Something that you don’t hear every day — a recording of Ritchie Blackmore guesting on Jackie Lynton’s gig in Fulham, London, on March 10, 1987. The description says it’s a full concert, it is not. But it has all the important (for us) bits, the ones where Ritchie is playing. Nothing really new here as this gig has been circulating on bootlegs for years.

Did anyone actually got the amp?

Thanks to RockRadio Two for posting this and to Yvonne for bringing it to your attention.

Here’s a blast from the past: Ian Paice and Roger Glover promoting the soon to be released House of Blue Light on British TV. Continue Reading »

Break on Through is the title of a short film about rock climbing for which Tommy Bolin together with his early band Energy wrote and recorded quite a Mahavishnuesque soundtrack. One can clearly see here why just a year later Billy Cobham tapped Bolin to step into John McLaughlin’s shoes, so to speak. Continue Reading »

Music History for Those Who Are Able to Read has a new addition — a reprint of a contemporary review of the original Concerto performance that appeared in October 4, 1969, issue of the New Musical Express.

“The gulf remains wide and unabridged.”
“Pop and classics just don’t mix… so the pop group had its fire steadily dampened.”

BUT I ENJOYED DEEP PURPLE’S EXPERIMENT

By Gordon Coxhill

THE above are just two quotes from reviews in our national Press which appeared the morning after the Deep Purple’s appearance with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at London’s Royal Albert Hall last Wednesday evening.

Now I don’t suppose there is much doubt that the two critics concerned have a far wider experience and understanding of classical than myself, but I do feel that they have somewhat missed the whole point of the exercise.

Music isn’t meant to work: it is to be listened to and enjoyed, to arouse emotion and to borrow a phrase from Shakespeare, soothe the savage breast.

Perhaps it is my own musical naivety, but Lord’s “Concerto For Group And Orchestra” was a resounding success, not only in my book, but also for the large crowds of youngsters and older folk present.

Continue reading in Music History for Those Who Are Able to Read.

Thanks to Geir Myklebust for bringing this to your attention.

PS. According to the Phrase Finder “to soothe the savage breast” expression was not actually coined by Shakespeare, but by another English poet — William Congreve. His poem The Mourning Bride (1697) reads:

Musick has Charms to sooth a savage Breast,
To soften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak.

There is a new Deep Purple tribute album out, and it is by a bunch of bands most of us never heard of. It was put together by an outfit called Glory or Death Records that is described as “California underground heavy rock and metal specialists”. The album is called Bow to Your Masters Volume Two: Deep Purple. Apparently, Volume 1 was released a couple of years ago and was dedicated to Thin Lizzy.

Track and performers list:

1. Demon’s Eye – Big Scenic Nowhere
2. Speed King – Gygax
3. Maybe I’m A Leo – RedWitch Johnny (Ft. Matthew Putman)
4. Black Night – Topsy Kretts
5. Into the Fire – Saturn
6. Burn – High Reeper (Ft. Jillian Taylor of Ruby The Hatchet)
7. Highway Star – Great Electric Quest (Ft. Francis Roberts)
8. Smoke – Steak (Ft. Chantal Brown)
9. Love Child – Mos Generator
10. Child in Time – Asphodel Wine
11. Gettin’ Tighter – Temple of Love (Ft. Anton Pukshansky)
12. Fireball – Red Wizard
13. Space Truckin’ – KOOK
14. Pictures Of Home – Worshipper
15. Perfect Strangers – YOB

Here’s a six-minute preview of the album, followed by full streaming:

The album is already out on digital download, with a 2LP gatefold vinyl promised in November 2021 and available for preorder.

Thanks to Sanches for the heads up and to Riff Relevant for the additional info.

Just as Big Ian said today on the radio, the Deep Purple UK tour has been postponed to October 2022. The dates were originally booked for October 2020, rescheduled for October 2021 due to the pandemic, and now rescheduled yet again. Same 5 cities, a bit different running order: London on the 20th, Glasgow on 22nd, Leeds on 23rd, Birmingham on 25th, and Manchester on the 26th. All original tickets remain valid for the new dates. Full details in our calendar.

Thanks to BraveWords for the heads up.

Ian Gillan was on the Lyme Bay Radio today, May 7, for the full 2 hours. As one can imagine, a lot of ground was covered during that time. The takeaway points (off the top of my head) were something like the following:

• there will be no live shows for the band until February 2022;
• some time late this summer they may (powers that be permitting) get together to work on new music;
• he will have to start exercising to rebuild core muscle strength lost during the pandemic downtime before he can sing in earnest again;
• there’s been bad blood between the band and Bob Geldof that led to them not being invited to perform at the original Live Aid back in 1985, and even the 2005 Live 8 appearance happened only due to the insistence of the Canadian promoter;
• Queen’s Park Rangers’ prospects for the next game look good;
• [see the title of this post];
• also, legalize cannibalism as a form of population control;
• he bought a house in Portugal after vacationing down there one too many times.

Ian’s last appearance on Lyme Bay Radio in September 2020 was later made available for replay via the station’s facebook account, so you might want to check there if you missed the show.

Ian Gillan will be a special guest on his hometown station Lyme Bay Radio tomorrow, Friday, May 7, 2021, between 4 and 6 pm. The show is called Finally Friday, and apparently it will be a one off. Ian will be chatting “about life, lockdown and Lyme Regis; and possibly a little about his outstanding musical career as well”.

You can listen to Lyme Bay Radio online and worldwide.

Thanks to BraveWords for the info.

A review of the Hallelujah single originally published in New Musical Express on August 2, 1969, was posted by Geir Myklebust in his blog Music History for Those Who Are Able to Read. Due to the brevity of the review, we take the liberty of reproducing it here in full. This is a review of the very first release by the nascent Mark 2, and provides a glimpse into things to come.

Purple may make chart

Top singles reviewed by Derek Johnson

Deep Purple: Hallelujah (Harvest).

Although it`s had a couple of big ones in the States, Deep Purple has yet to register here at home. And it`s just possible that this could do the trick – it`s one of those numbers that could either be a smash hit or a massive flop! Penned by the Greenaway-Cook team, it`s a medium-pacer with a strong gospel-revivalist flavour.
Ian Gillan delivers the preacher-like lyrics effectively, though I could have done without the screams, while the bluesy organ and strident guitar maintain an atmospheric backcloth.
A disc that`s laden with mystique and compulsion, and which – in its more inspired moments – develops a rock-like quality.

Thanks to Geir Myklebust for bringing this to your attention.

Ian Paice is among the host of rock’n’roll luminaries that made a tribute to Pink Floyd by re-recording their whole Wish You Were Here album. Other musicians in this project include Rick Wakeman, Todd Rundgren, Geoff Tate, Joe Satriani, James LaBrie, Bootsy Collins, Steve Stevens, etc, etc. This version of the album is called Still Wish You Were Here and will be issued on 6-panel digipak CD and gatefold vinyl in a variety of colours. This release is due out on May 28, 2021, and can be preordered through the label and other sources.

Thanks to BraveWords for the info.

And just to leave you with something entertaining, here’s a rendition of Shine on You Crazy Diamond, Jerusalem style: