Music Review by Bill Rendall

Deep Purple in Rock

The definitive album of the Mark II Deep Purple line up is Deep Purple in Rock. The album goes straight for the jugular with a screaming guitar intro to 'Speed King.' This song is a nod to the influence of early rock and roll but the rock became a lot heavier in the hands of Deep Purple.

'Child in Time' is the stand out track on the album. It features a dramatic transition from a frenetic guitar solo to a sparse ethereal organ. This is a spine tingling moment. Also, Ian Gillan's eerie falsetto vocals are unforgettable.

The interplay between Jon Lord's Hammond organ and Ritchie Blackmore's guitar defines the Deep Purple sound. Lord often played the organ in the style of a rhythm guitar while Blackmore outlined the chords with single note riffs. Later in his career Blackmore played guitar with a scalloped fretboard, a feature which is better for playing single notes than chords. Lord often used distortion effects on his organ, such as a ring modulator device which can be heard on 'Hard Loving Man'.

Deep Purple used classical influences, such as Bach, to produce interesting music while maintaining the drive and energy of rock.

Deep Purple are at their best when jamming and Deep Purple in Rock successfully captured the raw energy that the band exhibited in live performance. Their Machine Head album contains many of their best songs but the studio versions sound tame and restrained compared to live performances. In particular 'Highway Star' and 'Space Trucking' from Machine Head were lifted to a higher intensity level in live performance as regular opening and closing numbers.

Made in Japan is my favourite live album. This album captured the Mark II Deep Purple at their peak in concert. The album is more honest than some other "live" albums. What you hear on the album is what was in the concert without the addition of studio overdubs. It is a pity that there were no video recordings of the Japan concerts.

An essential item for Deep Purple fans, and fans of seventies rock in general, is the video recording of Deep Purple at the California Jam concert in 1974. This is the Mark III Deep Purple. I don't think David Coverdale's singing style fits the band as well as Gillan's did, but his deeper bluesy voice works well on 'Mistreated'.

The sound quality of the California Jam video is poor on the original VHS tape but is much improved on the 2005 repackaging for DVD. However, Glen Hughes' high harmony vocals are mixed too loud and they often overpower Coverdale. It sounds like the singers are duelling for supremacy rather than working together.

The visual content is what makes the California Jam video an essential item. This video is a time capsule of seventies rock. The long hair. The flared trousers. The platform soled shoes. The bare chests. The jewellery. The extended guitar solo (literally solo). The drum solo (perhaps the most boring excess in rock). The bass guitar solo (with wah-wah pedal). The analog synthesizer solo. The pyrotechnics (with Ritchie Blackmore's trousers nearly going up in flames). And finally, the destruction of guitars, amplifiers and a camera by Blackmore.

Another video of interest is the Come Hell or High Water concert in 1993. This is probably the last recording there will ever be of the Mark II lineup of Deep Purple. Blackmore already had one foot out the door when the concert was recorded and clearly didn't want to be there. He is last to arrive on stage and first to leave. The music is still as good as ever although Gillan's vocals aren't as strong as they used to be. He gamely attempts his showpiece 'Child in Time' but the high parts are beyond him.

I recommend Deep Purple in Rock as the band's best studio recording. After that I would go for a recording of a live performance and Made in Japan is the best example.