Customer Reviews

Made in Japan

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Arguably one of the best live documents from one of the best hard rock bands ever. It has never sounded better having finally been remastered. Sure some of the songs stretch out a little (well some more than a little ie "Space Truckin"), but that's what makes this album so great. The band uses the studio versions to springboard into some of the finest rock jams ever put on tape. If you have the 2 lp vinyl set (and I know you're out there), definitely upgrade to this cd version. Every rock collection needs & deserves this album, I hope my review can give you the nudge toward the "add to cart" button.

oh yeah....THIS is why I always liked Purple more than Led Zep, nothing against Zep mind you. This has got to be one of the all time great live recordings by a rock band. For me, 'Highway Star' says it all. This version makes the one on MACHINE HEAD pale by comparison, and that WAS a good version! They are simply firing on all cylinders on this track, the big Purple sound in all its glory.

Jon Lord is one of my all time favorite Hammond players, he just makes the damn thing breath fire. His playing on this track and CD just goes to confirm why the Hammond organ, in the right hands, is one of the greatest instruments ever created. It is such a powerful instrument and Lord takes full advantage. He was the X factor in this band, the perfect compliment to Blackmore's fiery guitar work, what a duo! Gillan's voice is in great form and what can I say about Ian Paice on drums, one of my favorite drummers ever since I was turned on to the IN ROCK recording way back when. And of course, Roger Glover is the glue that holds it all together. For me, they just don't make bands like this anymore. The MKII version remains one of my favorite bands beacuse I loved the songs and they had the musical chops to back it up. THIS is what good, solid hard rock music is all about. Oh yeah, one of the highlights of my life was to actually meet and talk with Ritchie Blackmore back in the 80's. Crank this bad boy up and stand back, no turkey is served here, LONG LIVE PURPLE!!!

www.electriceyes.us

This is the only live document of Mark 2 Deep Purple you'll ever need. The superb improvisational skills of each member of the band are constantly on display; these are long sprawling jams travelling at breakneck speed. I can't even begin to describe how enjoyable this record is to listen to. Sure, these songs are incredibly long but excess was what hard rock in the 1970s was all about. Each band member shines here.

There is one thing about this package that is a little bit confusing, though. Even though I do own the 25th Anniversary Edition, the edition I own contains remastered versions of the studio tracks played here live. I have looked but I can't seem to find it. That's a good thing, however. I felt the studio tracks were somewhat unnecessary and detracted from the whole experience, anyway. Buy this set now, especially because it doesn't have the annoying and somewhat superfluous remastered studio tracks.

What's the long and the short of all this, I hear you ask? It is that no self-respecting hard rock fan or Deep Purple fan should be without this set. 100% classic!

It really irritates me when people say that heavy metal is the only style of music that Deep Purple were good at. Sure, they may have mastered that style more than any other, but most people seem to be ignorant of the fact that Purple could play blues and jazz EXCELLENTLY. C'mon people, these lads were way too talented to be reduced to 'just heavy metal'.
Anyway, this album may very well be the greatest live rock album ever. Each member of the band are at their best on this one, especially Ritchie. The intensity level is off the page.

"HIGHWAY STAR": Twice as monstrous as the studio original. Gillan spits out the lyrics like a madman, while the rest of the band chugs along at a breakneck pace. Contains some of Ritchie's awesome finger-flashing at the end, which totally obliterates the studio version.

"CHILD IN TIME": This is Deep Purple's unparalleled masterpiece. But Gillan's vocals on this version aren't nearly as good as they usually were. But Ritchie makes up for it with a jazzy solo that must be heard to be believed. I personally love the part where he keeps playing the same chord sequence over and over until you think you're gonna burst if he doesn't stop! And he does it so fast, and without making a single mistake. Ritchie is unreal.

"SMOKE ON THE WATER": Their most famous song, mainly because of the legendary guitar riff, which sounds even more powerful on this version. This is the riff that inspired a generation. Features a cool guitar/organ competition at the end, in which Ritchie and Jon try to outdo each other. Ritchie's solo is also awesome.

"THE MULE": Ian Paice is the greatest drummer that ever lived, just a shade above Ginger Baker. His drum solo on this song will convince you.

"STRANGE KIND OF WOMAN": This is unquestionably the best song on the album. Ritchie's blues licks have never been better. In particular, listen to the second solo, where he builds up the tension and then releases it in a stunning climax. It's like an orgasm. It may be the best solo he's ever played. And this is also the song that features the famous guitar/vocal competition. Gillan mimics Blackmore's notes so perfectly that it's downright scary.

"LAZY": Features an organ intro that just boggles the mind. Cool harmonica from Gillan and excellent licks from Blackmore.

"SPACE TRUCKIN'": Overrated. The long, instrumental section is definitely not Purple at their best. But it's still interesting.

All in all, this is a must-have for any hard rock lover. A journalist for Kerrang! Magazine once wrote, and I quote, "There are moments on this album that have never been beaten in the history of rock music". That pretty much says it all.

Oh, and the bonus tracks aren't really that great. But this re-mastered version is still worth buying, mainly for the superb sound quality.

Why, you might ask, is a lover of Jamaican reggae and ska, and of 70s Black American music, writing a review of a heavy metal band?

Well firstly because I love music of all types, and secondly, quite simply because this is the best live recording of any genre that money can buy!

It is THE definitive live album bar none, and one that every serious lover of music must have in their collection. It documents one of those once-in-a-lifetime occasions when a group of people come together (and here I must include the recording engineer and the audience) and produce something really special. This is metal's finest moment and one Deep Purple or indeed any other hard rock/metal band have never managed to equal, let alone surpass.

Here is an album that somehow manages to capture what most live recordings don't. It hasn't been fiddled with later in the studio so play it loud through a set of headphones and you are there. Sure, everything may be louder than everthing else but that does not mean that any one instrument drowns out any other. The recording engineer did a fantastic job in this respect - truly amazing given its thirty-four year vintage.

As for the content, yeah, some of the solos went on a bit by today's standards, but then the likes of Blackmore and Paice (who incidentally as a drummer I rate just marginally behind the truly great and highly creative Ginger Baker) were so damn good as musicians that they had every right to be a bit self-indulgent. That said, I think Ian Paice could have demonstrated his prowess on the drums in two minutes rather than six or seven. Space Truckin' also goes on way too long and the quality of recording is not as good as the other tracks. But I quibble.

These were real musicians playing real musical instruments before a live audience, nothing else, - surely what rock music was supposed to be all about! Gillan gets the vocal balance just right, Lord is the only person in the history of rock music that can get one of those god-awful '70s organs to sound anywhere decent, while Glover drives the whole thing along with a good thumping bass. These guys played so well that you have to keep reminding yourself that this is a live album. That's the difference between truly professional musicians and all the other the second-raters. Listen to Blackmore about five and a half minutes into "Child in Time" and you'll see what I mean. I don't care what genre it is, to hear someone play any instrument as well as this before a live audience is quite simply awe-inspiring!

The second CD in the remastered set is a bit of a waste of space however. The tracks are fine as pieces of musicianship go, but the sound quality is very poor and no amount of remastering can make them better. Still, as it's a bonus it shouldn't detract from the overall rating. They must have been the tracks rejected the first time around.

So there you have it. If you are a next generation metalhead and haven't heard this, I suggest that you fork over the few bucks and invest in a bit of metal history. Bands like this are where it all started. Play it a few times, compare it to today, and then like me you'll probably wonder where it all went wrong!

Over the past couple of months I've been on a nostaligic binge, purchasing music that I listened to in the late 60's and early seventies. I guess I was growing in need of a change from listening to the jazz and blues that has occupied my listening landscape over the last several years, which is amazing music in and off itslef, but even more so given the vacuousness of the musical repetoir in rock that has existed since the mid to late 1970's.

