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Deep Purple at the Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa August 19th 2026
A pleasant surprise when I arrived at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada for the Deep Purple show last night. As my assigned seat had been swallowed up by the sound board, I was upgraded to row 7 near the front of the stage. After some fine performances by Jefferson Starship and Kansas, Deep Purple opened with Highway Star. Ian Gillan did an admirable job on vocals, sometimes straining to hit some high notes, but carrying off most of that song very well. Then in rapid fire succession, the band kicked straight into A Bit On The Side, and then Into The Fire ( great powerful screams by Gillan).
Guitarist Simon McBride has really integrated well into the band. I love his raw, aggressive attack and tone. He dazzled with a fantastic, technical display of guitar prowess in a solo which morphed into Arrogant Boy. From there it was Lazy Sod, and an extended Airey keys intro into Lazy. Gillan then delivered a very strong vocal performance on When A Blind Man Cries. After that there was a bit of a jam which opened up into Diablo – during which a couple of the Jefferson Starship members arrived on stage, as well as an oddly dressed individual carrying a pillow who delivered a gift to a laughing Ian Gillan for his 81st birthday this night. Next, Don Airey did a lengthy keyboard solo which introduced Perfect Strangers – another strong Gillan vocal performance for most of the way through the song. Then came Space Truckin’, and the skipping of the usual obligatory encore exit off the stage by instead launching straight into Smoke on the Water. At the end of Smoke, Gillan proclaimed that they weren’t done yet – Simon McBride took us into Guinnessis, which then transitioned into Hush (I found the playing chemistry between Airey and McBride to be outstanding – they meshed so well together). And then that was it for the night.
This was the tenth Deep Purple concert that I have witnessed through the decades. The band is still very tight, and Gillan, even at age 81 is carrying out his vocal duties in a very competent and commendable fashion – sure there are a few notes missing here and there in the really high register from time to time, but Ian is clearly still well and able to deliver strongly on the vast majority of the songs he performs. I read and hear snarky comments about how Gillan and Deep Purple should pack it in and retire – I vehemently disagree. Purple is still a vital, living, breathing band who are writing and performing high quality music – they’re no Las Vegas residency band of has-beens. As long as the Purple men remain healthy and happy to perform, I am right there with them, hoping they keep recording new albums and touring the world.
As a bonus, I was lucky enough to receive the setlist from Simon McBride’s position on stage (see attached). My thanks to the nice roadie for that act of kindness.
Mr. Toad, Esq.
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
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