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Lyric Theatre, Star City, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
April 20, 2004

by Paul Hogan

There was a great buzz in the air in the lead-up to this show, the first in a series of four Sydney concerts as part of the Up Close and Personal tour in which the band is playing smaller (2000 to 3000 seater) venues. After seeing the Purp in some large, and not always full, barns in the last few years I was really looking forward to catching them in a small, and quite new, theatre. The Lyric is the gem in the large and rather unattractive Star City Casino complex in the heart of Sydney. It's usually used for larger-scale musicals and cabaret shows, so seeing Deep Purple in such relatively incongruous surroundings promised to be quite a treat. It was!

Others have covered the setlist so I won't go there again. Suffice it to say that the new songs, new treatments to the old songs and, last but certainly not least, the new member, have really breathed new life into the band!
For me what made this show so special - and what makes DP one of the greatest bands on the planet - is their rather unique ability to come up with the unexpected - even in the midst of familiar territory. Just when you think you know what's coming, they pull something new out and 'subvert' the predictable! Steve is an absolute master of this: he is so fluent with so many styles of playing, that just when you're expecting a song to continue along in a particular groove he changes direction and takes you on a journey somewhere else. This can involve a major change of pace, as with the middle bit of I've Got Your Number (which was sensational!), or more subtle shifts like with his solos in Black Night: just when you think you're getting a 'Ritchie bit' he starts it at a different point and plays it in a similar, but somewhat bent-beautifully-out-of-shape way! At times it is just stunning - this guy is just such a musical genius and yet, he wears it so lightly! He's just having such a bloody good time with it - you can see it on his face! And the respect the other members have for him is palpable - at times the whole band remained on stage and just watched Steve weave his magic.

Similarly with Don - Silver Tongue is chugging along in a very catchy, heavy rocky sort of way, and just when you think it's going to end that way, Don throws in this mind-blowing solo that completely subverts the song into this amazing futuristic 3D surround sound trip with freaky lighting effects. It was just so perfect because, firstly it said "I'm the new boy and I've got something new to say", and secondly it said "You can't pin us down to the expected!"
Don was, overall, faithful and respectful of Jon's huge contribution to the music, but took it to some new and very exciting places. In time I think we'll come to see Don's contribution to the band in the same light as Steve's. Just as Steve plays homage to Ritchie every time he plays one of his songs, so too Don draws heavily on Jon's influence and sound (even playing Jon's beloved Hammond). Yet in both cases, they take the music to places it hasn't been before, and I for one find that a very exciting thing! (Luckily I got the chance to tell Don this after the show!)

Don's intro to Hush sounded for all the world like the start of a 1970 concept rock piece from Jon or Keith Emerson. Later during his solo was a nice homage to Jon's 'screeching cat' sound from Living Wreck on In Rock. But then, again, he moved seamlessly from 1970 to the space age and back again.
His repertoire also included classical piano, jazz and everything else in between. Like Steve, he is such a brilliant, versatile and educated player that he can easily move between these genres. In short, The New Boy has, I think, well and truly 'found his feet' (or fingers?) in the band. I was very impressed!
All of this in no way is meant to detract from Ian, Ian or Rog. All three were in fine form and, again as others have said, threw in lots of tasty new morsels!

And alright, I'll admit it - I put aside all my "Oh no not again" preconceptions and rose for the National Anthem with the gathered throng. Yes of course I'm talking about Smoke, and, well alright - I'll reluctantly admit that there is a certain tribal chant appeal about singing a much-loved anthem in unison with a couple of thousand others! There was enough light n shade, sugar n spice, and quite a few more unknown herbs in the mix to warrant a good old anthemic singalong and a few 'greatest hits'!
Great band, great show, great venue, great night. What more could a man ask for?