Deep Purple | CD review by Maggie Woods

“Get ready for a very welcome and
seductive blast from the past as Deep
Purple surges into the 21st Century
with a special historic release of the
majestic Stormbringer album...”

STORMBRINGER WAS A JOURNEY out of the norm for Deep Purple — the band's usual forte was considered hard rock but funk and soul influences made their mark on this album.

The remastering and the bonus remixes has breathed new life into the studio tracks and demonstrates the sheer strength and diversity of the mark-three Deep Purple line-up of David Coverdale (vocals), Glenn Hughes (vocals & bass), Ritchie Blackmore (Guitar), Ian Paice (drums) and Jon Lord (Keyboards). Wicked!

The title Stormbringer came to David Coverdale in a dream. As a great fan of sci-fi, I knew this was the name given to the black vampire sword of the crimson-eyed albino Elric of Melniboné in Michael Moorcock's novels. I understand that Coverdale also loved these books and if you have read them you will see the echoes of Greek mythology, in which David Coverdale had an interest since childhood.

Recorded in Musicland Studios, Munich and released in 1974, Stormbringer is the Deep Purple album that is said not to sound so much like a Deep Purple album. Although considered proponents of the hard rock genre — as hinted at on previous album Burn — Stormbringer saw the band drifting off the line to a more funk and soul-influenced sound.

Nowhere was this more apparent than on Love Don't Mean A Thing. A dream of a track, this soul-inspired song sounds as if it came straight out of Muscle Shoals Studio and mixes the genres beautifully. It was written on Starship — the band's private plane — with a street busker from Downtown Chicago. Glenn Hughes was fortunate enough to play the song, in the studio, to one of his musical heroes, Stevie Wonder. Hughes says: "He touched my face and said: You sure you are a white boy? ...to be acknowledged by your spiritual mentor was, and still is, nirvana."

Stevie Wonder's influence can be heard on the beautifully contained and executed Hold On, which came out of a Jon Lord idea. Everyone loved it except Ritchie, Coverdale says. Yet when it came time for his solo, and dismissive of a lot of funk guitar, Blackmore blasted off the solo in one take… and walked out again. The publicity machine claims it is one of the best guitar solos you will ever hear and we agree — it is breathtaking.

Another song that divided opinion was Coverdale's emotive and moving Soldier Of Fortune — although this time it was Blackmore who loved it and the others who weren't so keen. "It took a lot of effort to persuade the others to do it," says Coverdale, "so we cut a demo. The band went: that's fantastic! We considered leaving it as it was but in the end redid it."

More indicative of Blackmore's musical interests at the time is The Gypsy, which is primarily Mediaeval and Sixteenth Century music, giving the song elements of early French church music. The Gypsy is a star turn — an enchanting, beautiful, timeless and compulsive track that has a definite infusion of the folkish/traditional melodies of Mediaeval times.

Mainly due to the direction of Stormbringer, it was to be Blackmore's last album with the band. He left to form Rainbow, making way for the mark-four version of Deep Purple.

Stormbringer is an eclectic gift of an album that also features the racy Lady Double Dealer belted out at full speed and High Ball Shooter, that charms the socks off your feet and has elements of ballads of the 70s. This track has stacks of interesting twists and beats to enjoy and all the remixes come as a wonderful bonus.

You Can't Do It Right reminds me a tiny bit of Wall Street Shuffle as it begins and it is a great track that slows the pace but keeps up the beat. The title track, Stormbringer, is hearty and fabulous and reeks of the essence of real rock from this magical band. The Stormbringer album was always one of my favourites and (as you may have read elsewhere) I proudly own the original LP that I was given as a gift way back when.

• EMI Records are proud to announce the release of the Special 35th Anniversary Edition of Deep Purple's classic album Stormbringer on CD, with an accompanying DVD and two vinyl LPs, to be released on 23 February (2009).

CD Tracklisting

1 Stormbringer | 2 Love Don't Mean A Thing | 3 Holy Man | 4 Hold On | 5 Lady Double Dealer | 6 You Can't Do It Right | 7 High Ball Shooter | 8 The Gypsy | 9 Soldier of Fortune

Bonus Tracks

10 Holy Man (Glenn Hughes remix) | 11 You Can't Do It Right (Glenn Hughes remix) |
12 Love Don't Mean A Thing (Glenn Hughes remix) | 13 Hold On (Glenn Hughes remix) |
14 High Ball Shooter (instrumental — from Listen Learn Read On Box Set)

DVD

The DVD features the previously unavailable original US quadraphonic-mix album as 5.1 DTS 96/24 and the original album quadraphonic mix stereo 48/24 with on-screen images

