Deep Purple In Funk 

A Bit of History plus……….

A question!!

When does a band cease to evolve musically? At what point does it begin to tread water, to stop being strident and being (and I use that dreaded word advisedly with a small p) progressive in its musical development. When does musical evolution stop and adhesion to the tried and tested formula take precedence? It happens to all bands eventually whether by accident or design. It happened to Deep Purple in 1972. with the release of Machine Head, the third in a trio of rock albums (lets discount Concerto for Group and Orchestra for the purpose of this exercise) by the Mk 2 line up which catapulted the group from also rans with ambition and let it be said some pretensions to be one of the “Big Three” heavy/Progressive bands world wide.

And so it was with the release of Machine Head and the subsequent live opus Made In Japan Purple’s position in the rock hierarchy was consolidated and assured. And whilst they had created a fine legacy of work, the downside to all of this was that they had created a shadow from which they would never be able to escape. Even the 2002 tour (musically excellent that it was) was a greatest hits package with scant lip service paid to their post 1972 work.

Way back in 1972 the Deep Purple formula began to set in to permanence. Sure the ingredients had been there since mid 1969 — to the cynical observer — heavy riff, screamed vocal, guitar solo, heavy riff, screamed vocal, keyboard solo heavy riff etc and repeat until the end of the song (or if you are really cynical the end of the album). But listen to In Rock, Fireball and Machine Head and its immediately apparent that each album, whilst possessing the aforementioned ingredients, sounds different to the others. Each album represented a musical jump to the next and as with many bands of the era some successful and some unsuccessful musical experimentation along the way. The aftermath of 1972 and Machine Head saw the Purple sound crystallise. I guess this was partly due to the band not wanting to jeopardise its position and its sales figures by releasing an album that its new found audiences in Japan and the USA would reject. 

Fatigue was also taking its toll by 1972, 4 years on the endless tour/record/tour/record treadmill without respite was creating and amplifying internal tensions and divisions within the band. This resulted in passable but undynamic Who Do We Think We Are, the departure of Gillan and Glover and the arrival of Glenn Hughes and Paul Rogers soundalike David Coverdale.

Despite the influx of new blood the impact creatively wasn’t immediately evident. Burn was a good effort but could really be subtitled Machine Head 2 (if these albums had been released in the 1990’s it probably would have been). Stormbringer, its title, track aside was pop rock. An LP as confused and directionless as the Mk1 effort Shades of Deep Purple. The influx of soul influences by Glenn Hughes served to cause Ritchie Blackmore to lose interest initially in the album project and then the band itself as he followed Gillan and Glover out of the door in search of a vehicle to realise his own musical vision.

And that could well have been it except that sales wise, if not creatively, the band were at their peak and so the compulsion to continue was strong, particularly from Hughes and Coverdale, and so the search for a replacement for Blackmore was on. It unearthed the precociously talented Tommy Bolin already a veteran of the James Gang and who featured to great effect on Billy Cobham’s LP – Spectrum.

Mk 4 Deep Purple was in place – what about The Album.

Come Taste The Band!!

For a start it neither looks nor sounds like a “traditional” Deep Purple album. Housed in a white gatefold sleeve and sporting a wine glass on the cover its looks decidedly middle of the road — not rock and roll at all – in fact more like something from Manhattan Transfer, Captain and Tennille or Tavares.

And the music well ……. The music, the music rocks — it is unquestionably the heaviest Purple release since In Rock but that aside it is unlike anything that Purple had released before. For a start its funky and although Deep Purple had flirted with funk before (No One Came on Fireball and Never Before from Machine Head) as well as on Glenn Hughes soulful disasters on Stormbringer. This album ups the ante; its funk rock in the same way that Red Hot Mama from Funkadelic’s Standing on the Verge of Getting It On is funk rock. And where this scores heavily over Stormbringer is that this music is focussed, the material is stronger. As well as being heavier it possesses a dynamism that had been slowly evaporating from Purple’s music for years. The songs on this album bristle and crackle with energy and purpose. 

