Recommendations for Deep Purple Newbie?

If I were to get into Deep Purple -

What should I start off with?

 

Made In Japan is a good starting point. I love Machine Head and In Rock as well. Deepest Purple is a nice compilation.

 

In this order - Machine Head, In Rock, Fireball and Made in Japan (4 great albums).
If you do not like the first then you will not like the rest.
If you like Machine Head then try the rest.

 

The first one I got WAS the compilation Deepest Purple and it did spark my curiosity, as it contains some of the very best stuff from '70 to '74. HOWEVER, it passes over the first 3 albums (that were basically psychedelic pop, with some interesting cover versions...)

Maybe a slightly better 'overview' than Deepest Purple would be Singles, As & Bs. It was later re-released, in expanded form and this version does a pretty decent job of showcasing their shifts in musical styles, with the changes of band members that occurred.

 

Machine Head

 

The Warner/Rhino Very Best Of Deep Purple seems to be a pretty good single-disc overview. How does it rate for sound quality?

 

I like "Burn" ...mainly for "Might Just Take Your Life" but most people find it forgettable.

 

Agreed. Except add "Who Do We Think We Are."

I'll never understand why it gets left out. I personally find it more enjoyable than the "Fireball" album and on par with the other albums.

 

I'd go cheap. Made In Japan was $4.99 when I picked it up at Barnes & Noble.com; if you can find that price on any of these take a flyer. MIJ does get a little jammy, so perhaps a studio offering might be more suitable to your tastes, but for me the live Child In Time is worth $4.99 by itself. But if you feel like $10 isn't too much of a risk, maybe get MIJ and a studio release.

 

Hush

 

Hi

I recommend you these:

1- Deepest Purple 30th anniversary edition CD + DVD. Good remaster, great song selection and a wonderful bonus DVD incl. Jon Lord (RIP) track by track commentary

2- Made In Japan. The old Warner Bros version. It's cheap everywhere. The cover looks rather orange, rather than the black 25th anniversary (which has to be avoided)

3- Machine Head. Many versions around. Avoid the 25th anniversary and you'll be alright

4- In Rock. Avoid the original USA version, which has 'Speed King' truncated and you'll be alright

5- Fireball or Burn

 

Just be aware that there were at least 4 noteworthy incarnations of Deep Purple. Most here probably prefer DP Mk II., which would be the 1969-1973 Machine Head/Made In Japan LPs era.

 

The 1st 3 are the only ones I really like.

 

Definitely Machine Head, Definitely Made in Japan.

Burn
In Rock

 

In Rock - UK 2nd press A3/B4 with "TMG" initials in the deadwax. Prepare to have your mind blown.

 

If you are merely curious, a good compilation like Singles A's & B's will give you a sample of the various incarnations of the old band.

If you like your rock hard, go for Deep Purple In Rock.

If you like your rock hard and enjoy live recordings by excellent players, go for Made In Japan and Made In Europe.

Whichever you choose, if you really enjoy it you'll be in for a great ride exploring the various styles and incarnations of this band.

 

I have no idea, but I agree on it being a good overview.

I actually think When We Rock, We Rock is the best sampler, but this isn't a popular view. It can be found rather cheap.

If you would rather have a good introduction that you will keep listening to long after you get their other albums, get Made In Japan.

 

Deepest Purple is what got me started but with their albums being under $ 5 for the most part nowadays, it would just be easier to get the first 6 WB albums and then go from there.

After that I would do Stormbringer, Come Taste, Perfect Strangers, and Purpendicular. MkIII Final Concerts live album is great too. You can have a good chunk of their catalog for not too much $$.

 

Machine Head.

I started with Made In Japan - not a bad starting place, but some of the lengthier, improvisational parts didn't connect with me right away. Looking back, I think I would have connected more quickly with the music had I heard Machine Head first due to its refined, tidier nature.

 

The old WB double LP Purple Passages is a good overview of the Tetragrammaton (first three) albums.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple_Passages

 

Yes, the thing with Made In Japan, is that as you say, it features some long improvised pieces. I got heavily into the album, as I was already into the live stuff by Cream (on Goodbye & Wheels Of Fire.) I've read that Purple pretty much used to work songs out on stage first (I believe Led Zeppelin did this occasionally too) and then 'condense' them for the studio versions- that would go a good way to explain how they got to be such a tight musical unit. As an studio album, the vast majority of people rightly regard Machine Head as their best.

In fact, back in the day, my barber suggested I go out and buy Machine Head ASAP- in his estimation, it was/is the best album EVER! And he said if I didn't think it was the best rock music I'd heard, then he would refund me whatever I paid for it; AND let me keep the album too! I already knew it would be really great, from playing Deepest Purple over and over. At the time, it thought it ranked along with Black Sabbath, Led Zep and even Hendrix (my absolute hero guitarist!).

So, it took over from 'Deepest', and I ended up listening to that (along with most of their other albums) on the way to work each morning.

 

+1

 

This is VERY important. There's a world of difference between some of the many line-ups. The one that matters to the vast majority of Deep Purple fans is the Mk. II line-up (I assume you may have heard singles like Black Night, Strange Kind Of Woman, Smoke On The Water, Woman From Tokyo? If so, that is the Mk. II band.)

Assuming you don't fall into the 0.00000001 % that likes a different line-up*, I think the best place to start is:

In Rock -- old European EMI CD if you do not want to pay for the AF gold CD (now OOP)

The full version of Speed King that starts In Rock sets the scene for everything (catalog-wise) that follows.

If you cannot easily find either of these pressings, the next best option would be:

Machine Head -- old Warner Bros. CD (or OOP AF if you want to splurge)

This can easily be found new for about $5.

While Made In Japan ($5 old Warner CD or $$$$$ OOP DCC) is excellent (as are several other live sets by the Mk. II band, especially Live In Japan (3 CD), the AF SACD of Live On The BBC, etc.), I would start with either of the two studio albums above.

Assuming In Rock and Machine Head interest you, the next steps would be:

Fireball -- you need the old European EMI CD for Demon's Eye, a much better song than Strange Kind Of Woman on the US version of the album

Who Do We Think We Are? -- old European EMI CD or OOP AF gold

and the live albums like Made In Japan, Live In Japan, Denmark `72, etc.

If you enjoy orchestral music, DP Mk. II's first album is called

Concerto For Group & Orchestra

It's an OK listen, and the extended versions add parts of the DP-only set. However, their reputation is based on In Rock and Machine Head (and Made In Japan for live albums).

If you get the bug, be aware that there are OOP SACD and DVD-A versions of a few albums including surround mixes. There are also remastered editions of the albums with alternate mixes/unreleased tracks, but the sound quality is not the best, however, if you can find them cheap, you may want them for the bonus material.

There is some interesting stuff by DP Mk. I, and Burn by DP Mk. III is OK, but Deep Purple, to me, means Mk. II between `69 and `73.



* - as scientifically measured here using the patent-pending Poll system!

 

Definitely start with the "holy trinity" of In Rock, Fireball and Machine Head.
And then - proceed to Made In Japan.
I started the other way round and found myself somewhat underwhelmed by the studio stuff after the mind-blowing experience of 'live' Purple as presented in MIJ.
So I'd advise to go in that particular order.

 

This - probably the best intro for a newcomer, and not hard to find at a reasonable price.