Ritchie Blackmore on Deep Purple reunion: 'Maybe the last time'

For years it seemed completely out of the question, but on August 12, 2025, it happened anyway: Ritchie Blackmore walked onto the stage at Jones Beach on Long Island in New York and played with Deep Purple for the first time since November 1993. The occasion was as unexpected as it was emotionally charged. The evening before, on August 11, Blackmore announced via Instagram that he would be performing with the band he co founded the following day. The only song he played was the iconic Smoke on the Water.

In an interview with American magazine Guitar Player, Blackmore explained how the reunion came together. He said that on the morning of the concert he woke up with the feeling that it would mean something to the fans if he came out for one song, just to show there was no bad blood between them. His wife Candice put him in touch with singer Ian Gillan, whom he asked whether he could join them for Smoke on the Water. According to Blackmore, Gillan responded with the words: "It made me smile." Gillan then put it to the rest of the band, and everyone agreed.

The reunion turned out to be a profound experience for Blackmore himself as well. "It was very moving because I had to get on quickly and just play," he told Guitar Player. "I couldn't warm up, but I wasn't there to play the right notes. I was there to see old friends. I hadn't seen them in forty years and we're all getting older. I think we realized it might be the last time we see each other." He admitted he lost his place at one point, but added that wasn't why he was there. In his view the evening was about healing any wounds that might remain, though as it turned out there were no wounds left at all: everyone reconnected as if they had never been apart.

The split between Blackmore and Deep Purple had left deep marks over the decades. After he left the band on bad terms in November 1993, a return seemed unthinkable for years. In 2014, frontman Ian Gillan told Rolling Stone: "It would be unconscionable to think about bringing Ritchie in." Gillan stressed at the time that there was no personal conflict, but that working together was simply not something they were considering. Two years later, when Deep Purple was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the band still refused to perform with Blackmore. Drummer Ian Paice told Rolling Stone at the time: "We have to accept that there are personalities that don't see eye to eye in our history. Precedence must now go to the guys that are still working the name and keeping it alive." Blackmore chose to boycott the ceremony entirely.

The fact that the reunion happened at all makes the moment all the more remarkable. Blackmore has for some time been playing primarily acoustic guitar on tours with his current project Blackmore's Night. On top of that, he suffered a heart attack last year that kept him from playing for months, and in 2025 he had to cut a Blackmore's Night tour short due to health issues. The fact that he took the step of joining Deep Purple on stage despite everything he has been through makes that evening at Jones Beach a historic moment for fans around the world. For Dutch fans of the classic hard rock band, many of whom have followed Deep Purple's music for decades, it is news that will stay with them for a long time.