DEEP PURPLE

The band is still releasing albums after more than 50 years, delivering their sophisticated hard rock driven by the great organ and the excellent guitar work of Mr. Morse. This album is full of solid songs with the same energy as the past. The first song puts you in the mood for what comes next. As the title says, "A Simple Song" has a slow intro before the blast of guitars and the typical Deep Purple hooks with an intact Ian Gillan voice. We don't miss Jon Lord's keys here; maybe he is still there. In the second track, you can enjoy Don Airey, who is on fire with tasty keyboard lines. "Out of Hand" continues to impress with this catchy hook and a second part that shows the great guitar playing of Morse. "Hell to Pay" begins with a straightforward hard rock vibe before a nice ELP break where you think you are listening to Keith Emerson in the song "Rondo." "Body Line, the drum intro, makes you think it's the beginning of the song "Animate" by Rush; no, it's the typical bluesy groove of the band. "Above and Beyond" brings some Prog Rock parts that are simply brilliant! The next song gives us a little break with a change of pace in a lighter atmosphere. The longest track of the album, "Uncommon Man," goes back and forth from peaceful moments to more dynamic passages. "Apres Vous" has some symphonic arrangement in the middle before Don Airey and Morse show their talent. We have again that symphonic arrangement in the "Vincent Price" intro, which is a nice ending to the album.

It's not often that a band that has been around for more than 50 years can write music of that quality. The inspiration for great songwriting is still there, and for me, it's on the same level as their past albums.

As a fan of Deep Purple, I really enjoy a whole lot of their works, especially their output from 1969 through 1974, crafting some very excellent hard rock movements that dip to all sorts of genres. From the still young heavy metal, to psychedelic rock, to blues, and even sometimes a bit of prog rock. They certainly created a big name for themselves in the rock mythos, especially their late keyboardist Jon Lord, who composed for their very first live record, Concerto For Group And Orchestra.

This is a live album released in the states in 1969, and soon released in Europe in 1970. It was recorded live in the Royal Albert Hall, accompaniment with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Malcolm Arnold. In this point of the band's careers, they certainly were quite big, though not big enough to be known for such songs like Child In Time or Smoke On The Water yet. In fact, next to groups like Moody Blues, The Mothers, and Procol Harum, they were considered as an early prog group, before they diverted to a more hard rock sound that was gaining popularity within the 70s. This record will be known as the last of Deep Purple's overtly progressive days, as the album after this, Deep Purple In Rock, will mark the band going away from prog for a good amount of time.

As one of the last of these prog days, I believe Concerto is a very underappreciated album in the genre, and certainly one that shouldn't be overlooked. It contains all the right beats for an amazing symphonic prog record, featuring amazing orchestration courtesy of Jon Lord, and some of the best guitar melodies I think you could possibly ask for. For its time, symphonic prog was a lot more tranquil, with albums such as Days Of Future Passed having more mellow symphonies entwined with the rock music. While those types of symphonics are good, I believe Concerto marked when symphonic prog could truly become more than just soft music, creating these bombastic scores, with each song being epics in their own right. You can possibly hear certain elements that'd be utilized for future prog albums here, namely those by ELP, Renaissance, and Focus.

Speaking of symphonics, Jon Lord has a very great ear for the classical side of things, as each movement comprises these very wonderful orchestrations that are very fit and focused, none leaving me feeling as if there is something missing. Though, I will say the conducting barely gives the band themselves time to really play to their fullest. I don't quite mind as I like classical music, but keep in mind this is more of a Jon Lord album, rather than a full Deep Purple album.

However when Deep Purple does show up, it is very magical. They have a real knack when it comes to playing with more classical elements, with one of their best moments on display in the second part of the second movement, near the middle half, creating for this almost Disney-like music, featuring a very wonderful guitar passage from Blackmore.

Now, I will say that I think a big reason why many might not fully enjoy this record is simply due to the audio quality. The quality of the audio isn't bad, in fact for a live album recorded in the 60s it is fantastic, but it definitely shows weakness from time to time. Since the music on here is quite long, and this was put on vinyl before any other medium, they would have to accommodate space on the vinyl for more music, and as we all know: less space on vinyl = not so stellar sound quality. I can actually hear when the audio gets a bit more rough around the edges with the second tracks on each side, as they are oddly a lot more bassy, with some quality of the original recordings having a bit of loss. You can hear it in the first part of the second movement towards the end with Ian Gillan's vocals, and especially in the first half of the third movement. I am not too worried about sound quality, as I still think for what it is it's a very good recording, but I cannot deny the scars on this album are rather noticeable.

