In June, upon returning from America, Deep Purple began recording a new single, Hallelujah. By this time Ritchie Blackmore(thanks to drummer Mick Underwood, an acquaintance from his participation in The Outlaws), he discovered the (virtually unknown in Britain, but of interest to specialists) band Episode Six, which performed pop rock in the spirit of The Beach Boys, but had an unusually strong vocalist. Ritchie Blackmore brought Jon Lord to their concert, and he was also amazed by the power and expressiveness of Ian Gillan's voice. The latter agreed to move to Deep Purple, but - in order to demonstrate his own compositions - he brought the Episode bassist with him to the studio Six by Roger Glover, with whom he has already formed a strong author duo.
Ian Gillan recalled that when he met Deep Purple, he was struck first of all by the intelligence of Jon Lord, from whom he expected much worse. Roger Glover (who always dressed and behaved very simply), on the contrary, was frightened by the gloominess of the members of Deep Purple, who “... wore black and looked very mysterious.” Roger Glover took part in the recording of Hallelujah, to his amazement, he immediately received an invitation to join the lineup, and the next day, after much hesitation, he accepted.
It is noteworthy that while the single was being recorded, Rod Evans and Nick Simper did not know that their fate was sealed. The remaining three secretly rehearsed with the new vocalist and bassist at the Hanwell Community Center in London during the day, and gave concerts in the evenings with Rod Evans and Nick Simper. “For Deep Purple it was a normal modus operandi,” Roger Glover later recalled. “It was customary here: if a problem arises, the main thing is for everyone to remain silent about it, relying on management. It was assumed that if you are a professional, then you should give up basic human decency in advance. I was very ashamed of the way they treated Nick Simper and Rod Evans.”
Mine last concert The old line-up of Deep Purple performed in Cardiff on July 4, 1969. Rod Evans and Nick Simper were given a three-month salary, and in addition they were allowed to take amplifiers and equipment with them. Nick Simper won another 10 thousand pounds through the court, but lost the right to further deductions. Rod Evans was content with little and, as a result, over the next eight years he received 15 thousand pounds annually from the sale of old records, and later in 1972 he founded the team Captain Beyond. A conflict arose between the managers of Episode Six and Deep Purple, which was settled out of court through compensation in the amount of 3 thousand pounds.
Remaining virtually unknown in Britain, Deep Purple gradually lost their commercial potential in America. Unexpectedly for everyone, Jon Lord proposed a new, highly attractive idea to the group's management.
Jon Lord: "The idea of creating a piece that could be performed by a rock band with symphony orchestra, appeared to me back in The Artwoods. I was inspired by Dave Brubeck's album "Brubeck Plays Bernstein Plays Brubeck". Ritchie Blackmore was all for it. Shortly after Ian Paice and Roger Glover arrived, Tony Edwards suddenly asked me: “Remember when you told me about your idea? I hope it was serious? Well, I’ve rented the Albert Hall and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for September 24.” I came - first in horror, then in wild delight. I had about three months left to work, and I started it right away."
The publishers of Deep Purple brought in Oscar-winning composer Malcolm Arnold to collaborate: he was supposed to provide general supervision over the progress of the work, and then stand at the conductor's stand. Malcolm Arnold's unconditional support for the project, which many considered dubious, ultimately ensured success. The group's management found sponsors in The Daily Express and the British Lion Films film company, which filmed the event. Ian Gillan and Roger Glover were nervous: after three months after joining the group they were promoted to the most prestigious concert venue countries.
“John was very patient with us,” Roger Glover recalled. “None of us understood musical notation, so our papers were full of comments like: “you wait for that stupid melody, then you look at Malcolm Arnold and count to four.”
The album "Concerto For Group and Orchestra" (performed by Deep Purple and The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra), recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall on September 24, 1969, was released (in the US) three months later. It gave the band some press buzz (which was what they needed) and entered the UK charts. But despondency reigned among the musicians. The sudden fame that fell on Jon Lord's author infuriated Ritchie Blackmore. Ian Gillan agreed with the latter in this sense.
“The promoters tormented us with questions like: Where is the orchestra? - he recalled. “One actually said: I can’t guarantee you a symphony, but I can invite a brass band.” Moreover, Jon Lord himself realized that the appearance of Ian Gillan and Roger Glover opened up opportunities for the group in a completely different area. By this time, Ritchie Blackmore had become the central figure in the ensemble, having developed a unique method of playing with “random noise” (by manipulating the amplifier) and calling on his colleagues to follow the path of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath. It became clear that Roger Glover's lush, rich sound was becoming the anchor of the new sound, and that Ian Gillan's dramatic, extravagant vocals fit perfectly with the radical new direction that Ritchie Blackmore had proposed.
