![[hand]](/hs-pics/portraits/hands/morse3.jpg)
![[face]](/hs-pics/portraits/faces/paice.jpg)
Power of the moon and fragility of reality
Some time in early August Ian Gillan spoke to the Tales from the Road podcast hailing from India. (Low key does not even begin to describe it — they have grand total of 23 subscribers on Youtube.) It is another one of those lengthy video chats courtesy of the pandemic. When pressed about studio plans during the touring downtime, Big Ian quipped that “There were lots of things going on”, but he “can’t talk about it quite yet”.
Thanks to Yvonne for the info.
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
Great interview by mighty Ian. I’m glad that he cleared some of the dirty laundry about “ RRHOF” and the crap that has been spoken about in the media.
Ian seemed in a good mood and Portugal weather has seemed to inspire his creativity. Liked his humble modest outlook on music and the philosophy.
Love it !! I missed the guy
September 9th, 2021 at 00:43Beautiful beautiful beautiful, I love it so much, the best Ian Gillan interview ever.
September 9th, 2021 at 11:48I think this forced covid break from touring will do him the world of good.
The guy is so natural and honest and not rushed and with a twist of verbal diarrhea as he is on his own with his family still back in England.
I love that he put Coverdale and Hughes in the right place as I think they are just headline grabbers.
Plz watch and enjoy from start to finish
Peace.
@ 1 about where is the RRHOF part..?
September 9th, 2021 at 15:55One of the greatest vocalists in the history of rock and metal along with Bruce Dickinson… Freddie Mercury and Ronnie James Dio.
September 9th, 2021 at 16:00At about 10:30 minutes into the video, a discussion about the inclusion of the old song And the Address on Whoosh……Gillan says “it’s not gonna be the last one because there’s more to come!”
Great news!
September 9th, 2021 at 16:20A very nice interview. The Host let Ian talk without constantly interrupting him.
September 9th, 2021 at 21:46What a great interview !
I’m very impressed, Ian is still a VERY clever fellow and profound as ever…
Quite a change compared to the Coverdale ever stupid talks and those “I’m in love with myself and have nothing to say” Glenn Hughes interviews.
And by the way, for a 76 years old, Gillan looks impressivly well!
The guy looks better now than 5-6 years ago!
September 9th, 2021 at 22:273 if you listen it you will know?! Did you even go through the interview??
2 Coverdale is a cheese ball and Hughes had this disdain about the current deep purple and gets on my nerves
September 9th, 2021 at 23:13What great stuff! Very good interview. And the interviewer is good, no BS questions. He gets Ian inspired to talk about a lot of things. Interesting. Thank you. I made a bet that Whoosh! would be the last album by the band, but now it seems like I lost the bet, of which I am very happy 🙂
BTW: there is a back story to the title Whoosh coming from a Monty Python comedy.
September 10th, 2021 at 11:55@3 start listening at 55 minutes.
It is a good and relaxed interview. Gillan in a good mood.
His comments about RRHOF and Ritchie are imho not really nice. A bit downgrading.
September 11th, 2021 at 14:58@8 Thanks..
September 11th, 2021 at 15:02@ 10
I think this is one of the most upbeat and “optimistic” interviews that I heard from Big Ian in quite some time. I don’t think that was anything downgrading to anyone and I think the current line-up should say and clear their side of the story, as we hear Coverdale/Hughes bashing the current lineup and all kinds of story and crap.Coverdale especially has been yapping and annoying the crap out of everybody with his bullshit interviews and so-called music has been making for years now.
September 11th, 2021 at 19:54Whether or not Blackmore would have been invited he would have never shown anyway for this ind of events.He never does.
10: I havent heard anything “not really nice”…. IG is completely correct, that from standpoint of current lineup “reunion” for RRHOF would be distracting from what they are doing and public focus should be on their current albums and tours etc. It would cause flood of “reunion rumours” and new wave of press and public pressure towards reunion with him – and they dont want it. It´s simple as that.
About DC and Glenn – its going to be statement against statement and its about (obviously wrong) expectations they two had. Glenn still thinks he is part of some sort of “wide Deep Purple family” where everyone has to like each other or be in good terms with of friendly…. True fact – DC and Glenn has zero connection with current band and from what I heard from people who met Glenn after one show, he had strong comments against Paice not being his friend anymore (if I remember correctly the issue was legal regarding Glenn´s tour playng DP classics when Glenn had to change promotional material to that tour) – there is some issue between them. However, current DP had full right for statement saying basically “Deep Purple are Airey-Gillan-Glover-Morse-Paice and nothing else today and we are not going to “confuse” anyone by performing with long gone former members of band guesting with us.”
September 12th, 2021 at 09:04I have to agree…
DC should first consider his awful musical career for about 2 decades. He doesn’t have 5% of the creativity of DP mk 8, let alone the voice of IG today, far better even if he’s quite older.
Furthermore he treats people like shit whereas every member of the mk8 is MEGA nice with every one.
Poor GH is still trying to be someone and seems to be again and again very bitter about his low-key career. The guy seems to be very angry that Gillan had and still has a great career.
