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DPAS
LIVE REVIEWS Deep
Purple So,
it's off to the bizarre object on the banks of the Clyde, into the space
age lift, I went along with a Morse virgin to try and get an alternative view of the man. Fireball was a bit shaky, as was Woman From Tokyo. Come Mary Long the band started to hit their stride, and once Ted The Mechanic arrived it was plain sailing. It was nice to see the amount of space Don Airey was given, and I doubt there could be a more appropriate replacement. Lazy was well received, but I hope there's better tunes tucked away than Well Dressed Guitar. When A Blind Man Cries was a nice change of pace, and probably the best Gillan performance of the night (barring the stupid inaudible bongo assault during each number). From Space Truckin' into the Jon Lord changeover via Don Airey' s I Belong To Glasgow / Loch Lomond / Star Wars solo, and from the reception it was obvious that a lot of people weren't expecting the appearance of Mr Lord. Awesome. Then, of course it was classics all the way. Come the intro to Smoke On The Water, and Steve Morse started playing Love Hurts, and who ambles on from the wings clutching a beer bottle, but the legendary Dan McCafferty to sing a verse & chorus, and then off to a tremendous response. Encore time, and even the quiet seats were dancing. An excellent show. And the verdict on Mr Morse was "too metal, too piercing, too shrill". Sorry. But all were in agreement that Don Airey is a welcome addition, and we're just grateful that the Purple machine continues to rock and roll along review: Stuart Hamilton As 8.30 approached and armed with tckets for Row B seats 1 and 2, I looked up at the huge PA just 6 feet away and thought....'I may never hear properly again'... ...however as the sound of the air conditioning unit being turned on was followed by Paicey's rockin' intro to Fireball, it was clear Purple were set to rock The Glasgow Armadillo... As it transpired, the volume of the PA was bearable and the mix was actually very good. Ian's voice was in fine form and he looked relaxed in his white "jammies"...Woman from Tokyo followed, then a fab version of Mary Long, played with real feel. Then in a quieter moment, Steve, Roger and Ian started playing Love Hurts only to be joined on stage for a verse by Nazareth's Dan McCafferty, much to the delight of the Glasgow crowd... The band jammed a few old rock and roll numbers...and went out with Smoke On The Water, only to return with three great encores, Hush, Black Night and a stunning, mind blowing version of Highway Star. ( I swear there was as much energy as 1972!!) Awesome!!!... All in all a stormer of a gig!!! Thanks Guys! review & scan: Peter Fergusson, Dumfries The Purple Armadillo is the only place for the guys to play - don't ever let the management persuade them to play in the SECC. Of all the times I've seen Deep Purple this was the best - the guys were really enjoying themselves and Steve Morse has given them a new lease of life (Ritchie who?). I can now understand why they keep rocking - it took 20 years off me, and Gillan's voice was pitch perfect. Being Jon's last tour I could understand the greatest hits format and Highway Star, Space Truckin', and Perfect Strangers were awesome. Next time, hopefully, we'll see new material such as Well Dressed Guitar (incredible playing by Steve), the return of Seventh Heaven, and some of the rarer items from the back catalogue. No band in the world can match them live - awesome! review: A.Jones |
Don
Airey played some blinders despite his solo piece consisting of "Loch
Lomond" and "I Belong To Glasgow" played in Les Dawson style..You'd
better believe it!! Ted The Mechanic, Lazy, Well Dressed
Guitar (when are you going to write the rest of it guys?)...When
a Blind Man Cries was played and sung with real conviction... then
Space Truckin'... .after which the lights dimmed and who else
but Mr Lord appeared (to rapturous applause) for Perfect Strangers,
a (slow) version of Speed King but with great licks traded between
Jon and Steve...