‘Communicating in the most positive way’: Deep Purple’s David Coverdale, Ritchie Blackmore patch things up

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After a season of loss for David Coverdale, the Deep Purple and Whitesnake frontman says he’s reaching out to former band mates like Ritchie Blackmore — saying life is simply too short to nurse bad feelings.

Coverdale tells Tony Conley of Rock Guitar Daily that he’s also made overtures to former Whitesnake guitarist Micky Moody, as well.

Coverdale participated in two Deep Purple albums (Burn and the funkier, grittier Stormbringer, both from ’74) with Blackmore, and continued through one more project (1975’s Come Taste the Band) after Blackmore left to form Rainbow. Coverdale then released his solo debut, also called White Snake — a 1977 collaboration with Moody.

Moody, however, would be unceremoniously replaced during the mixing of 1984’s Slide It In, just as Whitesnake was gearing up for its run of platinum success in the U.S. John Sykes, who was previously in Thin Lizzy, actually recorded new guitar parts over Moody’s — and the rift apparently never quite healed.

Coverdale says he made no headway in trying to make amends with Moody, and Moody later issued a terse statement wishing Coverdale well.

The guitarist now leads a Whitesnake spinoff group called Snakecharmer with fellow alum Neil Murray. Together, Moody and Murray released an eponymous debut in January, with a scheduled vinyl release to follow next week. Whitesnake, meanwhile, has a new live DVD set for release on April 22, 2013: Live in Japan was filmed in October 2011 during the world tour in support of Forevermore.

Coverdale has since endured the passing of former Deep Purple keyboardist Jon Lord, a brother-in-law and his aunt recently.

“It’s just not worthwhile carrying the excess emotional baggage of grudges or negative energy,” he tells Rock Guitar Daily. “There is just no room for it in my life. I’m reaching out – Ritchie Blackmore and I are communicating in the most positive way, and I truly appreciate that. Life is too short to hold a grudge.”

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