Joe Lynn Turner recently chatted with ADIKA Live, discussing his complex relationship with former Deep Purple and Rainbow bandmate Ritchie Blackmore and why he was disappointed with the guitarist.
Ritchie has a reputation for not maintaining contact with his former bandmates, so when the host asked Turner whether he had talked to Blackmore recently, the rocker denied it with a firm ‘no,’ making it clear it had been a while since the pair personally heard from one another.
However, it also seemed pretty ‘natural’ for Joe not to maintain contact with some of his former bandmates, as he felt that rockers tend to go their separate ways after a project or an act is done. Performing with a band, after all, is similar to fighting in a war zone, and people mostly prefer to move on.
Still, the singer couldn’t help but mention his disappointment with Blackmore after the not-so-flattering things the guitarist said, though there wasn’t much to do about it now. It was in Ritchie’s fashion to move on as Joe quoted former Rainbow singer Doogie White‘s recent words about how the guitar hero had a habit of ‘sucking people dry and then abandoning them,’ which, for Joe, summarized everything.
Turner on his complex relationship with Ritchie and whether they had been talking:
“No [we don’t talk], it’s like a bad marriage. I mean, I still talk to some people I’ve worked with, but usually, when you’re in bands, [they are] your comrades, and you’re in the war, and you go out, and you do the best you can, you make hay, and when it’s over, it’s not animosity or anything… I still have great love and respect for Ritchie.
I’m disappointed in certain things he’s done and said. He’s disappointed in things I’ve done and said, but it’s not bad; it’s just that there’s really [nothing]; after the love is gone. I think Doogie said it recently, Doogie White, [said] ‘What does he do [is] he lifts you up and sucks your blood, and then sets you free to see if you can fly on your own.’”
It feels to Joe Lynn that it’s in Ritchie’s nature to move on and find new talents while setting his collaborators free and seeing whether they can fly on their own. Thus, the pair didn’t maintain contact and weren’t on the best terms, though it’s apparent that Turner doesn’t hold any grudges.
Source: rockcelebrities.net