Busman's holiday for Purple fan

Dreams do come true. If you are a Purple fan for almost 20 years, and you have seen them in stadiums in your home country (Netherlands), then you are living in a dream if you can combine a vacation to Singapore and Asia with a Deep Purple concert in a park. Fort Canning Park was just a couple hundred meters from our hotel (NYWCA).

Ariving with my girlfriend at this superb park, I see people sitting on the grass, waiting for the things to come. This sitting made it easy for us to end up at the third row from the stage. A lot of young people there, do they know any Purple songs, I wonder? Well it's starting time and what a way to start an Asian tour with Woman From Tokyo. After that it went on - as you can read in the other reviews, with some up tempo songs and some slower songs. I think this mixture was chosen because of the temperatures in Singapore that night.

I have never seen them having so much fun, sitting, laughing, looking for contact, switching instruments (Roger and Steve) - it was really great. And as Ian decribed it "It's a two thing."

The building up to Smoke On The Water was also very very good, Steve playing rock solos and ending up at 'ta ta taa' (you know the rest).

Encores were also a trip to the old days, Hush, Black Night and Highway Star. What can you say seeing those guys having fun with you as part of the party? All I can say is never wake me up again.

After the concert, we went to on of the cafés near River Point, The Crazy Elephant, a very small cafe with a superb blues band playing on a very small stage. Around 2:30am the word was out that Ian, Don and Ian were outside. I took the opertunity to talk to Ian and told him that the older he gets the more he seems to enjoy his work. Iwas right he told me.

It must have been 2:45am, when Ian, Don and Ian started playing with the local band. Can you imagine, first row looking at at a band with some of your favourites and just having a 'Singa'. Dreams go on...

As you can read, Monique and I have had the time of our life - sorry we didn't bring our camera. So if you have made photos from the concert and/or in the Crazy Elephant feel free to mail them to me. [See Singapore photos, including some of the night club jam, in the tour photos. Rasmus]

P.S.
DP in Asia is one of the best tour shirts I have ever bought (big compliments).

Martin Witteveen

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