1. Rising 2. Long live Rock 'n' Roll 3. Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow 4. Stranger in us all 5. Down to Earth 6. Straight Between the Eyes 7. Bent Out of Shape 8. Difficult to Cure
Rainbow Rising is a Masterpiece and Stargazer is my absolute favourite song of all time!.. Dio was at the pinnacle of his vocal prowess on this record, nobody could touch him.
The first 3 RAINBOW albums with DIO on vocals is the absolute greatest albums they've ever released in my opinion. And they are truly my most favorites of all times. BENT OUT OF SHAPE and STRAIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES are verygood albums that I really like alot and Joe Lynn Turner is also a really great vocalist. Verygood rankings video.\m/
Rising is one of the best metal albums of all time hands down! now that you’re branching out from thrash on the rank em all’s you should do dream theater!
1. Rising 2. Debut 3. Long Live Rock and Roll 4. Down To Earth 5. Stranger In Us All 6. Never heard an album with Joe Lynn Turner on it that I would want to listen to again.
I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for putting out this amazing content. Maybe I am just extremely lucky to have a very similar musical taste to yours, or maybe the bands and songs you cover are as close to objectively good as it gets for metal fans, but I see myself amazed by the band selection of Rank'em All, by the topics of your longer documentaries, by the things you choose to emphasize on the "Who invented X" videos. Ever since I started following this channel a few months ago, I completely changed my relation with music, for the best, and I feel much more passionate now than I used to be. It's really hard to put this feeling of gratitude in words, but the closest I can get to is a solid "THANK YOU". Cheers from São Paulo, Brazil! 🤘
A great list. One song you did not mention from Down to Earth was All Night Long, which is one of my all time favorite songs. Another killer track off of the extended version of DtE is Bad Girl. But totally with you on the Dio era being far superior. Stargazer and Gates of Babylon are absolutely epic! Cheers, brother!
Rainbow is an awesome hard rock band of all time. Here is my ranking of their albums: 1. Rising 2. Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow 3. Long Live Rock n Roll 4. Down to Earth 5. Straight Between the Eyes 6. Difficult to Cure 7. Bent out of Shape 8. Stranger in us All
When I was a kid I'd hear man on the silver mountain and it stirred something in me that no other song had until that point. It was a long time before I found out who rainbow was. That song made me a rocker. A little later when I got into metal I found out who Dio was and was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was the guy from silver mountain. I had to find everything on it with this guy singing. Metallica's master of puppets was the metal album that pulled me in and made me a metal head but rainbow's rising was what cemented me as a metal head. That was 6th grade, it was 1987....thanks for all the great tunes! P.s. I agree that rising is the best rainbow album.
8) Stranger in us All ( My least favorite ) 7) Difficult to cure (I love the AOR flavor but it has a lot of filler) 6) Straight Between the eyes ( Much better Rock songs that DTC) 5) Long Live Rock N Roll (Its a great album , Gates of Babylon is just epic) 4) Down to Earth (Nice Rock andmelodic songs in there, it took me a while to actually apreciate it) 3) Bent Out of Shape (A perfect recrod, the best from the Joe Lynn Turner era) 2) Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow (The mix of blues, Rock, Folk and Classical is outstanding, I cant believe Ricthie doesnt actually like it) 1) Rising ( Not enough words to describe it, perfect album cover, and magical songs, Stargazer is without a doubt one of the best rock songs ever)
I am a huge Blackmore fan and have seen him live with DP, Rainbow w/Dio and JL Turner many times. By the time he recorded Stranger in us all, I had forgotten all about Rainbow. This album is excellent and is Ritchie Blackmore in top form! Pretty much unknown to most, this album is a hidden gem and for me personally, is rated 3rd best Rainbow ever behind Rising and the 1st album. Every song is good, and Ritchies playing is some of his best since Made in Japan.
Probably some of the best guitar playing from MIB on Stanger in us all. For No bangers... Blackmore's Night Fires of Midnight is amazing too. Just my opinion after 40 years of listening to RB.
Great video as usual. Rising is my favorite also. Regarding Stargazer, "they just don't make songs like that anymore", well you couldn't have said that any better.
My brother is completely obsessed with Rainbow, because (as he puts it) they were basically a super group with Blackmore, Daisley, Bain, and of course Dio. And honestly, I really don't blame him.
After a lifetime listening to those awesome Dio albums, I've found out the one Rainbow record I return to most is not one of those, incredibly, rather "Down to Earth". My ranking nowadays is: 1. Down to Earth, 2. Long live Rock n Roll, 3. Rising, 4. RB's Rainbow, 5-... The same as yours.
I think Down To Earth is a better album than it's given credit for, I saw Rainbow live with all three of the vocalists back in the 70's and early 80's, you didn't really go to see Rainbow because of the vocalist back then, it was because it was Blackmore.