The 2-LP Tracklisting, presented in a gatefold sleeve

Side 1 (remasters)

1 Stormbringer | 2 Love Don't Mean A Thing | 3 Holy Man | 4 Hold On

Side 2 (remasters)

1 Lady Double Dealer | 2 You Can't Do It Right | 3 High Ball Shooter | 4 The Gypsy |
5 Soldier Of Fortune

Side 3 (remixes)

1 Holy Man | 2 You Can't Do It Right | 3 Love Don't Mean A Thing | 4 Hold On

Side 4

1 High Ball Shooter (instrumental) | 2 High Ball Shooter (quad) | 3 You Can't Do It Right (quad) | 4 Soldier Of Fortune (quad)

"Get ready for a very welcome and seductive blast from the past as Deep Purple surges into the 21st Century with a special historic release of the majestic Stormbringer album" — Maggie Woods, MotorBar

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE INTERESTED , Michael Moorcock's Elric was the last ruler of the ruined land of Melniboné and he carried with him his rune-carved black vampire sword Stormbringer, also known as The Stealer of Souls. An albino, Elric's vengeful emotions had already cost him dear but he was loved by Queen Yishana of Jharkor who herself was the object of desire for Theleb K'aarna, a sorcerer of Pan Tang and an arch-enemy of Elric. I still find the books utterly compulsive today. Film, anybody?

“One of the pioneers of heavy metal
and hard rock, Deep Purple just keep
on rocking into the 21st Century.
And now the band is back again —
with a fantastic re-released album,
The Very Best Of Deep Purple...”

SOMETIMES IT'S JUST ENOUGH to say the name of a band and you just know it's going to be special. Deep Purple is part of music history yet somehow manages to inject that certain something that appeals to both die-hard fans and new audiences. This is rock testosterone — in The Guinness Book of World Records, Deep Purple has been listed as the world's loudest band and over one hundred million of their albums have been sold worldwide.

EMI re-released the fantastic The Very Best Of Deep Purple on 24 March (2008) with the superb Hush as the opening track. The band's first hit, from the Shades Of Deep Purple album, Hush is a fantastic track, beginning with a really spooky sound. In strong demand since its striking use in the current Jaguar television advertisement — and proving that great music never goes out of fashion! — the track was released as a digital download single on 24 March (2008).

Unquestionably among the pioneers of heavy metal and hard rock, Deep Purple has never put a foot wrong. The Very Best Of Deep Purple stands as a testament to the band's weighty heritage.

Highlights include the racy and timeless Hush; all-time favourite Black Night; Speed King — a deeply-dipping rock tribute; the magical and interesting Child In Time (over ten minutes long in its original form); the unforgettable Strange Kind Of Woman; Highway Star; Burn and, of course, the immortal Smoke On The Water, the archetypal rock guitar riff that was once banned from guitar shops.

The haunting When A Blind Man Cries is terrific and sounds very bluesy and we also liked the quirky Ted The Mechanic and Any Fule Kno That. And the powerful Stormbringer... all the tracks are highlights in their own right! I've included the original '74 Stormbringer album cover from my collection below as a matter of historical interest.

Real air-guitar stuff, this. Deep Purple — giving it their very best.

• The Very Best Of Deep Purple album from 1998 is available now on CD (Catalogue No: 213 1212) and the single Hush is available as a digital download. Both were released by EMI on 24 March (2008).

Tracklisting

1 Hush (1998 Digital Remaster) | 2 Black Night (Single Version: 1995 Digital Remaster) |
3 Speed King (Single Version) | 4 Child In Time (Single Edit) | 5 Strange Kind Of Woman | 6 Fireball | 7 Demon's Eye | 8 Smoke On The Water (1997 Digital Remaster) | 9 Highway Star (1997 Remix) | 10 When A Blind Man Cries (1997 Remix) | 11 Never Before |
12 Woman From Tokyo (Single Edit) | 13 Burn (Single Edit) | 14 Stormbringer | 15 You Keep On Moving | 16 Perfect Strangers (Single Version) | 17 Ted The Mechanic | 18 Any Fule Kno That.

"Sometimes it's just enough to say the name of a band and you just know it's going to be special… Deep Purple — giving it their very best" — Maggie Woods, MotorBar

Stormbringer: Original 1974 album sleeve

Stormbringer: Original 1974 album sleeve

"There were three bands: Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath and, of course, Deep Purple; those three bands were the coolest (or un-coolest, depending on the decade you were listening to them) for you, your older brother or maybe even your father to name-drop" — Hugh Gilmour

Check out deeppurple.com

home | top of page | all CD reviews