SHADES OF DEEP PURPLE

A not so humble beginning for one of the three hard rock/proto-metal holy bands; Deep Purple started paving the road of their glorious history with an album heavily influenced by Vanilla Fudge, presenting to the world a mixture of psychedelic rock, heavy rock, tints of prog, and ephemeral moments of pop music; a joyous collection of songs, and an overall impression that this band is in for something special - that is how 'Shades of Deep Purple' makes me feel every time I play it.

The earliest incarnation of the band is surely not as iconic as the one that reigned the world from 1970 onwards, but is no less important, as this album set a very specific flavor to the band - one of great energy, vitality, and joy. The first three Purple albums all share the same asset that was later touched upon less - they are all quite accessible; whether one owes this fact to the more generic vocals of Rod Evans, as opposed to Gillan's banshee screaming, or to the lighthearted nature of the songs.

However, this record is a very good example of the popular music in Britain back in '68 and also a very important first step for the group.

A mixture of original compositions and cover songs (in the fashion of Vanilla Fudge, 'their heroes', as Ritchie Blackmore would refer to them), the albums has eight tracks and a length of 42 minutes.

Side one opens with the instrumental 'And the Address', a fast-paced and catchy song with a great Jon Lord riff, backed up perfectly by Blackmore. Interestingly (and surprisingly), the band revisited the song on 'Whoosh', creating something like a full circle; curious stuff! This is followed by their first big hit 'Hush', a poppier psychedelic single that has been in my opinion overplayed by radio stations. 'One More Rainy Day' is a good example of the lighthearted nature of the Mark I line-up's music that I already mentioned, and 'I'm so glad' is a well-executed cover on which Blackmore's bluesy side shines.

Side two opens with another very recognizable piece of music from Purple, 'Mandrake Root', a proto-heavy metal track covered in psychedelic drapery, followed by a Beatles cover of 'Help!'. 'Love Help Me' is just fine and 'Hey Joe' is a powerful closing track with silly lyrics.

The most experienced musician from the quintet at that time was Jon Lord, something that anyone could tell just by listening to the eight songs on this debut LP but Blackmore and Paice were surely the two 'diamonds in the rough'. 'Shades of Deep Purple' is a very good album, and a recommendation for anyone who wonders what hard rock and prog looked like in embryo.