Ritchie Blackmore Surprises Fans Revealing He’s A Big ABBA Fan
Blackmore at the 02Arena in Prague - @ritchieblackmorefanpage / Instagram
Legendary guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, known for his electrifying performances with Deep Purple and Rainbow, recently sent shockwaves through the rock and metal community.
During an Instagram Q&A session hosted by his wife Candice Night, Blackmore made a surprising confession: he’s a huge fan of Swedish pop group, ABBA.
But wait, there’s more! Blackmore’s unexpected love for the pop icons doesn’t end there. He also revealed that he’s not the only member of the hard rock and metal fraternity who harbors a secret appreciation for ABBA’s catchy tunes.
The ABBA love started decades ago
During the Q&A session that lasted 40 minutes, the legendary guitarist surprised fans with the said confession that sparked conversation.
When asked about his favorite ABBA song, Blackmore surprised everyone by offering not just a single song selection, but rather a general admiration for the Swedish pop group’s musical talent.
Blackmore elaborated, first sharing the setting of a sharing a humorous anecdote: “There’s too many. I love them. They are incredible. Their progressions and it’s just… It’s a funny story with that. We were in a chateau in France trying to do Long Live Rock ‘N’ Roll.”
Long Live Rock ‘N’ Roll Was the 1977 album of Rainbow, Blackmore’s post-Deep Purple band with legendary frontman Ronnie James Dio, drummer Cozy Powell, bassist Jimmy Bain, and keyboardist Tony Carey.
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Ritchie Blackmore is not alone
Blackmore continued, diving deeper into the humorous anecdote: “We were all very bored. We were sitting around the fireplace — Cozy, myself, and Ronnie — and we were getting a little bit kind of irritated because we were not coming up with any ideas.”
Suddenly, the mood shifted as Cozy admitted something out of nowhere. “And Cozy said, ‘Okay, I have to own up.’ And we looked at him because we’d been drinking, as usual, and we said, ‘You have to own up about what?’ He said, ‘Are you ready?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ He said, ‘I like ABBA’.”
Blackmore’s reaction was one of amusement and surprising agreement: “To which I went, ‘Oh my God. I love ABBA.’ And then Ronnie goes, ‘Yes. So do I’.”
Can you imagine these heavy metal gods bobbing their heads to some good ol’ “Dancing Queen”? Welp, you have that fact inside your head now.
“It was much better to listen to ABBA”
Blackmore further elaborated on how their shared love for ABBA unfolded: “So now we’ve all embarrassed ourselves going, ‘Ah, we love ABBA,’ ’cause you’re not supposed to say that.”
So, there they were, having admitted our unexpected fondness for ABBA, feeling a bit sheepish (probably) because it wasn’t exactly the most ‘metal’ thing to admit. But hey, good music is good music, right?
“And with that, Cozy runs off to get all the ABBA songs and to play them. And we played, for hours, all the ABBA songs around the fireside in this chateau,” the guitarist admitted.
Blackmore concluded the anecdote with a touch of humor: “We should have been writing our own songs, but it was much better to listen to ABBA.”
ABBA is Blackmore’s favorite band of all time
Blackmore’s confession went beyond a mere humorous anecdote. He openly declared his admiration for ABBA’s music, praising its melody and brilliance. He even acknowledged the potential criticism for liking ABBA, yet went further by calling them his all-time favorite band.
Interestingly, Blackmore’s love for ABBA seems to have had a lasting impact. In 2023, his former Rainbow bandmate Joe Lynn Turner told Rolling Stone about similar observations.
Turner recalled conversations where Blackmore expressed a desire for Rainbow to embrace a more modern and accessible sound, citing ABBA as a source of inspiration. This desire to incorporate melody and broader appeal aligns with Blackmore’s openly declared admiration for the Swedish pop group.
