Chicago Theater, Chicago, USA. 24th February 2004 - live review

"You'd think it would seem kind of late in their career to rock out this good and with such amazing energy, but they did. The crowd was pumped up, so opening with "Silver Tongue" from the new album was a smart move. Few in the audience seemed to recognize it, but a killer tune is a killer tune, and they all cheered. They cheered even louder when "Woman From Tokyo" came next and a pattern of sorts emerged as the crowd sat down for a "Bananas" cut, then leaped to their feet again for a 'classic' song. I was particularly gratified that the title track was in the set; I adore that tune.

Ducking out for a quick trip to the men's room felt like a brief visit to the Twilight Zone as there were two guys at the urinals having a real-life version of the old Blackmore vs. Morse flamewar, something I didn't expect outside the internet. The Morse defender then asked me if that was Tony Carey at the keyboards...! The full "Machine Head" presentation in the second half seemed to prove that, in Chicago at least, this was a brilliant move in the American market. The crowd ate it up like you wouldn't believe. From my vantage point in the rear of the main floor I caught plenty grooving even to "Maybe I'm A Leo," however even with Gillan's explanation that "When a Blind Man Cries" was originally intended to be on the album, more than a few decided that was a good time to relieve themselves. Side 2 went down even better than side 1, as you'd expect. The order was reversed so that "Smoke On The Water" came last, which may seem like a cheat but again you have to accommodate these forgetful USA fans. "Space Truckin'", my favorite Machine Head track this year, sounded amazing.

Glen Miller was kind enough to help me get a backstage experience. I shook hands with Steve and Don, so swamped with admirers thrusting signable items in front of them I didn't want to add to the chaos. I saw one guy at a table preparing an assault with a folder of vinyl albums, CDs and a program. I vaguely hoped these weren't destined for eBay. Finally Roger Glover arrived, which was the real meet-the-band treat I was waiting for. Unfortunately I was so tired I can't remember much of what we talked about. Jim Collins then prodded me to get my picture taken with Roger. As far as I'm concerned, that picture is my ultimate piece of memorabilia, worth a mountain of autographs. My deepest thanks to the band, and especially Roger for making this the most memorable concert experience of my life."

review: John Hopkins (Darkhop). Sadly John died in January 2005. Darker Than Blue 57 carries a short obituary. In it Simon mentions the Chicago review: "HIs review was one of the first we slotted in to this issue. I hesitated and then thought it would be nice to leave it where it was."

"Wow...l've just been blown away! I managed to get right down at the front to see the boys at Brighton. Never actually done that at one of Purple's concerts in over 30 years. So I was thrilled! A very different feel compared to a large event such as Wembley. A great show, and I told the Purple guys so after a wait, out back in the cold coastal wind.

Highlights: "Bananas" sounding particularly menacing; Steve's guitar solo was mostly backed by the band - I much prefer to hear him like this than completely on his own; The new introduction to "Highway Star"; it shows the band do actually think about reinterpreting the classic material; "Black Night" being blasted through with some oomph to make a fine closing number; Ian Gillan convincing most of the crowd to play air Hammond whenever Don took a solo; Choosing to play a standing venue which improves the atmosphere a great deal; Getting to stand in front of Roger's bass cabinets to experience a distinctively bottom heavy sound; Steve playing the 'Smoke' riff straight without the annoying twiddles he used to throw in.

Disappointments: The organ was mixed rather low although this could be down to standing in front of Roger); Don still playing Star Wars in his solo; "Knocking At Your Back Door" - I've never rated this song; Only playing for an hour and a half. If they'd gone to two hours I'd have liked to hear "House Of Pain", "'69", "The Aviator", "Sun Goes Down" and "Seventh Heaven". In all I was impressed by the show and the new line up, first time I'd seen them play a whole show with Don). Roll on the next tour - 90 minutes isn't long enough!" review: Richard Mackey

The main area of gossip was the appearance of a special guest; the former Coverdale / Page guitarist. Deep Purple asked him to get on stage for a jam but he preferred to watch (would you step on aside Steve?). The local paper claimed Robert Plant was with him, he wasn't.

