Friday, May 20, 2016

May 20 - Stargazer

Technically some can argue this song is a repost, as I did post this one back in the infancy of the blog - but this is the first time I am posting it for the song a day project - and it needs to be included. After Ritchie Blackmore teamed up with Ronnie James Dio - and after they got rid of the last of Dio's bandmates from Elf - Rainbow recorded the album Rising. As far as 70s hard rock goes, it's hard to find anything better - and the song of the day has been a favorite of mine ever since I purchased Rainbow Rising in the bargain cassette bin at a record store around age 12 or so. I think I paid 25 kroner for it, and I also think I wore that tape out. But the song that became the song was one of the longest of the album.

Rainbow Rising was released 40 years ago, and it really should be celebrated. A deluxe edition was released in 2011, but with two additional mixes, which really isn't that interesting to me. There are also live recordings from the ensuing tour, and some of them are phenomenal. On Rising, Blackmore and Dio had Jimmy Bain on bass (he would go on to play with Dio back and forth throughout his career), Cozy Powell on drums (a legend of 70s, 80s, and 90s hard rock until his untimely death in 1998), and Tony Carey on keyboards. The band was spectacular, and Rainbow Rising is the perfect song not just because it captures the essence of Rainbow Rising, but really the essence of all 70 hard rock. If I could pick just one song that would represent a decade, I would pick this for the 70s.


No comments: