- MOSCOW, MARCH THE 19TH, 2002
When I say that Deep Purple is one of my favourite bands and the favourite hard-rock band of all time and Ritchie Blackmore is my favourite guitarist people always say:"Hey!What do you say!Led Zeppelin-this the best hard-rock band and Page is the best guitarist of all time!Why don't you understand????" I really don't understand.Maybe it's because I don't like Led Zeppelin or maybe because I have my point of view.Or maybe because I am from Russia.You know,if you go down to Willow Farm...oh,sorry...if you go to the George's site and read the readers' comments on his reviews of Deep Purple(or Jethro Tull) you will find some comments from extremly fun guy Konstantin Tikhonov(yes!Russian names MUST BE readen in this order,not like "Tikhonov Konstantin"),who said that:
a)Deep Purple was the greatest live band of all time.
b)Deep Purple has a problem with lyrics.
Oh yes,it's true.Both of this things are true. Deep Purple was also the band of great players and singers.Ritchie Blackmore was(is????) the great guitar player;Jon Lord is just one man who can play on organ like GOD;both David Coverdale and Ian Gillan(I'm talking about all after Mark I,except Mark VI,because it's a topic for another talk) were(but not "are") great singers and Glenn Hughes(that now is one of the greatest singers) also was very good;Ian Paice now is the best drummer in the world(except maybe Bill Bruford,but it's another story).But only now-before Cozy Powell's death all drummers were just a shadow of this great man(and yes,Frederico,even one of his shadows was Keith Moon);and,finally,Mr.Bass-player.Glenn Hughes was(and is) a great one,but Roger Glover is too much overrated by Deep Purple fans.I just don't understand why.I don't told you about Tommy Bolin and Steve Morse,yes?Oh,they are,no doubt,are the greatest guitar players in history.And like they are the greatest guitar players in history I am Romeo-And-Jullietta-In-One-Face.
P.S.Do you believe that Deep Purple have done THE BEST LIVE ALBUM of all time and THE WORST album of all time???
Psychedelic pop.Lots of it.Lots of funny lyric.This is Deep Purple in the end of 60's.This album has a lot of covers(4) and the same number of originals,and one arrange of traditional song.The covers are bad,especially Cream's "I'm So Glad".Only one cover is really good(in fact,it's the best song on here!)-it's D.South's "Hush"-their first huge hit.It's wounderfull,generic rocker with some nuce vocal-harmonies.Originals are better.Ballads like "Love Help Me" and "One More Rainy Day" is really good with good singing.Instrumental is really great,but it's just a solid Hendrix rip-off and "Mandrake Root" is very good,with some powreful guitar lines.It's good album,but not great.If you are a fan of British pop-psychedelia-buy it.
Mail your comments and reviews to [email protected]
Just a minor changes.Covers are bad and originals are good.First of all,"The Book.." is a conceptual album.It is tell us the story about King Arthur's ministren-Taliesyn.In fact,it MUST tell us his story,but it doesn't do it.Maybe one song is really conceptual-the opener "Listen Learn Read On".And this opener is good!Rod Evans speaks(not sings!) very well and wrote good catchy chours:"So listen/So learn/So read on/You gottan turn the page,read The Book Of Taliesyn".And lyrics are good! Then goes the best number on the album-instrumental "Wring That Neck" with a brilliant organ riff and the best Ritchie's solo in the early days of Deep Purple.I know that in the USA "Wring That Neck" was named like "Hard Road".Often underrated "Kentucky Woman",their second big hit,goes then.Very good cover,with two really amazing solo from Blackmore and Lord and strangenoises by Rod Evans.And a catchy chours again! Thaen goes a medley with The Beatles cover-"We Can Work It Out". I think that it's will be good to include this one in "Antologies".Like a demo,of course.And a crappy demo."Shield" with this scream "Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiield" is really boring psychedelic number.And the lyrics are nothing!They have no meaning. "Anthem" is a good pop song.We can see how Rod Evans wanted to be a pop-star.But the song itself good. And the closing number-10-minutes cover of "River Deep Mountain High"(why they have chosen this one,not "House Of The Rising Sun" or something like that?)is very dull.Tricks with instruments in the first part of the song is just boring...A perfect lullaby.If you are a fan of the first DP album,buy this one now.
