Ritchie Blackmore

Blackmore was born at Allendale Nursing Home in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, the second son of Lewis J. Blackmore and Violet (née Short). The family moved to Heston, Middlesex, when Blackmore was two. He was 11 when he was given his first guitar by his father on certain conditions, including learning how to play properly, so he took classical guitar lessons for one year.{{cite news |title=Interview with Ritchie Blackmore |first=Alexis |last=Korner |author-link=Alexis Korner |publisher=BBC Radio One Guitar Greats series |date=6 March 1983}}

In an interview with Sounds magazine in 1979, Blackmore said that he started the guitar because he wanted to be like British musician Tommy Steele, who used to just jump around and play. Blackmore loathed school and hated his teachers.Sounds, 15 December 1979 He said he would always get caned for speaking in class, which traumatized him to the point he had difficulty in talking to people in subsequent years. Blackmore also became disillusioned with education, thinking that if he were to excel in his studies, he would end up being like his teachers.{{cite web |last1=Blackmore |first1=Ritchie |title=Ritchie Blackmore – On School And Parents (The Ritchie Blackmore Story, 2015) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiLlApteJJ0 |via=YouTube |date=16 August 2022 |access-date=17 August 2023}}

Blackmore left school at age 15 and started work as an apprentice radio mechanic at nearby Heathrow Airport. He took electric guitar lessons from session guitarist Big Jim Sullivan.

In 1960, he began to work as a session player for Joe Meek's music productions and performed in several bands. He was initially a member of the instrumental band the Outlaws, who played in both studio recordings and live concerts and like many bands of the era, used other names (such as The Rally Rounders and The Chaps) to secure multiple repeat gigs. Otherwise, in mainly studio recordings, he backed singer Glenda Collins, German-born pop singer Heinz (playing on his top ten hit "Just Like Eddie" and "Beating Of My Heart"), and others.{{cite web |url=http://www.blackmoresnight.com/moon_castle_pages/blackmore_discography.htm |work=The Official Ritchie Blackmore and Blackmore's Night website |title=Discography |access-date=3 April 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110816095042/http://www.blackmoresnight.com/moon_castle_pages/blackmore_discography.htm |archive-date=16 August 2011 }} Thereafter, in mainly live concerts, he backed horror-themed singer Screaming Lord Sutch, beat singer Neil Christian, and others.{{cite web |url=http://www.thehighwaystar.com/rosas/jouni/rb.html |title=Ritchie Blackmore bands and sessions |work=thehighwaystar.com |access-date=3 April 2013}}

Blackmore joined a band-to-be called Roundabout in late 1967 after receiving an invitation from Chris Curtis while living in Hamburg and arriving at the Curtis flat to be greeted by Curtis’ flatmate, Jon Lord. Curtis originated the concept of the band, but would be forced out before the band fully formed. After the line-up for Roundabout was complete in April 1968, Blackmore is credited with suggesting the new name Deep Purple, as it was his grandmother's favourite song.Tyler, Kieron [http://www.deep-purple.net/archive/68-76history/roundabout.htm On The Roundabout With Deep Purple] Retrieved 31 August 2020 Deep Purple's early sound leaned on psychedelic and progressive rock, but also included cover versions of 1960s pop songs.{{cite web |title=Shades of Deep Purple |first=Matthijs |last=van der Lee |date=1 October 2009 |work=Sputnik Music |url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/32690/Deep-Purple-Shades-of-Deep-Purple/}} This "Mark One" line-up featuring singer Rod Evans and bass player Nick Simper lasted until mid-1969 and produced three studio albums. During this period, organist Jon Lord appeared to be the leader of the band,{{cite web |url=http://www.deep-purple.net/review-files/earlyyears/earlyyears.htm |title=Deep Purple early years: Seventy Seven Minutes In Prog Rock Heaven |first=David |last=Browne |access-date=19 January 2011 |work=deep-purple.net}} and wrote much of their original material.{{cite web |first=Matthijs |last=van der Lee |date=2 October 2009 |url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/32712/Deep-Purple-The-Book-of-Taliesyn/ |title=The Book of Taliesyn |work=Sputnik Music}}

File:Ritchie Blackmore 1977.jpg

The first studio album from Purple's second line-up, In Rock (1970), signalled a transition in the band's sound from progressive rock to hard rock, with Blackmore and Lord having heard bands such as Vanilla Fudge and albums such as Led Zeppelin II and King Crimson's debut album.

This "Mark Two" line-up featuring rock singer Ian Gillan and bassist Roger Glover lasted until mid-1973, producing four studio albums (two of which reached No. 1 in the UK), and one live double album. During this period, the band's songs primarily came out of their jam sessions, so songwriting credits were shared by the five members.{{cite web |title=A Highway Star: Deep Purple's Roger Glover Interviewed |work=The Quietus |date=20 January 2011 |url=http://thequietus.com/articles/05569-deep-purple-interview}} Blackmore later stated, "I didn't give a damn about song construction. I just wanted to make as much noise and play as fast and as loud as possible."

Guitarist Steve Vai was more complimentary about Blackmore's role in developing song ideas: "He was able to bring blues to rock playing unlike anybody else."{{cite web |url=https://bravewords.com/news/steve-vai-on-ritchie-blackmore-he-was-able-to-bring-blues-to-rock-playing-unlike-anybody-else-video |title=STEVE VAI ON RITCHIE BLACKMORE – "HE WAS ABLE TO BRING BLUES TO ROCK PLAYING UNLIKE ANYBODY ELSE" |last= |first= |date=28 June 2021}}

The third Deep Purple line-up featured David Coverdale on vocals and Glenn Hughes on bass and vocals. Songwriting was now more fragmented, as opposed to the band compositions from the Mark Two era. This "Mark Three" line-up lasted until mid-1975 and produced two studio albums and one live album

. Blackmore quit the band to front a new group, Rainbow. In 1974, Blackmore took cello lessons from Hugh McDowell (of ELO).{{cite web |title=RAINBOW: 1974–1976 |work=The Ronnie James Dio Web Site |access-date=22 September 2011 |url=http://www.ronniejamesdiosite.com/NewsInterviews/RainbowTours/rainbow1.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080123152002/http://ronniejamesdiosite.com/NewsInterviews/RainbowTours/rainbow1.htm|url-status=usurped|archive-date=23 January 2008}} Blackmore later stated that when playing a different musical instrument, he found it refreshing because there is a sense of adventure not knowing exactly what chord he's playing or what key he is in.{{cite news |last=Warnock |first=Matt |date=28 January 2011 |title=Ritchie Blackmore: The Autumn Sky Interview |work=Guitar International Magazine |url=http://guitarinternational.com/wpmu/2011/01/28/ritchie-blackmore-the-autumn-sky-interview/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110201150020/http://guitarinternational.com/wpmu/2011/01/28/ritchie-blackmore-the-autumn-sky-interview/ |archive-date=1 February 2011}}