Earlier today, I was sitting at the computer doing a search on Amazon and band specific sites to see what was out there and what would jar my memory back to a period in music history that, in my opinion, remains as perhaps the most fertile and creative for that enourmouns genre of music that is loosely refered to as, "rock". I came across Deep Purple's "Made in Japan". When I was 12 or 13, I asked for this record for Christmas, and (most likely to my mother's regret), I got it. Now at 45, I listen to it again with all of the youthful enthusiasm that I first listened to it over 30 years ago. As one responder on this site mentioned, there are classic rock live albums that simply must be in any serious collectors' and/or fan's library - and this is definately one of them. It has the best of their material, the best of the musicians, and the most incredible performances that were to ever grace the group. It is evident from the first note that they were totally into what they were doing and they had the creative and youthful energy to let it fly. The remastering also breathes new life into the music, particularly that it is on CD.

I have to add though, as a caution against blurring the lines of distiction between one style of music from another, that listening to Made in Japan, or other music from that era does not remind me of what some have referred to as "heavy metal". On the contrary, It is not heavy metal, it is classic "hard rock" from the early 1970's. Heavy metal was not just a decade away, it was a culture, a lifestyle, an aesthetic away from all of the glorious music that now only exists as memories, allbeit on "vinyl": Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Grand Funk Railroad, Jimi Hendrix, Procul Harem, Robin Trower, Ten Years After, The Faces, The Who, Uriah Heep, The Band, Stephen Stills, CSNY, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Little Feat, Cream, Derek and the Dominos, The Allamn Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Jefferson Airplane, The Byrds, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Grateful Dead, Steppenwolf, Janis Joplin, Traffic, The Doors, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Neil Young, Mountain, and the coutless others. Thanks for the memories - relived.

Deep purple live in Japan , I think this title will be obligated reference from here to the eternity. The others albums in my personal view are: Led Zepellin II, Uriah Heep live, How the west was won (Led Zepellin too) , Captain beyond (Capricorne), Allman brothers live from Fillmore, and Jimmy Hendrix`s experience.

What else can one say after listening?. I've gathered with young people, a nephew and several friends of him, and others friends not necessarily rock`s lovers to listen that record (I'm 49) the facial expression is the same: amazing, unbelievable, and other similar adjectives.

This is posible, because there are certain moments in a very special ocassions where you seem sign a kind of statement with yourself and your bliss; a commitment and clarity who goes beyond your own limits. And this thought applies for all the arts.

Bresson , a french filmaker (died in 1999) told once: "When you don`t know what to do , and what you do is the best, that is inspiration".And those days of August 1972 Deep purple was inspired, without any shadow of doubt.

Only I can add this sentence: Deep purple is a rock band inscribed in the inmortality. When you consider rhe sum of these gifted musicians like Ian Gillan,Ian Lord ,Ritchie Blackmore, it`s logical to think that the throne of the rock is for a few. And Deep purple is one of them.

Forever purple !

Perhaps I should thank those kids who stole all my CD's from my car. Cause now as I am replacing them, I'm also listening to some of the old classics. And Made in Japan is a classic!

Favorite song on the cd is Child In Time. But the entire CD is great!

If you like hard rock from the old days, this is a must have!

Made In Japan (1972.), a Deep Purple live performance

Deep Purple's 'Made in Japan' is a timeless capture of one of the greatest rocks bands performing in all of their glory. Deep Purple are arguably at their peak at this point, on the back of three quite amazing albums, 'In Rock', 'Fireball' and 'Machine Head' the Mark II Deep Purple lineup are captured here performing at their very best. The three concerts featured in this album took place on the 15th, 16th and 17th August 1972 at Osaka/Tokyo in Japan and with the tracks they play, DP literally bring the house down and you can seriously feel this when you play this live album with a great atmosphere from the crowd.

