Hard Rock Casino in Biloxi, Ms. USA
August 29th, 2014

Anybody out there touting the level of performance of this Living, Breathing, Purple machine either hasn’t attended their recent tour or if they have attended and are still in disapproval, they are truly in denial. I attended the show at the Hard Rock Casino in Biloxi, Ms. On August 29th, 2014, 3 days after my Birthday….. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!!
One thing that is evident, they are playing for keeps. Gillan has figured out finally that it isn’t necessary to attempt all of the High end peak screams and notes. This is FANTASTIC. He paces himself and hits it where he wants and it has given him a whole new level in regards to overall performance quality. In other words, less is more. Yes as others here have stated, he goes low sometimes instead of high. Yes, sometimes he talks a verse instead of sing. Yes sometimes he skips a scream or a line. That is something that all performers do when working their craft. He has done that back in the past as well. The proper note is used at the lower register which completes the verse and it works…..VERY WELL!

It gives a different perspective to a song that has been played over and over which I find to be a positive thing. Who wants the song to sound exactly like the original? An imbecile that’s who. Just push play! It’s actually quite an art to go back and forth from the high to the low register and hit the proper note which blends with the proper tone. Every first rate singer does it. I did it when I was in my band. It is the answer to dealing with vocal cord glitches that happen when they are over exposed to pushing notes. Hell, Elvis was the KING and he used that technique quite often. Sometimes it isn’t due to dealing with the inability to hit the note but because the singer just wishes to change things up for the fun of it (Been there done that too). Just as the guitarist (good guitarist) may change a note here and there to change things up. Something Gillan should have been doing for a long time instead being the hardhead and pushing himself beyond what was necessary and coming up short or off key, probably due to succumbing to the hard core critics. Glad he is doing it and I hope he continues. This will allow for a longer future for Purple to exist. He is taking care of his voice and it shows. He was in fine form and sang his ass off……. VERY WELL! He hit the notes he sang. PERFECT! Hats off to you Sir!

Time now for the review of the show and such.
One thing that we noticed right off the bat was the advertisement for the show. Billboard signs on the highway, lit up marques, signs posted on the local roads, ads in the entertainment magazines. You name it, they did it. This is what has been missing from the promoters for a long long time. We took a few pics in front of the signs too and printed them out to take along for signing after the show if it were to happen. As for the show, well here we go. Well, since I started off with Gillan for some reason, here is another thing I noticed that is also giving him some breathing and recoup room. Set list and extended play. Something I have been recommending for a long time. Pick songs more suited for the voice and even songs with less singing. Well that’s what we got with this set list and it WORKS VERY WELL! The Mule, Lazy, Contact Lost, Well Dressed Guitar, plus the 4 musicians each do a solo or 2. Great breathers for Mr. Gillan and well deserved.

It actually takes it back to the 70’s. Gillan did a lot of standing around while the band played on back then. Well guess what, it worked then and it works now. Steve and Don are taking a much more aggressive part in this band. They stand out now and it is evident they are no longer “The New Guys”. Much more improve between them and the sound of this band is all it’s own, thanks to them doing so. Paicey and Roger? What can you say about these 2, other than the fact that they are the true foundation and rock that holds the rhythm as no others in the business and their presence is as vital as the others. This band is a true dynamic machine that is without a doubt a no holds barred force. As many have stated here, I too was disappointed at the dropping of the “Now What” tunes. The 3 they kept worked so well with the set list. A couple more would have boosted it even more. The opener was Highway Star. Fine. That didn’t mean they had to drop Après Vu. Keep it in and move it back that’s all. There was no opening band. Purple were the sole performance. They had 2 days off prior. A 15 song set is uncalled for at any rate and under this circumstance, deplorable. Their jamming and solos did bring the concert to a 1 hour and 45 minute time period which is only 15 minutes short of my 2 hour minimum expectation. So at least it wasn’t that short as some have been in the past (90 minutes or less), but keeping 3 more of the Now What or other MK7/8 tunes in the set would have put the time at the 2 hour mark which is what a band of this caliber and legacy of albums and years of existence should be playing as a minimum. Especially with the premium price of the tickets on this tour of $75.00 to $115.00.

I’m glad they were able to pull in the sales, but I also feel there should be a longer show. The crowd was truly energized. Though there is a lot of dead time, but I think I understand it. This is not a Head Banging, Mosh Pit band. The folks are genuinely mesmerized at the music these guys play. Hard to hear and see when one is dancing, waving, jumping and screaming. I for one find myself just watching in disbelief and in pure appreciation of their playing. Everyone I spoke to after the show was blown away. Not doing a song by song review here. The set list was the same as with the previous dates on the tour. One thing I noticed a couple of times were when Don Airey was off key during a couple of tunes and Steve turned and gave him the signal and direction with a smile bringing it all back. AWESOME live moment. The band is playing really tight and well, yet they sometimes hit wrong notes and played by the seat of their pants…. PURFECT!

We were right up front toward the left side in front of Roger. I had taken a bunch of stuff to get signed in anticipation of taking part in the after the show meet. I didn’t receive my pass due to a communication glitch and it looked grim. I spoke to the Ticket staff and advised them to contact Roger but they said there was nothing they could do. We did get Comp tickets though for some reason. While the band played on, Roger spotted us, smiled and made a gesture to go back stage. This was while they were playing. I couldn’t believe it. We didn’t have our passes, but Roger seemed as though he was going to make it happen. I took lots of pictures during the show (some are submitted here). Took along my Gillan Glory Road alternate LP cover for him to sign and see along with other stuff aimed at each band member. When the show was over we looked for the Meet and Greet line. Ran into a couple of folks with the passes and they had no clue where to go. As time passed, they were all scrambling around trying to find out something but nobody seemed to have any info. I looked as though they weren’t going to do it. Then we went up stairs to the second level and looked around. I poked my head into a double swing door that said ‘Staff Only’ and there were 2 people standing outside a door down the hall. I asked if this was where the Meet and Greet was and the dude came toward me demanding a pass. I advised I didn’t get mine and asked him to get Roger. As I was speaking to him Roger came out into the hall and spotted us. He came up and told the dude it was OK and that we were his guest. He then gave me a big hug and actually apologized for something that happened back in 2011, the last time we saw them at the Ravinia Park in Chicago.

After the show, he and Don were the only ones to attend the Meeting and they were rushed to leave due to scheduling. He invited us to catch up with them at the pub in the Hotel they were staying in. We went, but the pub was closed and we had no way of contacting each other so it didn’t happen. He actually remembered that incident and had wanted to apologize for the mess up all this time. Who would have thought he would remember such a nominal moment which happened over 3 years ago? Not me, that’s for sure. I was totally awestruck. That’s the nature of the man, Roger Glover. A truly humbled and absolute gem of a person. Hell of a Bass player too…..

As with the Ravinia in 2011, Roger and Don were the only ones to make it to the meeting. There were around 6 of us Fans in attendance. One of which was Brent, the dude who runs the Deep Purple Hub who has no problem making it loud and clear that HE IS THE FOUNDER. I believe there probably were supposed to be more folks, but they probably gave up trying to find out where to go. We got to speak to Roger and Don for quite a while. They constantly asked if anybody wanted anything to drink and would run out and bring it. Beer, wine, water. Even sandwiches. …. Amazing! It’s very strange being served by the Stars of the Show. Actually got side tracked regarding my signing objective due to the great conversation. We chatted about the New Album coming and he was really exited about it. Made it clear that it won’t be a ‘Follow Up’. It will have yet another approach. As he states, he loves how NOW WHAT turned out. He says he actually plays it and listens to it, which is something he says he usually doesn’t do regarding their albums. He is really proud of it. He stated that the next one will have its own sound. I stated that I couldn’t agree more about not trying to do it again. But then that is the nature of the Living, Breathing Deep Purple. No 2 albums sound alike. Always a different approach. This is what makes them so awesome. He said the tour was really doing well and the reception has been great here in the States. He also stated that they will more than likely do it again. Biloxi was sold out and most of the other venues were also. I had asked about the others and Roger stated Gillan was done for the night and that he is taking care of himself these days. They were due in Orlando, FL. the next day and time was short so Steve and Paicey were calling it a night also. That being said as usual though, Roger and Don come through for the fans. Again, a testament to his appreciation for what he does and to those whom spend the money, effort and time to go to their gigs. I managed to get a couple of things signed though at the end and a picture with them both. Don stated he was going to head down to the pub on the first floor of the Casino when he left and invited us to pop in. So we did, and I got a picture sitting and chatting with him at the bar. He stated that he has a Classical Album coming out soon and that he loves being in Purple. Says it pays the bills…… and then chuckled. He generally heads down to a pub to have a beer or a glass of wine, watch a little sports if there is a TV and unwind after a gig. We didn’t want to encroach too much into his private time, so we said our farewell headed back to our humble abode. Well, I didn’t get the Gillan thing signed, so I guess it will have to wait till they tour the next album. Hard to fathom the fact that yet another Deep Purple Album is in the works and another tour to follow. There truly is a GOD ALMIGHTY!