Blackmore originally planned to make a solo album, but instead in 1975 formed his own band, Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, later shortened to Rainbow. Featuring vocalist Ronnie James Dio and his blues rock backing band Elf as studio musicians, this first line-up never performed live. The band's debut album, Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, was released in 1975. Rainbow's music was partly inspired by elements of medieval and baroque music{{cite web |first=Steven |last=Rosen |url=http://guitarinternational.com/2010/09/14/ritchie-blackmore-the-rainbow-interview/ |work=Guitar International |year=1975 |title=Ritchie Blackmore Interview: Deep Purple, Rainbow and Dio |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111222064521/http://guitarinternational.com/2010/09/14/ritchie-blackmore-the-rainbow-interview/ |archive-date=22 December 2011 }}{{cite web |title=Ritchie Blackmore |work=Guitarists |url=http://personal.mco.bellsouth.net/m/u/murf01/blackmore/blackmor.htm |access-date=2 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723025049/http://personal.mco.bellsouth.net/m/u/murf01/blackmore/blackmor.htm |archive-date=23 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/ritchie-blackmores-rainbow-mw0000191535 |title=Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow |first=David |last=Kent-Abbott |access-date=4 May 2013 |work=Allmusic}} since Blackmore started to play cello for musical composition.{{cite news |url=http://www.thehighwaystar.com/interviews/blackmore/rb199102xx.html |title=When There's Smoke.. THERE'S FIRE! |date=February 1991 |work=Guitar World |first=Mordechai |last=Kleidermacher}} During this period, Blackmore wrote a crucial part of Dio's basic melodies, particularly on their debut album.{{cite news |date=5 June 2013 |work=Burrn! Magazine |title=Blackmore's Night interview}} Shortly after the first album was recorded, Blackmore recruited new backing musicians to record the second album Rising (1976), and the following live album, On Stage (1977). Rising was originally billed as "Blackmore's Rainbow" in the US.{{cite web |url=http://www.discogs.com/Blackmores-Rainbow-Rainbow-Rising/release/1420519 |title=Blackmore's Rainbow – Rainbow Rising |work=Discogs.com |year=1984 |access-date=26 December 2011}} After the next studio album's release and supporting tour in 1978, Dio left Rainbow due to "creative differences" with Blackmore, who desired to move in a more commercial sounding direction.{{cite book |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus press |year=2006 |chapter=Chapter 11 – Down To Earth (1978–1980) |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1f53kihTyRMC&q=ritchie+blackmore+dio+lyric+jerry+bloom+1978&pg=PA225 |page=226|isbn=9780857120533 }}

Blackmore continued with Rainbow, and in 1979 the band released a new album titled Down To Earth, which featured R&B singer Graham Bonnet. During song composition, Bonnet says that he wrote his vocal melodies based upon the lyrics of bassist Roger Glover.{{cite news |title=GRAHAM BONNET Talks RAINBOW, MSG And ALCATRAZZ in New Interview |date=19 November 2010 |work=blabbermouth.net |url=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=149691 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101121171435/http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=149691 |archive-date=21 November 2010 }} The album marked contained the band's first top 10 UK hit singles "Since You Been Gone"{{Cite web |date=2020-04-15 |title=Official Singles Chart on 7/10/1979 |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19791007/7501/ |access-date=2025-04-19 |website=Official Charts |language=en}} (penned by Russ Ballard){{cite book |last = Frame |first = Pete |author-link = Pete Frame |title = "Rainbow Roots and Branches." The Very Best of Rainbow (liner notes) |date=March 1997}} and "All Night Long".{{Cite web |date=2022-10-31 |title=Official Singles Chart on 9/3/1980 |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19800309/7501/ |access-date=2025-04-19 |website=Official Charts |language=en}}

File:Ritchie Blackmore (1985).jpg

The next Rainbow album, Difficult to Cure (1981), introduced vocalist Joe Lynn Turner. The instrumental title track from this album was an arrangement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with additional music. Blackmore once said, "I found the blues too limiting, and classical was too disciplined. I was always stuck in a musical no man's land." The album marked the further commercialisation of the band's sound with Blackmore describing at the time a liking for the AOR band, Foreigner.In an interview in Sounds (25 July 1981), a UK music paper The music was consciously radio-targeted in a more AOR style,{{cite web |url={{AllMusic |class=album |id=r347818 |pure_url=yes}} |first=Bret |last=Adams |title=Stranger in Us All |publisher=Allmusic |access-date=22 July 2010}} resulting in some degree of alienation with many of Rainbow's earlier fans.{{cite web |first=Eduardo |last=Rivadavia |title=Rainbow |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/rainbow-mn0000391933/biography |publisher=Allmusic |access-date=8 July 2010}} Rainbow's next studio album was Straight Between the Eyes (1982) and included the single "Stone Cold". It would be followed by the album Bent Out of Shape (1983), which featured the single "Street of Dreams". In 1983, Rainbow were also nominated for a Grammy Award for the Blackmore-penned instrumental ballad track "Anybody There".{{cite web |url=http://www.ritchieblackmore.com/ritchie_bio.html |title=Ritchie's Bio |publisher=The Official Ritchie Blackmore and Blackmore's Night website |access-date=30 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101018145043/http://www.ritchieblackmore.com/ritchie_bio.html |archive-date=18 October 2010 }} Rainbow disbanded in 1984. A then-final Rainbow album, Finyl Vinyl, was patched together from live tracks and the B-sides of various singles.

In 1984, Blackmore joined a reunion of the former Deep Purple "Mark Two" line-up and recorded new material. This reunion line-up recorded two studio albums; Perfect Strangers (1984)and The House of Blue Light (1987).

The next Deep Purple line-up recorded one album titled Slaves and Masters (1990), which featured former Rainbow vocalist Joe Lynn Turner. During song composition, Turner wrote his vocal melodies. Subsequently, the "Mark Two" line-up reunited for a second time in late 1992 and produced one studio album, The Battle Rages On....{{cite web |first=William |last=Ruhlmann |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-battle-rages-on-mw0000619719 |work=Allmusic |title=The Battle Rages On |access-date=12 March 2013}} During the follow-up promotional tour, Blackmore quit the band for good in November 1993. Guitarist Joe Satriani was brought in to complete the remaining tour dates.

Blackmore reformed Rainbow with new members in 1994. This Rainbow line-up, featuring singer Doogie White, lasted until 1997 and produced one album titled Stranger in Us All in 1995. It was originally intended to be a solo album but due to the record company pressures the record was billed as Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow.{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/blackmores-night-mn0000098117/biography |work=Allmusic |title=Blackmore's Night |first=Bret |last=Adams |access-date=28 April 2011}} This was Rainbow's eighth studio album, made after a gap of 12 years since Bent out of Shape. A world tour including South America followed. Rainbow was disbanded once again after playing its final concert in 1997. Blackmore later said, "I didn't want to tour very much."

