Deep Purple came and brought the magic on this cold winter Tuesday in Paris.

Just before 9 pm, the lights turned out, and on the big screens, we can see the five guys coming out of a big case and going on stage getting the enthusiasm of the audience.

The classical ‘Pictures of Home’ opens the show, with a great Ian Paice at his best. The audience is quiet and the band, like the spectators, is getting warmer slowly. Then come ‘Makes me Wonder’ and ‘Wrong Man’ of the last CD.

‘Ted the Mechanic’, with its particular riffs, brings some speed to the show, but ‘Living Wreck’ from Deep Purple In Rock, even if it’s pleasant for the oldest, is a little too hard and hermetic to bring a total enthusiasm. These first songs are not at the top, but the audience welcomes them and waits for better moments.

Purple offers us three songs of the new cd Rapture of the Deep: ‘Rapture of the Deep’ where Steve Morse shows how gifted he is, then the classical ‘Back to Back’ which fits perfectly to the stage, and the superb ‘Before Time Began’ which is wonderful on the CD but seems not so good when it’s played live.

Then Steve Morse begins his long and technically perfect solo where we can listen to ‘Contact Lost’ and that ends in a wonderful ‘Well Dressed Guitar’ that brings the audience in a perfect state of euphoria.

Now the spectators are hooked and the five musqueteers won’t leave them, especially with a great and powerful ‘Lazy’, just before Don Airey technically brilliant solo. Last time we got ‘Star Wars’, today it is Debussy’s ‘Clair de Lune’ that ends on the French anthem ‘La Marseillaise’, getting the audience happier and happier.

‘Perfect Strangers’ begins the last part of the show and, even if it is well played, we can prefer, on this particular song, the way Ritchie Blackmore and Jon Lord used to play it, in a stronger and more efficient way than Steve Morse and Don Airey. However, these two great musicians are back with superb duets on the last album ‘Junkyard Blues’: this song is really perfect live and shows how gifted are these musicians and how happy to play together they seem. Happy is the band, so happy are the spectators that welcome the new ‘Kiss Tomorrow Godbye’ of the last CD.

Magical trio at the end, in front of a totally hysteric audience, with ‘Space Truckin’’ that Roger Glover introduce to us, then ‘Highway Star’ with a particular intro of Roger Glover and Steve Morse, and at the end, last but not least, the famous ‘Smoke on the Water’ in a powerful way.

Classical encore where we can enjoy Ian Gillan voice on ‘Speed King’, where we can listen to Ray Charles’ ‘I Got a Woman’. Then Roger Glover brings us to the classical ‘Black Night’ where all the Paris Zenith audience sings and shouts.

It’s over, the five guys seem to be happy and to have enjoyed the show, so did the spectators, and our friends leave us under many cheers. On the screen we can watch the musicians going back in the big case that a roadie takes away.

We got a classical, sometimes innovative but wonderful Deep Purple show. The technical capacities and gifts of the musicians gave us a great two-hour show that we did enjoy and that we hope to see again, at the Paris Zenith or anywhere else !

David André

Last week we went to Brussel to see Deep Purple, for me for the 17th time Deep Purple in 15 years! We went with 13 people and it turned out to be great.

At eleven a.m. we arrived at the Vorst National in Brussel. Because our day was not yet filled until the concert started, we went to a nearby pub. There we sold our Deep Purple CD’s to the owner of the pub to have their music all day long. That was great.

As time went by, more and more Deep Purple fans came in to the pub and we all had a great time there.

At seven p.m. we finally went to the concert and tried to get as close to the stage as we could. At eight p.m. the support band started to play, but we had no idea who that was.

Then finally, nine p.m.: showtime! Deep Purple came on stage and it was just like I expected. It was great! In the beginning, the sound was not good, but later on it was fixed.

Ian Gillan had a very good voice during the whole concert, and Steve Morse, what can I say, he was great. Roger Glover and Ian Paice were also great, as usual. Don who played the keyboard was also in very good shape.

Highlights of the concert were Picture’s Of Home, Living Wreck, Rapture of the Deep and Speed King. But all their other songs were also great.

It was one of the best concerts I have seen from them in 15 years and I sure was glad to be there. All 13 of us had al real good time and decided to go again the next time.

At midnight we went home, back to Holland, tired, but satisfied. Deep Purple, till next time!

Greetings,

Peter Meijers

I felt it like being home listening to my favourite musik, and I think that the band felt at home too. Gillan’s remarks about visiting old friends and so on, seems very nice combined with the fact that Deep Purple has their roots here in Denmark back in the late 60’s and it feels good.

