A couple of years ago Ian Gillan spoke to A Breath of Fresh Air podcast. The interview was posted in March 2024 and until now stayed under our radar. It appears that it was done in the anticipation of the Australian tour that never happened. Continue Reading »

Here’s another one of them YouTube vocal coaches, who have never heard Child in Time. She starts with a promise to dissect and analyze the vocal performance and explain how to safely replicate it at home. Predictably, it ends up with the fairy lady blowing her mind up against the wall. It’s fun to observe how she gets from point A to point B. Bloody hell indeed! Continue Reading »

A couple of unconfirmed, but exciting dates in the Chicago area.

First, a one-off reunion of The Dead Daisies with Glenn Hughes have been announced. The show is booked for May 30, 2026, at the Arcada Theater in St Charles, IL.

Glenn will join Doug Aldrich, Tommy Clufetos and David Lowy for this rare, one-off performance delivering a thrilling 50/50 split set, kicking off with 10 of THE DEAD DAISIES’ favorite tracks followed by 10 iconic DEEP PURPLE classics.

Glenn’s solo show scheduled to take place at the same venue on April 11, 2026, had been “on the advice of the medical team” cancelled earlier this year, along with the rest of his extensive tour. Tickets for that cancelled show will be honoured for the May 30 performance.

Tickets go on sale on Friday, March 13 at 10 a.m. CST.

[Update Mar 13]: This Glenn Hughes/Dead Daisies reunion show has now been confirmed by both sides.

In even more exciting news, a Deep Purple show at the Ravinia festival in Highland Park, IL, has been announced on the festival site for August 25. Kansas is cited as support, and tickets are promised to go on sale April 23. Our fingers are crossed for more North American dates.

Thanks to Blabbermouth and Randy Engman for the heads-up.

Steve Morse spoke to the Mind Behind The Music podcast. From his first — almost broken in half — guitar, to the laws of gravity — it’s all there.

Dive into the remarkable journey of Steve Morse, the legendary guitarist whose work with Dixie Dregs, Kansas, and Deep Purple has helped shape progressive rock, fusion, and modern guitar artistry.

In this exclusive Mind Behind The Music interview, Steve Morse shares insights into his early musical development, compositional philosophy, career evolution, and the deeper mindset required to sustain a lifetime in music.

Originally recorded as a longer conversation, this interview highlights key reflections on creativity, discipline, musical identity, and the human element in music.

In other Steve Morse news, the official transcription book for his latest album Triangulation is now available from his merch store in electronic form, with a physical format “coming soon” via Amazon.

Thanks to SteveMorse.net fan site on both counts.

A new book is coming out in Japan on March 18, 2026, via publishing house Shinko Music. It is titles Deep Purple in Concerts and details live performances of the band throughout its history.

John Jon Lord’s 85th birthday is coming up!　And the 60th anniversary of the Deep Purple is just around the corner!
An inspiring rock history book that is on par with “Rainbow on stages” (published by Shinko Music in 2021), a rock history book loved by Rainbow fans!

The authors of the popular “Rainbow on Stages” have created a Deep Purple bible of 512 pages that depicts the real scenes of Deep Purple’s live performances.

From the first live of Mark I, which began in 1968, to the 2025 performance of Mark XI, which is the latest history at this point, this book analyzes the performances by meticulously reviewing existing sound sources, photos, literature, and video materials, including the set list, the sources of classical melodies inserted before and during the song, the content of the MC, and other notable occurrences.

In addition, never-seen stage shots from the Mark II and Mark IV in Japan will be generously released!

CONTENTS

Introduction

Historic Photo Collection MkⅠ~Ⅺ
The transition and inheritance of Deep Purple from photos of each period

Comprehensive Live Data and Commentary
Detailed explanation of history of Deep Purple’s live performances
MkⅠ（1968/4/20~1969/7/4）
MkⅡ（1969/7/10~1973/6/29）
MkⅢ（1973/8~1975/4/7）
MkⅣ（1975/6~1976/3/15）
MkⅤ（1984/5~1989/4）
MkⅥ（1989/10~1992/8）
MkⅦ（1992/8~1993/11/17）
MkⅧ（1993/12/2~1994/7/6）
MkⅨ（1994~2002）
MkⅩ（2002/3~2022/7/30）
MkXI ( 2022/9/16~Present )

Historic Photo Collection 1976〜1984
featuring Ian Gillan & David Coverdale
The activities of the years that Deep Purple was not in action

Column: Ritchie’s and Tommy’s Live Gear in Tours
Summary of Ritchie’s and Tommy’s gear from all tours Mark I to VII.

