Customer Reviews

Machine Head (Limited Edition) [2-CD SET]

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Deep Purple could easily have been as big as Led Zeppelin. They were certainly as talented. If only Ritchie Blackmore had got on better with Ian Gillan and Roger Glover, this classic line-up could have stayed together for a few more years, and clocked up true supergroup status. And earned an awful lot of money.

But an inability to make compromises often goes with the territory of being highly talented. Listening again to these remastered anniversary editions of 'In Rock', 'Fireball' and 'Machine Head' together with 'Rainbow Rising', I am strongly persuaded by the argument that Ritchie Blackmore has been rock's greatest post-Hendrix guitarist.

This was a re-master I had to buy. 'Machine Head' was the first album I ever bought. For several months it was the only album I owned, so I played it to death. Every piece of music brought into my boarding school had to be approved by the headmaster. At the time, only 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' had been approved. Rather than ask permission and get the album confiscated, I sneaked 'Machine Head' in to the school, intending to play it to myself on headphones. But other boys -- we were 13-year-olds -- wanted their own copies, so a number of crude speaker-to-microphone recordings were made. That summer, the sounds of 'Highway Star' and 'Pictures of Home' echoed around the subterranean cavern that was called the Model Club. Fortunately this was not the era when hard-rock bands felt obliged to insert gratuitous four-letter words into their lyrics. Despite the musical style of 'Machine Head' not nothing like the classical stuff that our teachers wanted us to aspire to, the album was not banned. Strangely, 'Smoke on the Water' was NOT one of the tracks we paid much attention to. It was only when I moved on the next term to another school -- one where boys could learn the guitar -- that I became aware of the legendary status this track was acquiring.

This 2CD set throws up an immediate dilemma: which to listen to first -- the Remixes or the Remasters? I know every note of the original album, so the Remasters were my first port of call. The recordings are clearer, but there's no particular revelation.

What is stunning -- and this is the reason why every Purple fan has to own this version -- are Roger Glover's Remixes. Normally I am suspicious of remixes. Today remixes are usually an excuse for another producer to cut and splice, re-order chorus and verse, and put down several new layers of synth and drum machine. Glover has done none of that, but he has brought a fantastic clarity to the recordings. Most tracks last a little longer, because Glover has left in an additional bar of music at the opening or at the very end. Two tracks, including 'Smoke on the Water', have completely different solos.

In listening to the remixes, you feel very close to the stage of the Grand Hotel, Montreux. There is a tremendous live feel to the recordings. Extraordinarily for a band whose members couldn't abide each other, the level of empathy between the musicians is oustanding. The interplay between Blackmore and Lord is wonderful. (Now at last with the sonic clarity of the remixes I can just about be sure which bits are played by Lord and which by Blackmore.) Even Glover's bass solo on 'Pictures of Home' sparkles.

Ian Gillan may have been casual about the writing of the lyrics, but Purple's music has lasted because the band put so much into the development of each track. I found that it took many listens to fully appreciate all the nuances of their finest recordings. That was, after all, part of the appeal of progressive music. This anniversary set is a fitting testament to the greatest progressive hard rock band I have known.

This is perhaps one of the best-sounding CDs I have ever heard. I grew up on the album, and, in fact, went through 2 copies. Thus, I thought I knew it pretty well. The first CD version of the original album was 1 of my first CDs, but it rather disappointed me as it was not much of an improvement on the original album, if at all. This re-issue, however, goes way beyond just remastering. The remixes on Disc 1 bring out the interplay of guitar and organ like you've never heard it before, in effect making the songs new again. Drums and bass are both given resounding punch, and the vocals will move you. The overall sound is cleaner and crisper than ever, yet not to the point of being sterile. You can really feel the emotion and tension in that Swiss hotel-made-studio, I swear. Disc 2 is the original album, beautifully remastered for CD. This one will always be in my Most-Played rack. It's a model for re-issues.

This double CD set includes both the orginal album remastered and many outtakes, mixes, remixes, with a single b-side, rare quad versions..and unissued guitar solos. Their is also a huge limited edition book inside which roger glover has contributed including many rare photos from the orginal sessions and the story behind the album which produced deep purple's biggest smash hit Smoke On The Water. This album is without a doubt a true classic album worth the buy. Specially in this Limited Edition( double CD set ). Dont buy just the machine head CD buy this limited edition. Recomended!

There seems to be a major resurgence of interest in 1970s music as today's 15-25 year olds rediscover music from that decade. I grew up in the 70s and my friends' teenaged sons and their friends are now frequently asking me about 70s bands and looking for lesser known bands and albums from that era.

This is one album I've told them all about.

Having said that, Deep Purple is hardly a "lesser known" band and Machine Head should not be a "lesser known" album but, in my defence, I've discovered that many of the young guys asking me about 70s music are not very familiar with Deep Purple. So to help rectify that situation.......

This is my favorite Deep Purple album. If you don't have any Deep Purple albums in your collection, start with this one. Smoke On The Water was the hit track from this album and it got played so much on radio back in the early 1970s that many of us got sick of hearing it. I always thought tracks like Highway Star, Lazy and Pictures of Home were better than Smoke On The Water but that's just my humble opinion. Suffice to say there are no weak tracks on this album; it's first rate material all the way through.