The group worked out the new style during continuous concert activities: the Tetragrammaton company (which financed films and experienced one failure after another) by this time was on the verge of bankruptcy (its debts by February 1970 amounted to more than two million dollars). With a complete lack of financial support from overseas, Deep Purple were forced to rely only on earnings from concerts.
The full potential of the new lineup was realized at the end of 1969, when Deep Purple began recording a new album. As soon as the band got together in the studio, Ritchie Blackmore categorically declared: the new album will include only everything that is most exciting and dramatic. The requirement, which everyone agreed with, became the leitmotif of the work. Work on the Deep Purple album "In Rock" lasted from September 1969 to April 1970. The album's release was delayed for several months until the bankrupt Tetragrammaton was bought by Warner Brothers, which automatically inherited Deep Purple's contract.
Meanwhile, Warner Brothers. released "Live in Concert" in the USA - a recording with the London Philharmonic Orchestra - and called the group to America to perform at the Hollywood Bowl. After several more shows in California, Arizona and Texas, Deep Purple found themselves embroiled in yet another controversy on August 9, this time on stage at the National Jazz Festival in Plumpton. Ritchie Blackmore, not wanting to give up his time on the program to latecomers Yes, started a mini-arson on the stage and caused a fire, which is why the band was fined and received virtually nothing for their performance. The band spent the rest of August and early September touring Scandinavia.
"In Rock" was released in September 1970, was a huge success on both sides of the ocean, was immediately declared a "classic" and remained in the first album "thirty" in Britain for more than a year. True, the management did not find a hint of a single in the presented material, and the group was sent to the studio to urgently come up with something. Created almost spontaneously, Black Night provided the band with their first big chart success, rising to number 2 in Britain, and became their business card for many years to come.
In December 1970, a rock opera written by Andrew Lloyd Webber with a libretto by Tim Rice, “Jesus Christ Superstar,” was released and became a world classic. The title role in this work was performed by Ian Gillan. In 1973, the movie "Jesus Christ Superstar" was released, which differed from the original by the arrangements and vocals of Ted Neeley as Jesus. Ian Gillan was hard at work in Deep Purple at the time, and never became the movie Christ.
At the beginning of 1971, the group began work on the next album, while not stopping concerts, which is why the recording lasted for six months and was completed in June. During the tour, Roger Glover's health deteriorated. Subsequently, it turned out that his stomach problems had a psychological basis: it was the first symptom of severe touring stress, which soon affected all members of the band.
"Fireball" was released in July in Britain (reaching the top of the charts here) and in October in the US. The band toured the US and completed the UK leg of the tour. great show at London's Albert Hall, where the invited parents of the musicians were seated in the royal box. By this time, Ritchie Blackmore, having given free rein to his own eccentricity, had become a “state within a state” in Deep Purple. "If Ritchie Blackmore wants to play a 150-bar solo, he'll play it and no one can stop him," Ian Gillan told Melody Maker in September 1971.
The American tour, which began in October 1971, was canceled due to Ian Gillan's illness (he contracted hepatitis). Two months later, the vocalist reunited with the remaining members in Montreux, Switzerland to work on a new album, "Machine Head". Deep Purple agreed with The Rolling Stones about the use of their Mobile studio, which was supposed to be located near the Casino concert hall. On the day of the group's arrival, during a performance by Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention (where members of Deep Purple also went), a fire occurred. , caused by a rocket sent into the ceiling by one of the spectators. The building burned down, and the group rented an empty Grand Hotel, where they completed work on the record. famous songs bands, Smoke On The Water.
Claude Nobs, director of the Montreux festival, mentioned in the song Smoke On The Water (“Funky Claude was running in and out...” - According to legend, Ian Gillan scribbled the lyrics on a napkin while looking out of a window at the surface of a lake shrouded in smoke, and the title suggested by Roger Glover, to whom these 4 words seemed to appear in a dream (The Machine Head album was released in March 1972, rose to 1st place in Britain and sold 3 million copies in the USA, where the single Smoke On The Water was included. in the top five of Billboard.
In July 1972, Deep Purple flew to Rome to record their next studio album (later released under the title Who Do We Think We Are?). All members of the group were morally and psychologically exhausted, the work took place in a nervous environment - also due to the escalating contradictions between Ritchie Blackmore and Ian Gillan.
On August 9, studio work was interrupted, and Deep Purple went to Japan. Recordings of concerts held here were included in "Made In Japan": released in December 1972, it is retrospectively considered one of the best live albums of all time, along with "Live At Leeds" (The Who) and "Get Yer Ya-ya's Out" (The Rolling Stones).
“The idea of a live album is to get all the instruments to sound as natural as possible, with the energy from the audience being able to bring something out of the band that they could never create in the studio,” said Ritchie Blackmore. “In 1972, Deep Purple went on tour in America five times, and the sixth tour was interrupted due to Ritchie Blackmore’s illness. By the end of the year, total circulation Deep Purple's records were declared the most popular band in the world, beating Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones.
During the autumn American tour, tired and disappointed with the state of affairs in the group, Ian Gillan decided to leave, which he announced in a letter to London management. Tony Edwards and John Coletta persuaded the vocalist to wait a while, and he (now in Germany, at the same studio of The Rolling Stones Mobile) together with the band completed work on the album. By this time, he was no longer talking to Ritchie Blackmore and was traveling separately from the rest of the participants, avoiding air travel.
The album "Who Do We Think We Are" (so named because the Italians, outraged by the noise level on the farm where the album was recorded, asked the repeated question: "Who do they think they are?") disappointed musicians and critics, although it contained strong things - the “stadium” anthem Woman From Tokyo and the satirical-journalistic Mary LongMary Long, which ridiculed Mary Whitehouse and Lord Longford, two of the then guardians of morality.
In December, when "Made In Japan" entered the charts, managers met with Jon Lord and Roger Glover and asked them to make every effort to keep the group together. They convinced Ian Paice and Ritchie Blackmore to stay, who had already conceived their own project, but Ritchie Blackmore set a condition for the management: the inevitable dismissal of Roger Glover. The latter, noticing that his colleagues began to shun him, demanded an explanation from Tony Edwards , and he (in June 1973) admitted: Ritchie Blackmore required his departure. An angry Roger Glover immediately submitted his resignation.
After Deep Purple's last joint concert in Osaka, Japan, on June 29, 1973, Ritchie Blackmore, passing Roger Glover on the stairs, just threw over his shoulder: “It's nothing personal: business is business.” Roger Glover took this trouble hard to over the next three months he did not leave the house, partly due to worsening stomach problems.
Ian Gillan left Deep Purple at the same time as Roger Glover and moved away from music for some time, going into the motorcycle business. He returned to the stage three years later with the Ian Gillan Band. Roger Glover, after recovery, concentrated on producing.
PIONEERS OF HEAVY METAL – DEEP PURPLE
In the history of heavy music, there are very few groups that can be put on a par with the rock legends who painted the world in dark purple tones.
Their path was as winding as Ritchie Blackmore's guitar strums and Jon Lord's organ parts.
Each of the participants deserves a separate story, but it was together that they became iconic figures of rock.
On the carousel
The history of this glorious band goes back to 1966, when the drummer of one of the Liverpool bands, Chris Curtis, decided to create his own band, Roundabout. Fate brought him together with Jon Lord, who was already known in narrow circles and was known as an excellent organist. By the way, it turned out that he had a wonderful guy in mind who simply does miracles with a guitar. This musician turned out to be Ritchie Blackmore, who at that time was playing in the Three Musketeers band in Hamburg. He was immediately called up from Germany and offered a place on the team.
But suddenly the initiator of the project itself, Chris Curtis, disappears, thereby drawing a heavy cross on his career and putting the nascent group at risk. 
Drugs were rumored to be involved in his disappearance.
Jon Lord took over the case. Thanks to him, Ian Pace appeared in the group, impressing everyone with his ability to hammer the drums, knocking incredible shots out of them. The vocalist's place was then taken by Rod Evans, Pace's bandmate. former group. Nick Simper became the bass player.
Everything is deep purple for them
At Blackmore's suggestion, the group was named , and with this lineup the team recorded three albums, the first of which was released in 1968. The song “Deep Purple” by Nino Tempo and April Stevens was Ritchie Blackmore’s grandmother’s favorite composition, so the musicians didn’t think twice about it and took it as the basis for the band’s name, without attaching any special meaning. As it turned out, the same name was given to the brand of drug LCD, which was sold in the USA at that time. But vocalist Ian Gillan swears and claims that the band members never took drugs, but preferred whiskey and soda.
Bathing in rock
Success had to wait several years. The group was popular only in America, but in its homeland it hardly attracted any attention. 
interest among music lovers. This caused a split in the team. Evans and Simper had to be “fired”, despite their professionalism and the path they had traveled together.