Many thanks to Akemi Ono for the info and help with translating the blurb.

German music site bonedo profiles Ian Paice. And while our regulars would find little new from the provided biography, details of his kit throughout the years may be of interest.

When Ian Paice joined Deep Purple in 1968, the then 19-year-old British drummer probably had no idea that a career with one of the greatest rock bands of all time lay ahead of him. Leaving aside the brief hiatus, the band has now existed for 58 years, and Ian Paice is the only founding member to have been part of every single lineup. More than enough reason, then, to delve into the story of this rock legend. Besides the various stages of his career, you’ll also find everything you need to know about Ian’s equipment at the end of the article. Enjoy the read!

Read more in original German, or in other languages courtesy of Google translations.

Thanks to Uwe for the heads-up.

Steve Morse sat down to chat with American Music Supply at the 2026 NAMM convention. Continue Reading »

Meanwhile, Classic Rock reviews another family box set — Rainbow’s The Temple Of The King 1975-76:

The tour rehearsal material, for all its historical value, is ruined by too much bass and distortion. But across six live discs – with just a little overlap with the band’s 1977 album On Stage – there is much for Rainbow connoisseurs to savour, including stunning performances of Stargazer and Do You Close Your Eyes.

As Dio himself said, with some satisfaction: “Ritchie and I wrote some really wonderful things”.

Read more in Louder Sound.

Get Ready to Rock has a much more in-depth review of the offering, including some quotes from Cozy Powell:

After the breakup of Strange Brew in 1975, Cozy Powell had quit the music industry and was tempted back by the Rainbow audition. And Cozy once told me: “Yes, I was number 80, or 77 or something like that. I’ve heard some funny stories about Ritchie being difficult with drummers.

Apparently this one guy came along, set the drum kit up, looked the part, got his suitcase out and changed next to the kit with this all black kind of outfit and black gloves. Eventually gets up and says he’s ready and Ritchie says ‘Get rid of him’. This poor guy doesn’t even play a note. I remember that audition. I got a phonecall on the Wednesday night from my tour manager and got the plane to L.A. in the morning.

Off the plane, check into the hotel and straight down to the audition, no time no nothing and a kit I’ve never even seen before. There were about 100 people in this sound stage looking at me like a golden boy they’ve just flown over from England at great expense. The first thing he said to me was ‘Can you play a shuffle?’ How about this and BANG! started playing this shuffle and 20 minutes later ‘You’ve got the job”.

Read more in Get Ready to Rock.

Get Ready to Rock reviews the upcoming Ian Gillan Band box set Down The Road: The Complete Ian Gillan Band Story, now due out apparently at the end of March.

Another wonderful package, two fold out card cases with a 7” booklet that is well annotated. Bonus artwork includes both UK and Japanese editions of Budokan, and the USA alternate sleeve for Scarabus. Top marks there.

While there may not be a great deal new for the collector, it’s a great set in that the mastering is good and everything is brought together in one place. Decent packaging too (although the outer case is flimsier than some). Still, well worth the money. ****

Read more in Get Ready to Rock

Guitar Player has an undated interview with Ritchie Blackmore, where he discusses searching for the perfect guitar tone back in the day.

“It’s interesting to note that Jim Marshall didn’t know much about amplifiers,” Ritchie Blackmore says. “And yet he knew how to design something that caught on like crazy. This is a similar situation with Leo Fender, who never played a guitar.”

Blackmore knows something about the gear created by Marshall and Fender. After all, he played Marshall amps throughout his tenures with Deep Purple and Rainbow, and he’s used Fender Stratocaster guitars for nearly his entire career, including today with Blackmore’s Night.

But he never thought either man built the perfect gear.

Continue reading in GuitarPlayer.com.