For a while it looked as if Deep Purple might miss out on Live 8 as they had done at Live Aid, but happily they were asked to participate, and were added to the Canadian bill on June 20th. Until they came on, the list of acts were all unknown to me, and from press reports it looks as if Purple brought some life to a flagging show (bedevilled at earlier stages by politics - which is why it ended up being staged in the small city of Barrie). Originally they were planning to make the trip by bus, and fly back, but the festival sponsors were able to lay on jets for acts who were pushed for time as Purple were. So they did their regular show in St. Paul, Minnesota the day before then flew over the border to Canada. The show (like most of the others) took place on Saturday, July 2nd from 11am. until 8 p.m., with gates opening at 9 a.m.

Introduced by two compares (Dan Aykroyd and Tom Green) doing "duh duh duuhhrr" for several minutes, the band let Paicey lead them in to "Highway Star" with a ridiculously complex take on the drum riff. The audio mix was poor but the filming was lively, and with a camera crew free to wander at will, there were some great angles and close-ups - usually missing from the slicker official releases. Once you get over the strangeness of them playing in daylight - well, dazzling sunshine - you can enjoy Gillan (with his new hair-do) working the crowd, and making up for the fact that he's not on I 00% form vocally.

Annoyingly they cut away mid-song to silent clips from the other gigs globally (we should be grateful - apparently during the mass encore to close the gig, the producers dropped in hair-care adverts!). Steve Morse goes into overdrive near the end, and the audience are going bonkers - well, as bonkers as you can in such temperatures. The anti was upped as Steve quickly launched into the "Smoke" riff, and there's a better mix too, with the guitar up to balance everything. Paicey is still taking the honours, with some more excellent shots of him hard at work. With security a lot less heavy than at the London show, Gillan trotted out on the runway into the crowd to keep the energy levels up, and Steve pushed the guitar solo in interesting direction at the end. As you might imagine, Ian has a few intelligent words to say to the crowd on the whole event, before they chug into - "Hush" of all things. I'm not sure why this oldie holds such a sway over the band these days, and certainly many in the (fairly young) crowd seem puzzled, so it's seems a bit of an anti-climax on screen but, overall, job done. The BBC showed live coverage of Deep Purple playing Highway Star - just 9 seconds worth - and a short discussion saying how good they were.

During April the group gathered at Mike Bradford's studio to begin work on the new studio album. Rob Walton was in touch with Mike just prior to the sessions, who told him: -"The guys are going to arrive the last week of March. We'll probably be set up and ready to go April 1st. How long will it take? We'll go until we're done. But I do feel good about the record. There will be a little more jamming than there was on Bananas, but the spirit will be the same. A couple of longer songs to showcase the band's abilities, and some straight-ahead rockers for fun".

By early May, Michael Bradford was reporting that the bulk of the recording was finished, and that they'd laid down twelve new numbers in all. They returned to do the rest of the vocals in late May / early June. That was timed to be over to allow the group to begin their June American tour, and then Bradford could start work on the mix. The album was cut in Bradford's new studio in Los Angeles, and being quite small, he had them all record in the one room. "That made for some great interaction, and a very cohesive group sound," he added.

As we go to press, Deep Purple's new album has been officially titled "Rapture Of The Deep". Official release date is around October 17th 2005. Given the lengthy gap between 'Abandon" and "Bananas", this is indeed good news. They have announced a new record deal with Edel Records in Germany, following their departure from EMI. The album will be on the Edel label in Europe. Edel don't have a UK office, so the album will here be handled by a label management company. Maybe this will ensure a better profile for the release.

Castles & Dreams
EU : SPV 556-99157: May 2005 2DVD

Blackmore's Nights's first commercially available DVD. To make up for the long wait, they've crammed this with loads of material - just a shade under FOUR hours. Disc one is a 21 track set from a German show at Burg Veldenstein (with optional sing along on-screen lyrics). Disc two is full of extras; ten tracks (some live, some promos), a wedge of interviews, featurettes, biographies etc. All for little more than the price of most single DVDs. Everything you ever wanted to know about Blackmore's Night but never even thought to ask, with as much background material as anyone could possibly want, down to the bassist and drummer (who seem likeable coves) discussing the wearing of tights, and Candice's suitably inane home movies. There's even a wee chat with her ma. Fans will also be pleased to learn that the Parental Guidance Rating is: Free for all ages!