At least Blackmore is still funny and even though his performances are a real shame, he’s not trying to grab headnews and he still respects Gillan and the rest of the of mk8.
And by the way, if they are soooo much brothers like they love to say, why don’t DC & GH NEVER spend time together and don’t work with each other?
Must be too busy with their plastic surgeries…
September 12th, 2021 at 19:56@13 If Coverdale and Hughes had been invited to sing along on SOTW it wouldn’t affect the current touring band.
For your information, Glenn is part of some “wide Deep Purple Family”. He sings and plays on 3 studio albums.
September 13th, 2021 at 07:45The RRHOF thing was handled disastrously. I love the Mk VIII line up and it has real credibility in my eyes, but so has every other DP line up. Six to eight minutes of SOTW with Ian, Glenn and David each taking a verse and Blackmore and Steve doing a solo each or even some good-natured call and response would have gone a long way on handling their legacy in an adult way and paying mutual honor to the brand “Deep Purple”, an institution that has given EVERY past and present DP member (no exceptions!) more fame and fortune than they would have otherwise had (ironically and thinking about it, DC is possibly the only exception as Whitesnake in the late 80ies for a time eclipsed even DP commercially in the US, but David is the first to admit these days that there would have been no Whitesnake without a prior DP).
Mk VIII being a gracious host (it would have come across as nothing more) to other past members would have been a sign of confidence and strength, nothing less. In a silly (and unnecessary) effort to protect the current line-up (from what? – let’s face it, these days Steve can technically play circles around an aging Ritchie, Jon is no longer with us and David and Glenn, good musicians they are, never had Ian Gillan’s status as “the voice(s)” of DP), Mk VIII and their management treated the (no less than colorful and therefore always interesting) DP legacy shoddily.
September 13th, 2021 at 13:2815:
There is nothing like “wide Deep Purple family” and that´s the point…. There are current members of Deep Purple (= Deep Purple) and there are long gone former members of band. Nothing else, just these two simple categories. Honestly – I had a huge respect for Glenn when he performed his solo stuff and sometimes added few songs from Purple to his set. I have seen him with Resonate tour and he was mindblowing (by the way, Trapeze material was highlight!), quite frankly – Purple Tour was just nostalgic act without any real “deeper” meaning. Somehow – I feel that Glenn still “tries” to ride a “Deep Purple wave” – you know “hey, I´m that guy from Deep Purple!” – when in fact he is the guy who was in a band for three years 45 years ago (and played a huge role in their demise by the way…).
So for you once again…. Deep Purple = Airey, Gillan, Glover, Morse, Paice. Period. Ritchie, David, Glenn, Nick, Rod are (from point of current band) basically in the same category – long gone former members of band. There is no “Deep Purple family – where current band and everyone else from band” would exist and be “equal”. When you left, you simply left. Closed doors, chapter ended. I never got a reason why Glenn or David expected to be some sort of “friends” or “bandmates” with Roger or IG. They never were.
Also – if you want to perform with anyone, you should ask also the other side if they are willing to play with you. According to IG´s statement – they invited all to perform sort of extended jam in Smoke On The Water – fair offer. But it seems that DC/Glenn suspected they would do something like Burn in Purple set or Stormbringer or who knows what – but that option was never on table.
September 13th, 2021 at 14:46Uwe Hornung@16
September 13th, 2021 at 17:48Wow I couldn’t have agreed more with what you wrote.
It’s so true and it’s what Coverdale and Hughes always wanted is some piece of the action.
The problem is in my opinion it’s was three votes against two. big Ian, Little Ian and Roger didn’t want that to happen while Steve and Don were the new kids on the block as they say wouldn’t have minded as it wouldn’t have affected their history in the band. Also to be honest they could have rehearsed for all this and Ritchie wouldn’t have turned up leaving all members red in the face. I mean Ritchie didn’t even record a live clip to thank anyone.
Ian Gillan once said that this recognition is for the fans and all our family and friends and this the best way to put it to end the all egos involved.
Peace
Petr@17: “I never got a reason why Glenn or David expected to be some sort of “friends” or “bandmates” with Roger or IG. They never were.”
You don’t have to be friends with someone to acknowledge that they played a role in something – and Glenn and David played a role in the history of DP, not to the extent of the Mk II members perhaps, but a role it was. Roger wasn’t above asking Glenn and David to sing on his first solo album
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsWjT_cTfAo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VOMiK1fI9U
and he produced David’s first two solo albums. That doesn’t look like hating each other’s guts to me. Jon Lord performed with Glenn a few years before his death.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9hAB9Oe_40
Ian Paice and Don played with Glenn at Jon’s memorial event.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do_BgiF9y0U
So it’s not like they couldn’t stand sharing a stage together anymore.
I can’t figure out why it was ok to have Glenn commemorate Jon Lord (it can’t just have been because Glenn introduced his then-girlfriend Vickie to Jon in the 70ies who proceeded to marry her!), but not ok to have Glenn on stage with Mk VIII. He was part of Jon’s history (and vice versa) and he is a part of Deep Purple’s.
It would have been the courteous, respectful and professional thing to do. Like Rick Parfitt’s three ex-wives showing up at his funeral.
