Ritchie Blackmore
| Born | April 14, 1945 |
| Hometown | Weston-super-Mare, England |
| Height | 5'10" (1.79m) |
| Spouse | Candice Night, Amy Rothman, B?rbel, Margit Volkmar |
| Children | Jürgen Blackmore |
Top Stories
Ritchie Blackmore on his favourite guitarist: “I think, How the hell is he doing that?”
- In a typically forthright 1975 interview, Ritchie Blackmore offered his thoughts on the music business, and his peers
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- EntertainmentGuitar World
“I do my own thing”: How Simon McBride brought new color to Deep Purple's iconic sound
Stepping into a role once occupied by Ritchie Blackmore and Steve Morse could be intimidating, but when McBride joined Purple, he never thought twice. And yes, he'll play Smoke on the Water his way
- EntertainmentLouder Sound
The song Ronnie James Dio called one of the "proudest things he'd ever done"
Begun by Dio when he was fronting Black Sabbath, it transformed his career and became one of the classic metal tracks of the 80s
- EntertainmentGuitar World
Simon McBride on how he’s made the Deep Purple catalog his own – while paying homage to the icons who came before him
McBride was appointed Deep Purple's lead guitarist in 2022, following in the footsteps of some of the most revered players of all time
- CelebrityGuitar World
Ritchie Blackmore on why he switched from the 335 to the Stratocaster – and the one he used to record Smoke on the Water
Deep Purple icon Ritchie Blackmore tells us how a visit from Slowhand’s roadie turned him into a Fender Strat diehard – and why he kept breaking whammy bars
- EntertainmentGuitar World
Deep Purple’s Simon McBride on the Ritchie Blackmore lick he found most difficult to learn
McBride has also discussed where he thinks Blackmore's compositional strength lies
- EntertainmentMusicRadar
The Beethoven-inspired throwaway that become the most famous riff of all time: “We didn’t make a big deal out of it and it wasn’t being considered as a track for the album”
Now Deep Purple return to Montreux... with added smoke
- EntertainmentGuitar World
The Strat turns 70 and the return of the cooler-than-ever Creed – only in the new Guitar World
Featuring new interviews with Ritchie Blackmore, Brian May, Buddy Guy, Alex Lifeson, Adrian Belew, Tom Morello, Yngwie Malmsteen and Mick Mars and a review of the new PRS Mark Tremonti MT 100 amp
- EntertainmentGuitar World
How Ritchie Blackmore ended up buying his first-ever Fender Stratocaster from Eric Clapton
Blackmore switched up his ES-335 for a Strat after he was given the chance to buy one of Clapton's own examples – and the rest was history
- EntertainmentLouder Sound
Ian Gillan looks back at Deep Purple's Machine Head era
With Deep Purple’s original plans for their sixth album having literally gone up in smoke, Machine Head was a triumph snatched from the jaws of disaster
- EntertainmentLouder Sound
The birth of Deep Purple Mk II and the transformation that changed rock
How Deep Purple went from one-hit-wonders to become one of the greatest rock bands in history
