As many of you probably know by now, Don Airey’s latest non-DP project, A Light In The Sky was released a short while ago. What you may not be aware of is that The Highway Star has a feature on it, which we hope to add material to in the near future.

One of those things is a Q&A with Don about it, so if you have questions you would like to have answers for, let us know what they are. We’ll include the best ones with the ones we have for him, and then publish his responses in the feature.

We’re also interested in your reviews of the recording — if they’re more than a few lines, please email them to me directly (at editorinchief@thehighwaystar.com) rather than posting them as very long comments.

Ian Gillan will be among the artists paying tribute to the late Jeff Healey at the first of the two memorial concerts in Toronto on May 3. This first show, on May 3, will focus on Healey’s contribution to blues and rock and will feature Jack Bruce, Randy Bachman, Colin James, Alannah Myles and Healey’s backup band, Jazz Wizards, alongside with Gillan. The second show on May 4 will be dedicated to the jazzier side of the multitalented musician.

Proceeds from the shows will go to the Healey Family Trust and to Daisy’s Eye Cancer Fund, a charity that assists the families of children with retinoblastoma, the rare cancer that claimed Healey’s sight when he was one year old.

Tickets for both events go on sale this Friday, April 11.

Thanks to CBC.ca, Blabbermouth.net and Daniel Bengtsson for the info.

Interview with Jon Lord appeared on Zermatt.ch to coincide with his performance at the Zermatt Unplugged Festival on April 9. He’s now not only the Ambassador for Hell, but also for Zermatt 😉

What were your main reasons for leaving Deep Purple?

We had a great time, but after 30 years I wanted to see what things were like outside the bubble. We were still on tour for so many months that I never had enough time to put my various projects into practice. Now I have all the freedom I need and use it!

What do you miss most about your former life?

The camaraderie. Although we are still friends, we see each other much less and as a result the friendship is no longer so intense. Whenever we had to wait in the hotel, the dressing room, at the airport or in the bus, we found it great that we had the same sense of humour. And of course I enjoyed performing in front of 10,000 fans and feel the energy of hard rock.

What can visitors expect of your performance in Zermatt?

I will mainly play calmer material with the 11-member Gemini Band from my recent solo CDs “Pictured Within” and “Beyond the Notes”, some songs from the ’76 LP “Sarabande” and perhaps a Deep Purple song if I find one that works unplugged too.

Read the whole interview here.

Thanks to Knut for the info.

According to the students of the London Tech Music School, Smoke on the Water riff is still the greatest of all times:

1. Smoke On The Water – Deep Purple (1973)
2. Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana (1991)
3. Walk This Way – Aerosmith (1975)
4. Purple Haze – Jimi Hendrix (1967)
5. Sweet Child O Mine – Guns N Roses (1987)
6. Paradise City – Guns N Roses (1987)
7. Ace Of Spades – Motorhead (1980)
8. Enter Sandman – Metallica (1991)
9. Under The Bridge – Red Hot Chilli Peppers (1992)
10. Welcome To The Jungle – Guns N Roses (1987)
11. Run To The Hills – Iron Maiden (1982)
12. Walk – Pantera (1992)
13. Johnny Be Goode – Chuck Berry (1958)
14. Back In Black – AC/DC (1980)
15. Immigrant Song – Led Zeppelin (1970)
16. Wake Up – Rage Against The Machine (1992)
17. Highway to Hell – AC/DC (1979)
18. My Generation – The Who (1965)
19. 7 Nation Army – The White Stripes (2003)
20. Born To Be Wild – Steppenwolf (1968)
21. Give It Away – Red Hot Chilli Peppers (1991)
22. Paranoid – Black Sabbath (1970)
23. Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) – Jimi Hendrix (1967)
24. Eye Of The Tiger – Survivor (1982)
25. Money For Nothing – Dire Straits (1984)

Thanks to Reuters and George Kikonishvili for the info.

In his recent interview to Vintage Rock, Glenn Hughes commented on the California Jam (among many other curious things past and present):

I know the California Jam was one of your first gigs with Purple in the States. What else do you remember about that day?

Just another day at the office to me, I don’t know. The day before, I spent with Tony Iommi and Ozzy doing lines and drinking beer. We were up all night and Sabbath played before us at Cal Jam. I remember flying in on the helicopter with Coverdale, looking down at the audience, and Sabbath were on stage. We flew in there and… I don’t mean to make this sound grandiose, but I knew that show was going to be a great Glenn Hughes moment. I just felt like I was born to play at events like this. I was 22-years-old. I just felt, “You know — I feel real good today. And I’m gonna go out there and I’m gonna give a go.” And you know, I think it was a really good statement and testament.

Read the whole interview here.

Thanks to Daniel Bengtsson for the info.

Link to the review of John Lord’s concerto with the APO.

Here’s a very decent quality video of this rarely performed track from early in the Purpendicular tour. March 23, 1996, Brussels, Belgium:
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Joe Lynn Turner with Brazen Abbot and Whitesnake are to appear at the Magic Circle Festival in Germany this summer. It’s a heavy metal festival that will take place on July 9-12 in Bad Arolsen. The exact schedule is not announced yet, so we will post these appearance in our tour dates as soon as this is finalized.

Don Branker, the co-producer and stage announcer for 1974 California Jam and 1978 California Jam II, was a guest on the March 15, 2008 edition of WPMD.org’s “Rock 50” radio show with Mike Stark. According to Mike, Don told “some great stories about both events including Deep Purple’s trashing of a television camera and a backstage story about Aerosmith that brings ‘rock ‘n roll arrogance’ to a new level.”
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This was my fifth DP show and by far the greatest. The set list was fantastic, the whole band was fantastic, and the crowd got crazy.

I will never forget the moment that Ian asked Steve to keep playing Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming – you guys gave us a gift!

The whole band was on fire, Steve, Airey, Glover and Paice with great solos, and Mr. Ian Gillan singing a lot, with a great voice. For me he is the best singer in the world, with 62 years old and singing like that! Nobody stops the Silver Voice and Deep Purple!

Now the set list my friends:

Pictures of Home
Things I Never Said
Into the Fire
Strange Kind of Woman
Rapture of the Deep
Mary Long
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
Contact Lost
Steve Morse Solo
Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming
Steve Morse Riff Parade
The Well Dressed Guitar
The Battle Rages On
Lazy
Don Airey Solo
Perfect Strangers
Space Truckin’
Steve Morse and Glover Jam
Highway Star
Smoke on the Water

Encore:

Hush with Ian Paice Solo
Roger Glover Intro
Black Night