In 1975,
Ritchie Blackmore announced that he was leaving groundbreaking rock group
Deep Purple to form a new band from scratch with vocalist
Ronnie James Dio, which would be known as Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow. After the first album, the name of the band would soon change simply to Rainbow.
Rainbow's style and lineup changed considerably during its eight years together. They started as an epic heavy metal band, complete with fantasy lyrics, but by 1979, Blackmore wanted to move towards a more mainstream, commercialized, hard rock sound. This upset Dio enough that he left the band to join Black Sabbath.
Unfortunately, efforts to make the band's music more commercialized failed, and sales of 1979's Down to Earth were poor, although later albums were more successful. By 1982, however, the band was unappealing and no longer sounded as fresh and inventive as it had during its heyday, and in 1984, Rainbow broke up.
Members of Rainbow:
Ritchie Blackmore
Ronnie James Dio
Craig Gruber
Gary Driscoll
Mickey Lee Soule
Jimmy Bain
Cozy Powell
Tony Carey
Matt Clark
Bob Daisley
Roger Glover
David Stone
Discography:
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow
Rainbow Radio Special
Rainbow Rising
On Stage
Long Live Rock and Roll
Down to Earth
Difficult to Cure
Straight Between the Eyes
Bent Out of Shape
Rainbow Mania
Sources:
http://ubl.artistdirect.com/music/artist/bio/0,,482486,00.html?artist=Rainbow
http://store.artistdirect.com/store/artist/album/full/0,,482486,00.html?artist=Rainbow
http://www.dio.net/biography/Rainbow.html