Published on Feb 17, 1997
Formed in England in 1968, Deep Purple has gone on to become one
of the most successful (and longest lived) rock bands in history.
At one point, Deep Purple was listed by the
Guinness Book of World Records as rock’s loudest band.
Deep Purple has had its share of lineup changes. By the early
’70’s, disputes between vocalist Ian Gillian and guitarist Ritchie
Blackmore caused Gillian to defect, being replaced by David
Coverdale. Eventually, Blackmore departed to form Rainbow, and was
replaced by Tommy Bolin on
Come Taste the Band. Afterward, Purple remained silent until
1984, when the classic lineup reformed to release
Perfect Strangers.
If Deep Purple ever had a weakness, it was a lack of identity.
In the early days, they were a band with a fat organ sound. Later,
Blackmore’s guitar work became more prevalent and they became a
hard rock outfit. But there was never any consistency, and you
could never be sure what you would wind up with on a Deep Purple
album.
Perfect Strangers was a departure from all of these
problems. It could be their best work. If not, it’s certainly their
most rounded. It’s a rock album from beginning to end, and quite
frankly, they never sounded so good together.
Anchoring the album are two tracks, “Knocking At Your Back
Door”, and the title track, “Perfect Strangers”. Both are rooted
firmly in the Deep Purple rock and roll plan. They’re long,
lumbering 4/4 droaners that allow Blackmore the freedom to play
guitar in a way that influenced the likes of Yngwie Malmsteen. Jon
Lord’s organ adds the glue that “sticks” the band together, giving
our ears something to listen to while there are breaks in the
action.
The organ is most powerful on “Mean Streak”. It’s a throwback to
the early days in Deep Purple’s history. But it’s also here that we
see exactly what Deep Purple really is: a rhythm band. Roger Glover
(bass) and Ian Paice (drums) keep everything going, while Lord’s
keys and Blackmore’s guitar add little accents of spice here and
there. Gillian’s voice sits atop all this, telling a story of a
drunken girlfriend.
On “Hungry Daze” we see influences acquired during the band’s
separation. Gillian’s voice, at times, sounds like it did on his
release with Black Sabbath. Blackmore adds guitar work that reminds
me of Rainbow.
The album ends with “Not Responsible” Gillian’s “fuck you”
anthem, where he explains that he’ll do anything he wants, and
accept no responsibility for his actions.
Perfect Strangers was a rare album for Deep Purple. Never
had the band sounded so cohesive. Never had they managed such a
consistent sound over an entire album. Perhaps that’s why they
decided to call the album
Perfect Strangers. Maybe they were five guys, so different
that they were strangers to each other really. Vastly different
people, that complimented each other so perfectly, just once.
(Editor’s note: Since Bill wrote this review, a
re-mastered version of this CD, with two bonus tracks, has been
released.)