Great Woods, Mansfield, MA August 8, 1998
by Sue Quinn
What a wonderful show! Worth every bit of time we spent getting there and back (close to 900 miles round trip-the longest 3-which were on foot-but that's another story!) When we got back from our trip, I was so impressed by Deep Purple that I was too spellbound to even write about it. An unexpected trip took us away again for a few days and gave me time to think about it some more. . ."What makes Deep Purple so special?" By the time we got back, we had the opportunity to see another wonderful show (closer to home) in Canandaigua, NY-and after some late night discussion-it hit me. Deep Purple have great energy, talent, and wisdom, but more than that they offer themselves to the crowd with such generous hospitality-which is a true gift. It is obvious that they love what they do-as shown by their ear to ear grins and grateful acknowledgement of the crowd-Ian Gillan repeatedly told the crowd that they were "fantastic" and "superb"...That is so very cool! They began the evening with the very funky Hush, and ended with the hard rocking Highway Star. Every bit in between was absolutely brilliant-and I don't want to spoil it for you! You must see this show! And by all means, support this wonderful group of people by purchasing Abandon-you will not be disappointed! (No, I do not work for them, but I would in a second!) Another concert going tip-talk to the people you are standing next to-you'll end up learning something new every time-Hello Kenny from Milford? We didn't forget about Rory Gallager!
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