ON STAGE

Rainbow

Prog Related

3.86 | 157 ratings

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Rune2000
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator

I get the feeling that Ritchie Blackmore's intension with this release was to recreate the magic of Deep Purple's Made In Japan. If anything at least On Stage should be regarded as a bold statement from Rainbow!

I think that it was a good idea to create space for some extensive solo spot moments but unlike Made In Japan this record misses the mark by lacking in the material department. It's true that most of these performances don't have much of a connection to their studio versions but I still would have appreciated it more if some of the material off Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow would have been substituted for a few highlights from the two follow-up releases. Instead, this classic lineup from the album Rising don't play a single song off that album! There is a brief 2 minute glimpse of Starstruck towards the end of the Man On The Silver Mountain-medley but that's pretty much it. The rest of the material comes from the debut album plus the excellent performance of Kill The King from then unreleased Long Live Rock & Roll and Mistreated from Deep Purple's Burn.

Unlike the studio album from the previous year this live album gives us the complete overview of what Rainbow was all about. It's true that I was hoping that their studio albums would incorporate some of these wild and over-the-top jams sessions but to have a whole album filled with this material gets quite excessive. Especially since On Stage is almost double as long Rising!

Considering that Rainbow has undergone some major changes in its lineup over their brief career I am very grateful that the only official live album was actually recorded with the classic lineup of Blackmore/Bain/Carey/Dio/Powell. The Live In Munich 1977 DVD might feel less excessive than this release but it captures an unenthusiastic Rainbow performance which is another reason to check out On Stage if you're looking for the best representation of the band in a live setting.

***** star songs: Intro: Over The Rainbow/Kill The King (5:32)

**** star songs: Mistreated (13:08) Sixteenth Century Greensleeves (7:38) Still I'm Sad (11:01)

*** star songs: Man On The Silver Mountain/Blues/Starstruck (11:15) Catch The Rainbow (15:36)

Rune2000 | 3/5 | 2010-4-18

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