Rainbow / Definitive Osaka 1978 Final Night / 2CD

Rainbow / Definitive Osaka 1978 Final Night / 2CD / Rising Arrow
Live at Koseinenkin Kaikan, Osaka, Japan 20th January 1978

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A traditional name recording that has been a symbol of “Osaka in 1978” is an emergency upgrade. A new excavation master that surpasses the existing group lightly appears with permanent preservation press 2CD!!
The traditional recording was recorded at “January 20, 1978: Osaka Welfare Pension Hall” performance. It’s an excellent audience recording. Speaking of RAINBOW in 1978, it was the peak period when Ritchie Blackmore recorded the largest number of 16 performances in Japan (1 performance was canceled). They came to Japan for an average of 8.6 performances at a time, so I can feel how popular it was at that time. Among them, three performances were held in Osaka, and the first half was concentrated. First of all, let’s look back on the schedule and confirm the position of the show.

・January 11: Nagoya City Hall “NAGOYA 1978”
・January 12: Hiroshima Prefectural Gymnasium “HIROSHIMA 1978”
・January 13: Kumamoto Gymnasium
・January 14: Fukuoka Kyuden Memorial Gymnasium
・January 16: Osaka Welfare Pension Hall
・January 17: Osaka Welfare Pension Hall “OSAKA 1978 2ND NIGHT”
・January 18: Kyoto Hall
・January 20: Osaka Welfare Pension Hall ←★This work★
*Note: The above is 8 performances in the first half. Only representative works each day.

This is a total of 16 performances of the first eight performances. This work was the last of the three performances in Osaka across Kyoto, and it was the eighth performance that was just about to turn. In addition, the mood changes in Japan in 1978 after the fatal accident in Sapporo, but this work is one week before that. It was a great concert that no one could anticipate about the coming tragedy while receiving all the popularity of Japan throughout the body.
On such a final day in Osaka, I was told that the name recording was left behind. The record was known as “WALK ON THE WATER” in the old days, and it was a well-known recording as “BLACK AND BLUE (part of)” in our shop. It was one of the clearest tours in the whole 1978 tour, and it was a decisive thing, “This is the last time in Osaka!” This work is also a recording of that name, and it is a brush up of the existing one. .. .. Then there is not. What a young Gene Master of that famous recording was newly discovered by its own route!
Moreover, the upgrade is almost different. The freshness has been improved by several ranks, while the powerful charm of cutting through the clear air is maintained. Hiss and stiffness are greatly reduced, and I can’t say that I have no sense of distance, but I feel that the recording position is approaching about 10 meters because of the clear contours of the performance and singing voice. Especially when it comes to cozy, I want to describe each shot as an “explosion sound” or “explosion sound” rather than a “tapping sound.” Of course, it means that the more you want to choose such a word, the more vivid it is, and in fact, it has a glossiness that does not make you feel violent even at the peak of the explosive feeling.
The surprising thing is the sense of stability. Actually, the biggest difficulty of this recording is the pitch. Even the highest peak ever, “BLACK AND BLUE”, had a lower pitch, but what was more difficult was that it changed randomly. Even if the amount of listening is enough to make sense, it is impossible to correct if the range of change is unstable with the adjustment. However, the new master this time is much more stable. Overall, I was able to adjust it accurately. And the decisive thing was “Catch The Rainbow”. The sound was awful in the already released, but in this work it is penetrated all at once while being beautiful. As expected, the tape change part (about 1 minute) at the beginning of “Long Live Rock’n’ Roll” was connected with another sound source, but other than that, you can enjoy plenty of unwavering upgrade sound.
The reborn sound is drawn to a famous performance that is known for its rich imagination even in 1978. You can enjoy the energetic performance from the opening, but the second half medley is very colorful. “Man On The Silver Mountain” is approaching profoundly at a slower tempo than usual, and the tempo drops further. It’s so exciting that I thought, “The tape went crazy!?”, but this is a genuine live performance. Normally, the performance will stop or only Ritchie will shift, but I am surprised again by the forward stress of Cozy and Ronnie who controls the whole song without falling into such a failure. And even after the song ends, Ritchie’s mischief doesn’t end. Even at jams, I flicked the German national anthem and “Love Is Blue”, and it seemed like I was going to “Blues”. When it comes to “Blues”, Bob Daisley’s bass solo is also cool, and Ronnie enjoys the ad lib part longer than usual with Ronnie.
Furthermore, delicious melody such as “Hall Of The Mountain King” appeared one after another at request time. The audience was also enjoying it, and when Ronnie asked, “Shinichi Mori!” “Give me a scream” screamed, and for some reason Ronnie responded with a CM song for Mr. Donuts (laughs). A magnificent keyboard solo puts together such a peaceful and free air, and it suddenly falls into “Still I’m Sad”… There are a few famous performances in 1978, but I can hardly remember the show that is so fun and dynamic and so exciting.

▽The prime of the prime. A name recording where you can fully experience the final day of Osaka, which is full of mind and body, with a superb sound. It is a rare live album that the highest peak recording has been (significantly) upgraded. Even after 42 years have passed since the production, new excavations and discoveries haven’t ended… A new masterpiece that will bring to mind the depth of such rock and Odins recordings. We hope you enjoy the permanent preservation press 2CD!

