Considerable aplomb

As a young 20-year-old fan, this was the first chance I've had to see Deep Purple live, and I was blown away. The vocals were absolutely superb - Ian's voice sounded stronger than on any of the records, and I thought Steve was absolutely fantastic. Although I don't have the Ritchie frame of reference, having never seen him with Purple, I truly thought Steve carried the band with considerable aplomb. The tour of classic rock as a prelude to Smoke On The Water was certainly one of the most memorable moments of the evening.

Child In Time and When A Blind Man Cries sounded incredible; I also enjoyed The Aviator, which had a really good anthemic feel although it is considerably different to the more classic output. Hush was great, Ted was great - it's impossible to find a weak moment. New track Up The Wall also sounded fresh and exciting. Of course, hearing Lord's Hammond live for the first time was pretty special as well...

Overall, awesome. The only downside to the evening came from the crowd. OK, I know the theatre doesn't lend itself to standing up. But come on - rock and roll is not a spectator sport. There were still people in their seats at the end of the encore. I'd have thought a standing ovation was the least they deserved after such a great show. And the odd bit of clapping or singing along wouldn't have gone amiss either.

Peter Wooding

Back to reviews