Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore has announced the first in a series of Best of Rainbow and Deep Purple shows planned for 2016.
Blackmore will perform at the Monsters Of Rock festival in Bietigheim-Bissingen, Germany on June 18.
Tickets for the rare rock event by the founding member of Deep Purple will go on sale November 6.
“I am doing four dates in June, which will be all rock," Blackmore tells Noisey. "I have the band basically together and it will be Rainbow and Deep Purple. It’s just having fun but it’s only four dates in Europe. I don’t want to do anymore because I take what I’m doing now much more seriously.”
Since 1997, Blackmore has been focusing his energies on Blackmore’s Night, a medieval folk band he formed with then-girlfriend and now-wife Candice Night.
Blackmore’s Night recently released their tenth studio album, “All Our Yesterdays.”
The guitarist left Deep Purple in 1975 to form Rainbow, who went on to issue 8 albums. Blackmore returned for a reunion of the Mk II lineup of Deep Purple in 1984 and, after three albums and some lineup changes, he exited the group for good in 1993.
Deep Purple were recently named among the nominees for induction into the 2016 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
The band are under consideration among 14 other artists for one of five spots in the Cleveland-based institution alongside Cheap Trick, Yes, The Cars and Steve Miller, among others.
See also:
Deep Purple singer not a fan of the Rock Hall
Deep Purple confirm plans to record new album
Deep Purple, Yes & Cheap Trick lead 2016 Rock Hall nominees
VIDEO: Deep Purple preview Black Night from Wacken live DVD
Search Deep Purple at hennemusic
