Credit: Far Out / Alamy

Why Ritchie Blackmore said he was “better than” punk

Sat 14 October 2023 16:40, UK

Universally hailed as one of the most crucial rock guitarists ever, Ritchie Blackmore has done more than enough to earn his standing. Whether this be in Deep Purple, Rainbow or as a solo artist, fans do not have to search far to find evidence of the Stratocaster-toting wizard’s distinction.

It’s reflective of the former Deep Purple man’s significance that one of the most influential players that emerged in his wake, Smashing Pumpkins leader Billy Corgan, has effused about him on numerous occasions, labelling him “one of the greatest” ever to pick up a six-string.

The alternative rock legend asserted: “Ritchie Blackmore, I think, is one of the greatest guitar players of all time. And, what I think what’s amazing about Ritchie Blackmore as a guitar player is his transition from a kind of blues guitar player to a hard rock guitar player to a melodic guitar player. Not only did he influence an entire generation of guitar players, of course, Yngwie Malmsteen being the most prominent among them.”

Given his status, Blackmore has often been asked to comment on the work of other musicians, and he has provided a host of hot takes in his time. One of the most intriguing is his account of punk rock, the movement that emerged in the second half of the 1970s with classic rockers such as himself in its sights. Somewhat unsurprisingly, Blackmore isn’t a fan of the genre.

As part of the 2015 documentary The Ritchie Blackmore Story, the guitarist recalled an anecdote from when the first wave of punk was in full swing. He said: “I think Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull, I was talking to him about it. He said that he called up Ray Coleman from Melody Maker. He said (about punk), ‘What the hell is this all about?’ Ray Coleman, the editor of Melody Maker, was saying to Ian, ‘Oh, this is a very sophisticated form of music, you know. It’s the thing!’ Ian was going, ‘You gotta be joking. It’s just rubbish, come on.'”

Per Blackmore, Coleman insisted: “‘No, no. It is very good music.'” He continued: “The editor of Melody Maker, the big paper in England, was saying how wonderful the music was. Ian was stunned, like, ‘Are you joking? This is awful. Dreadful stuff.’ And, of course, I tended to agree. I didn’t get it, you know, the Sex Pistols and (whatever)”.

However, this account of punk was much more balanced than one Blackmore delivered just after it had peaked in 1978. When speaking to Trouser Press, Blackmore provided a more damning appraisal of the genre, saying that the music he was making with Rainbow at the time was much “better than punk”. He was safe in the knowledge he could play a concerto any day, implying that the punks could not. This was a display of the kind of musical snobbery that punk was on a mission to eradicate.

He said: “It’s better than punk, which means inferior. It suits us fine. I know I can play a bloody concerto any day. So it doesn’t bother me at all. It would bother someone who was sensitive and knew their limitations.”

Watch Ritchie Blackmore with Rainbow below.