Rainbow / Sweden 01.18.1980 Complete Upgrade

The legendary Stockholm concert recording, which has reigned as the pinnacle of the Graham Bonnet era, has been upgraded. A new 2CD set with even better sound quality is now available. This release captures the “Stockholm concert on January 18, 1980,” in a superb audience recording. This show has long been known for its recordings, and its high quality has even led to it being released as a soundboard recording, making it a classic. This release is a new masterpiece that sets it anew. The Graham Bonnet era stands out in Rainbow’s history and is a special period with many dedicated fans. Let’s first take a look at the overview of their activities and then explore the position of this release. 1979: July 28th – “DOWN TO EARTH” released; September 18th – October 12th: North America #1 (18 shows) ← *DOWN TO FRONTIER and others; November 6th – December 13th: North America #2 (24 shows) ← *DOWN TO FRONTIER and others. 1980: January 17th – March 8th: Europe (35 shows) ← ★HERE★; May 8th – 15th: Japan (6 shows) ← *BUDOKAN 1980 2ND NIGHT and others; August 8th – 10th: Northern Europe (3 shows) ← *ASTROLOGIST; August 16th: Appearance at Monsters Of Rock (Cozy Powell leaves the band). This is Rainbow in 1979/1980. The tour can be broadly divided into three parts: “North America #1 – Europe (2 months off), Japan (2.5 months off), Scandinavia & MOR,” and the Stockholm performance featured in this release was part of the main tour, “North America #1 – Europe.” The “European” leg is particularly popular because it featured a full setlist. Let’s take a closer look at the dates. Details of the “European” leg: * January 17th: “LOST IN EUROPE (Gothenburg)” * January 18th: Stockholm performance ←★This release★ (January 19th: “Weiss Heim” recording) * January 20th: “COPENHAGEN 1980” – January 22nd-29th (6 performances) * January 30th: “LOST IBREMEN” – February 1st-March 8th (25 performances) The pinnacle of natural sound, faithfully reproducing the live sound. Only one recording of the Stockholm performance is known, but that one recording is incredibly powerful. Some enthusiasts have hailed it as “the greatest masterpiece of the Graham era,” and it has spawned numerous reissues. The previous release, “DEFINITIVE GRAHAM (Black Box 018),” was a huge hit, but this new release, while using the same recording, has a slightly different character. “DEFINITIVE GRAHAM” was characterized by its powerful, metallic sound. In contrast, this release is the pinnacle of natural-sounding masters. “GRAF ZEPPELIN” has polished the same recording, but from a different distribution channel, to create a live album that attempts to reproduce the live sound to the fullest extent. The difference is clear at first listen. While the previous release was powerful, it lacked breadth and felt somewhat confined, but this release is much wider, and the musical tones resonate naturally. The high frequencies are also well-recorded, and the sound has good clarity. In the previous release, the noise gate processing made the quiet parts sound heavy and subdued, but this time there is no such unnaturalness, and the atmosphere of the venue is conveyed as it was. Yet, the recording’s true strength—its direct, on-the-fly feel—remains intact. The natural sound doesn’t mean it’s distant; Ritchie’s guitar and Graham’s vocals still sound right in your ears. In addition, the shortened section from “Lost In Hollywood” to “A Light In The Black” on the previous album has been supplemented with a different track, allowing you to experience the full show. A masterpiece further enhanced by its natural feel and clarity. This natural, direct sound delivers a masterpiece that conveys the charm of Graham’s era at Rainbow. Graham’s vocals are simply superb on this day, and he’s in top form. In “Love’s No Friend,” he overwhelms with superhuman power and skillful control. Ritchie’s guitar delivers a real, lustrous tone in the opening solo, and the dramatic build-up after five minutes is a must-listen. Even “Catch The Rainbow” and “Beethoven 9th,” which had a heavy, somewhat gloomy feel on the previous album, are refreshingly natural. Even in the quieter parts, a natural sense of spaciousness is felt, and the way the audience’s clapping and singing spread like ripples during “Beethoven 9th” is particularly thrilling and moving. Furthermore, “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?”, where you can enjoy the delicate guitar tones and Graham’s nuanced vocals, also shines with its natural sound. In the outro of “Over The Rainbow,” the rising “Rainbow!” calls can be clearly and realistically heard, allowing you to fully savor the lingering atmosphere of the live performance. This legendary recording, which has been called the pinnacle of the Graham era in terms of both sound and performance, has been revived with “GRAF ZEPPELIN” mastering, making it a new and improved version. The power sound of the previous version was also impressive, but the natural feel and clarity of this version are also exceptional. It is a new masterpiece that draws out the potential of a great recording from a new angle. Speaking of the Graham era, the miraculous Japan tour is very popular, but there were also great performances that were no less impressive than the overseas legs. This album is the finest masterpiece from their overseas releases. Please enjoy it anytime, anywhere with this permanently preserved 2CD set. There is only one recording from this day. ★This album has been remastered based on a different master than the previous release, with missing parts supplemented by remastering the Power Gate version. This version has a much calmer texture, but the EQ balance processing has been done quite a bit, and considering the balance, this seems to be the right compromise. The previous release had noise gate processing, resulting in an underwater texture in quiet parts. The louder parts of the performance are quite metallic and noisy. Also, frequencies above 12kHz, which were downgraded in the previous release, are properly included this time. This is a superb audience recording of the “Stockholm performance on January 18, 1980”. This is the highest-quality updated version, using the same recording as the previous release “DEFINITIVE GRAHAM”, but with a different natural master path, polished by “GRAF ZEPPELIN”. It brings out the best qualities of the famous recording from a new angle with its wide spaciousness and natural atmosphere, while the directness of the guitar and vocals remains intact. While Graham’s performances in Japan garnered attention, this album is a new masterpiece and the finest work from his international career. Live at Johanneshow Isstadion, Stockholm, Sweden, January 18, 1980. TRULY PERFECT/ULTIMATE SOUND UPGRADE!!! Disc 1 (50:01) 1. The Land Of Hope And Glory 2. Countdown / Over The Rainbow 3. Eyes Of The World 4. Love’s No Friend 5. Since You Been Gone / Over The Rainbow 6. All Night Long 7. Catch The Rainbow Disc 2 (53:18) 1. Keyboard Solo 2. Lost In Hollywood ★4:02 onwards is supplemented with PG version / 4:09 cut 3. A Light In The Black / Guitar Solo / Beethoven 9th ★0:00-1:00 is supplemented with PG version 4. Keyboard Solo 5. Drums Solo feat. 1812 Overture 6. Lost In Hollywood (Reprise) 7. Guitar Solo 8. Lazy 9. Man On The Silver Mountain 10. Blues 11. Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow 12. Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll 13. Kill The King incl. Guitar Crash 14. Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll (Reprise) 15. Over The Rainbow Ritchie Blackmore – Guitar Graham Bonnet – Vocal Roger Glover – Bass Don Airey – Keyboard Cozy Powell – Drums Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA, USA 9th June 1972