Rainbow ditched vocalist
Graham Bonnet after
Down to Earth, hiring former
Fandango singer Joe Lynn Turner as their frontman. As it turns out, Turner is less hyperbolic than his predecessor, which fits the focused polish of
Difficult to Cure. Where
Down to Earth was a streamlined version of early
Rainbow,
Difficult to Cure is a shot at crossover. It's all given a contemporary sheen, with plenty of studio gloss that now instantly evokes the early '80s. On that level, it's somewhat of an entertaining artifact -- anyone pining for an example of what album-oriented radio sounded like in the pre-MTV years should check this out -- but it's not more than that, since the bids at chart success are only occasionally memorable ("I Surrender," "Magic"). Each side ends with a pseudo-classical instrumental that functions as a guitar showcase.
Ritchie Blackmore's playing is impeccable despite the awkwardness of both numbers.
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