Overview
- Blackmore, 81, joined Deep Purple for the encore at their Jones Beach Theater show, playing the opening riff of "Smoke on the Water," in a surprise that was captured on social media.
- Singer Ian Gillan embraced Blackmore onstage and thanked him, saying the return was a great pleasure and adding the offhand line, "We’ll see each other at the bar."
- Blackmore had signaled the cameo in a live podcast with his wife and told Gillan he wanted to play an encore "for old times’ sake," and the band agreed to let him join.
- The guitarist has long-standing health problems, including multiple slipped discs and severe dizziness, and said an injection helped him stand for the performance, factors that make a permanent return unlikely.
- The moment updated a decades-long story of rivalry and reconciliation: Blackmore co-founded Deep Purple, left amid disputes in 1993, and the band continues to tour and record, most recently releasing the album Splat! in July.