Deep
Purple Stormbringer 35th Anniversary Edition [album]
Very Best
Of [album]
“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
"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
