Post-Purple: Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow

HE IS FAMED for cultivating a public image that extends beyond even the bounds of the antisocial. Even with Deep Purple, his own band, his relationship always seemed to be teetering on the brink of total alienation. Every week some new rumor would emerge as to who he was currently playing with, who he wasn't speaking to. Because of the glut of gossip, though, coupled with the fact that he seemed to be getting on reasonably well with the current Purple outfit, no one paid particular attention to rumors of Ritchie Blackmore's impending exit.