?Ch-BeerZ!

Tracy (Zero the Hero) Heyder

On 20 October 2014, Eagle Rock Entertainment release “Live In Verona” by Deep Purple on DVD and Blu-ray[Cat Nos EREDV0121 and ERBRD5218]. This amazing performance includes “Smoke On The Water,” “Lazy,” “Strange Kind Of Woman,” “Perfect Strangers,” “Highway Star,” “Woman From Tokyo” and many more.

Filmed in the spectacular surroundings of the Arena di Verona, a Roman amphitheatre originally built in 30 AD, this concert from the summer of 2011 sees Deep Purple joined on stage by a full symphony orchestra for performances of all their classic tracks.Deep Purple remain one of the finest hard rock bands on the planet and are undoubtedly at their best when performing live.

The line-up for this show features Ian Gillan (vocals); Ian Paice (drums); Roger Glover (bass); Steve Morse (guitar); Don Airey (keyboards). As bonus features we include two extra tracks, “Hush” and “Black Night” recorded that night.

TRACKLISTING

1) Deep Purple Overture 2) Highway Star 3) Hard Lovin’ Man 4) Maybe I’m A Leo 5) Strange Kind Of Woman 6) Rapture Of The Deep 7) Woman From Tokyo 8) Contact Lost 9) When A Blind Man Cries 10) The Well Dressed Guitar 11) Knocking At Your Back Door 12) Lazy 13) No One Came 14) Don Airey Solo 15) Perfect Strangers 16) Space Truckin’ 17) Smoke On The Water

On “Live In Verona” the orchestral arrangements give an added depth and range to the familiar songs and the band respond to both playing with the orchestra and performing in such a historical location to deliver a brilliant show in front of a huge and enthusiastic crowd.

It’s widely known that Scandinavia is a good market for Purple and apparently their popularity extends all the way into the royal families. In Norway, crown prince Haakon joined a local band at their gig and played Smoke on the Water.

His wife, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, who was in the audience, was less enthusiastic and was seen putting her fingers in her ears, according to The Local.

Thanks to Chris Blackmore for the link.

Ian Paice will feature with Purple tribute band Purpendicular on three of their European dates this October. This will be Ian’s third stint with the band.

October 7th – Sono Centrum – Brno – Czech Republic
October 8th – Riffelhof – Burgrieden (Ulm) – Germany
October 9th – Uhlenspiegel – Rutesheim (Stuttgart) – Germany

Purpendicular are touring accross Europe in support of their upcoming new album ‘tHis is is tHing#1’.

Ian Paice features on the album on a track called ‘Somebody Done It’, which will most likely get an airing at the shows together with surprises from DP Mk3 and other obscurities.

Purpendicular’s album ‘tHis is the tHing#1’ will also feature Don Airey, Steve Morse, Roger Glover, Ian Paice and Neil Murray.

For more details incl ticket info, please visit: www.purpendicular.eu

Deep Purple live at Hard Rock Live (Hollywood, USA 2014-08-31)

The gang was great tonight. Same set list as previously posted for other concerts on this tour. They were tight and the sound was great. No opening act, which I thought was odd. Eddie Trunk from Metal Show introduced band. They went on at 7:15pm. Took my 21 year old daughter who loved the show. Show was over at 9pm. This was my 5th time seeing Purple, but my last. Just can’t spend $85 a ticket to see a concert thats over at 9pm. Without an opening act, they should be playing a 3 hour set. They certainly have enough material. Always my favorite band, but as Dylan said. Times – they are a changin! Morse and the gang were great! Keep rockin! But I am afraid my last time!

review by Mitch Lesovoy

An hour long documentary on Made in Japan will air on the UK TV channel BBC4 starting at 9:15pm this Friday, September 12. The film was directed by Ian Carmichael and produced by Drew Thompson. Judging by the BBC’s promo blurb, our guess is that it’s the same documentary that was released on the 4CD+DVD edition of the 40th anniversary remaster.