Not every band could cope with such bad luck, but Mick Underwood, a famous drummer and longtime friend of Ritchie Blackmore, came to the rescue. It was he who recommended Ian Gillan to him, who “screamed wonderfully in a high voice.” Ian, in turn, brought his friend, bass player Roger Glover.
In June 1970 new line-up The group released the album “Deep Purple in Rock”, which was a huge success and finally brought the “dark purple” into the echelon of the most popular rockers of the century. The undisputed success of the record was the composition “Child in Time”. She is still considered one of the best songs groups. This album remained at the top of the charts for a year. The band spent the entire next year traveling, but they also found time to record a new album, “Fireball.”
Smoke from Deep Purple
A few months later, the musicians went to Switzerland to record the next album, “Machine Head”. At first they wanted to make it in The Rolling Stones' mobile studio, in a concert hall, 
where Frank Zappa's performances ended. During one of the concerts, a fire started, which inspired the musicians to new ideas. It is about this fire that the song “Smoke on the Water”, which later became an international hit, tells the story.
Roger Glover even dreamed of this fire and smoke spreading over Lake Geneva. He woke up in horror and said the phrase “smoke on the water.” This became the title and line from the chorus of the song. Despite the difficult conditions in which the album was created, the record was clearly a success, becoming a calling card for many years.
Made in Japan
On the wave of success, the team went on tour to Japan, subsequently releasing an equally successful collection of concert music, “Made in Japan,” which went platinum.
The Japanese public made an amazing impression on the “dark purples”. During the performance of the songs, the Japanese sat almost motionless and listened attentively to the musicians. But after the end of the song they burst into applause. Such concerts were unusual for, because they were used to 
in Europe and America, spectators constantly shout something, jump up from their seats and rush to the stage.
During his performances, Ritchie Blackmore was a real showman. His games were always witty and full of surprises. Other musicians did not lag behind, demonstrating skill and excellent collective cohesion.
California show
But, as often happens, relations in the group became so tense that Ian Gillan and Ritchie Blackmore found it difficult to get along with each other. As a result, Ian and Roger left the team, and the “dark purple” were again left with nothing. Replacing a vocalist of this caliber turned out to be a big challenge. However, as you know, a holy place is never empty, and the new performer in the group was David Coverdale, who had previously worked as an ordinary salesman in a clothing store. The position of bass guitarist was filled by Glenn Hughes. In 1974, the renewed group recorded a new album called “Burn”.
To try out new compositions in public, the group decided to take part in the famous California Jam concert in the Los Angeles area. He gathered an audience of approximately 
400 thousand people and in the world of music is considered a unique event. Until sunset, Blackmore refused to go on stage and the local sheriff even threatened to arrest him, but finally the sun set and the action began. During the performance, Ritchie Blackmore tore his guitar, damaged the camera of a TV channel cameraman and caused such an explosion at the end that he barely survived.
Revival of Deep Purple
The following records were successful, but, unfortunately, did not demonstrate anything new. The group quietly exhausted itself. As the years passed, fans began to think that the once beloved was history, but finally in 1984, the “dark purple” were revived with their “golden” lineup.
A world tour was soon organized and in every city along the route, concert tickets sold out in the blink of an eye. It was not only a matter of old merits, the virtuosity of the participants 
The groups were not at all lost.
Second album new era– “The House of Blue Light” – was released in 1987 and continued the chain of undoubted victories. But after another showdown with Blackmore, Ian Gillan broke away from the group again. This turn of events was to Richie’s advantage, because he brought his longtime friend Joe Lynn Turner into the team. The album “Slaves & Masters” was recorded with a new vocalist in 1990.
Clash of the Titans
The band's 25th anniversary was just around the corner, and after a short break, vocalist Ian Gillan returned to his native land, and the anniversary album, released in 1993, was symbolically named “The Battle Rages On...” (“The Battle Continues”).
The battle of characters did not stop either. The buried hatchet has been unearthed by Ritchie Blackmore. Despite the ongoing tour, Richie left the team, which by that time had ceased to interest him. The musicians invited 
Joe Satriani to finalize concerts with him, and soon Blackmore’s place was taken by Steve Morse, a talented American guitarist. The team still held the hard rock banner high, as demonstrated by 1996's Purpendicular and Abandon, released two years later.
Already in the new millennium, keyboardist Jon Lord announced to the band members that he would like to devote himself to solo projects and left the team. He was replaced by Don Airey, who had previously worked with Richie and Roger in the Rainbow group. A year later, the updated line-up released the first album in five years, “Bananas”. Surprisingly, the press and critics responded wonderfully to it, but few people liked the name.
