Without a doubt, the best album by Rainbow and the finest example of that epic and fantastical Hard Rock/Heavy sound that would later give rise to so many monstrosities (no, not in a good way), but that does not apply to this "Rising," which is an excellent album of driving and pumped-up Hard Rock (more than standard Hard Rock, I mean) and features the best lineup of Rainbow, with a significant contribution from the keyboards, especially in "Tarot Woman" and "Light in the Black," alongside a great Cozy Powell on drums. Of course, we have the established duo of Master Blackmore, the mastermind and absolute dictator, and Ronnie James Dio as frontman and voice (dellamadonna, to stay on theme). Here there are 6 songs and they are all solid; the album is cohesive and has no weak points (of the three shorter songs, my favorite is "Run With the Wolf"), but, of course, it has a specific peak: "Stargazer" is THE track by Rainbow, their programmatic manifesto, and objectively perhaps their highest point, driven by a sublime performance from R.J. (possibly at the top of an entire career? That could be). For me, however, towards the end, it’s also a bit TOO grandiose and overblown, so much so that, to be contrarian, I’d say that my favorite by Rainbow is "Tarot Woman," a great song and a tad more "measured." Nevertheless, it’s a fantastic album.
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