I think this is one of the more underappreciated live experiences, and certainly one that deserves a bit more love. I think you should check this one out if the whole prospect of symphonics merged with rock fancies you in any way, and I also implore those who weren't satisfied with this record to give it another shot. Definitely an album to seek out if you wish for some very nice symphonic prog from a much harder band.

Best tracks: First Movement: Moderato - Allegro, Second Movement: Andante (Conclusion)

Worst tracks: Second Movement: Andante Part 1, Third Movement: Vivace - Presto

Deep Purple is one of my favorite bands. I discovered DP in the early 1990s, before Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. Maybe that's why I like Deep Purple more) I would like to make my first review of their work on this site specifically for Purpendicular. Why? This album has always been special to me. I listened to it before the first Deep Purple concert in Kyiv, my hometown, in 1996. It was very exciting. I'll see my favorite band for the first time! I remember walking around town all day and listening to this album on my old cassette player over and over again. Thoughts came one after another. Is Ritchie Blackmore gone for good? How will Steve Morse play old songs in concert? Will they perform Child in Time?... The concert was wonderful, but that's another story...

This album is not just another entry in their discography. I think this is the beginning of a new stage in their creativity. Steve Morse added a new style to their music. The most important thing is that he doesn't try to play like Ritchie Blackmore. He adds his own style, and as a result the music becomes more diverse. For example, Vavoom: Ted the Mechanic, Soon Forgotten or Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming would never have been recorded by Ritchie Blackmore in this form. Perhaps they wouldn't exist at all. And with Steve Morse, bold experiments became possible. The guitar riffs of Vavoom... sound like something similar to funk and grunge, Soon Forgotten is recorded relaxed and cheeky, like musicians in a pub, Sometimes... looks like a hard version of a song by Kansas, with whom Steve Morse briefly recorded. Throughout the album there are wonderful inclusions of jazz, fragments of folk, blues and even country. And that is great! I like the development of music. This is what distinguishes the album from the previous one, The Battle Rages On, which is very good without a doubt, but too Deeppurplean)

"Whoosh" is one of those albums that promises to grow in your soul with each new listen. Most of the tracks are well assembled together and worked in the spirit of a good progressive tradition. Don Airey's excellent keyboards, especially the heavy Hammond, the mark of Deep Purple of course, with Handel inserts, create a robust but also melodious sound ("Nothing At All"). Quite dark texts to enlighten your mind. Gillan is aware of the limits of his voice slightly altered by the passing of the years and does not exaggerate, keeping a decent tone, but in the same register of vitality. He is no longer a rebel "Child in Time", but a grown man concerned about these troubled and crazy times. Only the last track seems more pastiche "Dancing in my sleep". Why they slammed it last, I don't understand. It could have not be at all in order to be a perfect album.

BACK TO THE FUTURE with an OMNI in D like DEEP PURPLE and a legendary concert, yes the P's will be waiting! In short I come across an album that I am advised to review, so I start ..; live on it, yes I do with the means at hand, I keep repeating it!, are you ready? a hidden chronicle!!!

1 'Highway Star' mixed applause, surprised to attend one of the most beautiful live concerts transcribed on an album before the hour; an announcing, premonitory title; everything is Jon's organ, Ian's minimal but oh so important drums, the bass don't forget Roger, he's the roar in the speakers, good Ritchie almost in the background and Ian still with his voice; yes, the hard rock group...progressive which has the intro, the riff, the chorus and the solo...all the same with that sacred Ritchie which distills it, which smothers it in all winds; it was just diabolical and so present in your memory that you still murmur.... or that you hoarse during this chorus, the unstoppable introduction whatever one says about it 2 'Child In Time' paf I was talking about entry, take a look at this intro, what you don't know, you're trying to make me cry, the Kenzo ad is her, finally it's them, phew you me frightened; you see the low-cut dress, the color of the roses, Ian's cry, the walk on the tower, the sensuality of this perfume... no, the cry, this cry, this unacknowledged fantasy of this woman's orgasm, no you see this galloping horse, a white horse, no, it's Ritchie who lets loose, who shows the way of the superhero, look how he mistreats the handle; that's Nirvana, who hasn't secretly done the sovereign wiggle while brandishing the neck of the phantom guitar? Who? well we calm down there at 7'49 and not 7'43 which is hurting us at this singular political moment, so we calm down, this blank becomes music before resuming with notes; a roll of drums and let's go for the second phase, for those who have fallen into a trance, you have a second chance; climb, screams, violence, rape of instruments; say that I was talking about ecstasy this second rise is stronger, more sensual, we can even guess the emerging breast under the too perfect dress, we can guess that this piece will be able to appear on TV on MTV or in advertising, a shame. 3 'Smoke On The Water' represents the most famous minute of the rock era, if the riff that kills, name me a person who has never tried to do it; the very fat organ which says that the sound can be better with this... ah I no longer remember the name of this instrument with keys... help me; the bass Roger showed that the bass was an important bridge in a hard rock band, good the frenzied solos as the evolution of .... ah I forgot to name 'Smoke, smoke on something, the lake , the fire, true not true, this piece is unique, not orgasmic, just unique in the musical universe, one of those to keep in his coffin for a possible trip to hell. 4 'The Mule' still struggled with following a punched pouch in a friend's stomach at the airport; the title which leaves strangely like in the middle of another and then quickly, too quickly but the trap was there, Ian's solo direct without warning you and it's on, you won't see it again, you're just going to explore each corner of his threshing house, with cash register, bearings, Tournapull (yes the one that we saw small when creating the highway, the one that abraded the hills, the one that I dream of buying in a Majorette shop... c is for your grandson, I'm doing a gift package, no it's for me, vicious goes!!) and other cymbals; a moment that goes crescendo, with a few small tendrils and which also allows you to adjust your speakers; the guitar-organ return becomes almost a detail of musical history passing well after this epic moment, which was peed on while waiting for the end which did not come, in short this piece will establish the solos live.

The 2nd CD or the 1st side of the 2nd LP, you follow 1 'Strange Kind Of Woman' for one of the fastest intros on the market and you have a composition that does not look like much; a jerky, frantic rhythm, a devilishly adapted voice, soft, which can rise, which will rise, which hoots; a solo by Ritchie, perhaps, surely one of the most beautiful, the organ behind which already reminds you that there will be an internal squabble, musical rather between the progueux and those who listen to the zik; the zik is the one there, the one that piles up musical notes; shh, it's time for this manu manu between Ian and Ritchie, this fight, listen, u u uh uu uuh uuuhuuu!; how many times I got up, put the sapphire back just a little before to attend this Homeric duel; the moment I said to myself, well, you'll have to go to a concert, well, that's a change from studio LPs and K7s; in short my 1st live after the 'Life' of GENESIS it was him, aaaahhhhhh aaaaahhhhhhhh I love you. It's over.... no this cry again and again heyy, heeeyyyy, heeyyyyyyyyyyyy, ah how many times my father could shout after me on these fabulous 'notes'! 2 'Lazy' to rest, lazy and lazy little bands; the piece that I don't like; yes we can have an imperfect OMNI, like the very spatial intro, cinematic before its time, it looks like 'Flash'; well settle down, it's going to take off, whoever likes YES must have come here for this organ variation without toccata; it jams, it jerks, it grooves, it zik anyway; Was Jon a good keyboard player, I ask the question; bam we find ourselves in the middle of the title and it twirls everywhere, jazzy? ,bluesy?; purpleian certainly; 6 minutes and Ian intervenes on the voice, when I think of those who say that James from DREAM THEATER must bother during the improvised solos... or not it makes me laugh, come on a little harmonica, I feel the air of the cacti and the thorns of the road on the 66, oh there the rubber of the ZZ TOPmobile which will pass by there... a little later; John and Ritchie in battle there, it's going to rock, nay, this laughable tune that has gone around the world, a magnificent musical snub and the finale à la 'Woody Woodpecker', immense 3 'Space Truckin' ' or when I was talking about OMNI, there we have the title, we have the atmosphere, we have the pinnacle, the cream of the crop, this rhythm-riff, this intro which heats up; the long track that made me want to listen to 'Six Degrees' in one go when it was released; yes DEEP PURPLE represents the archetypal proto metal prog, come on, come on!! Yes there I'm going to let go, yes there I'm just going to re-re-listen to this over- boosted live where Roger shows the musical framework, where Ian throws his cymbals at whoever wants, hold a roll of pads for you; hold Ritchie over here, hold Ian with his belched voice, yes he knows how to shout, moreover that's what was declared in the cottages, no but you hear how he shouts, how Ritchie mistreats his guitar, it can't be program; good oriental break that comes suddenly, I had forgotten it, do you remember there yes when we are in the desert, a caravan passes, we are afraid that it is a mirage, we run after .... there you go Jon made me think of that, it's crazy huh! When I was young, I thought it was improvised, that it was easy to do, to reproduce; novice now I know that you have to have passed through the stars to grab the score without smoking the devil's weed and the little smoke; spatial, irrespectable, fusional sound; I'll let you listen to the end silently, it's free and so dreamlike that everyone has made their own story on it, right there yes after this battery decrescendo, shhh. Well you swooned over this dreamlike destructured crescendo, good. Well you needed an OMNI, start with 'Space Truckin' you will have the signature, you needed a live, the thing that you don't comment on, that you live, it will be you 'made in Japan' oh yes, we don't refuse ourselves anything ; DEEP PURPLE, LED ZEPPELIN and BLACK SABBATH are the 3 prog hard metal udders that should have their footprints on Zik Boulevard, without them nada no surfing, without them no explosion in concert, no innovative joy, just rehearsals; no DEEP PURPLE created and for having been in the stars, I had to give them back this trifle, Come On!!

