Rainbow
Long Live Rock n' Roll

THE REVIEW

It was 1978, and the Rainbow, a group born as a side project of the capricious Ritchie Blackmore, and later confirmed as one of the most appreciated and influential hard rock bands ever (who said power metal?), released their third studio effort: Long Live Rock n Roll. So far, the musical journey of the group had been marked by epic, robust but also very melodic rock, balancing between Blackmore's solos and the voice of the late Ronnie James Dio, as well as the rhythmic intensity of Cozy Powell from the album Rising onwards; however, this record marks a partial shift towards new territories, a move wanted by the group's leader Blackmore, which would cause him several disagreements with RJ Dio, who would leave the group to join the newly Ozzy-less Black Sabbath. LLRnR thus serves as a connecting element, and as often happens in these cases, the result loses a bit of cohesion.

The album essentially has two stylistic matrices: on one hand, there are the classic Rainbow-style tracks, powerful and evocative, and on the other, some incursions into American hard rock and AOR. It is precisely these more commercial and immediate tracks that are the least interesting points of the album: the ideas are there, but they are not expressed adequately, the compositions lack freshness, and often, unfortunately, turn out to be mere fillers. The most glaring examples of what I've said are The Shed, Sensitive to Light, and the tired boogie of L.A. Connection, while Lady of the Lake manages to maintain a good level, proving to be pleasing.

Speaking of the more "classic" side of the album, we find the opener Long Live Rock n Roll, the oriental-flavored Gates of Babylon, and finally Kill the King and the ethereal ballad Rainbow Eyes. Here too, the result is inconsistent, especially regarding the title track, elevated by many to an absolute masterpiece but frankly, I find it too conventional, while the others maintain levels of excellence, in particular, Kill the King and Rainbow Eyes represent the best this group has managed to give during its first phase.

To sum it up, LLRnR remains a somewhat subdued product but carries with it several noteworthy episodes and serves as an epitaph for the so-called "Dio Era" and the more immediate and sparkling "Commercial Era" of the charismatic Blackmore's second musical project.