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Speed King

Speed King is back in the live set and by all accounts it’s a scorcher. Filled with improvisations, bits and pieces of classic rock’n’roll and even occasional croonery. The band is firing on all cylinders like a well oiled machine. Check out this one from Hamburg on November 24:

Yesterday in Munich the jam was complete with Happy Birthday. And happy birthday to Reverend indeed!

Thanks to Yvonne Osthausen for the info.



21 Comments to “Speed King”:

  1. 1
    James Gemmell says:

    Terrific free-form, medley.

  2. 2
    byron says:

    Very good.Don Airey rules!I still can’t get into Steve ‘s playing,but Ian is doin’ well!

  3. 3
    Tracy (Zero the Hero) Heyder says:

    Not too shabby if I do say so myself. Nice interplay between Morse and Airey. Similar to days of old. Sure does tantalize the patience factor. Mine is running out. I WANT TO SEE PURPLE LIVE!!!! And hear the NEW ALBUM!!!! NOW!!!

    CHEERZZZZZ

  4. 4
    James says:

    Terrific means good? I can’t see speed king after shows in Frankfurt and Hamburg where it really was played.

  5. 5
    buttockss says:

    Great!……just need blackmore now .

  6. 6
    Rajaseudun Rampe says:

    Seems like this band is alive and kicking. Having fun on stage is kinda proof of that.

  7. 7
    Scott F. Feighner says:

    That’s the Deep Purple I enjoy. 5 guys pushing the envelope, having fun, making great music. It’s not DP of yore, but it’s nice to see the sends of musical adventure still being explored.

  8. 8
    John says:

    Hey buttockss, have you forgotten? The banjo player took a hike! Long live the Morse era!!

  9. 9
    MacGregor says:

    Hard song for Gillan to nail these days, but he is a pro & knows how to wind it down to get the job done! However, the interplay between Morse & Airey leaves an empty feeling in a way. Maybe we have been blessed over the years past, with Lord & Blackmore’s duelling!
    Airey does ok with it, but I can’t get into Morse’s take on it, too predictable & similar to many of his other licks!
    Love his Dregs & 80’s & early 90’s solo material though!

  10. 10
    LRT says:

    Most of what are usually crappy sounding clips, are quite the opposite on this tour, but if you tune into the Staones and The Who, it sounds suspciously the same good quality. It’s an iPod/computer patch trick, cut and paste makes its way live!

  11. 11
    Wiktor says:

    Well, there´s a thin line between walking around the stage having “fun” in the middle of a song and cover up for your “out of breath” situation…And another thing, those days are gone with a duel between guitar and organ. Blackmore and Lord did it to perfection. There´s just not that magic between Steve and Don…

  12. 12
    Bo says:

    5# = YES get Blackmore back. His sound IS Deep Purple. Sorry, but I think that most Purple fans will agree.
    Or let me ask you, and I know this is silly:

    You have only one Purple concert left in your life. You can go for a Purple/Blackmore or a Purple/Morse concert. What do you do?
    I know what I want.

    but I dont understand why they still play Blackmore tunes in 98% of the time. If they want Morse to be more than just stand-in for Blackmore, then play more Purple/Morse songs. There are a few that for sure are great. If not then find Blackmore somewhere in a forrest or get a clone, and sound like the Purple who defined the sound of Purple.

    I just want Purple to still be that HOT band there where. I’m sure they can be it again – if they want to say “Fuc.. you” to people like me, and give me that ROCK album next time. I will be smiling non-stop.
    —-
    Just watching “Fireball/Into the Fire” from this tour on Youtube. GREAT 101%

  13. 13
    RB says:

    Sorry, but I just can’t get excited about Purple in a live setting anymore. These days the performances from the band are polished and good as Don clearly is he isn’t in the same league as our beloved Jon (especially in the creative process as seen on the last two albums). I’ve always loved Gillan’s voice but he isn’t comfortable singing the majority of Purple’s back catalogue these days. At 67 it’s understandable that we shouldn’t expect him to sound like he did forty years ago but it pains me to hear him struggle through a gig where he is obviously straining to reach the notes. On his last solo album he sounded great in a more comfortable lower register and I would like to hear more like that and perhaps tread a similar path to Robert Plant’s solo material. I hope the new Purple album will be a belter, perhaps along the same lines as ‘Purpendicular’, although without Jon I doubt it. Still, hopefully it’ll be an improvement on the last two releases (although ‘Rapture…’ was a little better, but the production was dire, which I’m sure Ezrin can easily improve upon).

    The guys must make a very good living from touring and it is probably difficult letting go of that, but I hope that this tour will be their last (although going by recent tours this one will go on for at least two years!).