"Fans will love it, the uncoverted will, I would imagine remain ... largely unconverted. It has however gone top ten in many European music DVD sales charts.
The concert is very well filmed, and contains sections of attractive instrumental work to tease and please those who just buy their product to watch Ritchie play. Many of the band's vocal songs to me come close to the German singalong 'schlager' tradition. They do actually feature a lot of popular German musical and folklore references in their work, but the show is an eclectic mix of virtually everything. Mr B. plays beautifully throughout, on both acoustics and strat, while Candice.... suffice it to say she gets everywhere!" review: Matt Hepburn

"The setting for the show was a small leafy grove just outside the main castle walls. The band came on around 9-ish and Ritchie quietly started into "Shadow of the Moon" with gentle percussion helping the tune move along. The solo was stunning, very gentle and flowing with subtle changes of course, leading to the band coming back in to end the song. A truly great way to start the show. The show moved on with two songs from "Ghost of a Rose", before the crowd of less than 100 joined in for the chorus sing-a-long of "Violet Moon". "Past Times" had the benefit of the sunset for a backdrop, and the addition of a man blowing flames out over the walls (probably had the beef at the buffet). "Soldier Of Fortune" is gentle and taken at a slightly slower pace than normal, and again Ritchie takes the solo to places only he could take a solo to.

"Home Again" is extended and has much of the audience joining in, a lively song at the best of times, this was a really good version. "Fires at Midnight" was to prove the highlight of the evening. Ritchie's solo spot, all done on acoustic, was incredible. At times played with a slide, other parts without the band, it was just so good. The band came back in on cue and the audience stood up and cheered. The addition of "Child in Time" to "Mond Tanz" was adventurous and did work up to a fashion.A quick "thank you and join us at the bonfire in 10 minutes", and they were off.

Next up was the filming to playback for the video for "Christmas Eve". A break turned into a photograph / autograph marathon for Ritchie and Candice, but they talked to everyone. From somewhere Ritchie picked up a guitar and sat on the nearest bench. With Candice sitting next to him, we got about 40 minutes of requests. I recall "Lily Marlene", "Hanging Tree" and "Dandelion Wine", but there was a lot more. " review: Kevin Dixon

I pestered EMI for a UK release - some people didn't even know about it. However we persevered on behalf of the fans in the UK and eventually they decided to give it a UK release. I was lucky enough to get an advance copy, and spent some time wrapped up in the music. I was unable to resist raving about it in a short paragraph on the DPAS site, and several months on I'm still playing it. "Pictured" was a great work, but very melancholic, and you need to be in the right frame of mind to listen to it. "Beyond" is, despite the presence of tracks dedicated to three people close to Jon's heart, an uplifting piece of work for the most part. I'm not sure what Tony Ashton would have to say about a Pavane being named in his honour, though I'm certain it would be witty, but the track never wallows, and instead has a positive streak about it. I feel the actual songs do break into the flow of the album, and become the weakest part for this reason. Happily the rest of the album is so strong this doesn't detract overmuch, whereas on "Before I Forget", the record became a rather disorganised collection of material.

I do wish Blackmore could be made to ease up on himself and his position in the rock world (it's almost as if to do something outside Blackmore's Night is admitting defeat) enough to take part on a track like "The Teleman Experiment"; can you imagine him laying outdown something like that solo on the Adam Faith track on a piece like this? We'd all think we'd died and gone to heaven. That aside, "The Teleman Experiment" is fabulous anyway (it's just that one can't help having these seditious thoughts from time to time), and along with "De Profundis" and "Cologne Again" stand up alongside anything he's written before, and may well surpass. A fascinating album, and one which really deserves to do well. I'm told that UK sales haven't been huge, and maybe it'll take a while for people to pick up on this after Deep Purple (in the same way that PAL was such a radical change of direction).

There is also a live DVD - 'Beyond The Notes Live'. You could be forgiven for missing it; because EMI have not yet released it in Britain (despite us asking kindly).
The DVD is over two hours long. It features Jon Lord and friends live at the Vulkanhalle, Cologne, on Oct 5. 2004, one of two shows from his late 2004 German tour to escape being rescheduled. The track list is: Sunrise - Pictured Within / Sarabande / I'll Send You A Postcard / Cologne Again / Pavane / Gigue / A Smile When I Shook His Hand / Here Comes The Sun / One From The Meadow / Unsquare Dance / November Calls / The Telemann Experiment / The Sun Will Shine Again (sung by Frida) / De Profundis / Bouree. Jon sticks mainly to piano, but also tickles the Hammond when needed. Bonus features include an interview and some rehearsal footage.