September 14th, 2021 at 01:43ad Petr 17: maybe there´s no such things as so-called “wide DeepPurple family”in strict reality,if you coldly analyze this possibility. BUT this very pages on HSor Darker Than Blue etc. are clear proof that this feeling exist-and bloody good so.
September 14th, 2021 at 12:26Can you tell me that lps like In Rock,MH,Burn or Perfect Strangers are just only pasttime efforts done by long-gone members?
There WERE important DEEP PURPLE records, as Rod,Nick,Ritchie,Jon,David,Glenn,Tommy, JoeLynn and Joe WERE important DP members. They WERE, not they ARE… but time and space is under enthropy in all universe, so it´s also in DP world. Your response to the theme is very arrogant for me to bear, I´m sorry…
On the subject of the family, one of the other Tales from the Road podcasts is with Doug Aldrich, talking about Dead Daisies and Whitesnake. I have not listened to it yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y65s3Jz46KY&list=PLw1R74syyAb-I7Of3SinvphU5wuis3bM0&index=2
September 14th, 2021 at 14:41Adel@18: “Also to be honest they could have rehearsed for all this and Ritchie wouldn’t have turned up leaving all members red in the face.”
Right you are, Adel, and it wouldn’t have been the first time either, but I believe Steve could have handled the SOTW riff by himself just about plenty fine! He’s played it a few times himself, it should be familiar. ; – )
There was never any question for me that ANYONE of Mk VIII should have left the stage to accommodate Ritchie (or Glenn and David). If that was Ritchie’s demand (and I can’t believe it was), then good riddance and they were right to leave him in his castle. If you have issues standing on stage with someone as nice and giving as Steve Morse, something is seriously wrong with you.
All I hoped for was that current Purple give an appreciative nod to their past and the former members that co-shaped it.
Just imagine this: All five Mk VIII members plus Ritchie and David & Glenn would have jointly played and sung SOTW (it’s DP’s anthem, like it or not) and somewhere during the solos they would have broken into a verse and a chorus of, say, Stormbringer (with Gillan banging away on his congas, always an iconic sight) before returning to SOTW, does really anybody think that this would have in any way diminished Big Ian’s, Don’s, Steve’s and Roger’s pivotal contributions (both past and present) to the band? Everyone would have said “What a bunch of cool and gracious cats the current line-up are!”
And most everyone here would have been very happy. It made me cringe to have to see David and Glenn with Cheap Trick on stage playing music (and what a mess it was, under-rehearsed as everyone was), but not with Mk VIII. Deeply embarrassing as a DP fan. And I refuse to believe that either Don or Steve had any issues playing with Ritchie, David or Glenn.
The great majority of us are not in anybody’s camp, but appreciate DP’s colorful history through the decades. You can have your own favorite line-up or think that, of course, only Ritchie was God’s gift to the rock universe, there is still no need to denigrate other line-ups or members. The truth is that DP have never had a bad musician among their ranks at any time and were a (at least temporary) home to a wealth of talent throughout their history. I for one wouldn’t want to cancel a single album from their fabulous legacy. Now stone me.
September 14th, 2021 at 16:06My big question was why the hell was Nick Simper excluded from induction while Rod Evans was included?
September 15th, 2021 at 02:15Are the RROHOF people that dumb. The last time Evans was seen was in a courtroom because of his Bogus Deep Purple attempt at a tour, which he lost all his royalties from the first Mk 1 albums. Also, I know I’m venting but why are ELP and Jethro Tull not in the HOF when there are rappers in there?
Thank you guys. My name is Vikram, I was the one that interviewed Ian Gillan for my podcast Tales from the Road. The YouTube channel is new, the podcast streams on all major platforms, if you guys are interested. I have Steve Morse on in a few weeks, so if you had any questions for him id be happy to add that in. Thanks again.
September 15th, 2021 at 05:29Uwe Hornung@22
Wow what an amazing logical breakdown of events that could have taken place in R&RHOF with balanced fairness approach and no DP fan would dispute that it makes sense.
September 15th, 2021 at 07:56Ian Gillan is a hard nut to crack and he has since the departure of Ritchie in late 93 he is been getting what he wanted.
Even his comments about settling financial issues he had with Ritchie does shows that he has deep pockets and a good lawyer to backing him.
Still I think this is a bitter taste issue that neither Glenn or David will let go of it. So the battle rages on!!
Peace
Coverdian @ 20 – I am not sure why you mention Joe Satriani as a member of DP? He never was from my understanding of that brief cameo & he only agreed to help them out in a sticky situation. Correct me if I am wrong. Cheers.
September 15th, 2021 at 08:03Blackmore probably did the best thing – and not turn up
The RRHOF is a farce – Im surprised any of them bothered attending
Recognition for the fans? Really?
September 15th, 2021 at 08:03sidroman @ 23 – yes Nick Simpers ‘deliberate’ exclusion. It had to be deliberate one would think, I cannot believe it would have been a ‘mistake’ & that nobody subsequently rectified it. Was it as someone mentioned here a while ago, because Simper sued DP back in the day, or tried to from what I have read somewhere. I don’t know, has Simper said anything about it anywhere? Maybe he doesn’t give a rats about the hall, who can tell. It is an appalling omission, he was an integral member of the original DP for 3 albums. I agree about Tull & ELP also, well said. Cheers.
