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Ritchie Blackmore's Unlikely Deep Purple Fill In

05/11/2011
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(Rock News Desk) Christopher Cross is best known for his award-winning easy-listening hits� but he fondly remembers his hard rock background with Deep Purple, Jethro Tull and Led Zeppelin.

As a young musician 40 years ago, his first big moment came when he hit the stage with Purple in place of guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, who'd fallen ill during a US tour.

"I grew up in Texas and played in a band called Flash. When Deep Purple first came over in 1970, Ritchie got ill," Cross tells Spinner. "A promoter friend of mine told the band I could play guitar, and I did the gig. The promoter offered the crowd their money back but about 80 per cent stayed � that was a fun moment." more on this story

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