Unfortunately, after 10 years of successful solo work, Jon Lord died of cancer.
Old robbers
In the 2000s, the group, despite the advanced age of the participants, continued touring. According to the musicians, this is why the band should exist, and not at all 
for the production of studio albums. The latest collection was the 19th album “Now What?!”, released for the 45th anniversary of the “dark purple”.
After such an eloquent album title, the question should follow: “What’s next?” And time will tell - whether we will see a reunion at least once again, and whether the musicians will have time to amaze their fans with something else. In the meantime, they are one of the few whose concerts grandfathers go to with their grandchildren and equally enjoy the music.
When asked: “Where are you going?”, they answer surprisingly logically: “Only forward. We do not stand still and are constantly working on ourselves, on new sounds. And we are still so nervous before every concert that it sends shivers down our spines.”
DATA
While on tour in Australia in 1999, a teleconference was organized on one of the television programs. The band members performed “Smoke on the Water” in sync with several hundred professional guitarists and amateurs.
Interestingly, Ian Pace was a member of all the group's lineups, but never became its leader. 
The personal lives of musicians are also closely connected. Keyboardist Jon Lord and drummer Ian Paice married twin sisters Vicky and Jackie Gibbs.
Music lovers from the countries of the former Soviet Union, despite the Iron Curtain, found ways to get acquainted with the group’s work. In the Russian language, an amazing euphemism “deeply violet” even appeared, that is, “completely indifferent and far from the topic of discussion.”
Updated: April 9, 2019 by: Elena
60s of XX century. became especially important for rock music, because it was at this time that such bands as the Rolling Stones were born, The Beatles Led Zeppelin Pink Floyd. And a special place was occupied by Deep Purple - the legendary rock band of “dark purple tones”. She took a special place on the stage. The most important thing that needs to be said about Deep Purple is that their discography is too diverse for one to speak unambiguously about it. The path of the musicians was tortuous and covered with thorns, which were very difficult to overcome.
general information
What is known about Deep Purple today? The group's discography is full of surprises, so each album deserves special attention due to its special uniqueness. Many people remember the band precisely because of Ritchie Blackmore's guitar solos and Jon Lord's organ parts, and think that this is where Deep Purple's potential ends. Music provides a complete refutation of this, because even after the leaders left, the team did not break up and recorded several discs. Through joint efforts, the group was able to achieve stunning success on the world stage and earn the status of a “cult rock band of all time.”
From "Carousel" to "dark purple"
The history of the formation of the group contains a chain of some inexplicable events, without which Deep Purple would not have existed. The discography does not contain the recordings of the group's founder. The explanation for this is this: in 1966, drummer Chris Curtis wanted to create a band called “Roundabout”, in which members would change each other, reminiscent of a carousel. Later he met organist Jon Lord, who had good experience games, and was also incredibly talented.
At Lord's invitation, Ritchie Blackmore, an experienced guitarist who came from Germany, joined their band. Chris Curtis himself soon disappeared, thereby putting an end to his musical career, and leaving the group members to their own devices. Only 2 years later the musicians were able to release their first album. This is where Deep Purple's career began. The complete discography dates back to 1968.
Discography for all times
Let's list the first compositions:
- Shades of Deep Purple (1968). The group was then managed by Jon Lord. At his suggestion, drummer Ian Pace, vocalist Rod Evans and bass guitarist Nick Simper were invited to join the band.
- The Book of Taliesyn (1968). The composition of the group remained unchanged. The album's title comes from The Book of Taliesin.
- Deep Purple (April) (1969). It was difficult to call this record weak, but it failed to achieve success in its homeland. It was the low popularity that contributed to the split, which led to Evans and Simper being fired from the group.
- Deep Purple In Rock (1970). The group was rehabilitated, and in this they were helped by the famous drummer of that time, Mick Underwood. He and Ritchie Blackmore were longtime friends. On the advice of Underwood, the “dark purple” band began to sound “high-pitched,” and Ian Gillan became the new vocalist. They were also joined by bass player Roger Glover. The success of the album was stunning, Deep Purple entered the ranks of the popular rock bands of that time.
- Fireball (1971). Throughout 1971, the group gave many concerts in different cities, their concerts became in demand.
- Machine Head (1972). The musicians were inspired to create this album by a trip to Switzerland.
- Who Do We Think We Are (1973). Latest album 70s, recorded by the “golden cast”.