September 15th, 2021 at 08:46Tartan Terror@26: The lil’ Italian was more than a hired hand playing guitar, he reinstilled faith in DP that they could do it alone, without Ritchie (remember: the Tommy Bolin experience had not been good for Jon and Paicey). If the Satriani tour had floundered (I saw a gig, it wasn’t Ritchie, but it was good enough), they would have called it a day. In that respect he was pivotal that Mk VII and Mk VIII came into existence at all.
Besides, Joe had an offer to join DP. He turned it down because he had his solo career running (he’s not really a band person, see Chickenfoot’s demise) and also because – he admitted as much in an interview later – he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life with the shadow of Ritchie looming large behind him. He revered Ritchie too much for that, he said. But Satch still has fond memories of his time with DP and it was all very amicable. Unlike Ritchie, he is still allowed to share a stage with them too. ; – )
September 15th, 2021 at 09:21I believe Nick’s non-nomination was indeed a “clerical error”, but one the current Purple management could have easily rectified, had they cared for a second.
There is a difference in status between Nick and Rod: Nick was bought out in 1969, but Rod is still a member of the Mk I legal entity and receives royalties (probably to some trust account, considering how private a person he is), even if payments were suspended for many years as damage compensation following his ill-advised touring exploits in the early 80ies as “The Original Deep Purple”. But royalty payments have been resumed. So he was on the management’s list of former members, but Nick wasn’t. Let’s face it: Current Purple management does probably not feature a single person with whom the name “Nick Simper” rings a bell, much less who still remembers him personally.
(Which also explains why Nick Simper was the only DP guy not listed in the early 80ies newspaper ads of the swiftly acting DP management announcing that Evans’ bogus-Purple would not feature any other DP members playing. ALL Mk II members AND Glenn AND David were named in person, Tommy (he was dead) and Nick – he had fallen off the DP legal entity roster due to his settlement – were the only ex-DPs other than Rod Evans not listed.)
Still, that is no excuse, just an explanation for a huge cock-up/lack of monitoring. I wouldn’t blame the RRHoF though, they probably had no idea what they were doing. The snub vs. Nick – what would Hush be without his buoyant bass playing? – was inexcusable though. And that DP didn’t offer to buy him a first class ticket to the US and one of those 10.000 buck seats at the RRHofF tables (as some sort of consolation that they let him slip through the nomination process) a real cheap shot. You don’t treat your alumni like crap.
September 15th, 2021 at 10:0420:
September 15th, 2021 at 15:06First – it was all botched by RRHOF at the beginning – by weird selection of who was and who was not inducted. Fact that Nick was not included was pointed out, but oh my…. if Rod was inducted (from all recording members of DP he is the one who deserves it LEAST!), then its simply mindboggling that Steve and Don were not. Since THIS (not inducting Steve and Don) happened, its quite logic and natural, that Deep Purple got into logically annoyed and sort of “self-protecting” mode – put it into simple statement “we, means current lineup or nothing”. Glenn and David would not be able to perform without Ian, Don, Steve there too… so it was about making a compromise. AFAIK originally DP were expected to be closing number with all-star finale – where David and Glenn and Ritchie were invited to come up and join them, but later it was rescheduled – and Cheap Trick (who by the way worked as support group for Deep Purple on few tours IIRC… just think about it) were final act of ceremony. I suppose if Don and Steve were inducted (as they should have been and I am not even willing to lead discussion about it) I am sure, that band would be more open to perform with David and Glenn or Ritchie. But since that crazy decision was made (not inducting guys performing and recording with them for dozens of years, when Klinghoffer was inducted with RHCP as “new boy”), they had to ensure, that Deep Purple as they really are (since 2002) will be presented as united band – and others were meant to be their guests – and that´s a different between being seen as member of band (which Don and Steve are) and being seen as guesting former guys (that´s who would DC/GH/RB are). Keep on mind, in US, you have people who have no idea that this band still exists! That´s why I´m saying they have to make a clear line – who is Deep Purple and who is….
For all my personal love for Deep Purple, I can understand why someone might not like hard rock or find the musical drama in most DP songs repetitive (long solos etc). I can also understand that DP weren’t really an interesting band to write about, no mystique like Led Zep, a gentlemanly keyboarder with a slightly quaint classical music taste, a stern guitarist who wrecked his Strats as a showbiz gimmick, but wasn’t really counterculture. Little excess, no “tragically flawed artist”, no heroin chic (until Tommy died and that wasn’t glamorous at all). I get it that you might regard Blackmore’s trademark songwriting recipe that worked for Mk II and Mk III so well as a tad samey and one-trick-pony’ish: gargantuan guitar riff, doubled by the Hammond, sometimes even tripled by the bass with a relatively straight rhythm section underneath. Blackmore’s Machiavellian power politics in the band weren’t exactly headline news either, you can experience the same schemes as an office worker. And at the same time DP weren’t blue collar blokes like Status Quo either. All that I get.
