Customer Reviews

Shades 1968-1998

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I can't really add much to what has already been said in the other reviews here, with one exception. No one seems to have noticed that the liner notes in the accompanying booklet (which was otherwise nicely done with some great photos) gets all kinds of facts wrong. This is not mere nitpicking, as there are literally too many mistakes to list in this review. As Rhino needed to work with Simon Robinson (founder of the UK-based Deep Purple Appreciation Society and writer for all of DP's remastered album booklets) to get many of these tracks, one wonders why they didn't ask him to write the historical essay. Considering that this long-overdue boxed set is otherwise lavish and packed with tracks previously unavailable in the USA, the thoroughly misleading essay is a garish oversight.

Well this band has been coming at us for over thiry years and this box set is an excellent synopsis of that 30 yr period. Not only do they do a great job at selecting the songs, but it is well organized and produced along with a nice book included to read about the band while you listen to the songs.

You get to see what a great live band they are in this set. An example of this is a top notch extended jam of "Lazy" on the third disc from the infamous Tokyo 72 shows. We also see what a great studio band they were with many examples, some highlights being "Perfect Strangers," "Bad Attitude" and the afformentioned "No One Came."

You have songs included from their entire career with different members, but the bulk being by the Roger Glover, Ian Paice, Jon Lord, Richie Blackmore and Ian Gillan fivesome. You get to see the good times they had together on tracks such as "Space Trucking and "Knocking at your Back Door." On the flip side of the coin, you also see the strained relationship at times between these five (specifically Gillan and Blackmore) in such songs as "Smooth Dancer."

I actually gave this collection 4 1/2 stars. The only knock being that I would have liked a few more rarities, but there are many on here still to enjoy. There are tracks just pulled from the vault and dusted off like "Shadows," "Love Help Me," and "Son of Alerik." I also would have liked more pictures from these times these five were in the band.

There are also some great songs from the times that Glover and Gillan were not in the band, like the rocker "Burn" featuring David Coverdale on vocals prior to his Whitesnake days and "Sail Away."

Deep Purple is a band that was never appreciated enough in this country always bigger over in the eastern hemisphere. Well, this is one American fan who definately appreciates them and this box set has everything that many other box sets fail have a solid summary of a bands entire career.