What do YOU think of "The Book Of Taliesyn"? Mail your comments and reviews to [email protected]
Written by Rob Eustace
The final album by the curious Purple MK 1 line up just about
manages to edge out it's fore runners as being the best the band produced prior
to Messrs Evans & Simper's departure. The three late 60's albums certainly nowadays
act as interesting documents in the development of a band who at the time weren't
quite sure where they were heading but whose finest hours were inevitably still
to come. The album continues the format set on Shades and Taliesyn, it doesn't
make any great advances but it all sits together a little more comfortably on
this set than its predecessors. Rod Evans for the first time feels as if he
really belongs at the front of this band and turns in some impressive performances,
less covers this time round, a lengthy Jon Lord trial run for Concerto and further
six band originals fill out the two sides.
The pick of the bunch for me personally is "Blind" (this is also Mr Starostin's
only weak point on the album !!!) a wonderful harpsichord laced ballad which
showcases Evans voice at its best and includes some fine guitar passages from
Ritchie, this of course being the album where Master Blackmore decided to bring
his Wah-Wah pedal to work. "Blind" follows the percussion heavy album opener
"Chasing Shadows" which is a dark and moody piece apparently inspired by one
of Mr Lords nightmares and is followed by the sole cover on this set, a simple
re-working of Donovan's "Lalena". Again this is delicately handled by Evans
but really doesn't add anything of any significance to Donovan's original. "Fault
Line" is your token psychedelic section, basically drum and organ recorded and
played backwards with guitar added and set up as a lead in for "The Painter"
which is the first of a string of blues style originals, "Why didn't Rosemary"
with its horror movie inspired Rod Evans lyrics and "Bird has Flown" a re-working
of a earlier track originally released on 7", this leads us to the albums grand
climax "April". "April" is Lord's 12 minute warm up for Concerto for Group and
Orchestra and is significantly more effective here to my ears than the album
that followed. Like Concerto Lord stretches the piece over three parts, it kicks
off with Blackmore and Lord working a pleasant mixture of acoustic, lead guitar
and organ before moving off into the second section which is your "real deal"
orchestral movement. This section should be your benchmark to judge whether
or not you need to invest in Concerto, if you enjoy it then don't hesitate as
believe me on the next album there's plenty more where this came from. I personally
can only enjoy this four minute interlude as a gentle, pleasant, experimental
build up to the far more familiar sounding three minute climax to the track
as the band come together to play out the piece and round off what I regard
as the most satisfying album the MK 1 line up put out.
After recording this album the band must have realised that if they were going
to survive and progress then something had to give, Evans & Simper were that
something, Gillian & Glover stepped in and the rest is history. However not
before dear old Jon tried sink the ship totally by convincing everyone to put
out the completely self indulgent Concerto for Group and Orchestra leaving In
Rock to surely rank as one of the greatest turn rounds of all time, from that
point on however it's as though everything that went before never existed. It
still astounds me how many times I'm confronted in the UK with the local Pub
"Rock and Pop Trivia Merchants" who will try to insist that Gillian was the
original singer with Deep Purple and that In Rock is one of the greatest debut
albums of all time !!!!. Sadly I believe this MK 1 line up was practically ignored
in the UK and only faired marginally better in the US and come 1970 (after the
shock of their departure) surely Messrs Evans and Simper could never have predicted
what was to follow.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! What is it?What have I bought????????What is the chaotic metal band??????Oh,no,it's just an opening of the album.The album is "In Rock" and the opener is "Speed King".But it's only opener,it's not the song itself.The main part of "Speed King" has a great playing,absolutely awesome Lord's solo and goofy lyrics from old rock'n'roll songs.Oh!I almost forgot about Ian Gillan.His singing is really great.And when he sing "Tooty fruity was ooooooooooooooooooooooooh so rooty" I just starting to SCREAM.Really.Scream LOUD.Many people say that it is an extazy. But the next song,"Bloodsucker" kicks "Speed King" to the hell.From the first note to the last note we have a perfect harmony of sounds.Absolutely perfect.Ian Gillan screams like...I don't know,but it's just a pervfect scream.And now,ladies and gentelmen,we have maybe the