But what I don’t get is how criminally underrated Gillan as a lyricist is/was. Compared to Plant’s and Geezer Butler’s fantastical escapism and Paul Rodger’s/David Coverdale’s monothematic “luv’ + sex + wimmin’ (not swimmin’, wimmin’!, wiiimmiiin!!!) + heartbreak” or Dio’s sword & sorcery tales, Big Ian is a lyrical giant and a highly witty observer of everyday life events and life’s manifold ironies. In fifty years of rock journos’ assembled writings about DP, no one has ever given – to quote the great John Bercow (I miss him!) – ‘a flying flamingo’ about Ian’s undeniable art with words. I find that infuriating. It sets DP Mk II/VII/VIII apart from nearly all other heavy rock bands unless you get into real esoteric stuff like Max Webster.
September 15th, 2021 at 17:19By the rules of the RRHoF, Don and Steve did simply not yet qualify for induction because their joining of the band had not been sufficiently historic, they hadn’t joined early enough so to say (and the fact that Steve has been longer with DP overall than Ritchie played no role; if the induction was, say, today he would qualify though, a case of right place, wrong time). I understand that Ian, Roger and Paicey found this frustrating and unjust, but what the hell did Glenn, David and Ritchie have to do with it? Ritchie didn’t hold a seance to keep Steve and Don out. (Well maybe he wanted to, but Candice talked him out of it.) None of the non-Mk VIII nominees had/has issues with Steve (Glenn once wanted to even found a band with him) or Don (Don has the honor of having played both on the most commercially successful Rainbow and the most commercially successful Whitesnake album, no Down To Earth or 1987 without him, he’s also one of the few Rainbow musicians that wasn’t even fired by the mischievous minstrel, but left because “it just wasn’t fun anymore”, never mind how Ozzy also paid better, we all have to eat).
September 15th, 2021 at 17:43Uwe @ 29 – do you really believe DP would have thrown the towel in if those few gigs they performed with
September 15th, 2021 at 21:31Satriani, or any other guitarist for that matter had ‘failed’ or had been cancelled? It allowed them to dodge a financial & logistical headache to put it mildly. Now I am not down playing another guitarists playing ability in that role at all, Satriani is technically a superb guitarist & a nice chap no doubt. Even if those gigs were cancelled, me thinks those 4 guys would have re grouped & hired someone as a permanent replacement, more than likely Steve Morse. Cheers.
The trouble with the hall of the mountain king, oh sorry I meant the R&R hall of so called fame, is that it smacks of incompetence & hypocrisy at certain times. This as an example of the time as in how long a member was a member of an inducted band. The Metal Lickers were inducted with Jason Newstead & also Robert Trujillo. Now how long had Trujillo been in that band at the time of induction, enough said there. I can understand the questions as to why Steve Morse wasn’t inducted, if Trujillo was, then Morse should have been also wouldn’t we think. It seems that there are favours for some & not for others, but I suppose that is the unfortunate way some business conduct their organisations in this suspect corporate world. This is the requirement, allegedly.
Quote from R&RHOF -“To be eligible for induction, artists have to had released their first record 25 years earlier and “have created music whose originality, impact and influence has changed the course of rock & roll,” according to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.12 May 2021″ “Nomination and induction into the Hall of Fame is not about popularity, records sales, which label the group is on, or anything other than the process below. The love for, the evaluation of, and the impact of any artist are subjective questions to be answered by the nominators and the voters. Unlike baseball, football, basketball or hockey, statistics are not relevant. Please read below:
The entire nomination and induction process is coordinated by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation in New York City. Individuals can be inducted in four categories: Performer, Early Influence, Non-Performer and Side-Men. The only formal criteria for the performance category is that an artist has to have had their first record 25 years ago. That said, candidates are reviewed and discussed relative to their impact on this music that we broadly call rock and roll. The innovation and influence of these artists is also critical. Gold records, number one hits, and million sellers are really not appropriate standards for evaluation”. There we have it folks, from the almighty! Cheers.
September 16th, 2021 at 09:4733: RHCP were inducted in 2012. Klinghoffer was inducted and he joined RHCP three years before that (in 2009) and released just one album with them at the time of induction (in 2011)….
September 16th, 2021 at 14:49@31 @36
Steve and Don weren’t inducted because after Perfect Strangers Deep Purple isn’t relevant anymore. They are online remembered for songs they recorded in the early 70s.
September 16th, 2021 at 17:46LOL, Theo@37, you’re gonna go …
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMbY45kFs7w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Bg4ujQKVfY
… for that comment: Collect wood for the pyre!!! Turn our member into ember. ; – )
September 17th, 2021 at 14:3937:
That´s absolute nonsense…
However there were two ways how to do induction correct. It should have been Mk2 lineup only or everyone.
September 17th, 2021 at 15:42@39
No it’s not.
Ask an average rockfan if he knows DP and if he can name some songs.
If he knows DP he will definately name Smoke, Black Night, Highway Star, Woman From Tokyo.
I listen a lot to rockstations, can’t remember I heard a DP song that was not by Mark II, one exeception Hush.
