Footage has emerged of Blackmore's Night – Ritchie Blackmore's neo-medieval folk rock ensemble – performing a rare version of Deep Purple's Child In Time.
The clip, which was filmed on Sunday at the 500-capacity Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia, shows Blackmore ushering the band through a bucolic version of the 1970 In Rock classic, with singer Candice Night providing a silky alternative to Ian Gillan's scream-embellished original vocal.
"This song was not on the setlist," says the fan who filmed the clip. "Ritchie changed the songs after the fifth song on the setlist."
At the end of the song, Blackmore tells the audience, "We've never done that before, and we're never doing it again!", although Setlist FM records six instances of the band playing Child In Time since 2004, with the previous listed instance occurring at the Haxagon in Reading, UK, in June 2007. Only one Deep Purple song, 1974's Soldier of Fortune, has featured regularly on the Blackmore's Night setlist.
In 2018, Night told Classic Rock about the first time she stepped onstage with Blackmore's Night.
"It was in Tokyo, in front of 5,000 people," she said. "That was the first time I stepped onstage as a lead singer. I was completely terrified. I was in denial until about five seconds before I stepped onstage: this is a dream, it is not happening, and I’m going to wake up.
"All the audience knew of Ritchie was Deep Purple and Rainbow, and Ian Gillan and Ronnie Dio – and here comes this little blonde girl. I would never try to fill Ian Gillan’s shoes, but I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want to try to fill my stiletto heels, either."
The Alexandria show was the first of Blackmore's Night's Autumn Tour, which finds them playing theatres in the Eastern US in support of several animal charities. Full dates below.
Blackmore's Night Autumn Tour 2025
Nov 13: Lititz Mickeys Black Box, PA
Nov 15: Newton Theater, NJ
Nov 20: Wilmington The Queen, DE
Nov 23: Cohoes Music Hall, NY
Nov 29: Tarrytown Music Hall, NY