Over the years Rainbow had gone through many personnel changes with no two studio albums featuring the same line-up: Blackmore was the sole constant band member. Rainbow achieved moderate success; the band's worldwide sales are estimated at more than 28 million album copies, including 4 million copies sold in the US.{{cite web |url=http://1037theloon.com/rainbow-featured-on-80s-at-8-with-stone-cold-video/ |first=Mark |last=Alan |date=5 October 2012 |work=103.7 The Loon |title=Rainbow Featured on 80's at 8 With "Stone Cold"}}

In 1995, Blackmore, with his girlfriend Candice Night as vocalist, began working on a folk rock project, which later became the debut album Shadow of the Moon (1997) for their duo Blackmore's Night. Blackmore once portrayed their artistic characteristics as "Mike Oldfield plus Enya". Blackmore mostly used acoustic guitar, to back Night's delicate vocal melodies, which he often wrote.{{cite web |url=http://candicenight.com/betweenus_nov_02.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021214031039/http://candicenight.com/betweenus_nov_02.htm |archive-date=14 December 2002 |date=November 2002 |title=Between Us – November 2002 |work=Candice Night Official Website |first=Candice |last=Night}} Night said, "When he sings, he sings only for me, in private".{{cite web |url=http://candicenight.com/betweenus.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030807134700/http://candicenight.com/betweenus.htm |archive-date=7 August 2003 |date=August 2003 |title=Between Us August 2003 |first=Candice |last=Night |work=Candice Night Official Website}} As a result, his musical approach shifted to vocalist-centred sounds, and their recorded output is a mixture of original and cover materials. The band's musical style is heavily inspired by medieval music blended with Night's lyrics, which often feature themes of love and medieval times. The second release, entitled Under a Violet Moon (1999) continued in the same folk-rock style, with Night's vocals remaining a prominent feature of the band's style. The title track's lyrics were partly written by Blackmore. "Violet" was his mother's first name and "Moon" was his grandmother's surname.{{cite book |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus press |year=2006 |chapter=Chapter 16: Play Minstrel Play (1997–2000) |isbn=9780857120533 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1f53kihTyRMC&q=mother+blackmore+ritchie+knight+violet+jerry+bloom&pg=PA336}}

File:Blackmore's Night in 2012.jpg

In subsequent albums, particularly Fires at Midnight (2001) which featured the Bob Dylan song "The Times They Are a Changin'", there was occasionally an increased incorporation of electric guitar into the music, whilst maintaining a folk rock direction. A live album, Past Times with Good Company was released in 2002. After the next studio album's release, an official compilation album Beyond the Sunset: The Romantic Collection was released in 2004, featuring music from the four studio albums. A Christmas-themed holiday album, Winter Carols was released in 2006. Through numerous personnel changes, the duo has utilized over 26 backing musicians on their releases.{{cite web |url=http://www.musicmight.com/artist/united+kingdom/blackmore+27s+night |work=MusicMight |title=BLACKMORE'S NIGHT |access-date=22 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120128071656/http://www.musicmight.com/artist/united+kingdom/blackmore+27s+night |archive-date=28 January 2012 |url-status=dead }} Blackmore sometimes played drums in recording studio. They choose to avoid typical rock concert tours, instead limiting their appearances to small intimate venues.{{cite web |url=http://www.musicstreetjournal.com/index_interview_display.cfm?id=100483 |work=MusicStreetJournal |first=Gary |last=Hill |first2=Rick |last2=Damigella |first3=Larry |last3=Toering |title=Interview with Candice Night of Blackmore's Night from 2010}} In 2011, Night said, "We have actually turned down a lot of (touring) opportunities."{{cite web |url=http://www.smnnews.com/2011/01/07/blackmores-night-candice-night-vocals/ |title=Blackmore's Night – Candice Night (vocals) |publisher=SMNnews |author=Christian A. |date=7 January 2011 |access-date=22 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911134657/http://www.smnnews.com/2011/01/07/blackmores-night-candice-night-vocals/ |archive-date=11 September 2011 |url-status=dead }} Blackmore's Night has released eleven studio albums to date, with the latest one being Nature's Light in 2021.

A re-formed Rainbow performed three European concerts in June 2016. The concert setlists included both Rainbow and Deep Purple material. The band featured metal singer Ronnie Romero, keyboardist Jens Johansson and bassist Bob Nouveau.{{cite news |url= http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/ritchie-blackmores-rainbow-first-official-photo-of-2016-lineup/ |title=Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow: First Official Photo Of 2016 Lineup |date=16 March 2016 |work=.blabbermouth}}

File:Ritchie Blackmore 1971.jpg

During the 1960s, Blackmore played a Gibson ES-335 but from 1970 he mainly played a Fender Stratocaster until he formed Blackmore's Night in 1997. The middle pick-up on his Stratocaster is screwed down and not used. Blackmore occasionally used a Fender Telecaster Thinline during recording sessions. He is also one of the first rock guitarists to use a "scalloped" fretboard which has a "U" shape between the frets.

In the 1970s, Blackmore used a number of different Stratocasters; one of his main guitars was an Olympic white 1974 model with a rosewood fingerboard that was scalloped.{{cite video |people =Rainbow |title=Live in Munich 1977 |medium =DVD |location =Audio commentary |date =2006}} Blackmore added a strap lock to the headstock of this guitar as a conversation piece to annoy and confuse people, as it didn't actually do anything.{{cite web |url=http://www.guitarheroesgear.com/2009/06/ritchie-blackmore-gear-guitars.html |title=Ritchie Blackmore Gear Videos |publisher=Guitarheroesgear.com |access-date=13 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100402045643/http://www.guitarheroesgear.com/2009/06/ritchie-blackmore-gear-guitars.html |archive-date=2 April 2010 |url-status=dead }}

Effects he used from 1970 to 1997, besides his usual tape echo, included a Hornby Skewes treble booster in the early days. Around late-1973, he experimented with an EMS Synthi Hi Fli guitar synthesizer. He sometimes used a wah-wah pedal and a variable control treble-booster for sustain, and Moog Taurus bass pedals were used in solo parts during concerts. He also had a modified Aiwa TP-1011 tape machine built to supply echo and delay effects; the tape deck was also used as a pre-amp. Other effects that Blackmore used were a Uni-Vibe, a Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face and an Octave Divider.

In the mid-1980s, he experimented with Roland guitar synthesizers. A Roland GR-700 was seen on stage as late as 1995–96, later replaced with the GR-50.

Blackmore has experimented with many different pick-ups in his Strats. In the early Rainbow era, they were still stock Fender equipment, but later became Dawk-installed over wound, dipped, Fender pick-ups. He has also used Schecter F-500-Ts, Velvet Hammer "Red Rhodes", DiMarzio "HS-2", OBL "Black Label", and Bill Lawrence L-450, XL-250 (bridge), L-250 (neck) pick-ups. In his signature Stratocaster, Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound Flat SSL-4's are used to emulate the Schecter F500ts. Since the early 1990s, he has used Lace Sensor (Gold) "noiseless" pick-ups.

