10 Hard Rock Albums That Are Worse Than You Remember

10. Down to Earth - Rainbow

If you remember anything from Rainbow nowadays, it normally comes from the pedigree behind nearly every instrument. Starting out as just a side project for Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, the outlandish medieval rock he made with Ronnie James Dio on albums like Rising and Long Live Rock and Roll hold up as the progenitors of what would become power metal. Then again, you wouldn't get that impression if you had heard the album that sent them to the top.

After Dio left to join Black Sabbath, Blackmore's drafting of Graham Bonnett for Down to Earth was far from their best look. Though the song Since You've Been Gone gave them their first American hit, the rest of the album feels wrong when you realize who's behind every instrument. While not horribly played or anything, the amount of pop rock fluff on this record is not really what you come to Rainbow for, as Blackmore is reduced to just a decent lead guitarist rather than his wild self.

Even though Bonnett is doing his best to sell this thing, you just get the impression that he's fronting the wrong band, with his clean cut style not really lending itself to the sounds of harsh rock and roll. Rainbow certainly has an identity of their own, but Rainbow's version of Bad Company is far from their greatest look.