Mick Burgess at Metal Express Radio recently caught up with vocalist Joe Lynn Turner (Rainbow, Deep Purple) to discuss his upcoming UK tour and his origins with rock legends Rainbow. An excerpt from the interview is available below:

MER: You first came to prominence over here in the UK when you joined Rainbow although you had done a few albums with Fandango by then. When were you first aware of Ritchie Blackmore`s interest?

JLT: "It was towards the end of the Fandango period. We had four albums out and our equipment had just been stolen, thousands of dollars of customised guitars and amps. The wind was right out of our sails and RCA Records tried to help us out and buy us some new stuff but it was never the same. We were just so downhearted. Then it started to break apart. I ended up living in a one roomed flat with a mattress on the floor and no money when I got a call from Ritchie and my life totally changed. I thought someone was playing a joke on me."

MER: So things were pretty bleak for you at that time?

JLT: "I`d been going to auditions with my guitar and not getting anywhere as frankly I was better than the people holding the auditions, they thought I`d steal the show. I just wasn`t getting a break and thought I`d have to form my own band and that`s when I got the call from Ritchie."

MER: What was your audition like?

JLT: "I walked into the studio in Long Island and there was Ritchie and Roger at the desk. Ritchie said very few words. He just told me to go in there onto the mike. They started to throw these tracks at me. They asked me if I could write and I said I could so they threw some tracks at me and asked me to write something. I went into what Ritchie later called my 'magic bag' which is full of lyrics and ideas and I pulled out this one lyric that became 'Midtown Tunnel' Vison” and they loved it. We then worked on 'I Surrender' after which Ritchie came in with a couple of beers and said the job was mine if I wanted it. I said I didn`t just want it but I needed it and I was in Rainbow."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

The clip below features Turner being interviewed to KaaosTV before his show at Leipätehdas in Vaasa, Finland on April 24th. During the interview, Turner discussed his lengthy career as well as about the possible Rainbow reunion with Ritchie Blackmore happening in September. 

“The real talk is that it’s probable. We are talking, but we haven’t sat in the same room yet to discuss anything. We could get in this room and say ‘well there is nothing.’ Or we can get in this room and say ‘there is this, there is that, there is a reunion, or there’s just a Blackmore Turner album. Or there’s some remakes or there is nothing at all.’ So we haven’t gotten into that room yet.”