Deep Purple - BBC 1969-1970 (2021) Bootleg

(U.K 1968 - 1976, 1984 - Present)

After Deep Purple split in 1976, interest in preparing complex reissue projects waned. When the group did reform in 1984 the interest from their old label was on back-catalogue collections and 'Best Of's'. In the absence of anything official, the bootleggers attempted to fill the BBC rarities gap and a number of titles appeared which all contained vintage BBC material. A detailed Deep Purple EMI back-catalogue programme then began which saw some BBC recordings emerge as bonus tracks. Even so, there were sessions which remained unreleased officially, and others assumed to be 'lost'.

The BBC's Transcription Service began back in the thirties to press UK programmes (light and classical music, comedy, drama etc) onto records for the BBC Empire Service, offered to subscribing radio stations abroad. In The sixities, the BBC began adding pop sessions to the mix, firstly on a programme called Pick Of The Pops, then via a new show called Top Of The Pops, both distributed abroad to subscribing stations. The producers of these pop programmes put together selected tracks from recent radio sessions, with DJs like Brian Matthew adding new links and instructions.

Radio 1 presenter Brian Matthew

Participating stations paid the BBC a modest annual fee to air them. At the time the BBC didn't really have a proper active policy for pop music. Many of the session tapes were reused so offten it was only via the transcription department that session tracks survived. The compillers rarely put entire sessions on the discs, but just made a selection - which is why tracks from sessions survive, but not others. And to describe the Transcription programme mix as eclectic is almost to redifine the word: Volume 262 for exampole features Deep Purple, Roger Whittaker, The New Seekers, Lulu, Jethro Tull, Clodagh Rodgers and The Plastic Ono Band together on one 40 minute album!

Researcher Ken Garner discovered that engineers from the Transcription service actually recorded their own live feed alongside that being captured for UK radio. It was these tapes used to make the Top Of The Pops programme, which accounts for the accasional different version or edit of some tracks. The albums themselves were issued on a strict license basius and after a year, the radio stations were under ordrers to return them to London where some were kept but many more were destroyed.

Aside from the discs, fans sometimes managed to record sessions 'off-air', sticking a microphone in front of a radio speaker, As recordings came to light it was possible for collector's to assemble a list of Deep Purple's sessions. Unlike the tapes, the BBC were meticulous in keeping paperwork, so when Garner wrote his definitive 'In Session Tonight' book in 1993, this more or less completed (confirmed) the research.

Although radio in the UK was still resolutely mono, stations abroad were moving over to stereo. Transcriptiuoin engineers (based at Kensington House in Shepherd's Bush since the early sixties) used the session recordings to develop their skills in this area, so while the sessions went out in mono in Britain, some which made it to transcription discs were in stereo. The Transcription albums did also occassionally 'cheat' in an attempt to cover breaking chart singles which the BBC didn't have a session version of. There is one Transcriptioin disc with Strange Kind Of Woman introduced by Brian Matthew as 'live', but which is just the regular single.

Deep Purple BBC Sessions 1968-1970

Deep Purple's original producer Derek Lawrence recollections of the band's early trips to the BBC are understandably hazy. But Derek did recall walking around to the appropriate office at the BBC with a large bunch of red roses and talking the woman into giving them a hearing. This was before they'd even released their debut record and was something of a sharp move, but then Deep Purple did enjoy a number of breaks in those early days. They'd made contact with a businessman, Tony Edwards, wanting to invest in a band and through his financial support found time to audition, rehearse and write.

Derek Lawrence

Through another of Derek's contacts came an approach from a flash new record label in New York seeking a new British cross-over rock/psych/pop band to market in the aftermath of the British invasion. Early monitor mixes impressed and over the next twelve months Deep Purple rode their luck across America with headlining shows. TV appearance and three months of intence gigging at the end of 1968 to support two Billboard top thirty albums and high charting singles. A UK record deal with EMI was also soon in place, again in part thanks to Derek's contacts as an independent producer for the label, but in the UK sales were modest.

Happily though the baand's first BBC session got a positive response from the station. It was BBC policy to assess intial 'pop' sessions via a production panel, whose comments would then decide whether or not the radio station would let them do further work. The panel reported that they found Deep Purple to be a 'Polished commercial group' and cleared the way for further bookings, giving the group an 'Enthusiastic, Unanimous pass'.

