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UK reviews 2002 (rescheduled)
 

Deafening

Bloody hell!

We saw Purple on their first night back in the U.K. and I've been counting the days with my 14-year-old daughter 'till our local gig. Front row balcony in London, front row standing six feet from the stage last night.

Sorry Planets, but....!

We were there with a dedicated Who fan and his wife who hadn't seen Purple before but felt it was right to add the guys to their list of bands seen. Our lads did a fantastic job of convincing them that they were the best live band on earth. Paice's bass drum shook us each time his foot hit the pedal. The sound was amazing from the speakers positioned four feet from my right ear! Rogers bass line was crisp and kept every song motoring along at great speed.

Once again though it was Steve who along with big Ian stole the show and entertained us all with their constant 'in jokes' and improvisation throughout the night. Don looked more comfortable than London. Perhaps he wasn't as nervous about 'The Lord' claiming the Hammond mid-way through the show.

Huge cheers for Jon as he appeared once more. Same songs but the order was varied and I think Steve had more solo time in this show, but the details are a blur as I enjoyed the gig more than any other in my 24 years of concert going.

Nice surprise to see mr. Marsden joining Steve for a guitar rendition before Bernie struck up the classic Smoke riff and the Bristol crowd raised the roof.

We each managed to get a Steve Morse plectrum and great of Big Ian to climb down from the stage and shake hands with all of us in the front row. I don't know how my daughter will ever get to see a better concert than last night - only maybe if we can see the guys next year after the release of the new album.

Bloody fantastic!

Steve Evans

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