Deep Purple Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore Takes Aim At Music Radio

I think the crap that they’re playing on the radio today is bloody awful.”

Legendary Rock guitarist Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple and Rainbow recently shared some strong opinions about the state of music radio on his YouTube channel.

In the video as transcribed by BALBRERMOUTH.NET Blackmore says, “There are so many types of music that I like, but very rarely do I hear it on the radio.

“I feel like an old granddad complaining about the music they’re playing on the radio at the moment. I feel that back in the ’70s when Eric Clapton was playing CREAM and that stuff, it was thoughtful music. You would listen to ‘White Room’ or something, and you didn’t need that chest-thumping drumbeat. You didn’t have to hear that same beat. You could actually go, ‘Wow, that’s a great song, ‘White Room’. Fantastic.’ We love CREAM. Eric, of course, great. He started the whole thing.

Blackmore, 79, was co-founder of Deep Purple and penned the classic guitar riffs for “Smoke On The Water.” He left the band in 1993.

“I don’t hear good music — from my point of view. It might be good music, but it’s not something I wanna hear. When the family all get into the truck, and we go on a bit of a holiday, which probably is like 20 miles down the road because I don’t like to travel, all I hear is maybe Taylor Swift or something. I find it hard to relate to that. But it’s not wrong. It’s the new generation wanting to hear that. That’s probably as great to them as the BEATLES and CREAM and Jimi Hendrix were to me. So, I can’t really complain, but I do like to complain, and I will complain. And I think the crap that they’re playing on the radio today is bloody awful.”

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.