[ d e e p P u r . p l e ) The Highway Star

DEEP PURPLE in HELSINKI ICEHALL Sept. 29th, 1998

The set
Ted The Mechanic
Strange Kind Of Woman
Bloodsucker
Pictures Of Home
Almost Human
Watching The Sky
Woman From Tokyo
Any Fule Kno That
Steve Morse Solo
Smoke On The Water
Jon Lord Solo
Lazy
Perfect Strangers
Speed King (w/ Paicey's solo & snippet of "Peggy Sue")

Seventh Heaven
Highway Star

We missed support act (Guitar Slingers, Finnish adult-oriented muzak-group) and were glad of it. I've seen them once and it is pure shit. I just can't understand who is the moron that chose them as support act for Deep Purple.

DP started approx. 8.40 pm and show was over approx. 10.30 pm. Well, what else can I say. I saw the band in Nummirock festival 1996 and I thought they were great but now they were even better. Acoustics in Helsinki Icehall is bad but it didn't disturb too much.

Unfortunately the set reveals that new songs, although they are good, aren't such a great ones as older stuff. I really missed Child In Time, When A Blind Man Cries, Fireball, No One Came and many more... Mabye the concert should have been longer, how about four hours ;) Just kiddin'.

Ian Gillan was great, his voice is in excellent shape and he was having fun with Finnish cellular phone mania all the time. The whole band was great, Jon's and Paicey's solos were awesome but Steve's solo was something that I'm not capable of describing, it was from another world. He really showed us what he is capable of with his guitar. Wow! If somebody was still missing TMIB that should have him convinced there is no need to get him back. Steve isn't the new RB, he is Steve Morse, a totally different guy but one hell of a guitarist.

The other highlights for me (heck, they were all, but anyway!) were "Pictures Of Home", which was introduced as a song from Machine Head and written in Switzerland. Which misled that part of audience who doesn't follow internet thought they are going to play SOTW. "Speed King" was another absolutely brilliant moment, especially Paicey's solo and "Peggy Sue" snippet after the drum solo, wow!

To cut a long story short: Great night!

Jari Tomppo


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