best hard-rock song of all time.Of course,it's "Child In Time".The opening of this song(stolen from It's A Beautiful Day song "Bombay Calling"-because It's A Beautiful Day stole riff of "Wring That Neck")is the benefit of Lord and in concerts he(Jon Lord) changed it like he wanted to change,nobody could stop him.Than goes a vocal part-the most tragic vocal part singing by Ian Gillan.I just cry when I hear "You better close your eyes and booooooooow your head and wait for the ricochet".And then goes Big Trio(Jon Lord/Ritchie Blackmore/Ian Paice) benefit.The solo on guitar is the best guitar solo ever done by the humankind.I'm not jocking.It's the best solo I have ever heard(I'm not include that improvisiation solos by Paco De Lucia,'cause they are also great)and maybe will hear.The classic of the classics.The standart for all great guitar players.Then goes another vocal part and "paranoia's time" improved by Gillan.Really awesome.OK,now about next songs. "Flight Of The Rat" is wounderfull rocker with the Ritchie and Lord battle in the middle and Ian Paice drumming like Keith Moon(he just rip-off his style on this song)and Roger Glover wrote clever lyrics!Thank God for it!!!Oh,of course "Child In Time" has good lyrics too,but lyrics for "Child" were written by Gillan. Two next songs are the shortest on the album.They names are "Living Wreck" and "Into The Fire".First of all,it's memorable by screams of Gillan:"do you know you liiiiiiiiiiiiiving wreeeck?!" and "...into the fiiiiiiiiiiiire!!".Wounderful.But the last song,"Hard Lovin' Man" is the wrost song on here.Gofy lyrics with one of the wrost solo in Purple history....eek!But buy it now.If you not,I will cut you on a little piecies.HA-HA-HE-HE(like Phil Collins).
Right after big comercial susses of In Rock Deep Purple
Mark II came to the studio to record album that can remind to you of both Mark
I and In Rock.And so,the result is Fireball.Can’t say that mixing
of two styles on here can be hearing-for me,there’s more experimentation with
some new music for DP.There are some folk(“Anyone’s Daughter”),some blues(“Demon’s
Eye”) and even psychedelia(“The Mule”).Not to mention all of these Ritchie Blackmore’s
solos that guy usually rip-offed from someone or something.
The album has also the best Ian Gillan possible-for me,it is his definetly best
album.He sings greatly,his lyrics are great and he even does the work that he
needs to do in the normal band atmosphere.Unfortunately,it is meybe the last
album where he JUST SINGS AND DOES HIS WORK,bt not mess the music and cries
to everyone:”Hey!Look at me!I am Ian Gillan and I am fucking rules!I am the
leader of the band and it’s great,you know!!!”
Album opens with the song where the band is nothing but good panteon of gods-t
is “Fireball”-maybe the heaviest song Mark II ever did.There are great lyrics
came from Ian,amazing agressive drumming,technicaly perfect solos from Ritchie
and Jon.Only Roger Glover quite is in the shadow,but he does his work perfecly.The
song itself is very fast and has great catchy chours.
“No No No” starts as a good rock’n’roller with catchy chours,but all of the
vocal parts are divided by jam parts where Rithcie and Jon show their talents
at all.The song is rather slow,but it’s hardly boring.Just the same mood is
in the next song-“Demon’s Eye”,which is nothing but VERY tastefull blues-rock
number with impossible Hammond here and there.
“Anyone’s Daughter” is a little folky song with the best Gillan lyrics EVER(and
no,I’m not joking).The song itelf has a well-played piano solo in the beginning
and driving guitar solo.Strange,but such different from the other hard stuff
of DP is a fan-favouroite.
“The Mules” is the song that shows hard-psychedelia in its best and it’s my
favourite song on the record.The vocal part has strange psychedelic lyrics(“Now
I have become a fool,because I listened to the mool”)and gentle singing from
Ian,while the instrumental part is great sho of Ian Paice(on live gigs the song
often was some kind of prelude to long Paice solo)and amazing keyboards.The
ending is nothing but pure pleasure.
“Fools” is the only weak spot on the record.Everyone seems to like this song
to death,but I just hate it.Vocal parts is just degeneratic screaming that can
give you a headache.And who needs this idiotic instrumental part with bong/Hammond
duet on background and Ritchie imitates cello in his solo?!It is just immposible
to hear!Plus,the song is terribly overlong-8 minutes,no more.
“No One Came” is the angry blues-rock with lyrics about music critics(“No-one
came for miles around and said:” Man,your music is really hot).The ending is
a gtreat instrumental jam-quite banal for Deep Purple,but still very,very nice.
And if you think that it is really all,so don’t think so-experimintating with
the music will be continued on the next album-Machine Head,but it’ll
be more hard and more proggy.