“1978年の大阪”を象徴してきた伝統の名録音がまさかのアップグレード。既発群を軽々と凌駕する新発掘マスターが永久保存プレス２CDで登場です!!
その伝統録音が記録されたのは「1978年１月20日：大阪厚生年金会館」公演。その絶品オーディエンス録音です。1978年RAINBOWと言えば、リッチー・ブラックモアの来日史でも最多の16公演（内１公演は中止）を記録した絶頂期。彼らの来日は一度に平均8.6公演でしたから、いかに当時の人気が凄まじかったが実感できます。その中でも大阪は３公演が行われ、前半に集中。まずは、その日程を振り返り、ショウのポジションを確かめておきましょう。

・１月11日：名古屋市公会堂『NAGOYA 1978』
・１月12日：広島県体育館『HIROSHIMA 1978』
・１月13日：熊本県体育館
・１月14日：福岡九電記念体育館
・１月16日：大阪厚生年金会館
・１月17日：大阪厚生年金会館『OSAKA 1978 2ND NIGHT』
・１月18日：京都会館
・１月20日：大阪厚生年金会館　←★本作★
※注：以上は前半８公演。各日とも代表作のみ。

これが全16回の前半８公演。本作は京都を挟んだ大阪３公演の最後であり、ちょうど折り返しにあたる８公演目でした。また、1978年の来日は札幌の死亡事故を境にムードが一変するわけですが、本作はその一週間前。全盛の日本人気を全身で受けつつ、迫り来る悲劇など誰も予期できない最盛のコンサートでした。
そんな大阪最終日は名録音が残された事で語り継がれても来ました。その記録とは古くは『WALK ON THE WATER』として知られ、当店でも『BLACK AND BLUE（の一部）』として大好評となった名録音。1978年ツアー全体でも屈指となるクリアで「大阪最終といったコレ！」という、決定的なものでした。本作もまたその名録音で、既発をブラッシュアップしたもの。。。では、ありません。何と、あの名録音の若ジェネ・マスターが独自ルートで新発掘されたのです！
しかも、そのアップグレードぶりはほとんど別物。晴れ渡った空気感の中を力強い芯が切り裂く醍醐味はそのままに、瑞々しさが数ランクもアップしている。ヒスやゴワゴワ感が大幅に軽減され、距離感ゼロとまでは言いませんが、演奏や歌声の輪郭がクッキリしたおかげで録音ポジションが10メートルくらい近づいたようにさえ感じられる。特にコージーときたら、一発一発が「打音」と言うより「爆発音」「炸裂音」と表現したいくらい。もちろん、そうした言葉を選びたくなるほど鮮やかという意味であり、実際には炸裂感のピークでもビビらない艶やかさまで宿っています。
さらに驚くべきは安定感。実のところ、この録音最大の難点はピッチ。これまでの最高峰だった『BLACK AND BLUE』でさえピッチが低めだったわけですが、それ以上に難しかったのはランダムに変化していたこと。聴く分にはなんとか納得できる程度のズレだったとしても、調整するとなると頻度で変化幅が不安定だと直せないわけです。ところが、今回の新マスターは格段に安定。全体的にビシッと正確に整えることができたのです。そして、決定的だったのが「Catch The Rainbow」。既発ではグッと音が悪くなっていましたが、本作では美麗なまま一気に貫かれている。さすがに「Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll」冒頭のテープチェンジ部（約１分）は別音源で繋ぎましたが、それ以外は揺るぎないアップグレード・サウンドをたっぷりと味わう事ができるのです。
そんな生まれ変わったサウンドで描かれるのは、1978年でも豊かなイマジネーションで知られる名演。オープニングから気合いの入った演奏が楽しめますが、後半のメドレーがえらくカラフルなのです。「Man On The Silver Mountain」も普段よりも遅いテンポで重厚に迫り、さらにグイグイとテンポを落としていく。思わず「テープが狂った!?」と思うほど豪快ですが、これが正真正銘の生演奏。普通なら演奏が止まるか、リッチーだけがズレていくところですが、そんな破綻に陥らずに曲全体をコントロールするコージーとロニーの順応力にも改めて驚きます。そして、曲が終わってもリッチーの悪戯心は終わらない。ジャムでもドイツ国歌や「Love Is Blue」をちら弾きして「Blues」に行きそうで行かないジラしまくり。いざ「Blues」に進むとボブ・デイズリーのベースソロもゴリゴリとカッコ良く、ロニーもロニーでアドリブ・パートをいつもより長めに楽しんでいる。
さらにリクエスト・タイムでは「Hall Of The Mountain King」など美味しいメロディが次々と登場。観客も大いに楽しんでいて、ロニーの問いかけに「森進一！」「俺も出してくれ!!」の叫びが飛び交い、なぜかロニーはミスタードーナッツのCMソングで応えている（笑）。そんな和やかで自由な空気を荘厳なキーボードソロがまとめ上げ、一気に「Still I’m Sad」へと雪崩れ込む……。1978年に名演は数あれど、ここまで楽しく、これほどまでにダイナミックで掻き立てられるショウはほとんど記憶にありません。

全盛の中の全盛。心技体が充実しきった大阪最終日を極上のサウンドでフル体験できる名録音。その最高峰録音が（大幅）アップグレードした希代のライヴアルバムです。本番から42年が経っても新しい発掘と発見が終わらない……そんなロックとオーディンス録音の奥深さまで思い知らされる新名盤。どうぞ、永久保存プレス２CDで思う存分お楽しみください！

Disc 1 (47:47)
1. Over The Rainbow
2. Kill The King
3. Mistreated
4. 16th Century Greensleeves
5. Catch The Rainbow

Disc 2 (62:37)
1. Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll
2. Jam
3. Lazy
4. Man On The Silver Mountain
5. Jam
6. Blues
7. Starstruck/Man On The Silver Mountain(reprise)
8. Jam
9. Keyboard Intro.
10. Still I’m Sad
11. Beethoven 9th
12. Keyboard Solo
13. Drum Solo feat.1812 Overture
14. Still I’m Sad
15. Over The Rainbow

Ritchie Blackmore – Guitar Ronnie James Dio – Vocals Cozy Powell – Drums
Bob Daisley – Bass David Stone – Keyboards

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