DP is, was and will always be my favourite band.
September 17th, 2021 at 18:46I love, like all incarnations, but after Purpendicular to me most of the albums are boring. Some great songs, but all too much mid paced, guitarsolos that sound the same most of the time.
To me the excitement is gone.
Theo @40. Yes unfortunately Classic Rock radio formats which have been dictated by corporate ivory towers, result in an over-playing of the old familiar Purple chestnuts.
I can say however that on satellite radio, on one station in particular, I do hear occasional songs from the various Marks…ie: album tracks from Fireball, Burn, Come Taste the Band, Perfect Strangers, Purpendicular, Rapture of the Deep, etc.
There is hope.
September 18th, 2021 at 04:0440:
1.) Now What?! charted best in decades. And albums after that did even better.
2.) I dont think RRHOF should be “average rock fan” committee. I suppose they do consider at least multiple aspects:
September 18th, 2021 at 10:10– DP did breakthrough with Mk2 lineup into “history of rock” – it was their job and then there was no reason to induct Rod or Glenn & David. No disrespect to them – but they simply drove on high wave made by Mk2. As good as Mk3/4 albums were, they were just “addition” to DP catalog and nothing groundbreaking in terms of overall music industry. (That was my point when I said that there were only two ways how to do it correctly – induct only Mk2 (as it is the really only lineup which made historic breaktrough or change into music industry) or all members).
– if they consider Deep Purple as “whole story” – by the way one of Deep Purple´s greatness is longevity and creativity through SEVEN DECADES (it itself is unique and significant aspect!), then you must consider all lineups. Deep Purple today (despite making very succesful albums) are not “industry changers” – but that´s not their role, they made their mark in history already. But they are very successful in aspect of gaining new fanbase (without Steve I would never become their fan and they would never become my band number one), they are still creative and albums they are doing are excellent (Now What?! is their best record since Machine Head in my opinion – superb masterpiece from very first to last second!). You cannot expect from me to agree with statement, that they are “irellevant” – as I became their fan because of the period you called “irrelevant”. They gain new audience, new fanbase – and they are superb exemplar how band with such a long career should be. Being able to release masterpiece like Now What?! after such a turbulent career alone deserves RRHOF induction. And they continue on high wave since then! In my opinion, Steve and Don deserved induction MUCH MORE than Glenn and David and in list of all Deep Purple members, I cant imagine anyone deserving it LESS, than Rod. I would rather see JLT inducted with DP in RRHOF than him. He was just lucky guy who was at the right place when one of the greatest bands in history was made – and before it really became big (breakthrough which started with Mk2). If he was inducted, EVERYONE who ever recorded with DP should have been.
What did poor Rod do wrong to earn such disdain? His voice supplied DP with a hit already on their debut album und it was characteristic of Mk I’s body of work.
Rod was a crooner, not a rock singer, but everyone knew that. He got the job because he sang Tonight from West Side Story so well at his audition – acapella. He wasn’t hired to be Robert Plant. Then DP’s music developed into a different direction – harder, sparser, more guitar-centric, less grandiose vanilla-fudge-arrangements -, at the same time, Robert Plant’s singing style made waves, it is what Ritchie wanted for the DP he envisaged.
Rod didn’t fit the new mold anymore, so he left graciously. He did nothing wrong. And his later life showed that perhaps he wasn’t cut out to be a rock star in the first place.
But his place in the RRHoF was fully deserved, his voice and singing style were pivotal for Mk I. and there would have been no Mk II without Mk I.
September 18th, 2021 at 13:39Rod´s contribution was nothing extraordinary – he was good singer, fine…. but as far as I know he did not participate in composing process very much (JLT was productive) and that pushed DP MkI down – they did lots of covers and their most interesting own material was Lord / Blackmore stuff. Plus huge minus of his are bogus Purple of course.
I mean – he did nothing special, everyone else could have been on his place and they would make same result like MkI did. The crucial point in DP history was Gillan/Glover joining. I dont see it as disdain – I am just pointing out that if Rod´s contribution to DP legacy was enough to induct him, then everyone elses contribution was enough, because everyone elses contribution to DP story was bigger.
September 18th, 2021 at 17:39Petr @ 44 – Without MK 1 there wouldn’t have been a MK 2, which part of logic & truth do you have difficulty in understanding? Nick Simper was a member of MK 1 & his deliberate omission is what the travesty is here in regards to the Hall of Shame, not Rod Evans induction. Evans was a deserved inductee & Simper also should have been. MK 3 may have been lucky in some aspects, well Hughes & Coverdale, however they still carried the torch so to speak, as that early era evolved at that time. Cheers.
September 18th, 2021 at 22:58It´s truth but credits are not enough for induction. You convert Mk2 success (there wouldnt be Mk 2? what credit Mk1 have? pure luck…) to Mark 1? Why? Mk I achieved minor success and nothing what would worth induction to RRHOF. Fact that MK2 evolved from that – it´s contribution of Mk2 not Mark1. Mark 1 was lucky that they were lineup “before” the breakthrough and main DP lineup. Pure existence of band (before it got big) is not valuable enough to being inducted in RRHOF. If I remember correctly Pete Best wasnt inducted with Beatles and Barry Mitchell was not inducted to any Hall of Fame with Queen. Yet Pete Best was drummer for Beatles and Barry Mitchell was bassist for Queen.