In the first issue of International Musician and Recording World, Blackmore named Jeff Beck his favorite guitar player. He also sang praises for Jimi Hendrix, Yes guitarist Steve Howe, Bob Dylan sideman Mike Bloomfield and Tommy Bolin, who would soon take his place on Deep Purple.Tiven 1975, p. 6.Tiven 1975, p. 7.{{cite web|url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/ritchie-blackmore-deep-purple-boredom|last=Rolli|first=Bryan|title=Ritchie Blackmore explains how boredom led to Deep Purple exit|work=Ultimate Classic Rock|date=3 June 2024|accessdate=2 September 2024}} Still on the subject of Beck, he said:

{{cquote|Being a guitarist, I obviously know a lot of tricks of the trade, but whenever I watch Beck I think "How the hell is he doing that?" Echoes suddenly come from no-where; he can play a very quiet passage with no sustain and in the next second suddenly race up the fingerboard with all this sustain coming out. He seems to have sustain completely at his fingertips, yet he doesn't have it all the time, only when he wants it.}}

Blackmore credits fellow guitarist Eric Clapton's music with helping him develop his own style of vibrato around 1968 or 1969.{{cite web|url=https://www.thehighwaystar.com/interviews/blackmore/rb199102xx.html|title=Ritchie Blackmore, Interviews|website=Thehighwaystar.com|access-date=12 May 2019}}

In 1979, Blackmore said: "I like popular music. I like ABBA very much. But there's so much stigma like, 'you can't do this because you're a heavy band', and I think that's rubbish. You should do what you want ... I think classical music is very good for the soul. A lot of people go 'ah well, classical music is for old fogies' but I was exactly the same. At 16 I didn't want to know about classical music: I'd had it rammed down my throat. But now I feel an obligation to tell the kids 'look, just give classical music a chance' ... the guitar frustrates me a lot because I'm not good enough to play it sometimes so I get mad and throw a moody. Sometimes I feel that what I'm doing is not right, in the sense that the whole rock and roll business has become a farce, like Billy Smart, Jr. Circus, and the only music that ever moves me is very disciplined classical music, which I can't play. But there's a reason I've made money. It's because I believe in what I'm doing, in that I do it my way—I play for myself first, then secondly the audience—I try to put as much as I can in it for them. Lastly I play for musicians and the band, and for critics not at all."

In his soloing, Blackmore combines blues scales and phrasing with dominant minor scales and ideas from European classical music. While playing he would often put the pick in his mouth, playing with his fingers.{{cite web|url=https://www.guitarworld.com/lessons/ritchie-blackmore-blues|last=Barrett|first=Richard|title=How to play blues like Ritchie Blackmore|work=Guitarist|date=6 August 2021|accessdate=19 October 2024}}

Blackmore is noted for having played a pioneering role in bringing influences of classical music to rock 'n' roll. He is particularly fond of Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach. For instance, he revealed to Guitar World that he used a Bachian chord progression – Bm, Db, C, G – behind the "Highway Star" guitar solo.{{cite web|url=https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/ritchie-blackmore-1973-interview|last=Webb|first=Martin K.|title="The chord progression in the Highway Star solo – Bm, to a Db, C, and then G – is a Bach progression": Ritchie Blackmore on Steve Howe, Jimi Hendrix, classical influences and more|work=GuitarPlayer.com|date=19 April 2024|accessdate=3 September 2024}}

Ritchie Blackmore was also keen in using the cycle of 4ths chord progressions, by the way of triad arpeggios. This was standard practice in Baroque music, especially by Bach.{{cite web|url=https://www.guitarworld.com/lessons/arpeggio-studies-based-on-the-cycle-of-fourths|last=Aledort|first=Andy|title=Arpeggio Studies Based on the Cycle of Fourths|work=Guitar World|date=14 January 2019|accessdate=1 October 2024}} A notable example is the second half of the "Burn" solo.{{cite book|last1=Billmann|first1=Pete|last2=Scharfglass|first2=Matt|title=The Best of Deep Purple|date=1998|publisher=Hal Leonard|location=Miwaukee, WI|isbn=0793591929|page=12}}

One of Ritchie Blackmore hallmarks is the ability to writing memorable riffs using fourths. His most iconic riff - the intro to Deep Purple's "Smoke On the Water" - is an example of such. Other Deep Purple songs that used the same idea were "Mandrake Root" and "Burn", along with Rainbow's "Man On A Silver Mountain", "All Night Long" and "Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll".{{cite web|url=https://www.musicradar.com/how-to/5-guitar-tricks-you-can-learn-from-ritchie-blackmore|last=Hilborne|first=Phil|title=5 guitar tricks you can learn from Ritchie Blackmore|work=MusicRadar|date=31 December 2018|accessdate=28 September 2024}} Riffs in fourths became a mainstay in hard rock and heavy metal, post-Blackmore. Notable examples include Judas Priest's "Hell Bent for Leather",{{cite book|last=Gress|first=Jesse|title=Judas Priest – Vintage Hits|date=1990|publisher=Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation|location=Milwaukee, WI|isbn=9789990590319|page=56}} Ozzy Osbourne's "Suicide Solution",{{cite book|last=Marshall|first=Wolf|title=Ozzy Osbourne – Randy Rhoads Tribute|date=1987|publisher=Cherry Lane Music|location=Port Chester, NY|isbn=9780895243478|page=77}} Mötley Crüe's "Shout at the Devil" and Iron Maiden's "Two Minutes to Midnight".{{cite book|last1=Booth|first1=Addi|last2=Pappas|first2=Paul|title=Iron Maiden – Anthology|date=2006|publisher=Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation|location=Milwaukee, WI|isbn=9780634066900|page=161}}

Blackmore frequently does sparse verse arrangements, using single-note riffs or playing octaves. Such accompaniments give room to keyboard players. "Smoke On the Water" is a prime example of this technique.{{cite book|last1=Billmann|first1=Pete|last2=Scharfglass|first2=Matt|title=The Best of Deep Purple|date=1998|publisher=Hal Leonard|location=Miwaukee, WI|isbn=0793591929|page=122}}

Blackmore is known for unapologetically borrowing musical ideas from other artist's music. "I get inspired by other people's songs and write something vaguely similar", said he on a 1978 Guitar Player interview.{{cite web|url=https://www.thehighwaystar.com/interviews/blackmore/guitarplayer/guitarplay3.html|last=Rosen|first=Steven|title=Ritchie Blackmore: From Deep Purple to Rainbow|work=Guitar Player|date=September 1978|accessdate=6 October 2024}} Here's a brief list:

• Although penned as a Deep Purple original, Ritchie Blackmore actually learnt "Mandrake Root"'s melody and chord progression through Carlos Little, his Screaming Lord Sutch & the Savages bandmate. It was written by previous Savages guitarist Bill Parkinson and originally called "Lost Soul".{{cite book|last=Bloom|first=Jerry|title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore|date=2006|publisher=Omnibus Press|location=London|isbn=9781846092664|page=94}}
• The "Black Night" intro riff is partially borrowed from the verse of Ricky Nelson's 1962 version of "Summertime", originally written by George and Ira Gershwin.{{cite web|url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/deep-purple-riffs-ritchie-blackmore-stole-other-people|last=Starkey|first=Arun|title=The Deep Purple riffs Ritchie Blackmore admitted he pinched|work=Far Out|date=28 May 2022|accessdate=6 October 2024}}
• In Rock opener "Speed King" was based on two Hendrix singles, "Stone Free" (1966) and "Fire" (1967).
• The "Lazy" track from Machine Head was inspired by Cream's "Steppin' Out".
• "Burn"'s main riff is similar to George Gershwin's 1924 song "Fascinating Rhythm".{{cite web|last=McDowell|first=Jay|title=The Meaning Behind the Witchy Woman in Deep Purple's "Burn"|url=https://americansongwriter.com/the-meaning-behind-the-witchy-woman-in-deep-purples-burn|website=American Songwriter|access-date=6 October 2024}}
• Another track from the Burn album – "Mistreated" – was admittedly molded on Free's "Heartbreaker", from the band's 1973 album.

