Ritchie Blackmore is a legendary guitarist known for his work with bands such as Rainbow and Deep Purple. For the past 20 years or so he has focused on the band Blackmore's Night that plays folk music, but now he has announced that he will play four rock based shows next year in Europe.

In an interview with Noisey, Blackmore says, “I am doing four dates in June, which will be all rock. I have the band basically together and it will be [the best of] Rainbow and Deep Purple. It’s just having fun but it’s only four dates in Europe. I don’t want to do any more because I take what I’m doing now much more seriously.”

As to why he decided to do the shows now, Blackmore says, "I turned 70. And arthritis is starting to set in. Jon [Lord is] not around. So many others aren’t around. You start to see your friends pass and just feel it’s time to play some of the old songs. Nostalgia is a big reason to do it, but not the only reason."

Blackmore's Night's latest album All Our Yesterdays will be released Sept. 18. In addition, The Ritchie Blackmore Story will be released on DVD, Blu-ray, Digital and a deluxe 2CD / 2DVD edition on Nov. 6 via Eagle Rock Entertainment.

The Ritchie Blackmore Story is a documentary featuring new interviews with Blackmore himself along with friends like Lars Ulrich, Glenn Hughes, Steve Vai, David Coverdale, Gene Simmons, Brian May and more.

It also includes clips of classic Deep Purple and Rainbow songs including "Smoke on the Water," "Hush," "Highway Star," "Space Truckin'" and "Man on the Silver Mountain." Check out a trailer for the collection above.

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