Houston we have some pictures.

Deep Purple’s first American tour during July 1971 is not very well documented visually, the band being support to The Faces for most of the shows and yet to overcome their days as chart toppers with Hush. On the 28th they played the Sam Houston Coliseum and reportedly went down a storm according to local fans. For some time now a set of low res pictures has been doing the rounds from this show and the originals recently came up for sale in America at a specialist music memorabilia auction.  Because photographs from this first US tour are so rare, and these are very good (taken by a local enthusiast) we decided to try and secure them for the DPAS archives and happily have been able to do so.
You can see two individual shots on our concert date list.

where’s (the) Wally?

Every so often something takes you right back in time. This unusual photograph of a rock crowd came from Tonny Steenhagen, with the cryptic message “are you in it?”. Turns out the shot was of the audience at Rainbow’s very first British concert in Bristol back in August 1976. I’ve only ever been to the venue this once, and it was 38 years ago. I do remember the really good rake in the stalls which gave everyone a clear view, and I was somewhere around where the two arms in the distance are in the photo. I think! I love the guy near the front centre left with his finger stuffed in his ear, and the one on the right gazing up at the amazing rainbow stage piece (something which we all did – it was hypnotic). The tickets (inset) were not very exciting as you can see, and don’t even mention the band’s name. I kept it anyway.

The photographer then turned round and went back to snapping the band. Shame Polydor didn’t know about if for the Long Live album inner gatefold. Let us know if you or any of your mates are in it!

Made In Japan 2?

Deep Purple’s recent show at the Budokan was filmed and recorded officially for what we assume is an upcoming release. Full set list (which still includes the five new songs as well as most of the original MIJ) is on the tour date page. Shall we start a Yougov petition to get Steve to change his solo track? X number of signees and they have to debate it in Parliament!

lifting again

Apologies for the software errors which led to the RAH photos not showing properly; have relinked and they’re all now working! Thanks too to Moth Clark for letting us post them. While we’re here, Glenn Hughes has just released a video for his new band California Breed which is worth a look. CD preorderable at DTB Online shop.

 

Purple People

Some of the Purple guys at the Jon Lord show (photos by Moth Clark). The recording is being mixed at Abbey Road right now! Reviews of the show on the site here.

Roof lifted

Reviews of the Jon Lord tribute concert have been very positive, with the feeling that Glenn worked overtime and Paul Weller is a shoe in for any Artwoods reunion. I have put a couple of detailed reviews on the site which will clue people in as to what went on and who sang / played what.  Most people say they can’t wait for the DVD which is a great recommendation.  The rehearsals were also filmed (the shot here shows Glenn and Bruce going through their set – thanks to SC), so there should be plenty to make a great release.

For those asking, the Jon Lord limited edition book is due to ship next week now the show is over.

Tonight for Jon

It’s great to see how hard everyone has been working to make sure tonight’s concert for Jon Lord is something extra special. Paul Mann has been rehearsing his orchestral parts since last flipping year, and photos circulated over the last couple of days show the rest of the musicians and others going through their material.  Everyone clearly wants to be on top form and rightly so. For everyone who is going, have a cracking evening (and don’t forget to pen us a few words!).  For those who aren’t let’s have a moment to remember Jon in our own way today.  I first saw him live back in 1971, and here’s an old battered print of Jon in action back then on the British tour which sums the man up for me…

 

Atilla Operations

A little bit of my admiration for Deep Purple went when they played that iffy show for the Russian Vice President back in 2008. We all do daft things in life but that was a real two fingers both to the fans in a country suffering the privations of what is now basically a dictatorship with all free press stifled, as well as those who found shows cancelled at the last moment in favour of this Kremlin event.
We have met a lot of great people through the DPAS, including some in Cyprus (Mike and his mates popped up to see us not long ago, driving all the way from London so we could take them for a traditional British pub lunch!), so we know at first hand how the announcement that Deep Purple will play in the occupied part of the country towards the end of May has gone down there. Utter disbelief. They will all be boycotting the show.  It’s not to hard to go online and research the division of Cyprus, although it is a very complex story (with needless to say the British heavily involved in causing division on the island well into the 1960s).  But the current facts are that the area is an occupied territory recognised by nobody except Turkey, who organised the invasion in the first place.
There has been a lot of comment online about the show, so much so that Ian Gillan has felt the need to defend the decision on his website and argue his case for the show. For me (as I wrote in DTB59 at the time of the Kremlin farce) lines do sometimes have to be drawn, and I think this is one of those times.

Let there be drums

One of Cozy Powell‘s custom Yamaha kits had an outing on the recent Graham Bonnet tour.  Very strange to hear the sound after so many years, but unmistakable even so.  Details of the Wakefield show (where the kit above was pictured a few days ago) and a couple more photos on the site (plus early details of an upcoming biography of the singer) here.  Photo © Simon Robinson.

Spoiler alert!

Come on guys, if we all chip in a tanner, we’ll be able to buy a copy of the triple vinyl set in 45 years time!

It was hoped the labels owning the various strands of the Deep Purple archive might put their heads together and organise things but this increasingly seems to be wishful thinking. The monster edition of Made In Japan is one thing, but a rival label has now decided to try and steal some of the thunder by rushing out a triple vinyl pressing of the Concerto For Group & Orchestra on the same day. It all harks back to the start of the reunion when EMI, peeved at not getting Perfect Strangers, dashed out that grotty double Anthology to spoil the fun.

Anyhow, the complete Concerto evening has been out before on CD, but the full event has not made it to vinyl – until now. Split across six sides, with Purple’s three song set on two sides, and the Concerto itself now getting one movement per side. Malcolm Arnold’s 6th Symphony takes up the first side.
It all comes in a box with a 16 page booklet, and all at a stiff price no doubt. The dealer price is 100% higher than that for the vinyl of the band’s last studio album, despite there being no studio recording costs. It’s an expensive time to be a vinyl nutcase that’s for sure. Everyone else can rest easy as the release adds nothing new. Unless they restored that little drum edit and the on-stage announcement of the winners of the signed programmes.
Anyhow we’ve added it to the DTB catalogue and prices will be dropped in just as soon as Ann has done the maths on the post (which is going up again next month, as the privatised owners start to pamper the new shareholders).

Concerto and Coronation Street