Rainbow

Rainbow, also known as Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow or Blackmore's Rainbow, is a British rock band led by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore. Established in 1975, the band has gone through various lineup changes over the years. After recording their first album with Dio's band Elf as additional musicians, Rainbow released their debut album "Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow" in 1975. The band name was inspired by the famous Rainbow Bar and Grill in Hollywood.

After achieving success with three studio albums and an extensive world tour, Blackmore decided to take the band in a new commercial direction away from their previous "sword and sorcery" theme. This led to vocalist Ronnie James Dio leaving the band. With new vocalist Graham Bonnet, Rainbow scored a hit single with "Since You Been Gone".

Throughout their career, Rainbow experienced more lineup changes and released several albums before disbanding in 1984 when Blackmore rejoined Deep Purple. However, they were resurrected once again in 1994 before going on hiatus after playing their final concert in 1997. During this time, Blackmore focused on his passion for Renaissance and medieval music with his partner Candice Night forming the Renaissance-influenced group Blackmore's Night.