Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore
by Jerry Bloom
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Book Summary Information
Author: Jerry BloomEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-04-01
ISBN: 1846097576
Number of pages: 400
Publisher: Omnibus Press
Book Reviews of Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore
Book Review: A fascinating (but accurate?) look at a rock legend
Summary: 4 Stars
I am a guitarist, with Ritchie Blackmore probably being the earliest significant influence I can remember from my teen years as I was learning to play, and I have just finished reading "Black Night". On the one hand, I found it a fascinating look inside the mind and actions of a guitarist whom I consider "One of the Gods" of rock, and whose influence, in terms of approach, technique and style, was fundamental to my taking up the guitar as boy, and having it be part of my life to this day. That being said, I walked away from the book a little - for lack of a better word - sad. If one is to beleive the numerous accounts and quotes that make up much of the book, the portrait that is painted is that of a misanthropic, selfish, childish, and ultimately lonely man, who happens to have been granted an unbelievable talent for music in general, and for the guitar in particular. Much of the book is based on quotes by people who have lived and worked with Blackmore over the years, but unfortunately few quotes are from Ritchie himself (there is the odd one here and there). These recollections from people throughout Blackmore's career are so in keeping with each other, and so clearly paint the same general picture of the man, that it's impossible to believe that the reality is substantially different from the portrait they collectively paint. And having accepted this, my view of Ritchie, which was once that of a legendary Guitar Hero in every sense of the word, is now unalterably overshadowed by a portrait of a very difficult, callous, and selfish man. That he can play like he does is wondrous and phenomenal -- but the underlying petulance, even if the book is only half-accurate, is now - for me - impossible to overlook. I'll still listen - and be amazed and mesmerized by - my Purple and Rainbow catalog. But now, seeing the man behind the curtain at last revealed, has taken a big bite out of the wonder of it all.
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