Joe Lynn Turner (JLT), born Joseph Linquito August 2, 1951 in Hackensack, New Jersey, is a melodic hard rock singer best known for his work with Rainbow, Yngwie Malmsteen and his brief stint in Deep Purple. He played the accordion as a child, grew up with an appreciation for classic R&B and became an accomplished guitarist in his early teens. He was ranked 84th in Hit Parader's "Heavy Metal's All-Time 100 Vocalists". Early Career to Present In high school, Joe formed Ezra, performing original material and cover songs by such artists as Jimi Hendrix, Free and Deep Purple. ...show more

Joe Lynn Turner (JLT), born Joseph Linquito August 2, 1951 in Hackensack, New Jersey, is a melodic hard rock singer best known for his work with Rainbow, Yngwie Malmsteen and his brief stint in Deep Purple. He played the accordion as a child, grew up with an appreciation for classic R&B and became an accomplished guitarist in his early teens. He was ranked 84th in Hit Parader's "Heavy Metal's All-Time 100 Vocalists". Early Career to Present In high school, Joe formed Ezra, performing original material and cover songs by such artists as Jimi Hendrix, Free and Deep Purple.

In 1976, JLT enjoyed his first taste of national success with Fandango, a band described as an eclectic mix of R&B, pop, country, jazz and melodic rock. Turner sang and played guitar on all of the band's four albums. Fandango toured with numerous artists including The Allman Brothers, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Beach Boys and Billy Joel. After Fandango split, JLT received a phone call from legendary Deep Purple and Rainbow guitarist Ritchie Blackmore.

This resulted in an audition and Blackmore was so impressed that he immediately enlisted Joe in Rainbow. Rainbow, while popular in Europe and Japan, had not reached the same level of success in the US before JLT joined. With Turner's contributions (largely considered more pop-oriented), the group was catapulted to a new level of American success. Several tracks from albums with Turner reached the Top 20 on rock radio charts in the early- to mid-80's. ...show less