Rainbow (rock band) steered Deep Purple through a significant personnel change, with Ian Gillan and Roger Glover being replaced by David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes. However, the new members were keen to add new musical styles and Blackmore found his request to record the Steve Hammond-penned "Black Sheep of the Family" with "Sixteenth Century Greensleeves" turned down by the band. He decided to record the song with Dio instead, using Dio's band Elf as additional musicians. He enjoyed the results, and a full album, billed as "Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow" was recorded between February and March 1975 at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany. The
Ian Gillan appeared on the band's next two albums, "Double Trouble" and "Magic". In 1982, Ian Gillan announced the band would fold, as he needed to rest his damaged vocal cords. The rest of the band Gillan, particularly McCoy and Towns, were not happy at the sudden disbanding of the group so soon after the success of "Magic", and sued Gillan for royalties. In 1983, manager Don Arden invited Gillan to join Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward, all founding members of Black Sabbath, to form a supergroup. Although the band had reservations, on 6 April 1983, it was formally announced