Introduced by jazz musicians Les Paul, Barney Kessel and Tal Farlow in the 1950s, sweep picking was arguably first used in a rock context by Ritchie Blackmore. It can be heard in the tail end of "April", the final track from Deep Purple's homonymous album. Blackmore used the technique again on Rainbow's "Kill the King".

In May 1964, Blackmore married Margit Volkmar (b. 1945) from Germany.{{cite web |url=http://www.jrblackmore.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5&Itemid=2 |work=Official Site of J. R. Blackmore |title=BIO |access-date=24 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100617045412/http://www.jrblackmore.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5&Itemid=2 |archive-date=17 June 2010 |url-status=dead }} They lived in Hamburg during the late 1960s.{{cite web |url=http://candicenight.com/betweenus.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040605081811/http://candicenight.com/betweenus.htm |archive-date=5 June 2004 |date=June 2004 |title=Between Us June 2004 |last=Night |first=Candice |work=Candice Night Official Website}} Their son, Jürgen (b. 1964), played guitar in the touring tribute band Over the Rainbow. Following their divorce, Blackmore married Bärbel, a former dancer from Germany, in September 1969{{cite web |url=http://www.sixtiescity.com/Events/Events69.shtm |title=Events 1969 |work=Sixties City |access-date=24 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100330071542/http://www.sixtiescity.com/Events/Events69.shtm |archive-date=30 March 2010 }}{{cite web |title=A short story about Ritchie Blackmore and his long forgotten 1961 Gibson ES-335 |website=Me and My Guitar |url=http://meandguitar.wordpress.com/2011/04/10/hush-money/ |date=10 April 2011}}{{unreliable source?|date=July 2021}} until their divorce in the early 1970s. As a result, he is a fluent German speaker.

For tax reasons, he moved to the US in 1974.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/ritchie-blackmore-shallow-purple-2-226355/|title=Ritchie Blackmore: Shallow Purple|last=Crowe|first=Cameron|date=10 April 1975|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=2 September 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://www.theuncool.com/journalism/rs184-ritchie-blackmore/|title=Rolling Stone #184: Ritchie Blackmore|last=Crowe|first=Cameron|date=10 April 1975|website=Theuncool.com|access-date=2 September 2018|quote=The tax people have gone berserk over us. They're really trying to skim us. We've all moved out of England. – Blackmore}} Initially he lived in Oxnard, California,{{Cite web |last=Crowe |first=Cameron |date=1975-04-10 |title=Ritchie Blackmore: Shallow Purple |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/ritchie-blackmore-shallow-purple-2-226355/2/ |access-date=2025-03-30 |website=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Rosen |first=Steve |date=2016-05-06 |title=Behind the Curtain: Ritchie Blackmore |url=https://rockcellarmagazine.com/behind-the-curtain-ritchie-blackmore/ |access-date=2025-03-30 |website=Rock Cellar Magazine |language=en}} with opera singer Shoshana Feinstein for one year.{{cite book |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus press |year=2006 |chapter=Chapter 8: The Black Sheep of the Family (1973–1975) |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FcKcrWE8aWgC&q=blackmore+shoshana+ritchie+knight&pg=PT258 |isbn=9781846097577 }} She provided backing vocals on two songs in Rainbow's first album. During this period, he listened to early European classical music and light music a lot, for about three-quarters of his private time. Blackmore once said, "It's hard to relate that to rock. I listen very carefully to the patterns that Bach plays. I like direct, dramatic music." After having an affair with another woman, Christine, Blackmore met Amy Rothman in 1978,{{cite book |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus press |year=2006 |chapter=Chapter 10: Down to Earth (1978–1980) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_dbVAAAACAAJ |page=240 |isbn=978-1846092664}} and moved to Connecticut.{{cite book |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus press |year=2006 |chapter=Chapter 10: Down to Earth (1978–1980) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_dbVAAAACAAJ |page=227 |isbn=978-1846092664}} He married Rothman in 1981,{{cite web |url=http://www.deep-purple.net/DPASmags/stargazer25.htm |title=DPAS Magazine Archive. Darker Than Blue, 1981 |access-date=24 May 2010}} but they divorced in 1983. Following the marriage's conclusion, he began a relationship with Tammi Williams.{{cite book |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus press |year=2006 |chapter=Chapter 14: The Battele Rages on And On ... (1990–1993) |page=291 |isbn=9780857120533 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1f53kihTyRMC&q=ritchie+blackmore+tammi+williams&pg=PA291}} In early 1984 Blackmore met Williams in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where she was working as a hotel employee. In the same year, he purchased his first car, having learned to drive at 39 years of age.{{cite book |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus press |year=2006 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FcKcrWE8aWgC&q=Shoshana+Mercedes+and+Denise&pg=PT400 |chapter=Chapter 12: The End of the Rainbow (1980–84)|isbn=9781846097577 }}

Blackmore and then-fashion model Candice Night began living together in 1991. They moved to her native Long Island in 1993.{{cite news |url=http://candicenight.com/betweenus.htm |date=June 2011 |first=Candice |last=Night |title=Between Us June 2011 |work=Candice Night Official Website |access-date=20 October 2011}}{{failed verification|date=August 2015}} Having been engaged for nearly 15 years,{{cite web |url=http://candicenight.com/betweenus_archives/betweenus_07_2006.html |work=Candice Night Official Website |first=Candice |last=Night |title=Between Us July 2006 |date=July 2006 |access-date=24 May 2010}} the couple married in 2008.{{cite news |url=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=106777 |title=RITCHIE BLACKMORE, Longtime Girlfriend CANDICE NIGHT Tie The Knot |date=13 October 2008 |work=Blabbermouth.net |access-date=24 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606134949/http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=106777 |archive-date=6 June 2011 }} Night said, "he's making me younger and I'm aging him rapidly."{{cite news |title=Candice Night and Ritchie Blackmore|date=28 December 2008 |work=New York DAILY NEWS |url=http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-12-28/entertainment/17911673_1_castles-ritchie-jam-session|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810041129/http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-12-28/entertainment/17911673_1_castles-ritchie-jam-session|archive-date=10 August 2011}} Their daughter Autumn was born on 27 May 2010,{{cite news |url=http://www.bravewords.com/news/143346 |title=RITCHIE BLACKMORE And CANDICE NIGHT Announce Arrival of First Child, Autumn Esmerelda |access-date=26 July 2010}} and their son Rory on 7 February 2012.{{cite web |title=candice of blackmore's night |date=28 October 2009 |first=Mick |last=DuRussel |work=SpotonLI |url=http://spotonli.com/2009/10/candice-of-blackmores-night/}} Blackmore is a heavy drinker and watches German-language television on his satellite dish when he is at home. He has several German friends and a collection of about 2,000 CDs of Renaissance music.{{cite web |work=Exclusive Magazine |url=http://annecarlini.com/ex_interviews.php?id=1153 |first=Russell A. |last=Trunk |title=Blackmore's Night |date=February 2011}}