As last issue went to press, Jon Lord was appearing in Trondheim (March 20. 2004) at a show by Trondheimsolistene (The Trondheim Soloists). Their original pianist couldn't do the event, so they invited Jon over. It was a good opportunity to try out Jon's new work "Disguises" which he was writing for them to perform at the Bergen festival, May 23. 2004. There was a slight catch in that it wasn't finished, so Jon spent the next few days getting it into shape, and sent the score across three days before the gig. He heard it for the first time at the rehearsal. Jon Lord was also a guest on German TV's "50 Jahre Rock", a live broadcast from Hanover on April 17th to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of rock and roll. Apart from the grand finale when all the guests joined in on "Imagine", Jon was part of the programme's all-star band, which included Ian Anderson, Peter Frampton, Eric Burdon, etc. who performed "Smoke On The Water", Jethro Tull's "Locomotive Breath" and Manfred Mann's "Blinded by the Light." (Nice sequence!). The show is out on CD in Germany.

The original plans were for a full European Beyond The Notes Tour at the end of September 2004 with dates across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy and beyond, reaching the UK early in 2005. Slow sales lead to most dates being rescheduled for 2005. Those that did go ahead took place in smaller venues, and lasted nearly three hours with a twenty minute intermission. They were billed as Jon Lord & The Gemini Orchestra. "I won't be touring exactly 'with an orchestra-although it IS more than a combo' Jon told the DPAS before the gigs. "My touring band is Gtr, Bass, Drums, Percussion, 2nd keys, 2 vocalists, Flute/Clarinet, me on piano and occasional Hammond and 10 strings."

Peter Wiesner reviewed the Hamburg show for us: "It was excellent: the music, the audience, the sound, our place in the first row (just in front of Jon). And the baroque looking Musikhalle fitted perfectly (looking a little like London's Rainbow Theatre). They got three standing ovations! Jon had a Steinway and a Hammond C3. He mostly played his Steinway. His Hammond looked like the original one. It sounded like it too - I got goosepimples when he played it! Many Deep Purple fans in the hall. A few wore suits! And best of all no drunken idiots. Only true admirers of Deep Purple and Jon Lord.

"Sarabande", "Telemann Experiment" and "Bouree" were only a few of the highlights. Jon and all the musicians enjoyed the whole thing as much as we did and Jon talked more to the audience than Coverdale did last year in Bremen. Jon dedicated songs to his friends Tony Ashton and George Harrison. He told us he and George met first (and shook hands) "during a recording session with Tony Ashton 1974 at Apple". The ensemble even played a nice version of the Beatles' "Here Comes The Sun". A very nice tribute! There was a great encore with all the musicians, then we even managed to get Jon out for a second short piece, playing his Steinway on his own. That was absolutely outstanding."

As we go to press a long string of American shows throughout June and into July 2005 (with new bassist Uriah Duffy), has just ended. Starting in Seattle on the 22nd, running through to the Walker "Moondance Jam" Fairgrounds .Minnesota on July 16th. The live DVD filmed at Hammersmith 2004 is also almost ready. This was a big, multi camera shoot, with special lighting etc. and follows in the tradition of recording Whitesnake at Hammersmith. It will also be the first official DVD from any era of Whitesnake. There is confusion over the accompanying 2CD edition. Coverdale originally said the DVD deal called for the CD version to be held back for twelve months, but in America it is being announced for release at the same time... The DVD was due in Europe in July but may not now surface until later in the year. The long awaited live album from the previous tour was supposed to coincide with the 2004 dates, but didn't happen either, with Coverdale still looking for the right 'deal'.

As for a new studio album, again he needs the right label but in the meantime David has been posting new song demos on his website quite regularly (written with guitarist Doug Aldrich from the band). The following tracks have been up there: All The Time In The World / Southern Comfort / Good Lovin' / Oh No, Not The Blues Again / With All Of My Heart / As Long As I Have You. Almost half an album's worth so far. It's an interesting idea; it keeps giving people something new to listen to between releases. Whitesnake also did a big tour supporting (in a way) the EMI compilations, with the LIVE... IN THE STILL OF THE NIGHT TOUR. This began in September 2004 with nine shows in Germany (the tickets billing it THE GREATEST HITS TOUR 2004).