  14. 14
    TomFox says:

    tend to agree with RB(surely not).hate to say it as DP always really special to me after seeing mark 2 as my first ever gig in 1973-now that really did feel “dangerous”-actually my hearings never been quite the same……

  15. 15
    purplepriest1965 says:

    @ 13

    Plant chose an adventurous path after 1980, when Zeppelin collapsed under the sadness about the death of Bonham.

    I did not always liked his solo work, on the contrary, but looking back and espescially in later years my admiration for him grew again.

    I do not say Gillan made rubbish after 1980.
    But it is a fact that the decline of his one majestic voice began around 1980.

    It was not always painful to witness him live in a hard rock band, sometimes it was still great.

    I always loved the variety he did, from Cherkazoo(How sad that that was shelved for so many years!!!!)to the IGB, Gillan, Jesus Christ Superstar, Deep Purple, etc.

    I still cannot enjoy his last album. I gues I hoped for something wonderful as Cherkazoo.
    But several listens did not change my perception.

    One cannot like everything, so thats not decisive.

    I like some Morse era tracks, but I always miss that SHIVERS on my skin feeling.

    It is a parallel with BN.
    Ritchie, IMHO, did pursue the BN trail wayyyyyyyyyyy too long and Ian chose to continue with Morse on board.

    I kind of would have respected it if he had underlined his committment and respect for/to Steve by playing much more tracks of the period with him live.

    I cannot escape the idea that he chose for money somewhere in the midst of his career.

    I truly wish he had done something like Plant did.

    On Naked Thunder, he and others seem to distance himself from it, it showed he more than rock in him.

    I felt that the songs were there but productionwise it did not quite do everything for those songs.

    TOOLBOX, although I first felt dissappointed, was great.
    At first I thought it was way to simple and the lack of keyboards did not exite me.
    Strangely enough it became one my favourites.

    Naked Thunder.Still a struggle for me.
    Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow(the first album)has the same impact on me : great songs but too tame.

    I d not dare to compare Toolbox with Rising(The much more rocking effort after the first album)but that certain agression and powerhouse vocals appearantly keeps appealling it seems.

    I do not say the Morse era does not have stand out tracks but……

    Something is missing.

    Maybe partly due to wrong production, the once hailed producer of Bananas and ROTD comes to mind, but……

    Yes, I miss Lord AND Blackmore.

    Recently I witnessed Steve doing a tribute act doing Go Your Own Way(Fleetwood Mac).
    I m still waiting and looking for a different solo from him(…)

    Yeah, some will choose to pick out the parts in this reply and paint a black and white picture of me again.

    So be it.

    As I said some years ago, the atmosphere on THS was much like : Stone this guy, he ‘s touching our beloved Gillan/Morse duo,…..

    History will prove me right.

    Blackmore once said : it should be dramatic and exiting.

    Ok, let’s wait for the new album.
    This man is still curious what will come out this time.

    It should at least produce 2 or 3 songs to add to that Morse era sampler.

    Alhough I tend to mix Purpendicular with 2 or 3 ABANDON tracks and make another sampler of the Airey/Morse period.

  16. 16
    skow says:

    &5 &12 & others above
    Agree all over and..
    Blackmore back…and sadly that’s impossible to wish for Jon lord.
    True value last forever!

  17. 17
    skow says:

    btw
    As a singer these thays Gillan would/could not pass the bar.
    Bass work sounds here not good at all.
    Keyboard and guitar an up and down nervous business …
    well, there is still Paicey 8)

  18. 18
    John says:

    Some of you are so thick-headed. RB QUIT in 93′, leaving them hanging out to dry. Thank goodness for Steve Morse. Move on people, RB’s washed up, bloated and playing crummy music. Let it be. DP became a family once RB departed. Long live the Morse Era!!

  19. 19
    purplepriest1965 says:

    skow

    I prefer a reunion of sorts with Blackmore, Rondinelli, Turner, Paul Morris and Greg Smith now.

    Cozy and Ronnie are gone.

    Graham is a wonderful man but he is not able to do this anymore.

  20. 20
    Anthony says:

    @18 I have to disagree with you there when you make a comment that Ritchie is bacially crap now. There is more talent is Ritchie’s little pinky finger than Morse will ever wish to have and we all know that! I am happy Purple have moved on without Blackers but to make a very confused and delusional comment about Ritchie is rather pathetic and I just had to roll my eyes up yet again

  21. 21
    mamakiponrokin says:

    anybody know why is Pictures of Home rarely performed ? 3 times I attended their gigs and there’re no Pictures.

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