British publisher Rufus Stone Limited Editions has announced an upcoming Deep Purple at the California Jam book being prepared for publication some time autumn this year. The book will include hundreds of black and white and colour images, many of them previously unpublished, and a lengthy essay on the show, it’s build up and aftermath. The text will be supported by collection of rare memorabilia including internal documents, set-lists, passes, posters, tickets and even the repair bills for the TV camera. The book will be available in a 300 page 12″ by 12″ deluxe edition, with a more affordable version also being planned.

Book preparation has been coordinated by Darker Than Blue, so they have the inside scoop in Simon’s blog.

The publisher has also set up a website where one can register to receive updates by email.

Thanks to BraveWords for the info.

Dutch label Music On Vinyl (the same guys who have released Purpendicular vinyl) will release Slave and Masters on vinyl on May 28. Track list will be identical to the original vinyl release.

Catalog # : MOVLP505
Barcode : 8718469530519
Format : LP, 180 gram
Sleeve : 3mm
Release date : 2012-05-28

Thanks to Peter Nikolakakos for the info.

Further details of the upcoming Blackmore’s Night live album A Knight In York have been revealed.

Track listing:

1. Locked Within The Crystal Ball
2. Gilded Cage
3. The Circle
4. Journeyman
5. World Of Stone
6. The Peasant‘s Promise
7. Toast To Tomorrow
8. Fires At Midnight
9. Barbara Allen
10. Darkness
11. Dance Of The Darkness
12. Dandelion Wine
13. All The Fun Of The Fayre
14. First Of May

The Band:

• Candice Night: Lead vocals, Renaissance wood winds, pennywhistles and tambourine
• Ritchie Blackmore: Electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin, mandola, hurdy – gurdy
• Earl Grey of Chimay: Bass, rhythm guitar
• Bard David of Larchmont: Keyboards and vocals
• Squire Malcolm of Lumley: drums and percussion
• Gypsy Rose: Violin and harmony vocals
• Minstrel Albert: Various medieval woodwinds
• Autumn: Special Guest

Formats:

• DVD + CD Digipack (CD rack size) – UDR0200 DVD+CD
• DVD (Amaray) – UDR 0203DVD
• CD (Jewel Case) – UDR 0204CD
• Double Vinyl LP 12“ (Gatefold) – UDR 0205LP
• Blu-Ray – UDR 0206BR
• Digital (audio) – UDR 0207
• Digital (video) – UDR 0208
• D2C – UDR 0209BOX

Promo track Fires at Midnight:

A Knight In York will be released in Europe on June 29 via Sony/Ariola.

Thanks to Blabbermouth for the info.

Music Radar has a Steve Morse’s interview with the focus on his old guitar — a Telecaster body with a Strat neck and innards from hell, lovingly referred to as the Frankencaster — the one that he used before Music Man came up with his signature instrument:

…I was helping out a friend in South Carolina, doing a session. Instead of money, I was paid with a guitar – a black Telecaster with a maple neck. It had the regular Tele lead pickup in it and a PAF-type humbucker from a 335 in the neck. There was a lipstick pickup in the guitar case – the previous owner had removed it.

At the time, I didn’t think too much of it. I kind of assessed it like this: The guitar feeds back; it doesn’t tune; the maple neck is too slippery to play when my hands are sweaty; and one of the presets on the three-way switch makes no sense – it has a capacitor, which takes away all the high end. I was baffled as to why people thought Telecasters were so great.

There were a lot of things I could do, though, and I sort of looked at the guitar – all this wide-open space on it – as a blank canvas. Anything was possible.

Read more on Music Radar.

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Back in March Ian Paice played a couple of shows with a European tribute band Purpendicular. The band produced a video with a short interview with the maestro and their live take on Lazy:
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Blackmore’s Night will release a new live album called A Knight in York recorded last Fall at the Opera House in York, England. Darker Than Blue reports that the album will be available in several formats: DVD, blue ray, CD, and triple vinyl. European release date has been set for June 29 via Sony/Ariola.