"1994 was the last time a version of Whitesnake graced this stage. It was not a great evening; although I seem to remember standing next to Jimmy Page for most of the concert hoping he was gonna join the band for the encore. Zoom forward 10 years and the old place is full to bursting. Mr. Page is again a guest and I have my 11 year old son along for the ride.

The place is not only packed, it is being filmed and I count at least 10 cameras. Back in 1981 I saw Whitesnake here being filmed until Mr. Coverdale remarked, "get these f*****ers off the stage". They left. Tonight we only have one on stage operator and he keeps to the wings. Wise man. Disconcertingly, when the house lights go down, loads of white "infill" lights are left lighting up the crowd. As the band hit the stage it creates a false and strange atmosphere. You know the set: from "Burn" through to "Still Of The Night" we get a smattering of the last 30 years. On the whole it's quite satisfying. All the classics, some unusual choices ("Take Me With You") and some acapella renditions of "Northwinds" classics. But something is missing: why no messing around, no deviation or exploring? Whitesnake were a blues rock band who went with the audience. This band is a precision hard rock machine with a firm start and finish time; nothing is gonna get in the way. Can you seriously imagine Reb Beach launching into "You Really Got Me" as Mr. Marsden might have done in years gone by? I think not.

It's a shame. David Coverdale is mostly on top form; if he had a band to match this would have been killer. The DVD should be interesting; will it capture the genuine excitement and pleasure of this sold out crowd or will the limitations of this version (of Whitesnake) finally be exposed?" review: Mark Smith

"After my perhaps over-exuberant review of Glenn's performance in 2002, this time I'm tempted to write only four words this time - "He was even better!" It really seems scarcely believable, but the outer reaches he ascended to during the improvised unaccompanied vocal section at the end of "Mistreated" was just the most extraordinary piece of singing I've ever witnessed. If that was the absolute highlight, then a close second must have been the pair of Purple Mk IV songs they did: "Gettin' Tighter" was excellent (really hard-edged funk and - a nice touch - including the "Dance to the Rock'n'Roll" section from the old live sets) and it's always great to hear the wonderful "You Keep on Moving".

Other than that, I have to say that the cracks in the concept that is "HTP" are painfully apparent. The Project's own material is really pretty second-rate and the set list breaks awkwardly into HTP originals, Hughes' solo sections (with Turner offstage) and Rainbow tribute band slots. I know the "tribute band" comment is harsh (there's as much - probably more - logic to Joe singing Rainbow songs as to Glenn singing Purple songs), but I think the reason Joe seems like the odd man out is because the rest of the band for the European tour is very much Glenn's. The problems seemed to be onstage too - Glenn and guitarist JJ Marsh having a good time hamming it up a bit behind Joe as he played the straight man at the front of the stage; Glenn always acting as musical director (indicating when each song would stop) and Joe looking a little awkward playing unnecessary rhythm guitar so as not to look redundant during verses sung by Glenn. All in all, the impression was of Glenn's band playing to a largely Glenn audience with occasional guest slots for a second singer.

At the end of the nearly 2-hour set (the last night of an 8-week tour) Joe said something like, "It's been great, but now I'm looking forward to going home", but Glenn replied straight-faced, "Oh, I was just getting going!" Certainly one good thing about having HTP alongside his other work - we're getting far more opportunities to see Glenn play than just about any other Purple people these days." review: Mark Worledge.

Since this tour, Glenn has confirmed in a couple of interviews (one being the US Rockline show) that HTP are unlikely to record or tour again. This seems to be the result of a rethink about his direction in general, and while HTP were able to tour to good crowds, it was seen as more of a retro gig - despite two studio albums of new material (the band's live Japanese CD was around two thirds oldies). With HTP off the road, probably for good, it was time for the solo releases. The first was the DVD "Soulfully Live In The City Of Angels", recorded before an invited audience in L.A. in early 2004, after plans for recording the UK shows didn't work out well enough. This was quickly followed by the new studio CD "Soul Mover", with Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith playing drums. He and Glenn met two years ago at a music trade fair in Los Angeles, where the singer was showcasing some of his new songs.

EU : Frontiers FRCD 203 E September 20th 2004 2CD

JJ Marsh / guitar and Ed Roth / keyboards, augmented for this special gig by Chad Smith / drums (Red Hot Chili Peppers); Quiet Riot singer Kevin DuBrow and ex-Santana man Alex Ligertwood on backing vocals, and second guitarist George Nastos.