Send your comments and reviews of "Fireball"
You maybe know that there is a Deep Purple album called "Made In Japan"?Oh...You know there are TOO MANY "Made In Japan".
1)"Made In Japan"(original edition) has "the best" moments of three concerts in the middle of August in Japan in 1972.
2)"Live In Japan"(original edition)-a Japanese version of "Made In Japan" with another cover.
3)"Made In Japan"(anniversary edition)-a remastering version of "Made In Japan" with the bonus disk with three songs played in concerts.
4)"Made In Japan"(Spanish anniversary edition)-an anniversary version of "Made In Japan" with another cover and some remastered studio tracks from "Fireball" and "Machine Head".
5)"Live In Japan"(3CD Box-set)-FULLY remastered with FULLY recording of all THREE CONCERTS (except three tracks-they are on the "Made In Japan" anniversary edition) and cover from oiginal "Live In Japan".
I will review the last one.On this one we have ALL.Crazy drum solos("The Mule"),great solos(every song on the record),great singing,nightmare 20-minute versions of one song("Space Truckin'"),some mistakes in riff-playing("Smoke On The Water"),and great duets("Strange Kind Of Woman","Space Truckin'").And it sounds IDEAL.Every concert opens with drivin' versions of "Highway Star",than goes "Smoke On The Water"(the version from the first concert is on original versions of "Made In Japan" and "Live In Japan" and on anniversary editions),where Ritchie demonstrates us how everyone must playing thew great riff of this song(it's just sarkasm,because Ritchie didn't played this riff in the right way,only in one concert).Then comes(I mean the first concert set-list) "The Mule"(the version that was on the last concert is on "Made In Japan") with some AMAZING Ian Paice's solos.My favourite one is in the second disk right in the middle of song.Then comes "Strange Kind Of Woman"(again it's for set-list of the first concert) with the great duet of Ritchie and Ian Gillan and evil "Ha-ha-ha's" from Ian Gillan.And after it-10-minute versions of "Lazy"with strange kind of opener.And I must say that "Lazy" from second concert is my favourite live version of any song.Ritchie's playing is amazing with some really difficult guitar chords.And I don't mention harmonica solos,'cause they are great. And,ladies and gentelmen,the main attraction of the box-set:three 20-minute versions of "Space Truckin'".Really good and unboring.The last version of "Space Truckin'" is my favourite,only because of some strange sounds.I like them!And,of course,the fan and crowd-favourite "Black Night" is on here!People are singing with Gillan or without Gillan,but they are singing!!! The encore of concerts are different.On the first and the last concerts it's "Speed King"(funny,but on the early tours it was an opener and the version from the first concert is the last track on the 3rd disk)-still driving and ass-kickin'.But(and it's surprise!) on the second concert it is cover of "Lucille".Really strange kind of choice and we can't hear this song on the box-set,only on anniversary edition of "Made In Japan".But the song itself great and groovy.Yes,groovy.Buy it now,I know that you will forget "Live At Leeds" and "Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!".
Mail your comments and reviews to [email protected]
MOSCOW, MARCH THE 19TH, 2002.
I couldn’t give the ratings to this, ‘cos it was the live-concert that I’ve been as a spectator. I’m gonna tell about my own impressions of this show. Here’s the list of the songs those were played by Deep Purple at this concert:
WOMAN FROM TOKYO
VAVOOM: TED THE MECHANIC
MARY LONG
LAZY
CHILD IN TIME
AVIATOR
NO ONE CAME
UNKNOWN INSTRUMENTAL (I think it was only casual 2-minute improvisation)
FOOLS
KEYBOARDS IMPROVISATION
PERFECT STRANGERS
WHEN THE BLIND MAN CRIES/ GUITAR IMPROVISATION
(HERECOMES THE SUN – SUNSHINE OF YOUR LIFE – ROUNDABOUT – SHAKE YOUR HIPS –
VOODOO CHILE – STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN)
SMOKE ON THE WATER
FNNY PASSAGES BY DEEP PURPLE (they played extracts from some childish songs
or themes of Walt Disney’s films)
SPEED KING (with excellent drum-solo by Ian Paice)
GILLAN’S SALAD (Gillan sang some pieces of old country_folkish songs and classical
rock’n’rolls)
HUSH (including great bass-improvisation by Roger Glover)
BLACK NIGHT
HIGHWAY STAR
Best song: oh! It’s hard to choose. Maybe LAZY, KEYBOARDS IMPROVISATION, FOOLS
or GUITAR IMPROVISATION.