Ritchie claimed in an interview that he's spiritual, but not religious, saying that "religion usually involves money".{{cite web | url=https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/ritchie_blackmore_im_a_spiritual_man_not_a_religious_man_religion_usually_revolves_around_money.html | title=Ritchie Blackmore: I'm a Spiritual Man, Not a Religious Man. Religion Usually Revolves Around Money }}

Readers of Guitar World voted two of Blackmore's guitar solos (both recorded with Deep Purple) among the 100 Greatest Guitar Solos of all time – "Highway Star" ranked 19th, and "Lazy" ranked 74th.{{cite web|url=http://guitar.about.com/library/bl100greatestg.htm |title=Guitar World 100 Greatest Guitar Solos |work=about.com |access-date=25 March 2010}} His solo on "Child in Time" was ranked no. 16 in a 1998 Guitarist magazine readers poll of Top 100 Guitar Solos of All-Time.{{cite web |url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/50.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060220204844/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/50.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=20 February 2006 |title=Rocklist.net...Guitar Lists...|website=Rocklistmusic.co.uk|access-date=14 April 2022}} On 8 April 2016, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of original members of Deep Purple; he did not attend the ceremony.{{cite web |url= http://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2016/04/rock_hall_2016_despite_tension.html |title=Rock Hall 2016: Lars Ulrich, Deep Purple praise guitarist Ritchie Blackmore |work=cleveland.com |date=8 April 2016 |access-date=26 November 2016}}{{cite web |url= http://www.inquisitr.com/2977527/ritchie-blackmore-honored-at-rock-roll-hall-of-fame-induction-despite-snub-by-current-deep-purple-members/ |title=Ritchie Blackmore Honored At Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction, Despite Snub By Current Deep Purple Members |work=inquisitr.com |date=9 April 2016 |access-date=26 November 2016}}{{cite web|url=http://www.hennemusic.com/2016/04/ritchie-blackmore-comments-on-deep.html |title=Ritchie Blackmore comments on Deep Purple Rock Hall induction |work=hennemusic.com |date=11 April 2016 |access-date=26 November 2016}}

In 1993, musicologist Robert Walser defined him as "the most important musician of the emerging metal/classical fusion".Robert Walser, Running with the Devil: Power, Gender, and Madness in Heavy Metal Music, Wesleyan University Press, 1993, p.63-64 He is credited as a precursor of the so-called "guitar shredders" that emerged in the mid-1980s.Pete Prown, Harvey P. Newquist, Legends of Rock Guitar: The Essential Reference of Rock's Greatest Guitarists, Hal Leonard Corporation, 1997, p.65

Blackmore has been an influence on several 1980s guitarists such as Akira Takasaki, Fredrik Åkesson,{{cite news |url= http://puregrainaudio.com/interviews/interview-with-opeth-lead-guitarist-fredrik-akesson|title=Interview with Opeth lead guitarist Fredrik Åkesson |first=Carmen |last=Monoxide |publisher=puregrainaudio.com |date=7 December 2011}} Brett Garsed,{{cite news|url=http://www.guitaristnation.com/3838/interview-with-brett-garsed-on-the-heels-of-his-dark-matter-release/ |title=Interview with Brett Garsed on the Heels of his "Dark Matter" Release |publisher=guitaristnation.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103134259/http://www.guitaristnation.com/3838/interview-with-brett-garsed-on-the-heels-of-his-dark-matter-release/ |archive-date=3 November 2013 }} Jeff Loomis,{{cite web |title=Jeff Loomis on Composition |url=http://musictheoryforguitar.com/compositioninterviewwithjeffloomis.html |access-date=18 August 2013 |website=MusicTheoryForGuitar.com}} Janick Gers,Mick Wall, Iron Maiden: Run to the Hills, the Authorised Biography, Sanctuary Publishing, 2004, p.277 Paul Gilbert,{{cite news |url=http://www.guitarmania.eu/index.php/interviews/55-interview-with-paul-gilbert-march-2013.html|title=Paul Gilbert interview |author= Richman |publisher=guitarmania.eu |date=18 May 2013}} Craig Goldy,{{cite news |url= http://www.guitarworld.com/interview-guitarist-craig-goldy-talks-working-ronnie-james-dio-and-touring-dios-disciples|title=Interview: Guitarist Craig Goldy Talks Working with Ronnie James Dio and Touring with Dio's Disciples, 3/14/2013 |author=dreffett |publisher=guitarworld.com }} Scott Henderson,{{cite news |url= http://www.jazzguitarsociety.com/interview/jgs-scott-henderson-interview-122012/|title=JGS Scott Henderson Interview, 12/20/12 |publisher=jazzguitarsociety.com }} Dave Meniketti,{{cite news |url=http://www.guitarhoo.com/interviews/dave-meniketti-100|title=Dave Meniketti interview |publisher=guitar.com |date=14 December 2012}} Randy Rhoads,{{cite news |url=http://www2.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/interview-with-randy-rhoads-biographer-1024-2012.aspx |title=Interview with Randy Rhoads' Biographer |first=Russell |last=Hall |publisher=gibson.com |date=24 October 2012 |access-date=2 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180714110832/http://www.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/interview-with-randy-rhoads-biographer-1024-2012.aspx |archive-date=14 July 2018 |url-status=dead }} Michael Romeo,{{cite news |url= http://www.alloutguitar.com/interviews/michael-romeo-interview-%E2%80%93-perfect-symphony-part-one-1970s-2000 |title=Michael Romeo Interview – A Perfect Symphony Part One: 1970's to 2000 |first= Owen |last=Edwards |publisher=alloutguitar.com |date=3 April 2008}} Wolf Hoffmann,{{cite news|last1=Fayazi|first1=Mohsen|title=Wolf Hoffmann: 'I've always been a huge fan of Ritchie Blackmore' |url=http://metalshockfinland.com/2014/06/03/wolf-hoffmann-ive-always-been-a-huge-fan-of-ritchie-blackmore/|newspaper=Metal Shock Finland (World Assault )|date=3 June 2014|access-date=28 June 2015}} Billy Corgan,{{cite web|url=http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/interviews/interviews/smashing_pumpkins_there_are_always_more_riffs_than_words.html |title=Smashing Pumpkins: 'There Are Always More Riffs Than Words' |publisher=Ultimate-guitar.com |access-date=27 October 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141027154534/http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/interviews/interviews/smashing_pumpkins_there_are_always_more_riffs_than_words.html |archive-date=27 October 2014 }} Lita Ford,{{cite news |url=http://www.guitarworld.com/artists-artist-news-interviews/lita-ford-talks-new-memoir-living-runaway/28785 |work= Guitar World |title=Lita Ford Talks New Memoir, 'Living Like a Runaway' |date= 1 March 2016 |first=James |last=Wood}} Brian May,{{cite web |url=http://somethingelsereviews.com/2014/01/20/people-dont-talk-about-Ritchie-Blackmore-enough-Brian-May-praises-uncompromising-work-in-Deep-Purple-Rainbow/ |date=20 January 2014 |title=people dont talk about ritchie blackmore enough brian may praises uncompromising work in deep purple rainbow |work=somethingelsereviews }} Phil Collen{{cite web |last= |first= |author-link=Classic Rock (magazine) |date=26 August 2023 |title=30 guitarists on the guitar heroes who changed their life |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/30-guitarists-on-the-guitarists-who-changed-their-life |access-date=7 May 2024 |website=Classic Rock }} and Yngwie Malmsteen.{{cite news |url=http://www.guitarmessenger.com/tag/yngwie-malmsteen/ |title=Yngwie Malmsteen interview |first= Ivan |last=Chopik |publisher=guitarmessenger.com |date=24 February 2006}} For his part Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich, who praised Blackmore on numerous occasions, highlighted that his "wild stage presence" led him to buy Deep Purple's Fireball, his first album ever.{{cite web|url=http://www.spin.com/articles/dave-grohl-gets-lars-ulrich-talking-about-his-first-album|last=Grow|first=Kory|title=Dave Grohl Gets Lars Ulrich Talking About His First Album|work=Spin|date=22 August 2012|accessdate=18 October 2024}} The drummer also claimed that the guitarist's riffs from his time with Rainbow had a significant impact on Metallica.{{cite web|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/metallicas-lars-ulrich-on-the-rock-hall-two-words-deep-purple-20140409|last=Grow|first=Kory|title=Metallica's Lars Ulrich on the Rock Hall – 'Two Words: Deep Purple'|work=Rolling Stone|date=9 April 2014|accessdate=18 October 2014}} Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen acknowledged having been early on influenced by Blackmore;{{cite web|url=http://www.yngwiemalmsteen.com/interviews/otherjoe.html|title=The One & Only|last=Lailana|first=Joe|date=September 1989|publisher=Guitar School|accessdate=18 October 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130223042545/http://www.yngwiemalmsteen.com/interviews/otherjoe.html|archive-date=23 February 2013|url-status=live}} during his childhood he learned to play Fireball in its entirety. He even dressed like him onstage.{{cite web|accessdate=3 August 2014 |date=12 March 2011 |first=John |last=Li |publisher=Guitar World |title=Yngwie Malmsteen: Genius, Thief or Both? |url=http://www.guitarworld.com/yngwie-malmsteen-genius-thief-or-both}} Malmsteen also hired three Rainbow vocalists for his band; Joe Lynn Turner, Graham Bonnet and Doogie White.{{cite web|url=http://www.rockdetector.com/artist/sweden/stockholm/yngwie+malmsteen|title=Yngwie Malmsteen – Biography|last=Sharpe-Young|first=Garry|date=2009|publisher=MusicMight|accessdate=18 October 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140818012139/http://www.rockdetector.com/artist/sweden/stockholm/yngwie+malmsteen|archive-date=18 August 2014|url-status=live}}

