Rainbow's blistering "Rising" album, originally issued in 1976, lays the group's self-titled debut recording to waste. Ritchie Blackmore and his hired guns hammered home a classic with this epic release of medieval metal. After he left Deep Purple, he played with his band completely detached again like in Machine Head or In Rock times. He is in full control and brilliantly implements his ideas of epic hard rock. Ronnie James Dio, who got into the band as a nobody, set a monument for himself with this album and was a singing god afterwards. The two complemented each other very well back then, as they shared a love for medieval stories and myths. From the mystical keyboard intro of "Tarot Woman" to the final bang of "A Light in the Black", "Rising" shows five thoroughbred musicians at the peak of their artistic creativity. The album is a masterpiece of hard rock.