The guitarist Ritchie Blackmore called “overrated”

If Ritchie Blackmore knows one thing better than most, it’s how to play the guitar. He has provided many different highlights in his time, with Deep Purple, Rainbow, and as a solo artist. He is a widely influential fretboard master who emerged in an era not short of them.

In addition to amazing audiences with his raw talent, Blackmore had the good fortune of rubbing shoulders with some of the most prominent guitarists of his era and witnessing their brilliance firsthand. The stories the former Deep Purple man tells about the exciting music scene of ‘Swinging Sixties’ London will never fail to fascinate, whether it’s a young Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, or Eric Clapton.

However, like many of his outspoken generation, he is unafraid to deviate from the traditional stories about some of these players and offer critiques. These are especially valuable because they come from a man who knows what he’s talking about and is frequently well-written, offering a compelling counterpoint and challenging existing beliefs.

Pete Townshend, The Who’s leader and guitar hero, is the subject of one of these analyses. In an interview with Martin K. Webb in 1973, Blackmore stated that the ‘My Generation’ hero is “overrated” and not as good as everyone believes. He did, however, say that other people were taking credit for what The Who Man started.

“Pete Townshend was the first (to use feedback),” Blackmore said. He used to crash chords and let the guitar feedback because he wasn’t a very good guitarist. He didn’t start fiddling with the amplifier’s dials until much later.”

“He’s overrated in England,” he continued. At the same time, many people, including Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix, claim credit for things he started. Townshend was the first to have his guitar broken. He was the first to do many things. “He’s also very good at his chord scene,” Ritchie Blackmore added. Blackmore was not only critical of Townshend’s performance. When asked why he doesn’t “leap” around on stage, he cited examples from other performers. “I like leaping around on stage as long as it’s done with class.”

” Free, for example. They are England’s best band. Paul Rodgers is a great singer and dancer. None of this jumping in the air and doing the splits stuff. He simply moves in time with the music. Not like Pete Townshend, who now waits until the photographers are properly aimed before leaping. He’s not a very spontaneous person.”