September 19th, 2021 at 08:22@46 good point! the RRHOF is about MK II plain and simple, IMO the current lineup has done way more to deserve admission than MK I. So it should have been all members of MK 1, 2, 3 & 8…..but that ship has sailed!
September 19th, 2021 at 10:53RE: Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; this says it all….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=TeAgssn3AQE
September 20th, 2021 at 00:10No real DP fan will dispute that the DP brand was forged by Mk II and that they were a blueprint for what was to follow. And it’s true that Rod Evans wasn’t Ian Gillan, but neither was the Ritchie Blackmore of Mk I the one of Mk II or Mk III. Had Gillan, Glover, Paice, Lord and Blackmore met in 1968, I don’t believe they would have recorded anything like In Rock. Blackmore, Lord and Paice needed time and experience to find their feet too – when Glover and Gillan joined, the others had advanced as musicians and the chemistry was finally right.
It’s the first I hear that Rod Evans wasn’t involved in Mk I’s creative process! He had a certain style of singing – not terribly adventurous or expressive and relying a lot on his full, pleasand, but hardly “rock” baritone, a bit 60ies pop even -, but when I hear DP Mk I and his vocal melodies with Captain Beyond,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI9VaBTxz18
the similarities are obvious (and for the record: the guys from Captain Beyond thought he was just right for the music they wanted to make). The lyrics of Mk I were also all his (as they were with Captain Beyond). Give the man some credit.
It’s also unfair to blame him for the amount of covers Mk I did. Jon came from The Artwoods who were skilled musicians, but nearly all their output was rhythm and blues covers. Ritchie came as a session guitarist from the Joe Meek hit machine and various (not very successful) backing bands to artists that did not do their own material. Nick came from Johnny Kidd & The Pirates, another outfit that did mostly American rhythm and blues covers. Same thing with The Maze, where Rod and Little Ian came from.
The fact of the matter is that when DP started, they did not have an established songwriter (individual or team) in their midst, their greatest birth defect. Nor did their admitted role model at the time: The Vanilla Fudge (essentially another covers band with at the time daring new arrangements; in so far Mk I’s focus on grandly rearranged covers too was part of their initial master plan).
Jon Lord was never a rock song writer (as he was the first to admit), Ritchie only BEGAN finding his feet as a songwriter on the third Mk I album. When Gillan and Glover joined otoh, they were starved for writing their own material because that had always been stifled in the cabaret act that was Episode Six. So it all came together only then, though the first official output of Mk II – the Hallelujah single and The Concerto – hardly held promise for the hard rock riff furnace with classical embellishments they would later on become.
September 20th, 2021 at 00:23Imho only Mark 2 and maybe 3 should have been inducted.
September 20th, 2021 at 14:43In fact only Mark 2 is relevant.
Since the last M2 breakup, the setlist consist for the most part of M2 songs. MkMorse know that the fans want to hear those songs. From the 7 albums recorded with Morse there aren’t many songs that stay long in their setlist.
Uwe @ 49 – well said. Dilligaf775 @ 48 – thanks for the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Lame song, good to hear. Cheers.
September 20th, 2021 at 20:39I read some comments here about Ritchie this and Ritchie that. Bear in mind whether all this “wide Deep Purple Family” would have performed together or not in the Rock of shameRicthie would have never bothered to show anyway. I mean cmon guys we have seen throughout the years even when he was in the band,he never bothered to turn up in the interviews and press conferences.Like Bg Ian said he lives in a world of Greesleves and all:
September 21st, 2021 at 00:32good for him and he is happy in what he does and let’s leave it that
“From the 7 albums recorded with Morse there aren’t many songs that stay long in their setlist.”
And no one regrets that more than I do! Mk VIII play anything well, but they excel at their very own stuff. I could live with just Mk VII/Mk VIII songs being played by the current line-up – with like three to five Mk II glory days tracks thrown in to keep the punters happy.
That is what I loved about the Purpendicular tour – they had so many fresh songs in their set-list then. I saw them in Hanau and it ranks among the best DP gigs of any line-up I’ve witnessed. People were truly amazed by Steve Morse’s ability that night, you could hear a pin drop during the quieter parts of his solo. I’d give my left nut to hear Rosa’s Cantina again.
September 21st, 2021 at 00:33@49 Hi Uwe
You are music to my ears. Have you seen or follow “Sea of Tranquility” He is a guy that writes mostly about Prog Rock but covers all kinds of genres of music, movies etc. He is a big deep purple fan and of course White snake and Dio? I have learned and broaden my taste of music a lot since I started listening to his show on youyube. He interviews a lot of od artists and he is great. I can totally see you as being part of the show with your knowledge.
I totally agree with you Ian Gillan is one of the most criminally underrated lyricist and he has knack with teh words and his tongue and cheek are hilarious
September 21st, 2021 at 00:50Hi Al@54: Sure, I love the Sea of Tranquility guy, and his opinions on bands and their individual albums almost always reflect mine. His outsize CD shelf kinda looks like mine too – great nerds collect alike!