Everybody in the band was truly HERE! It seeems like being “old” in a band like Deep Purple is a very nice thing, in fact it should be, because these musicians are playing with a touch that is very rare! Hard rock with love and compasion, and humor, from the
bottom of the culture, even Steve Morse, ‘young man’ is very dedicated to the way of playing that “old music”.

I felt like going back to the roots and at the same time seeing a new gladness! What a gift to be able to play like hell, with love to the world!

Thank You For Being Here!

Best regards to everybody
Torben Petersen

Nice show.

It started with Alice Cooper. I saw them live for the first time. I liked their songs though these antics with a coffin and a guillotine were too macabre. But other acts, as throwing pearl necklaces, false dollars or big balloons, were awesome. Intriguing band!

Deep Purple were cool as usual. Mr Gillan’s condition was great though his voice sounded a bit creaky because of bad acoustics of the venue. But he must have been well prepared because he made three mistakes only. In “Perfect Strangers”, of course:))).

I couldn’t wait for new songs. Nobody could wait. The hall was full of excited fans. We were happy to hear “Pictures of Home”, but we wanted to see how “Junkyard Blues” sounded on the stage.

The old stuff was played in a very original way. I’ve never heard such an interpretation. Especially “Pictures of Home” and “Ted the Mechanic” sounded unconventional. As if I heard new songs… I was surprised.

The scenery was unusual as well. A big screen with a reproduction of the new DP album. Two smaller screens with extraordinary lights projected. I liked these two ones the most.

Six new songs sounded great although I didn’t like “Before Time Began”. I think this piece doesn’t fit for gigs. But I also think Ian Gillan’s opinion is different and he will never give up singing it at concerts.

Excellent playing from Don Airey. Very original organ solo. I haven’t heard him play this way so far. And when he played “Living Wreck”, I felt as if I heard Jon Lord!

Excellent performance from Steve Morse as well. “Contact Lost” turning smoothly into a beautiful “cosmic” solo, then into “The Well Dressed Guitar”… He was always changing his guitars. I saw two new ones, the colour of violets:).

It was very kind of the musicians to play “Things I Never Said”. I can’t have the Japanese “Rapture” record, so I listened to this nice track with a big pleasure.

The DP musicians likes inviting other ones lately. They did it this time, too. Their guest – Uli Jon Roth – played “Black Night” with them. He did it well, but I had the impression that he was too shy.

In general, the show was cool. New decorations, new songs, new interpretations… Even new instruments. What else can I say? Deep Purple is evergreen. I was dead tired of my journey from Warsaw, but very happy as usual. I like DP gigs so much.

Many thanks and see you in Poland!

Joanna Ostrowiecka

Deep Purple rock the house down for two hours, the sound was clear and excellent, and the setlist the best for all the times – especially Living Wreck was good to hear as fresh as a new song with its howling keyboards followed by the funny Mary Long.

Ian “Bare foot” Gillan was in good mood with an astonishingly good voice that day. One of the highlights was Before Time Began played very well as all the new tunes from RAPTURE; much solo stuff from Steve, the crowd went furious when Well Dressed Guitar stormed the audience and when Don starts keyboard solos Ian Gillan trains the audience to shake their fingers in the air – and Don did in his very J.M.Jarre oriented solo the ultimate Stuttgart Hymn “Auf der schwäbsche Eisebahna…” which is an old funny Railroad Song, that was very welcome!

On the screen you can look over Ian Paice’s shoulders how he did the very fast one-handed drum roll and his snare beats very strong and hard during Smoke on the Water; Roger Glover did a gloomy solo before Black Night and uses his old RICKENBACKER bass during Smoke… which put some die hard fans tears in their eyes.

The encore with Speed King and Black Night lasted nearly a half hour long full of jamming of all band members; Gillan did some funny vocal duels with Steves guitar and sing some old songs such as I got a woman and Hello Mary Lou during Speed King and a nice english children song!

Ian thanks the audience often like “you are superb” “I thaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaank youu” and told us to be the 6th member of the band.

The songs that blow me away most was the absolute crackers Space Truckin’ and the furious opener Pictures of home… on my way home I felt like a Highway Star with my small japanese car with no fat tyres and everything…

P.S. ALICE COOPER was very good with his strong hard band and the furious drummer ERIC SINGER – Horror show – Domina – Frankenstein – Guillotine – Paris Hilton – all that stuff…

Harald Miller

Top form, keeping the momentum. Two-hour-long show again!