The balance of the set was skewed towards oldies - Trapeze ('Seafull' and 'Medusa'), Hughes/Thrall ('First Step Of Love') and Deep Purple ('Mistreated', 'Getting' Tighter' and 'You Keep On Movin"), leaving just four genuine Hughes solo tracks in. So more than half the set pre-dates his solo career. Looking back on Glenn's last UK shows in October 2003, it does seem strange to find some of the newer numbers he did then dropped and the balance here is retro as a consequence. It's not as if there isn't the room; the live portion of the CD is only eight minutes or so longer than a single disc. Given that the show was specially set up and arranged, they could easily have done some more from recent albums.

That aside, what you do get is really good quality. The recording is excellent - as is the production. Glenn is on top vocal form, and Chad Smith really gives the band an extra clout. I have never really gone a bundle on the Chilies as a group, but here he certainly cuts the mustard. "Medusa" is one of the heaviest live versions yet issued, and the extended "Gettin Tighter" packs a real punch, though perhaps lacks some of the percussive finesse of Paicey. The two bonus studio tracks are a little under produced in comparison and I'd have replaced them with more live material. One of them - 'Change' was actually the bonus cut on the non-European version of the "Songs In The Key Of Rock" CD (Europe got a different bonus track). The special packaging deserves a star too.

EU : Frontiers FRCD 227: 2005

The best studio band he's assembled since Deep Purple? Debate! The DEP sessions and the live CD are all very well, but it's the new studio albums which artists depend on to keep their career momentum going, so a lot of people were keen to hear Glenn's new one. And while it doesn't radically move from his solo direction to date, it's great to hear the band incorporating musical elements from well outside the metal spectrum; indeed you're never quite sure what they're going to be trying out next. On first listen, the extreme Trapeze funk of "Dark Star" is going to please people who (like me) would like to see him bring more of this to his work, while the sublime Latin American swing of "Isolation" will be back on the turntable at DPAS towers more than once.

With lots of inventive touches throughout, my main gripe is the insertion of an obligatory rock 'chorus' into every song, regardless of mood. Maybe it's aimed at younger fans, I don't know, but several of the tracks here really didn't need it. That aside, one which should please his fans an awful lot.

Glenn's set in Bradford showed him developing his set in a positive way; out went a lot of the old Deep Purple covers, in came a good dose of his latest album. Being early days in the tour, I had the feeling that the band were still limbering up - and it wasn't quite as intense as the last time we saw them at Rio's (when they were coming to the end of a tour) - but the decision to look forward instead of back is, I feel, well worth the risk. Few if any in the audience seemed to mind, and the splash of Deep Purple which we did get in the shape of "Mistreated" and the set closer "Burn", was sufficient to remind us of where he's coming from (though for my money "Standing On The Rock" would have rounded the night off).

My main gripe was the lack of a really intense hard funk work-out, and the omission of that excellent Latin American cut off the new album (and trying to squeeze in two guest acts. Wasn't 25 minutes sound-checking a drum kit just a little OTT for a 45 minute support set?). That aside though, it's a long three month tour - and they should really be cooking after a while.

During the recording of the LIVING LOUD album, about the only thing that hadn't been settled on was the band's name! As is often the way with Drew Thompson projects, the 1 I track album was issued initially only in Australia on the Thames Thompson label (TMM 166) in April 2004 with a bonus video clip of the promised single "In The Name of God". Living Loud features Jimmy Barnes on vocals, Bob Daisley on bass guitar, Steve Morse on guitar, Don Airey on keyboards and Lee Kerslake on drums.

Steve Morse talked about the project in May 2004: "There were some disputes and a falling out between Ozzy and Bob and Lee. So many years later, they wanted to put together a band to rerecord some of the songs they co wrote. I got onboard when they graciously agreed to come all the way to Florida to my place to work on the album, saving me from losing any more days from my family. We all clicked easily on the writing and arranging, and all went home feeling that we had done a worthwhile album."

With an album to promote, and Deep Purple due in Australia in April 2004, it was decided to try and fit in a couple of Living Loud live gigs at the same time. As Barnes and Daisley both live in Sydney, Lee Kerslake was the only one who had to be flown in. To avoid conflicts with the Deep Purple shows, and so as not to cheese the promoter off, the Living Loud gigs could only be announced once Purple were about sold out. Thus they had to be held at relatively modest venues. The idea was for the band to play immediately after Purple got off stage, with Airey and Morse being raced across town. The two shows were: Apr 25 Metro Melbourne, Apr 26 Fox Studios, Sydney.