There’s no “worst songs”.
At 1st I want to tell you the pretale… I’ve bought a ticket too late (al tickets
for “good places” were already bought) and I’ve got rather faraway place. But
when I came to the concert-place I began to talk with policeman (about how can
I find my sit-place) and the policeman quietly offered me to buy him two bottles
of beer… I’ve bought them and the policeman omitted me to the best place before
the scene (such tickets were all bought long-before the concert). Russian policemen
are good when it’s possibly to agree upon something with them, aren’t they?
Thus I’ve been enjoyed by music being at some meters before the scene. Musicians
began to appear at 15 minutes before the concert but there was no John Lord!
(unfortunately but he left the band before the tour). There was the new keyboard-man
(I don’t know who it was), he seemed like John Lord, but seemed 20 years younger.
It was very sad to me: John Lord was always my favorite participant of Deep
Purple though after some minutes I understood that the new keyboardist was very
worthy replacement of Lord. In the middle of the concert he stayed at the scene
alone and being illuminated by violet and green lights this unknown keyboardist
played so wonderful keyboard-solo (possibly it was extracts from music of medieval
not-well-known composers) with sounds of church-organ and pipe-sound-effects
of synthesizer. It seemed to me that I’ve been at an old gothic church; these
impressive passages were one of the best moments of all the concert! There were
also some another solo-improvisations played by Paice, Glover and Morse. But
Steve Morse’s GUITAR IMPROVISATION of this concert is the real breathtaking
masterpiece! Being (as the keyboardist before him) alone at the scene he exploited
his guitar (more than 10 minutes!), and I wanted to this guitar-playing never
end! Steve performed some extracts of old and well-known rock-hits; but the
biggest surprise to me were included here fragments of Beatles’s HERE COMES
THE SUN and Yes’s ROUNDABOUT. It was great mind-away! Of course, basically Deep
Purple played their classical mid-tempo hard-rock-numbers (WOMAN FROM TOKYO,
MARY LONG, NO ONE CAME, PERFECT STRANGERS, SMOKE ON THE WATER and BLACK NIGHT).
When the band played SMOKE ON THE WATER and BLACK NIGHT I felt a powerful jolting
of the ground – all the public were madly jumping and shouting – though the
versions of NO ONE CAME and PERFECT STRANGERS were (to my opinion) more better…
There also were some some great fast-tempered rockers: SPEED KING (my favorite
song of the band, (here) with good “crazy” drum-solo by Ian Paice; but it had
the lack of classical “guitar-keyboards” solo here, and the song’s impression
were a bit spoilt), HUSH, VAVOOM: TED THE MECHANIC (so sincerely and powerfully
played!) and performed after long-time clap and public-petitions HIGHWAY STAR
(by the way, in HIGHWAY STAR and CHILD IN TIME Steve Morse perfectly copied
those speed and technically-difficult parties of Ritchie Blackmore). And also
there were three Deep Purple’s “progressive” masterpieces and all them were
performed at the band’s best traditions. CHILD IN TIME was the Gillan’s “star
moment” this day. After 30 years he’s sung all its three “ah-ah-ah”-verses (both
times!) again!!! It was beyond-belief! (though I’ve heard that Gillan was treating
his voice last year). And also I must say that Ian sang all the concert perfectly
and it’s true: nowadays he can sing as 30 years ago. FOOLS was simply great!
I always liked this song on FIREBALL-album but here it was much times better,
maybe even the best number of all concert! (though Steve Morse didn’t play cello
here…) And LAZY were played perfectly too: loudly, powerfully, sincerely… I
couldn’t believe that these rock-grandfathers are so strong and full of energy
today. …and some words about scene-accessoures: there weren’t “super-booper-modern”
and different computer effects and it’s good. All these effects are good for
Pink Floyd Or J-M. Jarre but not for Deep Purple, it seems to me. There were
only some searchlights and the musicians with their instruments. This show was
nice by its simplicity and sincerity. And the musicians were dressed in jeans
and jackets (there was no Superman suits or suchlike), as normal rockers. At
the end Gillan said some warm and pleasant words to public and promised to come
to Moscow again. Well, it would be very nice… when I was going home I felt that
I was right decided to go to Deep Purple. Really, this concert was great and
I’ve got a big portion of pleasure and good impressions.