English rock singer and songwriter, Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, MSG, Rainbow), spoke with journalist Mark Dean for a new interview at Antihero Magazine. Read an excerpt below:

Antihero: Here you are in 2020, 41 years after that Rainbow album that you released with them and you’re still doing it.

Graham Bonnet: "I know. I’m stuck in that style of music. I never, ever thought I’d be in a band like Rainbow, which is basically Deep Purple-ish. Then I got a call and I was asked to come over to audition for the band. And I went over. I learnt the song called 'Mistreated'. I didn’t know Rainbow from… I didn’t know who the hell they were, no idea, sounds like a punk group, Rainbow.

"So anyway, I did the audition and they gave me the job basically that very day I went over and sang for them. I was very happy that it did happen because it changed my life completely. I had a new look at some different kind of music that I’d never played before, never dreamed of playing before. Rock songs and stuff when I was a kid in my band because like you do when you’re a kid, you play in pubs and do other stuff. That’s what I was doing, so I knew what to do, I think. But I learned a lot from Roger and from everybody in that band because the musicianship was just incredible. I just stood back in amazement when they started to play this 'Mistreated' song. It was just wow. The sound was just incredible and the keyboard player, Don, what an amazing player. Ritchie, say no more, Roger, fucking great bass player, and of course, Cozy Powell. That was the best band I’ve ever seen in rehearsal. At that time I was just blown away. So I had to take the job even though I thought I was wrong.

"I went back home to London. At that time, that’s where I was living. I had to say to my manager, 'I’m not right for this, these guys have got long hair and spandex and whatever, I look totally wrong. But they’ve given me the job, what do I do?' He said, 'You better do it because I think it would be good for you.' Because I found out later I lost a lot of fucking money from playing in that band. I didn’t see very much at all. When I spoke to Ronnie, he asked me if I was paid anything from Rainbow, like at the end of the year. I said 'No, I didn’t.' Sad, I was really ripped off. I said I think that’s what happened to me. I don’t like telling tales out of school and all that, but it’s just very, very disappointing and one of the reasons I left the band. I just thought, hang on, something’s wrong here."

Read more at Antihero Magazine.