The exercise of ranking the albums of Rainbow provides a good overview of the band's story: Two distinct three-album eras separated by a transitional album and followed much later with an attempt to revive/honour the first era. For decades, I have always considered Rainbow as one of my favourite bands, but in the end, it comes down to those first three albums. Ronnie James Dio was able to keep the legacy of early Rainbow alive in the '80s and '90s with his band Dio. Another well-presented video from Ruthless Metal. Keep it Up!
Yes, you´re right about that. Rainbow Rising, you can´t top that. That album is so phenomenal, that very few albums, are even close. The opening song, Tarot woman, is a powerful statement of what Rainbow represented, musically. No other band in the 1970´s can compete with Rainbow.
@@Iainrankingtheobscure No, that´s right. That term came later, Rainbow was pure hard rock, but they were very influential to what´s later became heavy metal. All those bands in the 1970´s were hard rock bands, one band changed that and that band was Judas Priest, even Motörhead, later. But one should think twice, talking Rainbow and the term heavy metal, Rainbow was never a heavy metal band.
Good stuff. Hard to rank, all i know is that Catch the rainbow is my jam. I like heavy but that song is just killer, very dreamy, supberb vocals and the guitar is to die for.
When I heard Rising for the first time I was already into deathrash metal..That universal sound of every song on that album transfored my way of looking at the music in general. Albums=conceptual projects! Rising and Long Live Rock n' Roll are THE two projects which reflected time that is about to come-time of a great love story in which hard rock wonderfully seduce progressive rock!
I would disagree, true it has longer songs on side 2, some interesting scales but basically blues scale and hard rock vocals. Rush is not progressive either. True progressive is Yes, Genesis, king Crimson, E.L.P. ect. Jethro Tull some of their songs bordered on progressive but still not a progressive band. Rainbow is still great, they were the forerunners of Van Halen, and hair metal bands. Black Sabbath: trash Metal.
My personal list is as follows: 1. Rising and Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow. I can't decide which one I like the most. 2. Straight between the eyes 3. Bent out of shape 4. Long live Rock'n'roll 5. Difficult to cure 6. Down to earth 7. Stranger in us all It it true that Down to earth was a change in direction. Ritchie Blackmore wanted to go more commercial, get more radio play and reach a bigger audience. According to him the Dio records didn't sell all that well at the time. That is why he chose the title "Down to earth", as he wanted to get the whole act more accessible for more people. Stranger in us all wasn't really supposed to be a Rainbow record. It started as a solo project for Mr. Blackmore, but the record company would rather have the Rainbow name on it to attract more buyers.
Can't fault your logic here. My list would be much the same, except I wouldn't know which order to put the JLT albums in. The songs you've highlighted from the Bonnet and JLT eras are also some of my playlist go-to tracks. As for the Dio era, I can't begin to describe the chills I had hearing his Rainbow albums for the first time while driving through North Wales and passing ancient castles - very atmospheric. Some of the other top tracks from his era are "Sixteenth Century Greensleeves", "Lady of the Lake" and "Rainbow Eyes". The live version of 'Catch the Rainbow' from the "On Stage" album is better than the original, which is a hard thing to achieve. Anyway, excellent work dude!
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I have watched a few of your 'worst to best' lists and this is the closest I have seen to what my own list would be. The albums at no. 7, 6 and 5 could really be in any order as there is little to choose between them but I would probably have had the top 5 in exactly this order. Rising is by far their best album and Stargazer is simply one of the best hard rock tracks ever recorded. Spot on, Mr. Ruthless!
It’s taken me years, but after just accepting it as a melodic record, I really appreciate BENT OUT OF SHAPE a lot. For song consistency, I appreciate DOWN TO EARTH best, but as far as peaks, side two of RAINBOW RISING has never been topped by Rainbow or just about any other band who recorded music. Nothing terrible on side one, but “Run With the Wolf” and “Do You Close Your Eyes” are just slightly above average rock song to me.
I love everything on Rising but my least favorite song on it has always been “Starstruck”. Still side 2 is a masterpiece and arguably the greatest b side on any album.
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow and the music is so timeless and I grew up listening to them for fun and my favorite album by them is Straight between the eyes (1982) I love the song stone cold by them
I like these classic band rank ems. Im not huge on this stuff, yet, but getting into it more but never know where to start. Always been a theash guy but im getting old and slowing down haha no more like appreciating the classics finally. I trust your judgement, knew you on fb, we seem to have very similar tastes too being thrashers. My friends try too but were usually drinking and i forget what they told me lol. At least i can come back here and watch again when i think "man i should jam more rainbow" or whatever band and dont know what to look for
Totalmente de acuerdo con el orden, para mi Rainbow Rising, es una auténtica obra maestra, uno de los mejores discos de rock duro de la historia. Discazo!!! Un saludo.
Pretty accurate list. Mine is pretty much the same though I would put Straight Between the Eyes last and Difficult to Cure ahead of that. Bent out of Shape is probably the one I like most of the 81-83 period cuz it has Stranded which is a cool song. It’s by no means Metal and totally mainstream sounding for 1983 but good for what it is I guess.