Purple is hardly a real prog band though they sure had their moments with longer compositions like "Burn" and "Highway Star" and "Child In Time". By the time this album came out they were stripped down to originals Lord and Paice but still had that Purple sound. Ian is unmistakable in his drumming and who can possibly mistake Jon Lord's Hammond playing for anyone else? I was a very rebellious teen when this album came out. The first Purple record I had heard was "Burn "and that was quickly followed by "Made In Japan". I heard "Machine Head" next. Then "Stormbringer" came and it definitely had a different sound to it and was not as much a Purple album and was pretty polished production wise which may be why I didn't like it as much.

CTTB for me was a step back into a more gritty rock sound. Bolin is no Blackmore anymore than Blackmore is a Bolin. They are totally different in their styles and methods. I prefer Blackmore any day but Bolin's playing on Billy Cobham's Spectrum shows a great talent. It seems on CTTB he was holding back.

"Comin Home" is one of my favorite tracks and comes shooting out of the barn fast. His solo is a good effort but too controlled. "Getting Tighter" showcases Hughes' voice which to this day (2022) he still hits all the high notes. I liked the guitar riffs in that song as well. "Drifter" sounds like a Purple track and could have had all the Mark II lineup on it. "Medley" was perhaps my favorite tracks on the album with Hughes' soaring vocals followed by an all too rare instrumental.

This album is missing a lot of keyboard playing it seems to me and is largely a guitar album. I disagree it doesn't sound like Purple but it certainly isn't like the Mark II stuff. Sadly this lineup would crumble on its only tour due to Hughes and Bolin being too high on stage. Bolin's playing was getting worse and Hughes' behavior was getting too wild. It led to their last concert with Coverdale saying to Lord and Paice "I quit." The 2 of them responded that he couldn't because there was no more Deep Purple. Sadly Bolin died later that year due to his addiction and Hughes went onto form Hughes-Thrall which burned up due to his and Pat Thrall's addictions. At least he sobered up later.

Deep Purple came reinvigorated after the swap of their guitar player. Morse is a more versatile guitar player and brings some American elements into play such as country, Americana or 80's hard rock. This album brings memorable and solid songwriting, feeling of freshness and a certain willingness to experiment. Morse supplies technically demanding solos showcasing his great technique but he can also show tasty and emotional playing or heavy riffing. "Ted the mechanic" catches the attention by the updated hard rock sound that is closer to American hard rock than British. "Soon forgotten" has a riffing tandem of electric guitar and Hammond. The flagship song "Sometimes I feel like screaming" is one of the most memorable 90's Deep Purple songs. Very well composed and flowing slowly into a crescendo, you are frequently reminded of the fantastic guitar motive. Although I consider Gillan's voice just OK on the album, he excels here by even providing high-pitched chorus. The instrumental outro is Morse's walk. "Aviator" is a country-tinged ballad. I'm a bit sceptical towards the monotonous "The purpendicular waltz" but it will its fans also thanks to a blues-rock riff.