The first was more of a showcase event for industry and media, the second in Sydney was open to all. The shows started late, near midnight, and saw the band cover the album in full with a couple of encores, lasting just over an hour, which meant Airey and Morse didn't have to do another full show. They did have a problem when they got called back for an encore! Barnes told the crowd that they had a classic on standby, and they finished with the Spencer Davis Group classic 'Gimme Some Lovin'. Ever resourceful, Drew ensured that cameras were on hand and the second gig was filmed and recorded.

There was a combined DVD, studio CD and interview CD set (combo packs in industry jargon!) offered in some countries (France and Spain). However EMI decided that the DVD should be sold separately. The EMI version of the studio CD dropped the video in favour of two audio tracks from the live gig as bonuses, and both came out on September 13. 2004 (DVD cat. number: 599 9919, CD cat. number: 866 7542). EMI didn't want to issue the live album on CD, so T2 took up the slack, and are releasing this in Europe in August 2005 (with a limited edition bonus interview disc).

Thames Thompson TMMI66 - 2004

"Bob Daisley and Lee Kerslake, founding members of Blizzard Of Ozz, the original Ozzy Osbourne band, twenty years later re-record tunes from that line-up's two albums ( "Blizzard Of Ozz" and "Diary Of A Madman"), at the same time as losing a court case against Mr. Osbourne for unpaid royalties. The latter crudely removes them from the latest reissues of the albums, and has the bass and drums overdubbed by session men! Bob goes to great pains to stress in the short sleeve note that the timing of these events are coincidental, but it all seems a bit strange.

The interest here is from Steve Morse on guitar, and to a lesser extent Don Airey on keyboards, though Don has been quick to point out his involvement is simply on a session basis, despite his connection to the original Ozzy studio versions. The band is completed by Australian singer Jimmy Barnes, who has guested with Deep Purple on a couple of occasions. So what do we have here? An eleven-track album comprising six covers from the Osbourne albums, and five new compositions. The covers all originally featured the late Randy Rhoads, so Steve has a big reputation to follow, and some will see it as comparable to his replacing of Blackmore in Deep Purple. On the whole he approaches the task in the same way, sticking closely to the parts on some occasions,and stretching out in a new direction on others. As a whole, his style fits in very well with the band, who are a competent unit, even if Kerslake comes over as a bit of a slogger at times. Ozzy Osbourne these days is laughed at as a slurring wreck, but his original vocals stand out as far clearer and passioned than Barnes, who is too much in the AC/DC screecher mould for my liking.

"Last Chance" gets things going, and is not really worth it. A standard chugging rocker, it is dragged down by the dreadful cliched lyrics, and overall is completely passable. "I Don't Know" is an Ozzy song. Don makes his presence felt, while Steve's solo reminds me of his work in "Cascades", but the song is dragged down by the vocals. Not a promising start. "Crazy Train" has a superb opening from Mr. Morse, who then sticks closely to Rhoads' original riffing. After a pedestrian performance, Barnes picks up towards the end, but the easy listening version used on the Osbourne TV series is more fun, intro aside. "In The Name Of God" is the pick of the group compositions by some way. A vague folksy effect (of the kind lifted from more original sources by Led Zeppelin) with mandolin style playing by Steve carries the tune. For once, the lyric is meaningful, pointing out our tendency to make all the right noises about various atrocities around the world, but then do nothing about them.

"Flying High Again" includes another effective opening, and some steady riffing from Steve. This is the best suited of the Ozzy covers so far, though Steve's solo seems more subdued than I remember the original being. "Mr Crowley" is the one real copper bottomed classic for me in the Osbourne catalogue. Much of the original atmosphere was generated by Don's superbly spooky opening, which has been transferred to a Hammond here, and lacks the same impact. Steve's guitar is very clipped and different to the original, but fits in well, unlike the horrible treated vocal. Despite the storming solo at the end, this doesn't hit the mark. Overall, I'm not sure the covers do enough to really make them stand out, and even with Daisley's denial of cashing in, there is a whiff of revenge about these recordings." Mattheew Kean