What is very telling is that the old hands in the band were willing to surrender so many of the creative duties to the incoming Tommy Bolin. And he didn’t disappoint working in tandem with Coverdale, and to a lesser extent Hughes, Bolin had a hand in writing 7 of the LP’s 9 tracks.

What Come Taste The Band did was to “progress” Purples music in a way that hadn’t happened in years. Play this album to next to Burn and it is not obvious that four fifths of the band are featured on both records. Come Taste the Band is remarkable amongst all Deep Purple’ “rock “ albums before and after for its virtual absence of typical Purple trademark sounds and arrangements. Nevertheless the music is gritty, powerful and at the same time intricate.

Way back in 1970 during the In Rock sessions Ritchie Blackmore stated “That if it wasn’t powerful and exciting it didn’t deserve a place on the album” and they immediately hooked the listeners attention with Speed King. Indeed since then the majority of Purple albums had kicked off with a hard-hitting opener.

Fast forward to 1975 and this lesson had not been forgotten. The band serve notice of their intentions on track one with a crashing thundering cacophony (like the introduction on In Rock) paving the way to the opener Comin’ Home but that’s where similarities to the past end. Comin’ Home is a fast paced rocker paying homage lyrically to the history of rock and roll name checking American Bandstand, BB King along the way. It’s certainly the most up-tempo song on the album but perhaps not the best. Nevertheless as a stage setter it does its job and within its 3 minute 52 second running time offers the listener as capsule preview of the album to follow, setting out from the off the roles of the respective musicians.

What is immediately evident is Coverdale’s vocal style — its hoarser, more rugged than on either Burn or Stormbringer. Its a style he would return to some 18 years later on the Coverdale Page album. 

Tommy Bolin is everywhere on this song soloing wildly throughout .He has a radically different sound to Blackmore and unfortunately many fans found this unpalatable. But nevertheless Bolin infuses the album with much if its drive and energy, his solos are spindly but electrifying (rather than biting) and soar across the record.

Jon Lords role within the band is different from before. On previous releases he had enjoyed equal status as a soloist with Blackmore, on Come Taste The Band however his brief has altered and the opportunity for him to solo is limited. Instead his Hammond organ is a powerhouse creaking, groaning driving the band as he grinds out a solid driving bedrock foundation for Bolin’s guitar work.
This was clear on the albums second track Lady Luck a crunching grinding effort in which keyboards, guitar and bass lock tightly into a driving rhythm to propel the song forward. Incidentally this song would be the first track to feature outside collaboration since the Mark 1 era, it being penned by Bolin cohort Jeff Cook in conjunction with David Coverdale. Indeed it was to be briefly revived by Coverdale as part of the set listing of the embryonic Whitesnake a couple of years later.

Glenn Hughes continues to enjoy a dual role within the group supplying a variety of driving funk laden bass lines as well as backing and occasional lead vocals. Certainly Hughes soul funk influences are put to much better use on this album than on previous releases. This is evidenced on the last 3 tracks on Side One the Hughes/Bolin penned Gettin’ Tighter and Bolin/ Coverdale efforts Dealer and I Need Love.

Gettin’ Tighter is another fast paced rocker that kicks off with a crunching bass note leading into a sweeping, swirling Tommy Bolin riff. Lord drives this track picking up the riff while Bolin takes up position once again as soloist. Hughes lays down a superbly funky bass line but it’s vocally where he really proves his worth.
The track showcases Hughes prowess as a vocalist in his own right and supplies ample evidence just why he thought it should be he and not Coverdale that should be the groups lead vocalist. Certainly there is a strong case here to suggest that Hughes was the best and certainly the most versatile vocalist in the history of Deep Purple. Gettin’ Tighter again features some fantastic guitar work from Bolin and the track features a sublime funk interlude at its mid point which slows things down a pace before the riff kicks in again and Bolin’s fretwork propels the track to its conclusion.