Great video! I rank them exactly the same. The Dio era is fantastic, can’t even compare them to the others! How about a Malmsteen ranking, it would be interesting!🤘
@@RuthlessMetalYT understand! I think he made some really great albums in the 80’s, and then it was all downhill from there. I think ”Marching out” from -85 and ”Trilogy” from -86 are really great!
Obviously Dio's albums are the best (Rising is the clear #1), but I really like Difficult to Cure, it has some fillers and some meh songs but some are just amazing, like "Spotlight Kid" "I Surrender" or "Can't Happen Here" and because of that I tend to prefer it to most of the other Rainbow's 80s albums
For once, I agree with your ranking, or at least the top 4 because I stopped listening to Rainbow after Down To Earth, mainly because NWOBHM had kicked off by then, so I have no proper opinion of the JLT era, other than I never liked it.
Besides not knowing about the '95 release that list is dead on. I was just listening to them last night in the garage with a few beverages, of course the volume went to 11 with Stargazer.
Other than not yet hearing the record with Doogie, I pretty much totally agree with your ranking. I like Stone Cold, but otherwise the JLT records are just too poppy/radio friendly. To me, Rainbow IS the Dio era.
8. "Stranger in Us All" 7. "Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow" 6. "Down to Earth" 5. "Long Live Rock 'n' Roll" 4. "Difficult to Cure" 3. "Straight Between the Eyes" 2. "Bent out of Shape" 1. "Rising"
3:50 - Ritchie Blackmore was not stuck in Medieval times between 1983 and 1995, he was in the reformed Deep Purple. He didn't do the Medieval music until after Stranger in Us All.
My rankings: 1. Down to Earth 2. Rising 3. Difficult to Cure 4. Long Live Rock and Roll 5. debut album 6. Straight Between the Eyes 7. Bent Out of Shape
Interesting fact: cozy powell was i think the first celebrity to die back in 98' due to mobile phone usage while driving. He was driving to meet his mistress,when she rang him to ask how long he would be, he replied "ill be as quick as possible" then she heard a loud bang.......r.i.p. cozy. Also not forgetting the mighty Dio 😎🤘
Your list is pretty much perfect. I’d have no argument with either Rising or Long Live Rock and Roll in the top spot. I wouldn’t argue against either. My only quibble is I hate Death Alley Driver lol.
A lot of the credit for early Rainbow actually goes to Martin Birch who created the Rainbow and Maiden sounds. With Rising few albums today can match the production quality let alone stuff from the 70s.
Ruthless, Great ranking of these albums. I recently just picked up the early albums to complete my collection. I became a fan of the 80's albums when "Straight Between The Eyes" was released. Regarding the shift in Blackmore's music, rumor is he wanted a more "radio friendly sound" and popularity. Dio did not want anything to do with it. He went on to sing with Black Sabbath for two albums, and look at what it did for that band! Later, he produced his own band to continue his talents. Bye,bye...
yeah maybe it was for the best that Rainbow went seperate ways.I doubt Rainbow would have been able to keep up what they were doing even with him in the band.
8. Straight Between the Eyes. 7. Bent out of Shape 6. Stranger in us All 5. Difficult to cure 4. Down to Earth 3. Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow 2. Rising 1. Long Live Rock N Roll
My list is almost identical to yours, only difference is I put Stranger In Us All (probably the best album of 1995) ahead of Down To Earth. Ariel and Black Masquerade are up there with the Dio era classics IMO.
The Dio era rules of course, but Down to Earth is completely AWESOME. On some days it’s even my favorite and “Eyes of the World” is my favorite Rainbow song. Yes. I said it. And I mean it.
The first three albums are as perfect as you can get. Although the debut has a couple tracks I don’t like (“Blacksheep of the Family” and “If you don’t like Rock ‘N’ Roll”) but that’s about it. Everything else is fantastic.
The Dio era albums are definately in the right place, im a huge fan of Dio myself and have listened to these countless times. The Stranger in us all album is surpricingly good and i like it a lot and might even put it in 4th place, i dont mind the Graham bonnet and Joe Lynn Turner era, but it is its own thing and not at all the same as the Dio era.
The Dio albums here are the strongest overall, though I do like quite a few tracks from the GB and JLT era as well. It kinda depends on the mood I'm in musically on a given day. Rainbow is easily one of my all time favorite Hard Rock bands along with DLR era Van Halen. Ritchie never has gotten enough credit for his contribution to metal guitar overall since he inspired countless guitarists over the years.
my ranked 8,straight between the eyes 7,1st album 6,strenger in us all 5,difficult to cure 4,bent out of shape 3,down to earth 2,rising 1,LONG LIVE ROCK`N'ROLL MY BEST SONG IS LADY OF THE LAKE RAINBOW EYES STREET OF DREAMS
