The first outing for 'Ritchie Blackmore' after departing 'Deep Purple' and he assembles a very good line-up by hiring the whole of 'Ronnie James Dio's' semi successful band 'Elf', (with the exception of 'David 'Rock' Feinstein' who would later form 'The Rods' and much later 'Feinstein'). This first outing is a mixed affair, there's some material that bares resemblance to later gems, but on the other hand there's some quirky filler that does bring the album down.

Kicking us off is the well-established classic 'Man on a Silver Mountain', a song which typifies the great powerful vocal work of 'Dio' and the deft riffs of 'Ritchie Blackmore', easily my pick of the album and also a favourite still performed live by 'Ronnie' who brings this classic right up to date. Following on strongly is the harmonious medieval inspired 'Self Portrait', lyrically it gets a tad repetitive but the crisp faultless vocals and subtle guitar work carry it. The pace lifts for a cover of the light-hearted Bluesy rocker 'Black Sheep of the Family' a song 'Ritchie Blackmore' always wanted to do with 'Purple', a fair track but nothing special. The pace falls for the first 'Rainbow' epic 'Catch the Rainbow', a slower piece, with brooding, emotional depth that is created by spectacular 'Ronnie' vocals and splendid, refined, flowing melody. More up tempo is 'Snake Charmer' a grooving number that although enjoyable, is lyrically quirky and perhaps inept, overlooking this it's still a pleasant journey. It's back to subtle again with 'The Temple of the King' another gothic sounding piece, that rests upon a rich melody and graced with more striking vocals. Less impressive is the 'Elf' style boogie rocker 'If you don't like Rock 'n' Roll', a sort of 50's throwback with a good slab of Blues, Ok if that's your bag, but it's not mine. Vast improvements are made with the medieval inspired plodder 'Sixteenth Century Greensleeves' a rhythm heavy number graced with typical 'Dio' lyrics and sharp vocals. Last up is 'Still I'm Sad' a cover from Hard Rock pioneers 'The Yardbirds', the version here is a very respectable instrumental rendition, but I personally prefer the live 'Rainbow' version which is graced with 'Ronnie' tearing through the quality lyrics.

A few tracks probably haven't aged as well as some material from '75 but this is still a really decent debut that includes a couple of early classics, all said not up to the quality of the next two belters which would really put 'Rainbow' on the map.