Ian paice will appear among guest musicians on the new album by a British metal band Jettblack. He appears on the track Feel The Love, which is already available from Amazon UK. The album itself is called Raining Rock and is due for release in the UK on June 4.

Thanks to Classic Rock Magazine for the info.

Flying Colors, the “supergroup” with Steve Morse, Dave LaRue and Mike Portnoy, have announced a string of tour dates in September: two dates in the U.S. (one in California and one in New York City), followed by another eleven in Europe. Support for the European dates is a Swedish prog band Beardfish. Tickets for most of the shows just went on sale. More details in our calendar.

Thanks to Daniel Bengtsson for the info.

Latest issue (No. 9) of the interactive iGuitar magazine has a special feature on Steve Morse with text, pictures and video. The video inteview alone lasts for almost an hour, so set aside some time and dig in. And don’t forget to check out the “Cracking the Morse Code” feature with the insight of Steve’s technique which starts on page 42.

Ian Gillan and Toni Iommi’s charity project WhoCares will release a compilation (with a few rarities thrown in) on June 22 via earMusic. Geoff Barton of Classic Rock Magazine spoke to Big Ian about the project:

Tell us about some of the stuff on the WhoCares album, beginning with the Repo Depo track.

Repo Depo dates back to 1991 or 1992. It was a three-piece – well, four, including me – very hard rocking band. We had Brett Bloomfield on bass, Leonard Haze (Y&T) on drums, and Dean Howard was the guitar player. Dean was in various incarnations of my touring bands over the years. I suppose you could call Repo Depo a kind of offshoot of the Gillan band. There are various bits and pieces of Repo Depo on YouTube, I believe. I haven’t seen them myself but Brett keeps sending me messages saying: “You must watch this, it’s awesome, man.” We must have been together a year or more. They were all staying at my house when I lived in Buckinghamshire, between tours. But then I decided to return to Deep Purple for The Battle Rages On album. I was unable to resist the clarion call.

Ian also confirmed Bob Ezrin as the producer of the new album:

To close, we simply must talk about Deep Purple. It’s true that Bob Ezrin is producing your new album?

It looks that way. I’m not sure I’m allowed to say anything until contracts are signed but it seems… let’s put it this way, I’m booking a flight out to Nashville on June 23. So I’m sure he will be [producing], yes.

June 23 is when you’re going to kick off the recording?

The whole thing, the writing and everything, yes. We’ve got six weeks to do it.

Read the whole thing in Classic Rock Magazine.

WhoCares compilation track list:

1. WhoCares – Out Of My Mind (from the CD single of the same title)
2. Ian Gillan feat, Iommi, Paice and Glover – Trashed (from Gillan’s Inn)
3. Black Sabbath – Zero The Hero (from Born Again)
4. Deep Purple – Dick Pimple (unreleased Deep Purple studio out-take from Purpendicular)
5. WhoCares – Holy Water (from the WhoCares single)
6. Black Sabbath – Anno Mundi (from Tyr)
7. Ian Gillan – She Thinks It’s A Crime (first time on CD or digital)
8. Tony Iommi feat. Glenn Hughes – Slip Away (previously only available digitally)
9. Ian Gillan – When A Blind Man Cries (live acoustic at Absolute Radio, unreleased)
10. Garth Rockett aka Ian Gillan – No Laughing In Heaven (live)
11. Ian Gillan feat. Mikhalis Ratzinkis – Getaway (available only on deleted vinyl LP)
12. Tony Iommi feat. Glenn Hughes – Let It Down Easy (Japanese bonus track of the album Fused)
13. Ian Gillan And The Javelins – Can I Get A Witness
14. Repo Depo – Easy Come Easy Go (unreleased)
15. Deep Purple feat. Ronnie James Dio – Smoke On The Water

Two more tracks are to be confirmed:

• Gillan/Glover – Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave Me
• Gillan – Don’t Hold Me Back

Thanks to Martin Johannessen for the heads up and to Ultimate Classic Rock for additional info.