Chest hair, a banjo headstock EB-2 and he who may not be named in this forum ...

[uwe]

Nick Simper was playing with another Nasty Habits! There can be only one!

I know, these Austrians can't beat the one and only Habitual Originasties! And what are Herr Simper's legs compared to Veronica Steed's I cry? That said, there is a little bit of Gary Thain in Nick Simper's playing if you listen very closely though Thain, a finger player, had more rhythmic nuances and was not quite as pentatonic - Veronica might just forgive Herr Simper for playing with those  impostors for that alone.

[gweimer]

That's just Roger, always a nice word to say about everyone. He is the glue that holds the band together. A true gentleman.

I interviewed Roger on the news of the Deep Purple Mk II reunion, and you are absolutely correct.  He is very gracious and humble.  I gave him a little ribbing about his comment two months prior to my interview where he stated emphatically that Deep Purple would never reunite, and that Rainbow was the band to stay.  He chuckled and took it well.  He told me that he was brought into Rainbow as a producer first, and bassist second.  His job was to get the band in shape and solidify their sound.

[uwe]

Compared to Deep Purple, Rainbow always was shallow sepia. In his blind quest for total control, Blackmore forgot that Deep Purple was always the musical environment that challenged him most and got the best out of him.