Pictures Of Home / Things I Never Said / Wrong Man / Ted the Mechanic / Living Wreck / Rapture of the Deep / Before Time Began / Mary Long / Contact Lost / Well Dressed Guitar / Lazy / Perfect Strangers / Junkyard Blues / Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye / Space Truckin’ / Highway Star / Smoke On The Water / Hush / Black Night.

The band in an excellent condition, seems to be happy with being on tour again and with their first show in Germany this year.

The first part of the show until Mary Long was a real joy as these are new tracks, especially if you remember the ‘best of…’ package played and over-used sometimes in the last few years.

Fast and powerful opening (Pictures of Home) with clear sound and it’s gonna last till the end of the show.

Things I Never Said played live sounds much, much better than downloaded from the web. Wrong Man also very strong. (a good pair for an American single ? – they’ll probably like it on that market).

Absolutely wonderful Living Wreck, Rapture and Before Time Began. There was no problem with lyrics, however it was time to use the textbook during Mary Long (IG missed only the second verse).

Contact Lost should be dropped out immediately and be exchanged for another new song or at least obscure oldie. We all are fed up with this, I guess. Well Dressed Guitar would be replaced as well.

Next ones (Lazy, Perfect Strangers with short solo and without Star Wars – thanks Don!, Junkyard Blues), played well. After Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye, Gillan said: “We’re gonna leave this rock’n’roll highway” and go to Space Truckin’. But the real speed they reach in Highway Star which has a longer than before intro and reminds us of the seventies and time they played tracks with long improvisations…

Then the killing riff of Smoke… (black and white bass!), typical encore of Hush and Black Night and again we feel there would be more new songs in the setlist, etc., but generally: we’re glad to see the band on the new tour, with the new album and feel this Rapture of the Deep (whatever it means to anyone).

Dominik Bednarski

First of all – great to see a band not playing their old songs to satisfy the fans.

The real fans want to hear the new songs and the goodies, but look at the back
catalogue – what do they wanna hear. Well I don’t know – it is difficult for a band but I think it is the right way to start into a new era playing songs of Rapture of the Deep to promote the tour, a bit of some very old and new classics.

The CD sold very well in Germany and the audience always loved the band – no matter with or without Blackmore / Lord – the fans loved the music and the tradition of a good live band.

Stuttgart I think has always been a good place for Deep Purple, Gillan, Blackmore, Lord, Glenn Hughes and Coverdale. I have been at many shows of all of them and loved the way they showed their way making music and of course everyone has done his best.

Stuttgart show started with Pictures Of Home – sad point to me – the right video screen was out of order – no way to repair it during the show. Music and musicians at its best.

No Junkyard Blues in the set – Speed King as first encore. Good to hear Living wreck for the first time. It brought to me the same feeling as I first heard I’m Alone the last summer tour in Germany. That’s the way to satisfy the old fans with some unknown classics.

I’m sorry – I should explain I’m 38 years – am I an old fan? Yes and no!

Rest of the show – the same as the current tour – hope to see them on an summer gig.

Love and Peace

Cheers – as Mr. Gillan says

Gasserroger

We’ve posted weird Deep Purple covers before and here’s another one. Highway Star, indigenous Siberian style:

http://music.lib.ru/b/bugotak/alb3.shtml#highway_star

Pretty massive vocals, if you ask me!

In a more traditional vein, here is Mr. Big trying their way around an instrumental version of “Burn”:

The show was great! When I came into the arena I was overwhelmed by the Purple Fans of Hungary.

Suddenly we could see a box titled “The Band” on the screens. Then Deep Purple came out from the box and Ian Paice started drumming, so they started with Pictures of home.

Next song was Things I never said from the new Rapture of the deep Japanese edition. After that:

3. Wrong Man
4. Ted the Mechanic
5. Living Wreck
6.Rapture of the Deep
7. Before Time Began
8. Mary Long
9. Contact Lost
10. Well Dressed Guitar
11. Lazy
12. Perfect Strangers
13. Junkyard Blues
15. Space Truckin’
16. Highway Star
17. Smoke On The Water
18. Hush
19. Black Night

When the show finished it started to snow and we were very happy!

Tóth Bálint László

Deep Purple can been seen live tomorrow on German TV. First at Früstücksfernsehen (Sat 1) sometime between 06.00 – 09.00 and later at Leute Heute
(ZDF) between 17.45 – 18.00.
Thanks to Sat 1 and ZDF for the information.