My advice is to buy this special anniversary edition rather than the less expensive basic release of Machine Head without the extra tracks. In this case the price difference between the basic release and this release with the extra tracks, the second disc and the remixes is only a couple of dollars and this one is worth the extra few $.

As one example, the track called "When A Blind Man Cries" was apparently recorded during the original Machine Head sessions in Switzerland but was not released on the original vinyl album; I've heard a story that Deep Purple lead guitarist Ritchie Blackmore hated the song and didn't want it on the album, so it wasn't released on any official Deep Purple vinyl LPs. But there was a flourishing market in unofficial bootleg LPs back in the 1970s and "When A Blind Man Cries" was released numerous times on bootlegs back then. I still have a vinyl Deep Purple bootleg from back then with "When A Blind Man Cries" on it.

It's on this release of Machine Head and it's worth having. The remixes by Deep Purple bass player Roger Glover sound really good as well.

Machine Head is one of the essential albums for any collection of 1970s music; it's one of the best albums of that decade. It should be in your collection and this is the version I recommend buying.

To sum up, this is great album. If you're discovering/re-discovering 1970s music, this one should be in your music collection.

Band Personnell:
Ian Gillan - Vocals
Ritchie Blackmore - Guitars
Roger Glover - Bass
Ian Paice - Drums
Jon Lord - Organs and Keyboards

This is a really killer album, much great things can be said about this one, and songs such as "Highway Star", "Never Before", "Smoke on the Water" and "Space Truckin'" are surely the best tracks on this album...and maybe the best songs Deep Purple ever have made, this is a great album, and the dual-disc remastered and remixed version is surely gold worth, BUY THIS ALBUM!

The remastered tracks make the old Warner Brothers CD sound like a cassette tape. THIS is the way Machine Head should be heard; not too mention you get the B-Side "When A Blind Ma Cries" which is quite good, and remixes of the whole album, including two very tasty Quadrophonic mixes of "Maybe I'm A Leo" and "Lazy," both of which sound amazingly good and have slightly different song structure, different lead parts, etc. Very intresting if you've heard this album many times, like I have, and you want a slightly different take on the same songs. Highly recommmended!

Deep Purple first caught my notice when I was in junior high school with the issue of Shades of Deep Purple. By the time I was in high school, Machine Head had been issued and had etched their name in music history as one of the top bands of the burgeoning hard rock scene. Machine Head was the backdrop for many a wild party and today it still sounds as fresh and compelling as it was back then.
The Machine Head limited edition set is certainly the one to get. Not only do you get the original album remastered with a bonus track and some quadrophonic mixes thrown in, you also get Roger Glover's remix of the original album plus a bonus cut. And that remix is well worth having.
I liked Machine Head from the start and my favorites from back in the day remain my favorites today. Those are: the wildly energetic Highway Star, the soaring Pictures of Home, Lazy, and the relentless Space Truckin'. One aspect of this that makes it an outstanding value is that there is no filler, just first class high octane rock and roll.
Machine Head is one of those proverbial "desert island" discs, so if you are looking to upgrade or if you are buying for the first time, the moment is right to buy this edition at an obscenely cheap price from an amazon partner as I did. The set is accompanied by an attractive and informative 27 page booklet that only adds value. If you don't have this yet, you owe it to yourself and to your progeny to add it to your music library.