The Dealer its built on a chunky powerful riff – in places its reminiscent of Free updated for the mid 70’s. It is one of 2 tracks on the album which, in hindsight, would point the way forward to David Coverdale’s future career with Whitesnake (and the riff would be recycled on Lonely Days, Lonely Nights on the 1981 album Come and Get It). However just when you think that you have got this track sussed Hughes pops up with a subtle vocal interlude more akin to Fleetwood Mac or a thousand other 70’s US AOR bands before Bolin steers the song back on course with some trademark furious guitar work.

I Need Love is clearly a product of its time. It is the closest that Deep Purple ever got to recording a dance track (in the same way that Trampled Underfoot was for Led Zeppelin). Ian Paice lays down a copyright 1975 disco drum pattern throughout. As with Gettin’ Tighter the mid section sees a short but sweet burst of funk led by Bolin with soulful backing vocals courtesy of Glenn Hughes.

Side two begins with the grinding crunching riff of Drifter. This would be the second track on the album that would give clues to Coverdale’s future career in Whitesnake. Indeed he would revisit this track lyrically for Trouble on Whitesnake’s first album. 

What is apparent is the crystallising of Coverdale’s lyrical style firmly in the camp of songs about women that have done me wrong in contrast to the sword and sorcery/dungeons and dragons style that Blackmore pushed him towards on Burn and Stormbringer. Don’t let this put you off on Come Taste The Band Coverdale’s lyrics had yet to descend to the Sid Smut wordplay that would characterise his work with Whitesnake. In fact despite the presence of three Mark 4 Deep Purple members in the classic Whitesnake line up the Snakes would never come close to penning material as strong as the songs on Come Taste The Band. 

Track 2 side 2 — Love Child another powerful guitar driven workout based on a riff which owes a debt to Iron Man by Black Sabbath. Love Child features a strong Coverdale vocal performance and also gives Jon Lord the opportunity to take his first, albeit short, solo on the album although not on his trusty Hammond organ but on synthesiser instead.

This Time Around is a Hughes/Lord composition and it is unlike anything else on the album indeed it can’t be classified heavy rock or even funk. This middle of the road track is a Jon Lord showcase he handles all instrumental duties on synthesiser and electric piano whilst Hughes turns in a superb breathy vocal performance.
This Time Around segues into the Bolin composition Owed To G a powerful instrumental. Lord, Bolin and Hughes lock together and crank out a tight riff over which Bolin again supplies some stinging guitar work.

The final effort on the album is You Keep On Moving. It’s a slow, brooding, track heralded by Hughes padding bass line, Lord’s swirling Hammond organ work and occasional Peter Greenesque type guitar licks from Bolin. Vocally Coverdale and Hughes duet in a similar manner to You Fool No One from Burn and display what an excellent vocal unit they could be. The track affords Jon Lord his second opportunity to solo although it is fairly restrained.

And that was that — Come Taste The Band was the first genuine effort to progress the sound of the group in years and it was totally lost on a large proportion of its audience. The album limped into the UK top 20 at number 19 becoming the first Deep Purple studio album since the self titled third album not to achieve a top 6 chart placing in the UK. The tour that accompanied Come Taste The Band saw internal and external pressure pull the group apart with the dissolution of the band occurring in 1976.

Come Taste The Band is a superb record – if I had to rank all of Deep Purple’s albums in order of excellence then this would be placed at number four behind the holy trinity of In Rock, Fireball and Machine Head — its that good in my opinion. But be aware it is different from “traditional” Deep Purple fare.

Come Taste The Band is also the record of unfulfilled potential and the tragedy is that neither Deep Purple or the myriad of solo and spin off projects it would spawn would ever be this great again.

Joolio

Also worth investigating are the Days May Come And Days May Go and 1420 Beachwood Drive CD’s which document the Come Taste the Band Rehearsal sessions. They also throw further spotlight on the importance of drummer Ian Paice who was widely thought to be at his peak around 1975 and certainly he appears to be at his most inventive on these sessions.