Customer Reviews

Come Hell Or High Water

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a surprisingly tight performance considering the known history of the group at this time (1993) or more to the point the ongoing Gillan-Blackmore rift. The playing by all concerned is very proficient and a joy to listen to. I never got to see MkII in concert so this, Made In Japan & Nobody's Perfect are the closest I'll get and while nothing matches Made In Japan, it's still a big improvement on Nobody's Perfect. The great thing is the use of new material like "Anya" & " A Twist Of The Tail" and less obvious tracks like "Anyone's Daughter" (from Fireball) which I've never heard live before. Even Ritchie sounds like he's enjoying himself! That's the beauty of the group now - pulling out older, rarely heard classics for a new audience. I do recommend this album to anyone who wants to hear what a live performance should be all about with the crowd responding incredibly to the opening chords of familiar songs such as "Child In Time". But then Europe (and particularly Germany) have always loved their Purple no matter what lineup. Another special moment is the short blast of the "Burn" riff during "Speed King". Uncredited bonuses are quick fire, incendiary versions of "Lazy", "Space Truckin'" & "Woman From Tokyo". If you love Purple live - GET IT!!

I have been a devoted Deep Purple fan for 30 years, but I tell it like it is. Trust me when I say that this live performance, recorded mostly in October 1993 in Stuttgart, Germany, is absolutely stunning. After countless listenings in recent years, I never tire of the dramatic power and delicate nuance brought forth with such virtuosity by Blackmore, Gillan, Lord, Glover and Paice. The whole atmosphere of the recording is so encompassing that it makes me feel as if I'm standing wide-eyed on stage with the band. Given the exceptional performance, flawless sound quality, and historical significance of this scintillating concert (being one of Blackmore's last with Purple), this CD is simply essential.

Come Hell or High Water is a surprisingly good live document of the 1993 DP tour. I say "surprisingly" because Blackmore and GIllan were not on the best of terms and in fact Blackmore left the band for good shortly thereafter. In addition, there is a live video bearing the same title out on import which is somewhat disappointing. Fortunately, this CD comes from a night on the tour where everything seemed to click. Forget 1988's icky Nobody's Perfect; this late Mk.2 show cooks from the get-go! A great mix and production help things considerably. There is also a good song selection of old and new. Highlights include a tough, tight "Highway Star," an extended "Anya" during which Ritchie plays long Hungarian-styled melodies in an early Rainbow manner, a virtually "down-home" take on "Anyone's Daughter," and a "Speed King" which throws in such little joys as "Teddy Bear's Picnic" and the main riff from "Burn" before coming crashing down again. This disc proves that when he wanted to, the early '90s Blackmore could reclaim some of his '70s identity. It also goes without saying that Glover, Paice, and Lord turn in some great performances as well. Not the best DP live album ever, but in the top 30%.

The beauty of this live recording is the return to playing as a tight, cohesive unit. Especially, Ritchie Blackmore's playing. Even though this was recorded right before he split for good, he sounds better than on any other live deep purple recording, especially when you compare this to the sometimes sloppy and noisy playing on "Knebworth '85" or 1988's "Nobody's Perfect." Those two are still good live albums, but at times, Blackmore seemed to be relying more on his guitar effects, and making, at times, very sloppy noise, instead of hitting good notes or knowing when not to play a note (Sorry Ritchie).

"Come Hell or High Water" really is MUCH better in terms of musical discipline and tightness. And the production is MUCH better, having more of a "live" sound, rather than sounding as if it was being recorded only through the mixing boards. Ritchie's playing is more dynamic on this, such as on "Anya", when he plays so quietly, you could almost hear a pin drop, then cranks up the volume and intensity, but maintaining a tasteful and beautiful choice of notes and technique. You get the classical inflection reminiscent of the quieter acoustic passages of the live "Made in Europe", or perhaps "Rainbow on Stage." He really peaked on this recording, showing the virtuosity, prowess, style and raw talent we always expect from him.

Ian Gillan sounds much better on this also, exercising more restraint and discipline than on the Knebworth '85 or Nobody's Perfect recordings. And even though he will never have quite the vocal tone of his 1970's recordings, he STILL is one of rock's finest vocalists. EVER.

Paice, Glover and Lord round out the magnificent mix on drums, bass and keyboards, respectively. In summary, this is probably the best that this reunited Mark II lineup has ever sounded live, captured beautifully on CD. I HIGHLY recommend it. Enjoy!

Its a great CD. They have done better ones, but for anyone who wants a taste of Deep Purple live, this is one of the CDs to get. Features most of their classics, including my favorites, Speed King and Highway Star.

This is basically the same lineup of songs we heard on "Made in Japan" and "Live in Concert 70 and 72" with a couple exceptions. On those albums these songs were performed with much more intensity and passion. So what's the point of releasing this? Stick with the earlier stuff, or check out "Live at the Olympia 96" which features great versions of several songs never released live before.

Blackmore had still played some pretty stuffs on this album,...though he left after that.. check out the songs as Anyone's daughter, Twist in the tale, perfect strangers,...what a timeless songs...they are

4/5. "Come Hell or High Water" was recorded in 1993 during Deep Purple world tour in support of "The Battles Rages On" album and is a surprisingly stunning performance from the original line-up. Despite personal clashes between Ian Gillan and Ritchie Blackmore, which led to Blackmore refusing to join the band on the Japanese leg of the tour and rift between Blackmore and other members becoming unbridgeable, Deep Purple performance on this album recorded at shows in Stuttgart and Munich, Germany and at Birmingham, England is just fantastic and is probably one of the best live records of the band. The all time classics "The Highway Star", "Black Night", "Speed King", "Child In Time" and "Smoke On the Water" are delivered with a great deal of power of improvisation, while the new song "Anya" comes in an extended version with melodic Hungarian-style semi-acoustic solos by Ritchie Blackmore. On this particular record Blackmore sounds simply amazing, switching from heavy riffs to bluesy melodies with ideas from European classical music .Accompanied by powerful drumming, bubbling organ and Gillan's raging vocals, this makes for a great recap of the legendary group's career. Delivered in an almost perfect sound quality with virtuous guitar solos and amazing crowd sing along on the closing track "Smoke On The Water", "Come Hell or High Water" makes you feel as if you are right in front of the stage, there with the band, catching another sparkling moment from their lustrous history. -Sain Alizada

Listed below is the track listing for this Live CD by ultimate Deep Purple line-up for Deep Purple released in 1996 on the BMG/RCA label in Europe.
1)Highway star (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan/Lord/Paice) 6.40
2)Black night (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan/Lord/Paice) 5.40
3)Twist in the tale (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan) 4.27
4)Perfect strangers (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan) 6.52
5)Anyone's daughter (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan/Lord/Paice) 3.57
6)Child in time (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan/Lord/Paice) 10.48
7)Anya (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan/Lord) 12.13
8)Speed king (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan/Lord/Paice) 7.29
9)Smoke on the water (Blackmore/Glover/Gillan/Lord/Paice) 10.26

This is the first DP release I've ever heard in my life, but it didn't take me long to get into them..I'm also not a big fan of metal, not that they're overly metal-sounding. It took me a song or two to get used to the singer's voice, but once I did, the music was perfect.

Deep Purple is great at creating an atmosphere, blending heavy rock guitar with great organ/keyboards and some quality drumming. They're also good at creating more subtley melodic (i.e. the keyboards) and organic music (see Anyone's Daughter), and I enjoy the structure of their songs, the back-to-back solos (on Child of Time the guitarist and keyboardist get into it like a duel--stunning). Very great rock music.