Rainbow

Rainbow were a British hard rock band formed in Hertford in 1975 by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, after he first left Deep Purple. The first line-up included four members of the American band Elf, among them singer Ronnie James Dio. Blackmore kept only Dio after the debut, then brought in Cozy Powell, Jimmy Bain and Tony Carey for Rising (1976). Dio's mystical lyrics and the band's heavy metal leanings defined that early period, which closed with Long Live Rock 'n' Roll (1978).

After Dio left for Black Sabbath, the band moved towards pop-rock. Graham Bonnet, Don Airey and Roger Glover joined for Down to Earth (1979), and its single "Since You Been Gone" gave them their breakthrough. Joe Lynn Turner then sang on three further albums before the split in 1984. Blackmore returned to the name for Stranger in Us All (1995) and again from 2016. Every studio album had a different line-up, with Blackmore the only constant.