..And I really do mean that! As a fine connosieur of Classic Rock, outtakes, rareties, and the like, I have purchased some box sets in the past that really were a waste. Some with really poor outtakes that sounded like they literally came out of the garage, and should have stayed there, never to see an album or the charts. And worse yet, box sets that spend so much time focusing only on the "hit" making period of a group, that they show no revelations or spark of creativity from either the early or late periods, and all you're really paying the 50-to-100 dollars for besides the "extended greatest hits", is all the never-before-seen photographs of the group. None of which describes this most excellent of box sets by Deep Purple. One thing I can say for sure: This collection is comprehensive and chronological. Deep Purple is a group that went through almost as many phases as Spinal Tap, and this collection does a fine job of representing each and every stage of Deep Purple fairly, highlighting all the creative points and landmark songs from each stage. But most importantly, everything I want out of a good box set is here: Unreleased newly-discovered gems that should have been hits, such as "Cry Free", an outtake from "In Rock" that is so catchy and soulful, I find myself singing at work! Also, from the Rod Evans-era, a couple of the earliest known demos of the group, "Shadows" and "Love Help Me", the latter of which wound up on the groups' debut album with vocals, but hearing it instrumentally here sounds a whole lot better. I was also not dissappointed with what wasn't on here, but pleased with what was. I'm most happy that this wasn't strictly Ian Gillan-era stuff, because there were some really good Rod Evans songs here, too-- In particular, "Anthem", perhaps one of the most hauntingly beautiful love songs I've ever heard--good to listen to when you're lonely and heart broke, reminds me a lot of "Nights In White Satin", by the Moody Blues. Another true revelation here is the first-ever U.S. release of "Hallelujah-I am the Preacher"--a rare glimpse of a Rod Evans-era pop song, sung by Ian Gillan, during that transition period in 1969, when Evans and Simper were on their way out, and Gillan and Glover were just getting their feet in the door, and handed some of the earlier unit's "progressive bubblegum" fare to sing. This song is a rare chance to hear Ian Gillan sing lyrics to a song (or, should I say, "hymn"), that would fit in in most modern churches today. Why Deep Purple was given this song (hymn), I really don't know, but they performed it with all the surprising sincerity they could muster. I was also happy to see "Never Before" on here, a favourite of mine from "Machine Head" that should have been a hit, and never made it on any other greatest hits package, and certainly the band thought it should have been a hit, and I'm glad they put it on here. All the other great Ritchie Blackmore-riffs are well-represented here: "Emmeretta" (and Ritchie said he didn't like playing "funky"--what do you call that?), "The Bird Has Flown", "Speed King", "Into The Fire" (My all time favourite Blackmore-riff--sounds like "Frankenstein" meets "Iron Man"), "No, No No" (Hendrix-meets-Traffic), "Space Truckin'" (My favourite from "Machine Head"), "Highway Star", "My Woman From Tokyo" (John Lennon tribute?), and for those of you who like "Smoke On The Water", you have a choice here--"Live" or "Studio". Probably the one song that best represents the funky, Coverdale/Hughes period is "Just Might Take Your Life", with the organ of Jon Lord coming more to the forefront, and Blackmore's guitar taking more of a backseat, and the singing of David Coverdale much more soulful, Deep Purple begins to sound more like late-period Grand Funk Railroad or Humble Pie (and if you like Funk or Pie, you'll defintely dig some of this Coverdale-era stuff.) There's really something for everyone here. For those fans of Tommy Bolin, there's even songs from the short-lived Tommy Bolin period. But probably the best thing about this box set is that it has allowed me to see Deep Purple in a whole different light, and given me a better appreciation of them. These are not the dark, mysterious guys from accross the pond that I've always been led to believe. In fact, as far as "Heavy Metal" bands go, they are probably the most lyrically "down to earth". If you can just get past their quasi-mystical sounding hits like "Smoke On The Water", or "Burn", you'll see a whole different group. I've begun to regard the Ian Gillan and Roger Glover as much better songwriters, writing some really cute-and-witty songs like the vulnerable "No One Came"--Ian Gillan's narrative about the 15 minutes of fame some pop stars have, "Strange Kind Of Woman", about a prostitute named Nancy that he tried to win over, or "Mary Long"--a true story about a censorship campaigner who really should have practised what she preached. I think the songwriting team of Gillan-Glover really could have been on a par with the "Rubber Soul"-era Lennon-McCartney if they had been given more of a chance. And I'm really glad that this collection brought out that side of the group. Behind the serious-minded, grim-faced, mystical Druid facade, was actually a bunch of loveable, witty Brits, who could laugh at themselves in songs. They even went back into the studio in 1988 to perform their early-hit, "Hush", just to see if they could still do it, and it was interesting to hear Ian Gillan singing (yet another) Rod Evans song. Just think of it like Robert Plant with Jimmy Page, going back into the Yardbirds' stuff to sing Keith Relf's "Mister, You're a Better Man Than I", and bringing it up to date! Pretty Amuzing! This box set is not only worth every penny, but it also does what every good box set should do--give you a better appreciation of the group. And because of this box set, Deep Purple has become my favourite British band (sorry, Led Zeppelin, The Yardbirds, and The Who.)

Clearly this collection has been long overdue. For years Deep Purple fans have been subjected to inferior "Best Of" collections which recycle the same tracks over and over, but only ever skimmed the surface of the back catalog.
Now, at last, we get a true "Best Of" collection spread over four CDs tracing the career of the band from "Hush" to "Abandon", and finally giving a home to those tracks which didn't make the final cut the first time around.
What is most remarkable about this set is being able to listen to those outtakes and realize just how much quality control the band employed. If these tracks didn't make it, then the ones that did had to be special!
A total of 62 tracks spanning 30 years including many which have never made it onto CD before, this has to be the best value for money for any Purple fan. Even the so-called 'weak' albums get good representation here, although it is strange that "You Keep On Moving" was left off, especially as it was released as a single in many countries.
But for those fans who would say that their favorite track has been left off let me ask you a question -- take a good look down the running order and then ask yourself which track you would take off to put your favorite on?
If you only buy one "Best Of" collection - buy this one, you won't be disappointed.