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Deep Purple’s groundbreaking double live album Made in Japan, this documentary explores these recordings and Deep Purple mark 2, the line-up between 1969 and 1973.

The film highlights the mark 2 period of this classic British rock band featuring the classic line-up of Ian Gillan, Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord, Roger Glover and Ian Paice with a focus on the recording of the album Machine Head in Montreux, Switzerland in late 1971; the friction that developed within the band as a result of this recording and their incessant touring of the world in general and North America in particular; and the live recordings of the band’s first Japanese tour in August 1972, released that December in the UK as Made in Japan, a Number 1 UK album. Lars Ulrich of Metallica has cited Made in Japan as his favourite album of all time.

Featuring previously unseen exclusive footage, this film promises to uncover the meaning behind the song Smoke on the Water, known for one of the most iconic riffs in rock history, and to reveal the background to the mystery that lies behind the three nights in Osaka and Tokyo during the recording of the live Made in Japan album from 1972.

The showing will be repeated on Saturday, September 13, at 0:15am, and Monday, September 15, at 1:00am.

Thanks to Jonathan Earnshaw and Garry Mccormack for the info.

The record company has posted Space Truckin’ from the upcoming Live in Verona video release, which is due on October 20.

Track list has also been made public:

1. Deep Purple Overture
2. Highway Star
3. Hard Lovin’ Man
4. Maybe I’m A Leo
5. Strange Kind Of Woman
6. Rapture Of The Deep
7. Woman From Tokyo
8. Contact Lost
9. Guitar Solo
10. When A Blind Man Cries
11. The Well-Dressed Guitar
12. Knocking At Your Back Door
13. Lazy
14. No One Came
15. Keyboard Solo
16. Perfect Strangers
17. Space Truckin’
18. Smoke On The Water

Note that the encores (Hush and Black Night) are conspicuously missing. Saving them for a “deluxe” edition due next year, eh? 😉

Thanks to Blabbermouth for the info.

Ian Gillan sang Smoke on the Water at the Guitars on the Beach festival in Lyme Regis, UK, this Saturday, September 6. BBC reports that he was joined by 3,325 guitarists, which didn’t quite beat the world record of 6,546 (helped to set by Steve Morse in Poland 2009), but only a national one. Local fishermen provided the smoke 😉

The event raised between £6,000 and £7,000 for local charities.

Thanks to Andrey Gusenkov (deep-purple.ru) for the info.

Roger Glover guested on the Noize in the Attic podcast on August 29. And although a lot of material was covered in the lengthy interview, what made waves around the ‘net as far as The Guardian was, obviously, the Hall of Fame bit (we’ve covered what he thinks on the matter before).

Use your favourite player to listen to the podcast (MP3, 155M) or the embedded the player below. The interview segment starts around 29 minute mark and continues for about 50 minutes, with music. (On a side note, Smoke was not played; it was Into The Fire, Hell To Pay, Meanstreak, No One Came and Wicked Ways, with a Judas Priest track thrown in for a good measure.)

Thanks to Blabbermouth and Andrey Gusenkov (deep-purple.ru) for the info.

PS. And kudos to the band’s publicist (or whoever did the job) on this past North American tour. Lots of interesting, well researched, in depth interviews, done by knowledgeable people, with very little to none of the “Mr. Grover, Mr. Gillian, you must’ve made a million” stuff.

Deep Purple live at Hard Rock Live (Hollywood, USA 2014-08-31)

Now it was onward to Hollywood after a tremendous show in Orlando. Hoping this show would match the intensity of the night before. Well, the band was great. Gillan did crack a couple of times but overall the music was again wonderful. But we left with that feeling that something was missing. we discussed and came up with the answer. The crowd. The crowd up front was not as into it as the night before. Being part of the pre-sale I was hoping for seats up close. They just weren’t available at all. Don’t know who got them, but clearly not fanatic purple fans. There were a few, but most everybody else was more concerned with taking photos or video than actually listening to the music and paying attention to the people on stage. I think the band noticed too. I was 7 rows back and all you could see was arms up in the air holding their phones up. Still the band played great. I sure hope they go ahead and make that new CD and start a tour right back here in the states. I can’t wait to see them again. They truly are one of the greatest rock bands ever. Thanks again to Deep Purple for 2 shows that were quite memorable.

Del Ferguson,
Holiday, Fl.

review by Del Ferguson