- Burn (1974). As a result of the discord, Ian Gillan and Roger Glover left the group. It turned out to be difficult to replace such skilled musicians, but soon David Coverdale became the new vocalist, and Glenn Hughes took the place of bass guitarist. This lineup recorded the new album.
- Stormbringer (1974). After recording Burn and before the band's reunion in 1984, only two albums were recorded.
- Come Taste The Band (1975). Tommy Bolin participated in the recording of this record, replacing Ritchie Blackmore. These albums did not bring the group the same popularity, and in 1976 the group announced its breakup. But only to be revived again in 1984 with the “golden lineup”: Gillan and Glover returned to the group.
- Perfect Strangers (1984). The new album of the revived Deep Purple was enthusiastically received by fans.
- The House of Blue Light (1987). After recording a new triumphant record, Ian Gillan left the group again. At the same time, Ritchie Blackmore invited Joe Lynn Turner, the famous vocalist.
- Slaves & Masters (1990). The album was recorded with a new lineup, with Joe Lynn Turner.
- The Battle Rages On... (1993). The album was recorded for the band's 25th anniversary. Ian Gillan participated in the recording, who by that time had decided to return to the team again.
- Purpendicular (1996). The still popular group now performed with a new lineup. Having lost interest in the band, Ritchie Blackmore left Deep Purple, and Steve Morse came in his place.
- Abandon (1998). The last album recorded with Jon Lord. In 2002, he decided to perform solo and left the group.
New generation of Deep Purple
Collections from the 2000s:
- Bananas (2003). The departed Lord was replaced on keyboards by Don Airey, who also plays in the current lineup of the group. Bananas is the first album recorded with his participation. The album was warmly received by the public; the only thing the fans didn’t like was the title of the album. Alas, Jon Lord successfully soloed with his work for only 10 years. Unfortunately, oncology put an end to his life and work. However, what he created over the years lives on in Deep Purple. Discography in beginning of XXI century has been replenished with two albums, which are invariably popular.
- Rapture of the Deep (2005) and Now What?! (2013). This anniversary album was released to mark the band's 45th anniversary. Today, Deep Purple tour constantly, and in 2017 they organized a three-year world tour, which is scheduled to end in 2020.
- Infinite (2017). The latest, 20th album is called “Infinity”.
After “infinity,” what remains for Deep Purple? The discography includes 20 studio albums. And yet, even the band members themselves don’t know what will happen next. In any case, they intend to move only forward, to infinity.
Whether Richie gives this project his stamp of approval or not, I kind of don't give a damn.
Rod Evans, August 1980
Many are wondering where the first Deep Purple vocalist Rod Evans disappeared to. We regularly see participants of deeply purple, both canonical and passing compositions, on the hunts in the Russian outback from year to year. But we finally lost the vocalist of the first line-up, who occupies an unshakable third place after Mk II and Mk III, Rod Evans, from the radar. Few purplomaniacs know the unpleasant story about the fake composition of Deep People in 1980, just before the grand reunion Perfect Strangers, which they tried to erase from the group’s history.
Fake Deep Purple. From left to right: Dick Jurgens (drums) - Tony Flynn (guitars) - Tom De Rivera (bass) - Geoff Emery (keyboards) - Rod Evans (vocals)
The official story in dry facts goes like this.
Rod Evans / Jon Lord / Ritchie Blackmore
Nick Simper/Ian Paice
Rod Evans was one of the founders of Deep People when the group was still rising to the heights of rock 'n' roll stardom in 1968-69. After recording the first three albums Shades Of Deep Purple, The Book Of Taliesyn And Deep Purple, Rod, together bassist of the group Nick Simper left the ensemble and went for a better life in the USA, where in 1971 he released a solo single Hard To Be Without You / You Can´t Love A Child Like A Woman after which he decided to take part in the new American band Captain Beyond, founded by members of the groups Iron Butterfly and Johnny Winter. Having released two releases: the self-titled Captain Beyond in 1972 and Sufficentley Breathless in 1973, but without achieving commercial success, the group broke up. Rod decided to give up music, returned to his studies as a doctor, and even became the director of the respiratory therapy department.
Rod Evans - Hard To Be Without You
Until 1980, when a lively manager contacted him with an obsession to reform Deep Purple, which had disbanded by that time. Just before this, his company had already tried to cut down the money by creating a new Steppenwolf along with original members Goldie McJohn and Nick Saint Nicholas, but John Kay intervened in time and revoked the rights to this name.