What could perhaps be better than an album by DP? A compilation of albums by DP! Rather than squeezing all the hits onto a "one-hour tape", this compilation rather features a step-by-step tracing of the band's history... Disk One includes mainly out-takes and album songs of the remarkable 1968-1970 era with Rod Evans on vocals. Songs like Anthem and Emaretta portray very closely that time period of Deep Purple.

Here comes "Hallelujah" with the diversion in style: vocals. Ian Gillan replaces Evans with his roaring voice, which after so many years still sounds incredible. Some of the songs included here were never released on any albums, yet most of them are stil quite popular: "When a blind man cries" along "Strange kind of woman". And what could be a better idea than including "Lazy" and "Into the fire" in their live version?

Then Mark III and IV come across on Disk 3 with Coverdale and Hughes. Not as breathtaking as the Blackmore-Glover-GIllan-Lord-Paice era, however still with its own funky signature sound. The last disk features the most recent perturbations within the band combining awesome tunes of "Perfect Strangers" with the confusion of "Slaves and Masters". Only very few tracks are included from "Abandon" and "Purpendicular".

Overall, definitely a 5 star album!

I am very impressed with this box set. Everything that I expected to find, I found it here. This box set really does Deep Purple justice. I paid the price, and got my money's worth. What's really nice about this package are the rarities found here, including "Shadows", "Love Help Me", "Jam Stew", and "Slow Train", not forgetting the rare B-sides like "When A Blind Man Cries", "I'm Alone", "Coronarias Redig" and "Hallelujah (I Am The Preacher)". This box set rocks hard from beginning to end, definitely worth every dime. I also enjoy the booklet that comes with this package, jam-packed with information and other facts about the band and the songs. Highly recommended. A must-have for anyone who appreciates the music of Deep Purple. Five stars? More like 10 STARS(**********)!!!!

It's really frustrating to see so many mediocre
70's bands getting praised as something special
( Is that Gene Simmons' phone ringing ? ) Deep
Purple are often written off as a real life Spinal
Tap, and that is not only inaccurate by
miles, it's also illiterate and stupid. DP was and
is a far more ambitious and ballsy band than AC/DC.
Instead of just recyling blues cliches, DP invests
energy in their music and shames the fad outfits
that get all the attention now. This set tells it
all; maybe you can quibble with one song here or
there. So what ? What matters is that you can sample
the band's best work in all their incarnations
( the current band gets short shrift, but their
material is plentiful and easy to find ) properly
packaged and mastered sweet and clear. I listen to
DP far more than I do Zeppelin or Skynryd and I
think DP sounds more adventurous in 2003 than
anyone from that era with the possible exception
of Rush. Not all DP incarnations are equal, but
when they are/were hot...they are/were white hot
and this collection goes to great lengths to show
it.

If you buy one Deep Purple "Best Of," buy THIS ONE. It doesn't just contain all the favourites and famous songs, it has a number of rare and releases, and a very full history in the (huge!) booklet as well. Buy it. You won't regret it! ;-)

I have to said honesty to other Purple fans, this special compilation 4 cd set is dedicated to the young /new fans only. There are a lot of new young people who haven't seen DP live on stage, and if you re one of them please order this cd set. If not! buy the original album! This 4 cd set is a very cool compilation, you can check out the cover and see the inlay booklet photos of the band historical background. Absolutely interresting for great PURPLE fans everywhere. I personally agree with the german DP fan below, that DP should get the title of Rock n Roll hall of fame, as the best and the majestic loud rock band in this century. I never enjoyed the commercial rock bands (especially what the US radio stations played everytime) such as Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Eagles, Aerosmith, Bob Seger etc. These bands are too self indulgence.... I know that only few people who are still admiring Deep Purple as a good rock band, like me. Hey buddies, please check all the DP songs, the guys are cool and great. I'm sure you will bow your head with their majestic and thundering sound, they played.

For the serious Deep Purple collector, this one is It. Containing 62 tracks of Deep Purple's favorite's, from the early years up to the latest songs. A mix of live, with studio, and the full length UK version of Speed king. 4 disc's of Deep Purples finest archive's.