What therefore makes this live album extra special? Afterall there are plenty of bands who have given really good live performances. The simple fact is that the album is very very honest. There are no studio overdubs, additions of fake cheers or claps or any tampering to speak of with the recording. You are hearing exactly what was been played on the nights of the concerts - this is the real McCoy and it definitely makes the whole thing extra special. My only real complaint with the whole thing is, and its a bit pedantic and is the reason why I gave it 4.5 stars is the fact that the cd does not give one full length concert but instead 5 tracks from the 2nd concert and the rest from the other two - giving it a kind of best of a live tour feel. You scarcely notice it when listening but from my point of view, I would much rather listen to a concert in its entirity rather than a piecemeal recording (A 3 CD version of the whole thing is actually available - now that would get 5 stars!). However aside from this minor niggle, you can't fault Deep Purple's performance, it is quite simply amazing. Ritchie Blackmore's guitar playing is sometimes more phenominal than what you hear on the studio album - his guitar playing live shows why, in my opinion, he is one of the greatest rock guitarists of all time. By no means though does he overshadow his fellow DP bandmembers. Ian Paice's drumming is spectacular (more about that later) as is Gillan's amazing vocal range and Jon Lord puts out more than a good dose of great keyboard improvisation.

There are a number of issues of this CD. The best version to get of the '3 concert overview' is the 25th anniversary edition, the version which I obtained. Aside from being quite cheap to buy, you get a bonus CD which contains 'The Encores' of Black Night, Speed King and Lucille. They are a good addition and pad out the material available. The standard issue contains the 7 tracks only and not the encores, plus you don't get the extensive information booklet which comes with all the anniversary Deep Purple remasters.

What we hear from these live performances are lots of tracks from 'In Rock', 'Fireball' and 'Machine Head'. The only exception to this is 'Lucille' which is a rock n roll song by Little Richard (I think!) - DP do a great improvised version of it, with Gillan's vocals screaming to amazing heights. The original CD kicks off with 'Highway Star' and prepare to be blasted away by the bands heavy ferocity (something which continues right through with very little respite!). Blackmore gives us his trademarke style of playing with the first track, riffing like there is no tomorrow! The 'Child In Time' rendition is a great listen, in some ways has better effects live than in the studio and is a great listen. 'Smoke On the Water', well it never disappoints - you hear the crowd clapping and really getting into the groove on this song! 'The Mule' follows this up and is perhaps, for me the most entertaining on the CD - Ian Paice's drumming on this track is a solo and a half! Ive never heard a drum solo quite like it - full of energy and speed and practically creates a song single handedly - the highlight of the album - he is definitely one of the top rock drummers there is. The last three tracks, 'Strange Kind of Woman', 'Lazy' and 'Space Truckin' all extend into full out jams. 'Space Truckin' at 19 minutes does go on just a little bit but is still a fun listen. On 'Lazy' there is some whizz keyboard work from Jon Lord - listen to his interesting and cleverly clashing opening. Gillan is always on hand to get the crowd involved, especially at the end of 'Strange Kiond of Woman' where he screams higher and higher with the crowd!

All in all, great entertainment and very much a unique and polished (in live terms anyway) perfromance. A must for any DP fan - it is a capture of DP's greatest line up, the legendary Mark II! Just think that in a year after this concert the Mark II line up was no more ....... although it was definitely not the end for Deep Purple, no no no, there was plenty of more great work to come!

I loved this album back in 1972 and I'm still amazed by it's sonic impact today. Deep Purple's recording engineer Martin Burch was asked to capture some shows from the 1972 Machine Head Tour on tape. During the August 1972 Japanese leg of the tour, he had his chance to record. Burch was supplied with an unimpressive, cheap looking Ampex 8-track recorder to get the job done. Burch was dissapointed with the equipment he was given and was certain that the results would be a total waste of his time.

When the entourage arrived back in England, Burch took the time to throw the eight track recording tapes onto a studio deck and have a listen. COMPLETE AND TOTAL SHOCK !!! The combination of skillful microphone placement, concert hall acoustics and the unexpected superior performance of that little Ampex tape deck had collectively ganged up to capture one of the finest quality live rock recordings of all time.