Brisbane Review
Last night I witnessed the most awesome band in history take on the Entertainment Centre - from the front row! We were right in front of Steve Morse’s side of the stage. It was simply amazing. I saw them in Brisbane in 1999 and I’d have to say that last night’s show was even more sensational than last time. Here’s their set list from last night (a few songs may be out of order, but I think they’re all there):
"Woman From Tokyo"
"Ted The Mechanic"
"Mary Long"
"Lazy"
"No One Came"
"Black Night"
"Fools"
"Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming"
"When A Blind Man Cries"
"Perfect Strangers"
"Hey Cisco"
"Smoke On The Water"
"Speed King"
"Hush"
"Highway Star"
A simply incredible set list featuring older stuff from "Who Do We Think We Are" and "Fireball". As soon as the lights went down the crowd was ready - and Purple well and truly delivered the goods. The brass section and backing vocalists added a new dimension to some songs, although in others you couldn’t really tell they were even there.
Ian Gillan’s voice is still as wild and mesmerizing as it was on the records from 30 years ago. Roger Glover was clearly enjoying himself, playing some incredible bass lines and pulling out a wicked solo during "Speed King". Jon Lord is simply the most talented person ever to step up to a keyboard. His solos were sensational. Ian Paice blew me away the most though proving he was still lightning quick with an amazing drum solo (part of which was only done with one hand!). And as for Steve Morse, his guitar work doesn’t just fill the big shoes of Blackmore - it puts a whole new spin on Purple’s music. An absolutely amazing and innovative guitarist. I am still on cloud nine having caught one of his picks that he threw out last night.
What struck me the most though is the pure fun these guys were having on stage. As Gillan pointed out last night: "We’ve only ever been in it for the music." Quite simply, what I saw last night just proves that Deep Purple always have been, and will always be, the greatest rock band ever.
[ reviews | the highway star ]