Ritchie Blackmore has confirmed he will be joining Deep Purple for the first time since 1993.
The historic reunion is set to happen at the band’s headline show this evening (August 12) at Jones Beach Theater in Wantagh, New York.
“There is something we wanted to mention about tomorrow night,” he said on his Instagram Live (transcribed by Blabbermouth).
“Well, it is a secret, and I don't want anybody to know, but I'm probably [gonna] get up and do an encore with the band, Deep Purple. But you can't tell anybody, and I know that this is gonna be kept a secret. And will it? I suppose so.”
Blackmore went on to say that he initially brought up the idea with Deep Purple singer Ian Gillan.
“I said, ‘How would you feel about if I got up just for an encore? Just one of the songs. I don't want to intrude.’ And I said, ‘No pressure – just kind of [for] old times' sake.’ I'm 81 now. So he seemed to love the idea, put it to the band, got a thumbs-up, and it looks like we might be doing that.”
The guitarist went so far as to confirm that his roadie was even setting up his gear while he was live on Instagram.
“I'll be using a small amplifier, but it's very loud,” he revealed. “It's what I use when I record. I hope I can compete with the [current Deep Purple] guitar player [Simon McBride], ’cause I can see that he has very big amplifiers behind him. So, it'd probably just be the one number, as it's been a while.
“I changed my strings on my Strat, which I haven't done in over 25 years…”
His wife, Candice Night, who was also on the Instagram Live, disputed speculation that Blackmore would perform Highway Star, from 1972’s Machine Head, saying, “They’re opening [the show] with Highway Star.”
As for Blackmore, he’s looking forward to being on stage with Deep Purple again.
“It'll be good to see the old guys,” he said. “I think we'll all be on crutches and wheelchairs and things, although I think the rest of them are okay.
“It's kind of frightening… I've been playing acoustic guitar for 25 years, and at first I was very uncomfortable playing it, but I got used to it, and now I'm used to playing the acoustic more so than the electric.”
Anyone who wants to witness this historic moment live can grab last-minute tickets on Deep Purple’s official website.