Captain Beyond - I Can't Feel Nothin' (Live '71)
From May to September 1980, the "renewed" Deep People performed several concerts in Mexico, the United States and Canada before their activities were stopped by the lawyers of the "old" Deep People's management. As it turned out, Rod Evans was the only one in charge of this group, while the rest of the group were simply hired musicians. And therefore it was Rod Evans who was the only one on whom the entire machine of justice fell.
It is noteworthy that the famous William Morris agency from Los Angeles bought this project, paid for the concert tour and even offered a contract to record an album on the Warner Curb Records label (a sub-label of Warner Brothers). Several songs were even recorded for the album, which was scheduled for release in November 1980. These recordings were lost, only the names of a couple of tracks were preserved: Blood Blister and Brum Doogie.
The group's show in Mexico City was captured for posterity by Mexican television, but only a fragment with Smoke On The Water has reached this day.
Deep Purple (bogus) - Smoke on the water
Reviews of the group's performances were, to put it mildly, not very good. Pyrotechnics, glitter, chainsaws, lasers, sound problems, performance problems, complete failure. The group was booed, and some concerts ended in pogrom.
Deep Purple in Quebec. Corbeau takes over the show.
Caption under the photo: ex-guitarist Ritchie Blackmore will be notified of the appearance of a group that discredits his name!
Tuesday, August 12, 1 p.m.: Having learned that all tickets for the show were sold out, the age limit had been lowered from fourteen to twelve, still without tickets, I decided to leave Montreal and move towards the Capitol Theater. Concert hall was located in old Quebec and could accommodate one and a half thousand people.
Quebec, 5 pm: Luckily, the theater is only an 8-minute walk from the station building. Some people have already asked for an extra ticket. Depending on luck, it cost them 15, 20, 25 and even 50 dollars for a ticket with an original cost of 9.5 to 12.5 dollars. At that moment, no one knew who from the old lineup would play that evening.
7 pm: I was allowed to go and meet “within the walls of the venue” with the concert organizer Robert Boulet and the band’s roadie. They gave me such long-awaited clarity - the group consisted of the first Deep Purple vocalist Rod Evans (from the time of the hit Hush). After his involvement with the band Captain Beyond, he decided to relaunch the ship in February 1980 with Tony Flynn (ex-Steppenwolf) on lead guitar, Geoff Emery (ex-Steppenwolf and Iron Butterfly) on keyboards and backing vocals, Dick Jurgens (ex-Association) on drums and Tom de Riviera, bass and backing vocals. After the show they go on tour in the US, then Japan and finally Europe. The new album is scheduled for release in October.
Opening act, Corbeau band. 15 minutes past nine: The band takes the stage and puts on a great show. Guitarist Jean Millaire is especially good. Vocalist Marho and her two backing vocalists are also good. The audience responded great.
New Deep Purple: After a long break, the “new Deep Purple” with Rod Evans starts at 11 tonight. The reactions are different, conversations begin that the poster is a deception. From the very beginning, there are problems with the sound on Highway Star. The vocalist's microphone works 1 time out of ten. The guitarist is a true caricature of Blackmore in terms of his playing and appearance. The drummer has more sparkle than he knocks out of the cymbals, the organist seems to miss his mother. The band continues with “Might Just Take Your Life” from the Burn album. The next thing is from the time Evans was in the lineup. There is only one thing in the setlist and it is instrumental. The guitarist gives a long solo that is completely cliché. He's replaced by a keyboard player with the worst organ solo I've heard in 10 years. At that moment, Lorde must have been overcome with syncopation. “Space Truckin” is also instrumental, as the microphones are still not working. The drum solo elicits disapproving grunts from the audience. On the fifth track, “Woman From Tokyo,” you can finally hear some vocals. But this is the last thing. The guitarist states that if we don't want to see them, they will be forced to leave the hall. They played for 30 minutes or 90 as per the contract. Various objects begin to fly onto the stage. The audience is outraged and demands a refund. One guy decides to set fire to the sweater he bought at the entrance for $7. The police arrive at the concert and evacuate everyone present.
In conclusion: This is "Bummer 80", I hope there won't be any more of them. I set off towards Montreal with twenty-five young people in a completely shocked state. Quebecers are waiting for an explanation from the promoters. Eric Jean, a frustrated reader, returns to Lac Saint-Jean.
Result: COMPLETE DISAPPOINTMENT.
Yves Monast, 1980
Corbeau - Ailleurs "Live" 81
On October 3, 1980, Rod Evans and company were ordered to pay $168,000 in court costs and $504,000 in fines. After which Rod disappeared from music business and no longer spoke to reporters.