He was portrayed by Mathew Baynton in the 2009 film Telstar.

{{Main|Deep Purple discography|Rainbow discography|Blackmore's Night discography}}

{{BLP unreferenced section|date=August 2020}}

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

• 1963 The Outlaws – "The Return of the Outlaws" b/w "Texan Spiritual" (Single)
• 1963 The Outlaws – "That Set The Wild West Free b/w "Hobo"" (Single)
• 1963 The Outlaws – "Law And Order" b/w "Doo Dah Day" (Single)
• 1963 Michael Cox – "Don't You Break My Heart" b/w "Hark Is That A Cannon I Hear" (Single)
• 1963 Michael Cox – "Gee What A Party" b/w "Say That Again" (Single)
• 1963 Glenda Collins – "I Feel So Good" (the B-side of single)
• 1963 Glenda Collins – "If You Gotta Pick A Baby" b/w "In The First place" (Single)
• 1963 Heinz – "Dreams Do Come True" b/w "Been Invited to a Party" (Single)
• 1963 Heinz – "Just Like Eddie" b/w "Don't You Knock at My Door" (Single)
• 1963 Heinz – Tribute To Eddie ("Tribute To Eddie"; "Hush – A- Bye – Baby"; "Summertime Blues"; "Come on And Dance"; "20 Flight Rock"; "I Remember")
• 1963 Heinz – Heinz (EP: "I Get Up In The Morning"; "Talkin' Like A Man"; "That Lucky Old Sun"; "Lonely River")
• 1963 Heinz – "Country Boy" b/w "Long Tall Jack" (Single)
• 1963 Heinz – Live It Up (EP: "Live It Up"; "Don't You Understand"; "When Your Loving Goes Wrong")
• 1963 Houston Wells – "Only The Heartaches" (Single)
• 1963 Dave Adams – "Like A Bird Without Feathers" (the B-side of single)
• 1963 Dave Adams – "You Made Me Cry" (the B-side of single)
• 1963 Jenny Moss – "Hobbies" b/w "Big Boy" (Single)
• 1963 Geoff Goddard – "Sky Men" b/w "Walk With Me My Angel" (Single)
• 1963 Pamela Blue – "My Friend Bobby" b/w "Hey There Stranger" (Single)
• 1963 Gunilla Thorne – "Go on Then" (the B-side of single)
• 1963 Joe Meek Orchestra – "The Kennedy March" (Single)
• 1964 The Outlaws – "Keep A Knockin'" b/w "Shake With Me" (Single)
• 1964 The Outlaws – "The Bike Beat Part 1" b/w "The Bike Beat Part 2" (Single)
• 1964 Glenda Collins – "Baby It Hurts" b/w "Nice Wasn't It" (Single)
• 1964 Glenda Collins – "Lollipop" b/w "Evrybody's Got To Fall in Love" (Single)
• 1964 The Sharades – "Boy Trouble" (the B-side of single)
• 1964 Andy Cavell – "Tell The Truth" (Single)
• 1964 Davy Kaye – "A Fool Such As I" (Single)
• 1964 Houston Wells – "Galway Bay" b/w "Living Alone" (Single)
• 1964 Houston Wells & The Marksmen – Ramona (EP: "Ramona"; "Girl Down The Street"; "I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now"; "Nobody's Child")
• 1964 Heinz – "You Were There" b/w "No Matter What They Say" (Single)
• 1964 Heinz – "Please Little Girl" b/w "For Lovin' Me This Way" (Single)
• 1964 Heinz – "Questions I Can't Answer" b/w "The Beating Of My Heart" (Single)
• 1964 Valerie Masters – "Christmas Calling" b/w "He Didn't Fool Me" (Single)
• 1965 The Outlaws – "Only For You" (the B-side of single)
• 1965 Michael Cox – Michael Cox in Sweden (EP: "I've Been Thinking"; "Is This Lonesome Old House")
• 1965 Glenda Collins – "Johnny Loves Me" b/w "Paradise For Two" (Single)
• 1965 Glenda Collins – "Thou Shalt Not Steal" b/w "Been Invited To A Party" (Single)
• 1965 Heinz – "Digging My Potatoes" b/w "She Ain't Coming Back" (Single)
• 1965 Heinz – "Don't Think Twice It's All Right" b/w "Big Fat Spider" (Single)
• 1965 Heinz – "End Of The World" b/w "You Make Me Feel So Good" (Single)
• 1965 Heinz – "Heart Full Of Sorrow" b/w "Don't Worry Baby" (Single)
• 1965 Screaming Lord Sutch – "The Train Kept A Rollin'" b/w "Honey Hush" (Single)
• 1965 Richie Blackmore Orchestra – "Getaway" b/w "Little Brown Jag" (Single)
• 1965 The Tornados – "Early Bird" b/w "Stomping Through The Rye" (Single)
• 1965 Jess Conrad – "It Can Happen To You" (the B-side of single)
• 1965 The Lancasters – "Satan's Holiday" b/w "Earthshaker" (Single)
• 1965 The Sessions – "Let Me In" b/w "Bouncing Bass" (Single)
• 1966 Heinz – "Movin' In" b/w "I'm Not A Bad Guy" (Single)
• 1966 Ronnie Jones – "My Only Souvenir" b/w "Satisfy My Soul" (Single)
• 1966 Soul Brothers – "Goodbye Babe, Goodbye" (Single)
• 1968 Neil Christian & The Crusaders – "My Baby Left Me" b/w "Yakkety Yak" (Single)
• 1968 Boz – "I Shall Be Released" b/w "Down in the Flood" (Single)
• 1968 Sundragon – "Five White Horses" (Single)
• 1968 Sundragon – Green Tambourine ("I Want To Be A Rock'n'roll Star", "Peacock Dress", "Love Minus Zero")
• 1968 Anan – "Madena" b/w "Standing Still" (Single)