Yes Folks. I decided to finally quit this crazy beach scene. I had to. Just when I was going to rent my Sand Castle out to the end of the season crowd, those crazy mimes had a party. They were signaling to a boat of mimes offshore with a flaregun when my castle got hit by accident. The rest is left up to the insurance evaluators. I think the wand that broke the Metamorpho's hat was watching them trying to put out the fire with pretend water. I just had to walk away. I couldn't bear it anymore. My advice? Never have neighbors that look like they work in a flour factory.
Keep in mind that there is no logic or well thought out plan as to what I review. It is all on a sub-concious plain- which- I, good viewer- have been fortunate to tap into with my Seer power. (Or so I've convinced myself to believe). In any event, this 2 C.D. set of Deep Purple's "Machine Head" (along with remixes) will delight, excite, and ignite the rock lover in all of us. I do firmly believe it is a pinnacle in their career and definitely holds it's own against all other rock classics. Why is this so? I suppose the secret lies in the blend- the mix of these incredible musicians. It's in the balance and awareness. So many fine grooves - so many fine passages. And it's instinct. Listen, if you will, how each musician intrinsically knows what part to play to make the total effect sound better.
In total- we have 2 c.d.s here. One includes the original album with the inclusion of a b side "When a Blind Man Cries" along with quad mixes of "Maybe I'm a Leo" and "Lazy". The other is a remix of the sessions and displays heretofore unknown extra sounds, intros, studio noise and a completely different lead on "Smoke On the Water". And one must wonder about how our minds work in this context. If the unknown lead had been the one released and the known lead brought to light- would we still prefer the unknown lead to the known one we have today? These zen-like puzzles always haunt your devoted Metamorpho. Needless to say - I think the one they originally released was the right choice.
As with anything, I have taken the time to listen to this extensively and marvel at the contribution each of these men make to this album. They are just too good. Gillian's vocals (his instrument) never more hard driven than here. Blackmore's riffs never harder and more succinct. Lord's piano and organ never more hard-edged yet eloquent. Glover's bass floating in and around the mix. But, as excellent as all these musicians are, I am in total awe of Ian Paice's drumming. Was never really aware before on how he pushed the envelope in so many places. Listen closely. When there is a chance to give the music that extra kick, as in "Highway Star" he does well more than keep the beat folks. No. This is considerable fill and runs that propel the music forward. Driven. Raw. Incredible. And, please don't even talk to me about the power of "Space Truckin'". Amazing. Listen LOUD and get immersed in this. Yes. You will be lifted off the earth.
And the songs- ah the songs. Songs of sexual love ("Highway Star") with a woman personified as an automobile! Desolation ("Pictures of Home"), abandonment ("Never Before") and disaster ("Smoke On the Water")- just to name a few. But the calling card of this album, I feel, is the pulsating change and groove that each song brings to the whole. A majestic mixture of feel, attitude and stance that make up this unique rock journey. Some people may think that "When a Blind Man Cries" seems out of place here. But, no. It is a Purple-Blue ballad that brings everything to calm. So very well done.
If you like creative, innovative rock music done by accomplished musicians and if you really like it loud - then this classic is for you. The bonus of the remixes only makes it a richer experience. One of the very best- if not the best- by Deep Purple.
Now you must excuse me. I am trying to serve the mimes with court papers. Seems they left the beach and no one knows where they are. The shore was a pretend address. Wouldn't you know?
Written with flare by---your Metamorpho

4/5. The sixth studio album from Deep Purple turned out to be one of the most influential records of hard rock/heavy metal genre in the 70s. The powerful sound, explosive drums, tremendous riffs and solo duels between guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and organist Jon Lord keep even simple song structures very busy and help to establish the essence of Deep Purple as one of the finest bands of the 70s. The opening track "Highway Star" is close both musically and thematically to the song "Speed King" from the "In Rock" album. "Pictures of Home" and one of the greatest and most famous songs that Deep Purple ever recorded - the timeless "Smoke On The Water" - are both inspired by the hard time Deep Purple had recording the album in Switzerland. The latter was actually the only one that the band managed to record at the Pavilion before moving on to recording the rest of the album in the cold and lonesome Grand Hotel that was shut down and abandoned for winter. It is interesting that while the song was recorded the roadies had been desperately holding the doors shut against the police who were attempting to enter and have Deep Purple stop working as the level of noise in the middle of the night was keeping the entire town awake (if Montreaux residents only knew that one of the most recognizable songs in the history of rock music was being recorded!). The song lyrics are actually the account of Deep Purple experience in making the album, when they booked recording time at the Casino in Montreaux, Switzerland and came down with the pricey Rolling Stones mobile studio to record the album. However, one day before recording was scheduled to start, Frank Zappa was performing at the Casino and as Deep Purple enjoyed the concert in a private seating area, somebody from the audience fired a flare gun off into the ceiling, causing a fire which burnt the entire building - to be the recording site of Deep Purple - into the ground.
As the Swiss time was running out Deep Purple had to record the album within severe time limits and it feels on the album that lyrics were written right in the midst of composing the songs. This is particularly so about "Space Trucking" - the concluding song which also features an annoying Blackmore riff and slightly irritating chorus vocals and should have better be replaced with "When a Blind Man Cries" - one of the most melodic Purple songs with poignant lyrics which did not make it into the album and was originally released as B-side on the "Never Before" single. The remixed version of the song featured on the second CD of the anniversary edition sounds even more impressive than the original with somewhat more solid structure and guitar solos.
The anniversary edition contains a great booklet with story behind the album and rare photographs, but on the other hand, differences between remixes of album tracks featured and original versions are hardly noticeable at all. The differences are only about some alternative solos, an original drum intro on "Pictures of Home" and some of the songs that faded out on original versions running their course.
A quintessential album that bears in itself the very spirit of the 70s. It is so unfortunate that Deep Purple did not build on this success and despite "Machine Head" was the most successful album ever released by Deep Purple, it was also the beginning of a bad period. As greater successes meant more money involved in publishing the songs, conflicts and general despondency began between band members, opening way for endless series of lineup changes and shifting the band off the center of the super band league. -Sain Alizada

I was very impressed by the music on this album. The soongs that stand out most being Highway Star, Smoke on the Water, and Lazy. I have listened to at least one song on the album almost every day since i got it. I love it that much!

The only thing is that having both CD's is rather unnecessary, seeing as they are very similar, but i prefer the remixed versions for the slightly extended solos.

The booklet has a lot of great information on how the album was recorded and was pretty cool to read though.

And even further it turns out i look like Ian Gillian when he was that age.... weird.

This is a great album for anyone looking at deep purple just because it has some of their best songs and much variety on it.