In addition to the above fines, Rod Evans lost his rights to royalties from the sales of Deep Purple's first three albums.
But this is a story for the newspapers. Here is the story in the words of those involved.
“...and here’s another one from our album Burn”
(Rod Evans, introducing 'Might Just Take Your Life', Quebec, August 12, 1980)
“The show is disgusting, they aren’t worth a penny.”
(Robert Boulet, organizer of a concert in Quebec, 1980)
“This will be a new step, since we need to change the music itself. This is something more than we want to do. What we're going to record is going to be 60 percent Deep Pop and 40 percent something new. We don't want to repeat what the Who did on Tommy. This is a completely different concept. We want to write songs in our own style. And of course we will change the sound in accordance with the technologies used now, such as Polymoog (polyphonic analog synthesizer) and other studio effects, but without any doubt it will be a turn towards heavy metal."
(Rod Evans, Conecte magazine interview, June 1980, about the supposed new album Deep Purple)
“(We got the rights to Deep Purple) completely legally. I was the founding vocalist in the band and when I decided to start a new band with guitarist Tony Flynn, we saw a great name thrown around and decided to go with it. Before that we talked to Ritchie Blackmore from Rainbow and the guys from Whitesnake. And they agreed."
(Rod Evans, Sonido magazine, June 1980)
“I think it’s disgusting that a band has to stoop so low and perform under someone else’s name. It's like some guys putting together a band and calling it Led Zeppelin."
(Ritchie Blackmore, Rolling Stone, 1980)
“We didn't actually try to contact Ritchie. Regardless of whether Ritchie gives his blessing or not, I don’t care, just like he has my blessing to create Rainbow. I mean, if he doesn't like it, I'm sorry, but we're trying."
(Rod Evans, Sounds magazine, August 1980)
“The group owns the federal trademark for all activities as Deep Purple. These two guys (R. Blackmore and R. Glover) who play Rainbow want it back. They see successful project and want to be part of it. But we look younger. All original members are now between 35 and 43 years old. The group has been in hibernation for several years, but has now re-emerged."
(Ronald K., Los Angeles Promoter, 1980)
“Of course, he (Rod) was not so naive, he thought: I’ll try and see what happens, but try to imagine what you yourself would say if suddenly everything went wrong? I can only blame Rod for being stupid. He should have known that he wouldn't leave so easily with a fake Deep People. After all, he did everything publicly."
“Rod Evans, the band's lead singer, has the rights to the name. There are no prohibitions, no prohibitory decrees, no demands for cash contributions. Deep People will have to prove that they are Deep People. It will be confusing to put the names of the participants on the poster. This is not cheating. The breakup of Deep People has not been announced. There was a constant rotation of participants in the group. The group performs all Deep People's hits."
(Bob Ringe, Group Agent, 1980)
“We didn’t get that money, it all went to the lawyers who got involved in this litigation... The only chance to stop this group was to sue Rod, since he was the only one receiving the money, the rest were working under a contract of employment... Rod was definitely in on this with some very bad people !”
(Ian Pace, 1996, quoted from Captain Beyond fan site Harmut Krekel)
“Could you imagine that something like this could happen?” - Jon Lord says with a laugh. “These guys actually played at the Long Beach arena as Deep People. They played "Smoke on the Water" and all we know about that concert is how they were kicked off the stage. Just imagine what could have happened if we hadn't stopped this fiasco? The next month there would be thirty bands called Led Zeppelin and another fifty called the Beatles. And the most unpleasant thing in this story is the damage to our reputation. If we decided to get back together and go on tour, people would be like, "Yeah, I saw them last year in Long Beach and they're not the same." The name Deep People means a lot to all rock and roll fans and I would like to see that reputation continue."
(Jon Lord, Hit Parader magazine, February 1981)
"Rod called in 1980, I wasn't home, and he asked my wife to call him back, which I, in the wisdom of my foresight, did not."
(Nick Simper, 2010)
“Not only Rod was sued, there was an entire organization behind the fake Deep People, which was largely responsible; it was they who were responsible for most of the payment of this “huge pile of money.” As for money, what price would you set for your reputation and for the right not to sell something fraudulently to the public? And you should also know that these people were repeatedly pointed out that they were breaking the law, but they continued to do so. Taking them to court was the last resort against these people. I was not at all happy about the fact that I had to speak in court against a person with whom I had previously worked. But the one who steals my wallet is only stealing money, and the one who steals my good name is stealing everything I have.”
(Jon Lord, 1998, quoted from Captain Beyond fan site Harmut Krekel)
