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Deep Purple: They All Came Down to Montreux
"We all came out to Montreux/On the Lake Geneva shoreline," sang a young and carefree Ian Gillan back in 1971 when his band Deep Purple recorded, "Smoke On The Water." The story behind the song is infamous, but here's the recap if you're not an old geezer or a music nerd: In the cold days of December of that year, Deep Purple planned to record their Machine Head album at the Montreux Casino, which overlooked the picturesque Lake Geneva. The place was casino, hotel, nightclub, bar, and theatre all on one property, and with the Rolling Stones Mobile Unit parked outside it was a perfect venue to record some rock, right?
Claude Nobs, the casino's head-honcho and organizer of the jazz festival of the same name, invited the group down to check out Frank Zappa's (" . . . and the Mothers!") set, their own equipment not even unloaded from the trucks. And if you listen to the song you get the rest of the story: "Some stupid with a flare gun," shot it up into the ceiling causing the whole place to go ablaze, Zappa's equipment with it. Nobs tried to hook the boys up with another place to record, but noise complaints put the kibosh on that idea. Oh, well, at least they got the song out of it, and we're talking one of the most classic riffs in rock history, here.
Flash forward to 2006, it's the 40th Montreux Festival and Deep Purple are headlining the festival over names like Iggy, Santana, BB King, Bryan Adams, Kid Rock, Morrissey, and others. Deep Purple and Montreux have some history between them. They've played the festival several times since the old days; the place said hello to their new guitarist, Steve Morse, but it also bid adieu to a founding member with keyboardist, John Lords (whose final performance was at the 2000 festival). So with Don Airey faced with filling Lord's seat, the stage was set for DP to celebrate their history, as well as their current (and quite successful) release, Rapture of the Deep.
Gillan's voice starts out a little on the shaky side, as the band opens it up with Machine Head's "Pictures of Home." The band sounds fantastic; Ian Paice and Roger Glover are locked, as always, in an amazing groove on drums and bass. Steve Morse's guitar is perfectly on top of the mix; his runs are crisp and performed with fluidity. Don Airey's organ playing is where it should be, adding texture while aiding the rhythm as well. They go into the more classically inspired notes with ease, but Gillan's voice doesn't quite match their agility, as in "Things I Never Said," (a bonus cut from Rapture) he falls flat several times. By "Strange Kind of Woman," you could tell that Gillan's voice isn't perfect (maybe it's just a bad night), but at least he's starting to get his legs, belting out a fairly convincing version of the song.
This multi-camera shoot puts you not only in the seats, but also behind the drum kits and right up close to Steve Morse's fretboard. The guitar player had his own fans in the house, and after hearing his rendition of Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix, as well as sneaking in his own signature sounds, it's clear why the former Dixie Dreg is so revered. By "Space Truckin,' it's obvious that this band is still operating on all cylinders; they are a fast and heavy machine, with Paice's pounding the driving force, and Gillan's charisma the navigational system.
The Setlist
1. Pictures Of Home
2. Things I Never Said
3. Strange Kind Of Woman
4. Rapture Of The Deep
5. Wrong Man
6. The Well-dressed Guitar
7. Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
8. When A Blind Man Cries
9. Lazy
10. Keyboard Solo
11. Space Truckin'
12. Highway Star
13. Smoke On The Water
14. Hush
15. Too Much Fun
16. Black Night
The DVD Sound: Extras: Disc 2 Setlist: Final Thoughts:
Video:
Interviews:
The Story Of "Smoke On The Water":
Improvising:
John Lord & Don Airey:
Steve Morse:
Montreux:
A Special Concert:
Ian Gillan's Voice:
Steve Morse's Wrist:
The Band And Their Audience:
If the Montreux show isn't enough for you, we get to see Purple in the more intimate setting of London's Hard Rock Café from October 10th, 2005. It's an awesome show with a more eclectic setlist than the Montreux show. The band are loose, having a great time together, and it was a definitely a better night for Gillan's throat.
1. Fireball
2. I Got Your Number
3. Strange Kind of Woman
4. Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
5. Lazy
6. Rapture of the Deep
7.Wrong Man
8. Perfect Strangers
9 Highway Star
10.Smoke On The Water
The DVD
Video:
Sound:
Der der der, der der, der-der. Der der der, DER DER! If you understand that then you should go out and get this great celebration of an underrated band.
Why are our days numbered and not, say, lettered?
Woody Allen
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