ritchie could undergo surgery for foot gout in order to help him return to touring, Blackmore said: "I don't play with my feet. It's not just my feet that I have a problem on tour with. I have a problem with my back, my heart, and my feet. And to go on tour at 81 is pushing it. And I don't really wanna just sit down on stage, which I would have to do anyway. I'm kind of running out of energy a little bit. When you play rock and roll, you've gotta have a lot of energy, but I tend to like sleeping a lot these days."

Last November, Ritchie's health issues led to the cancelation of the last four shows on the six-date tour of the U.S. East Coast by BLACKMORE'S NIGHT, the renaissance-inspired rock band he formed with his wife. The concerts in Newton, New Jersey; Wilmington, Delaware; Cohoes, New York; and Tarrytown, New York were called off "due to medical reasons".

Just days after the BLACKMORE'S NIGHT concerts were canceled, Ritchie released a statement in which he said that he had had "a long history of lumbar and neck herniated discs. Consequently, I would have back injections before a tour to help me over the pain," he explained. "Recently, I have acquired debilitating migraines. They come and go very quickly. When I see the visual disturbance of these ocular migraines, I know they are coming.

"When we did the long drive from Pennsylvania to Newton NJ we were booked into a hotel that had a wedding party going all night in the corridors. There was no heat in the room and the sheets were still damp. Which I assume culminated in me having a severe migraine attack. I couldn't stop vomiting. The room wouldn't stop spinning and I was extremely dizzy to the point of not being able to stand. Ambulance was called. I was taken to hospital and they gave me CAT scans and other tests. They were very gracious. The doctors came to the conclusion that my official diagnosis was severe vertigo. The results of this went on for days on end. I am now following up how serious these migraines are with various doctors.

"When one tours, you have a lot of people who have to be healthy. Unfortunately, I was the one who got hit this time."

Last year, Candice confirmed to Eonmusic that Ritchie had a heart attack in 2023 which resulted in six stents being implanted. "He's still got his back problem that he's had, so travel is difficult for him because of all that sitting," she explained. "And standing on stage, even standing with the guitar is tricky, although I do see a lot of people even younger than him at this point in the industry, showing up in wheelchairs. I don't think he wants to be thought of like that or remembered like that."

Coronary stents are primarily used to treat coronary artery disease, a condition where plaque buildup narrows or blocks the arteries supplying blood to the heart. By inserting stents for the heart, doctors can effectively restore blood flow and alleviate symptoms.

BLACKMORE'S NIGHT plays "Renaissance music," or "medieval music," with most of the tunes featuring lyrics conjured by Night and melodies crafted by Blackmore.

Ritchie, Candice and their two children reside on Long Island, New York, near Port Jefferson.

Blackmore is a co-founder of DEEP PURPLE and wrote many of their most memorable riffs, including "Smoke On The Water", but he has not played with the group since his 1993 departure.

During his time away from PURPLE, Blackmore established the neo-classical band called RAINBOW, which fused baroque music influences elements with hard rock before gradually progressing to catchy pop-style hard rock.

Blackmore stepped away from his Renaissance-inspired brand of music with BLACKMORE'S NIGHT in 2016 to perform a handful of shows with a brand-new lineup of RAINBOW.

In addition to Blackmore and Night (backing vocals),the most recent incarnation of RAINBOW included singer Ronnie Romero, STRATOVARIUS keyboardist Jens Johansson, BLACKMORE'S NIGHT drummer David Keith, bassist Bob Nouveau (a.k.a. Robert "Bob" Curiano, ex-BLACKMORE'S NIGHT) and backing singer Lady Lynn.

The two shows RAINBOW played in Germany in June 2016 were caught on camera to produce "Memories In Rock - Live In Germany", which was released in November 2016 via Eagle Rock Entertainment on DVD+2CD, Blu-ray+2CD, and digital formats.

After Ritchie left DEEP PURPLE for the final time in 1993, he reformed RAINBOW for one album (1995's "Stranger In Us All") and one tour, ending things in Denmark in 1997.

Blackmore didn't join his former DEEP PURPLE bandmates at the group's 2016 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony.

Blackmore previously suggested that PURPLE's manager had blocked him from attending the Rock Hall induction ceremony, and he used that as an excuse for not attending the event.

Despite Blackmore being a no-show at Rock Hall, he was given several shoutouts during the induction speeches of the DEEP PURPLE members in attendance. In addition, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich, who inducted DEEP PURPLE into the institution, praised "Ritchie fucking Blackmore" for one of the most memorable guitar riffs of all time on "Smoke On The Water".