To the despair of my wife, I still “do” CDs and cumbersome, remastered box sets (“reassuringly priced” for senior citizens that want to catch up with all those albums they couldn’t buy as kids due to the financial constraints of their allowance). I know I’m a dinosaur, but streaming does nothing for me. If I don’t have something on CD, it’s not in my collection – and music not contained on a hard medium in my collection is like radio to me, it’s there but not available to me in the way I want it.
Just listened to the 50th Anniv. Jesus Christ Superstar boxed set yesterday. That remaster is glorious in its rich detail and the hard cover book a treasure trove for the whole era – – with quite a few Ian Gillan interview snippets who considers JCS to be “among the ten best things I’ve done in my career”. I also never knew that Tony Edwards scrambled within an afternoon to offer a recording of DP’s Child in Time to Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber after he had first offered them another singer from his roster of artists which they deemed “too middle of the road”. They liked what they heard and Ian was then “auditioned” at an apartment with ALW playing a melody snippet from Gethsemane
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOjyGy1NR4Y
on the piano to him which TR told Ian “to extemporise in your own style” to which ALW fearfully hastened to add “Yes, but not too much!”. Needless to say, Ian sang a little at room volume and got the job. Both ALW and TR think his performance great to this day. It is. So much more organic, rawer and hence more credible than what Ted Neeley (a good singer, but not a natural beast like Ian) copied three years later for the soundtrack recording which was recorded in a much more time-consuming way.
September 21st, 2021 at 10:56@53
The same goes for me, but since they decided to play mostly M2 songs I decided to no longer go to see them. They have enough songs to fill an interesting setlist, but keep hanging on to the past.
September 21st, 2021 at 19:31It was Purple’s manager, Bruce Payne, who said no to the idea of Ritchie being at the Hall of Fame, not the band. Purple were happy to have Ritchie, David and Glenn get up for Smoke, Gillan even rang Coverdale about what was going to take place on the night. It seems to me that it was Ritchie who started stirring up bad feeling by saying to Coverdale that Purple said they didn’t want him there, and David probably got angry (and Glenn probably did the same) and perhaps decided that he wasn’t going to get on stage with Purple. David has said on a number of occasions that he doesn’t want anything to do with his former bandmates anymore (except Glenn), although that only really applies to Paicey. How anyone could be angry at someone like Roger is beyond me, he’s known to be one of the nicest people in the industry and I’ve never heard anyone have a bad word to say about him (same with Jon). Bruce Payne had no right to stick his oar in (and I can imagine Purple would have told him that, but unfortunately, as the former manager of Ritchie they have quite a bit of bad blood between them) but the band had nothing bad to say about Ritchie or anyone, it was only David and Glenn who got the right hump and threw their toys out of their collective pram. David and Glenn have a history of behaving like twats and it would appear they still can. Long live Purple, I look forward to the new album!
September 22nd, 2021 at 15:29RB @57
September 23rd, 2021 at 12:02With all respect to your comments but a bit of common sense rules sometimes.
A manager is employed by a band so a manager is only does what he is told. So by blaming a manager is a very childish way by the band for not to owning up to their actions and I only point out at Big Ian, Little Ian and Roger as Steve and Don are only happy to make the numbers.
Never under estimate the power and stubborness of Ian Gillan as he been doing things his own way since late 93 after Ritchie left.
And to be honest if it wasn’t for Ian Gillan the band would have disappeared and gone down the bin after Ritchie left so I have a great admiration towards that guy as he is the toughest nut to crack out all of them.
Ritchie missed out on an amazing pot of gold and wealth and instead he was short sighted and was happy to run away from the tour with a million while the rest were racking up amazing world wide tickets sales from one tour after the other for the last 28 years and still no sign of slowing down.
Ian Gillan got his way and he is putting his feet and and laughing at all this R@R induction fiasco 😂🤣😂
Peace and respect to you all
Adel @ 58 -I didn’t realise that it was all about the money, I must have missed something thinking musicians played music for enjoyment etc.
September 23rd, 2021 at 21:23“Ritchie missed out on an amazing pot of gold and wealth and instead he was short sighted and was happy to run away from the tour with a million while the rest were racking up amazing world wide tickets sales from one tour after the other for the last 28 years and still no sign of slowing down”.
Maybe there is a pot of gold somewhere else, like at the end of the Rainbow? Seriously though, how many people stay in a situation just for the money, there are plenty of course in this world who have to for various reasons. But to imply Blackers missed out on that huge pot of gold is, well ridiculous. How much does he rake in with royalties we think. That is if we are only interested in the money side of things. As to the ‘amazing’ world wide ticket sales year after year, enough said there. Oh & they are slowing down also, we all do if we live long enough. In regards to a ‘manager’, you may be surprised as to how much an influence one can have at certain times. Just trying to keep things in perspective. Be a good day. Cheers.
MacGregor@59
September 24th, 2021 at 17:40Points Taken on board for sure so no harm feelings.
After all ‘we all the same in the dark’!
Peace & Respect