Overall, it's a very solid album - 4 stars for a hard-rock/pop fan, 3 stars for a progger perspective.

Listening to the two pieces last night...moved and with immense pleasure, I had to do this remaster and post to those interested a musical analysis of the works a little more technical. I saw reviews from the 70's and some more recent ones here too with bad approachs about Jon Lord's work and in these symphonic arrangements. Which in itself is a total lack of culture and level both intellectual, and sensitivity of these people. The analysis made based on personal taste gets even worse. In my opinion as a musician, pianist and composer, Jon Lord surpasses all contemporary English composers from afar with his works with Deep Purple, Sarabandes and Gemini Suite. His orchestration technique is close to that of Russian composers, especially "The Five Group" ( Balakirev, Cui, Borodin, Mussorgsky and Rimsky-Korsakov ) and also arrives in the aggressive technique of Stravinsky and Prokofiev. Not to mention his total placement of Asian/Oriental solos and umlauts extremely present throughout the work. Besides, not looking at all like a European composer, let alone English (maybe that's the point) his music is beautiful, full of nuances in minor chords and dramatic thirds, with sublime atmospheres that I personally love music Russian scholar, master. Finally, I see Deep Purple with Orchestra in 1969, an unmissable work that will lead directly to the other work from the 70's (which I post here a fantastic live bonus excerpt) "Sarabandes" which is the icing on the cake. Not to mention the incredible performance by Blackmore on guitars, Glover on bass, solos by Ian Paice with the Orquestra killer percussionist, and the sublime lyrical vocals of Ian Gillan. Saying it's bad shows total alienation and musical culture.

Now this is pretty funny.

This is the only other Deep Purple album I have listened to, the other being Machine Head, and I must say it is far superior. I wouldn't call it amazing, but it is a flawless example of Deep Purple's surprisingly incredible talent- Ian Gillan's bat[&*!#] insane vocals, creative guitar parts from the equally bat[&*!#] insane Ritchie Blackmore, and, of course, the supremely underrated keyboardist Jon Lord. All these elements come together perfectly into this absolutely mental experience. It also goes to show how underrated the band is as nobody really knows them outside of the funny water smoke song.

I have to admit something. I'm pretending to be serious. I don't really have much to say about this album, but I could probably give more extreme praise if I forced it out. The album is good, quite good. The musicians are great, the vocals are funny, the songs are consistently good, I like the album. But like I said, I wouldn't call it amazing.

In short, Deep Purple is pretty underrated and this is probably their best album though i have not listened to Burn yet and i cba to listen to their other stuff.

lol.

A legacy band having some fun - this is Deep Purple's 'Whoosh!' album, the band's 21st studio release, and third one after joining forces (and practically rejuvenating themselves) with producer Bob Ezrin. Ian Gillan, Don Airey, Roger Glover, Ian Paice, and Steve Morse present a very fun collection of songs that impress the most with the fact that each one kind of reminisces a specific phase of the band's career, whether this be the 60s psychedelia period (with the re-worked version of Purple's 1968 instrumental 'And the Address', originally written by the late Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore), or the more groovy, sometimes bluesy mid-70s (on songs like 'Throw My Bones', 'We're All the Same in the Dark', 'What the What', 'The Long Way Round'), or even the gnarlier episodes of their 80s releases (we have the energetic tracks 'Drop the Weapon', 'No Need to Shout' and 'Dancing in My Sleep') ? no matter which aspect of their sound they take up, they give it a modern spin, whether this be through Don Airey's proggier keyboard extravaganzas, quite welcome if I may say, often reminding us either of Jon Lord, or maybe Rick Wakeman, or through Steve Morse's infectious riffs and crushing solos, very catchy and upbeat, he has to be the member who brings the most 'muscular' qualities to the latest Deep Purple sound.

But after all, is 'Whoosh!' a classic? The answer would lean more towards a negation; Yes, the songs are quite good, some could even go down as DP classics ('Man Alive', 'Drop the Weapon' and potentially 'The Power of the Moon'), they are catchy, enjoyable, and surprisingly strong for a band of their age, but the throbbing aggression and the tempting vibrance that so well define classic albums like 'In Rock', 'Fireball', 'Burn' or 'Machine Head' could hardly be experienced, and this is no surprise. The big celebration is to see Deep Purple still going strong, releasing strong LPs every couple of years now, and the fact that they have that much fun with their new songs is simply inspiring.