{{col-2}}

• 1963 Chad Carson – "A Fool in Love"; "Jesse James"
• 1963 Dave Adams – "It Feels Funny, It Feels Good"; "You Just Can't Do It on Your Own"; "Clean, Clean, Clean"; "The Birds and the Bees"; "Don't Put All Your Eggs in One Basket"; "Oh What A Party"; "Let Me In"; "They're All Up To It"; "Signs And Posters"; "Out Behind The Barn"; "There's Something at the Bottom of the Garden"; "The Bathroom"
• 1963 Gene Vincent & The Outlaws – "Dance to the Bop"; "High Blood Pressure"; "Baby Blue", "Blue Jean Bop"; "Lotta Lovin'"; "Crazy Beat"; "Rip It Up"; "Frankie & Johnny"; "Another Saturday Night"; "I'm Gonna Catch Me A Rat"; "Long Tall Sally" (Those songs were recorded live)
• 1963 Jenny Moss – "Please Let It Happen To Me"; "My Boy Comes Marching Home"
• 1964 Kim Roberts – "Love Can't Wait"; "Mr. Right"
• 1964 Houston Wells – "We'll Remember You"
• 1965 The Outlaws – "As Long As I Live" (recorded live)
• 1965 Glenda Collins – "Sing C' Est La Vie"; "Run To Me"; "Self Portrait"

• 1989 Ritchie Blackmore – Rock Profile Vol. 1
• 1991 Ritchie Blackmore – Rock Profile Vol. 2
• 1991 The Derek Lawrence Sessions Take 1
• 1992 The Derek Lawrence Sessions Take 3
• 1994 Heinz – Dreams Do Come True – The 45's Collection
• 1994 Ritchie Blackmore – Take It! Sessions 63/68
• 1995 It's Hard to Believe It: The Amazing World of Joe Meek
• 1998 Ritchie Blackmore – Anthology Vol.1
• 1998 Ritchie Blackmore – Anthology Vol.2
• 2002 Joe Meek – The Alchemist of Pop: Home Made Hits and Rarities 1959–66
• 2005 Ritchie Blackmore – Getaway – Groups & Sessions
• 2008 Houston Wells – Then & Now: From Joe Meek To New Zealand

• Green Bullfrog (1972) – a one-off session hosted by producer Derek Lawrence, recorded between February and May 1970, and featuring Big Jim Sullivan, Albert Lee and Ritchie Blackmore
• Screaming Lord Sutch & Heavy Friends – Hands of Jack the Ripper (1972) – recorded live in London in 1970, a one-off concert featuring musicians who had previously worked with Sutch
• Randy, Pie & Family – Hurry to the City"/"Looking with Eyes of Love (1973) – Blackmore featured on the A-side of the single
• Adam Faith – I Survive (1974) – Blackmore plays intro on the title track
• Jack Green – Humanesque (1980) – Blackmore plays on "I Call, No Answer"
• Rock Aid Armenia (1990) – Blackmore is featured as one of the guest soloists on the 1990 rendition of "Smoke on the Water", re-recorded to raise money to help those affected by the 1988 Armenian earthquake
• Laurent Voulzy – Caché Derrière (1992) – Blackmore plays solo on "Guitare héraut"
• Twang! A Tribute To Hank Marvin & The Shadows (1996) – Blackmore plays on "Apache"
• Sweet – All Right Now (1996) – recorded live in 1976, Blackmore plays on "All Right Now"
• Pat Boone – In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy (1997) – Blackmore plays on a cover of "Smoke On The Water" along with Dweezil Zappa
• Geyers Schwarzer Haufen – Live '99 (1999) – Blackmore plays on "Göttliche Devise", a bonus track off the album
• Geyers Schwarzer Haufen – Historock Lästerzungen (2004) – Blackmore plays on "God's Gospel"
• William Shatner – Seeking Major Tom (2011) – Blackmore and Candice Night guest on a cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity"
• William Shatner – The Blues (2020) – Blackmore and Candice Night guest on a cover of B. B. King's "The Thrill Is Gone"

{{col-end}}

{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

• {{cite book |title=Black Knight – The Ritchie Blackmore Story |first=Jerry |last=Bloom |publisher=Omnibus Press |year=2006 |ref=none}}
• {{cite book |title=Rainbow Rising. The Story of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow |first=Roy |last= Davies |publisher=Helter Skelter |year=2002|isbn= 1900924315 |ref=none}}
• {{cite book |title=Rainbow – English Castle Magic |first=Martin |last=Popoff | author-link = Martin Popoff|publisher=Metal Blade |year=2005 |ref=none}}
• {{cite journal

| last = Tiven

| first = Jon

| title = Blackmore

| journal = International Musician and Recording World

| volume = 1

| issue =

| pages = 4–7

| location = London

| date = March 1975

| url =

| issn =

| doi =

| id =

| accessdate = }}

{{commons category|Ritchie Blackmore}}

{{Wikiquote|Ritchie Blackmore}}

• [http://www.blackmoresnight.com The Official Blackmore's Night website]
• {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p15867}}
• {{Discogs artist}}

{{Blackmore's Night|state=plain}}

{{Rainbow (English band)}}

{{Deep Purple|state=collapsed}}

{{2016 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackmore, Ritchie}}

Category:1945 births

Category:Living people

Category:Musicians from Weston-super-Mare

Category:People from Heston

Category:English rock guitarists

Category:English heavy metal guitarists

Category:New-age guitarists

Category:English folk guitarists

Category:English male guitarists

Category:English male songwriters

Category:Progressive rock guitarists

Category:Rainbow (rock band) members

Category:Blackmore's Night members

Category:The Outlaws (band) members

Category:Deep Purple members

Category:English expatriate musicians in the United States

Category:English session musicians

Category:English lead guitarists

Category:British slide guitarists

Category:English expatriates in Germany

Category:British mandolinists

Category:Hurdy-gurdy players

Category:Screaming Lord Sutch and the Savages members

Category:20th-century English guitarists

Category:21st-century English guitarists

Category:British blues rock musicians