At this time Radio One was only just over a year old. Due to Musicians Union restrictions on the number of records which could be played, a number of the DJs on the new station featured In Session recordings by pop bands instead. Deep Purple did six different sessions inside a year for DJs such as Chris Grant, Tony Brandon, Dave Symonds and of course John Peel - who was quite a fan of the early incarnation of the group. And while some of the tracks are a little poppy, many showed just why insiders were so enthusiastic about the potential of the group, and their playing clearly gets more exciting and confident through the sessions. Deep Purple's first line-up did their final BBC session in July 1969 unaware that the rest of the group had already decided to bring in two new members. And with Ian Gillan and Roger Glover in place, Deep Purple were back at the BBC studios just six weeks later for the Mk 2 line-up's Radio 1 debut. The band continued to grace the various studios of the BBC for another year.

Chris Grant's Tasty Pop Sundae, July 1969

Deep Purple Mk1
Session 6 [30.06.1969]
Studio 2, Aeolian Hall
Show Producer: Paul Williams
Aired: 06.07.1969
1. The Painter (Ver 2)
2. I'm So Glad (Ver 1)
3. Hush (Ver 4)

Although Deep Purple had signed replacements for Simper and Evans, the pair had yet to be given their marching orders at the time of this recording. The band looked back to their first album for two of the tracks, performing Hush for the fourth time in session. Here we get the rather camp spoken introduction from Chris Grant ("mmm....boys....!") but there is another surviving albeit poorer quality off-air version fronted by Brian Matthew. Another take of The Painter reveals a much stronger attack to the performance too. Just four days after this session, Deep Purple Mk 1 played their final live concert and the management told Simper and Evans that they were out of the group.
The Aeolian Hall studio was a building that the BBC took on during the war. It was used for all sorts of recordings by the BBC, including rock and pop sessions, before they gave it up in 1975.

Mike Harding's Sounds Of Seventies, April 1970

Deep Purple Mk2
Session 11 [21.04.1970]
Studio 5, Maida Vale
Show Producers: Malcolm Brown,  Mike France, Mike Harding

Aired: 28.04.1970
1. Hard Lovin' Man (Ver 1)
2. Bloodsucker (Ver 1)
Living Wreck (Ver 2)

Mike Harding was the only BBC DJ who produced his own sessions according to Ken Garner. Again saved by the Transcription Serrvice people (Vol 286) with new introductions by Brian Matthew. A suitably heavy set plugging the 'In Rock' album, the band were already gaining a big live following in Europe. Alternate edits of a couple of these tracks do exist, as both transcription and off-air recordings (tweaked for the different uses) have survived. It is in some ways a shame that we lose a little of the music to the DJ voice over too, but this does add a bit of context to the tracks. And besides, when the DJ in question is Brian Matthew, who is to gripe? The original presenter of the session, Mike Harding, also went on to front the BBC in Concert programme.

Sounds Of The Seventies (which had only kicked off at the start of April) was part of a new progressive music strand the BBC introduced on Radio One in March.

BBC Transcription Service, September 1970

Deep Purple Mk2
Session 12 [23.09.1970]
Studio T1, Shepherds Bush
Producer: Unknown
1. Black Night (Ver 1)
2. Grabsplatter (Ver 1)
3. Into The Fire (Ver 1)
4. Child In Time (Ver 2)

This final session was recorded especially for the BBC Transcription Service (Vol 309) for foreign radio stations. It marked the final visit of Deep Purple to the BBC (with the exception of a second In Concert recording in 1972). The session included a short interview with Jon Lord.

The "Glabsplatter" featured here is an instrumental, strangely for a booked session - you might have expected them to record another album track. The title goes way back to Ian Gillan's ramblings in his Episode Six days. Deep Purple later recorded the track in the studio with vocals as "I'm Alone", released on a B-Side. The BBC take of Grabsplatter was first issued on their New Live & Rare EP in October 1980.

This post consists of FLACs freshly ripped from my recently acquired Vinyl (purchased from 'Radiation Records' in Rome while on hols in Europe) and includes limited artwork. The Pink Vinyl is a nice feature with this release, and the colouration is perfect (rare for these type of bootlegs). 

Although these tracks have already been officially released on CD (see cover below), the quality of the recordings on this release is excellent and there isn't any surface noise. My first DP album was 'In Rock' and the track selection on this release is featured heavily. Pity that "Speed King" is missing however.

Interesting note made by Bootlegger: These recordings are in public domain according to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, sections 6-9 "Copyright in broadcasts made for, or first published by BBC, lasts fo 50 years from the end of the year of first publication"

This is another prize addition to my Deep Purple Vinyl collection and I was more than happy to part with the €20.00 to acquire it. Needless to say it was safely tucked away inside the clothing compartment in my suitcase when flying home.    

Track Listing:

Chris Grant's Tasty Pop Sundae, July 1969 *

A1 The Painter

A2 I'm So Glad

A3 Hush

Mike Harding's Sounds Of Seventies, April 1970 **

A4 Hard Lovin' Man

A5 Bloodsucker

A6 Living Wreck

Transcription Service, September 1970 **

B1 Black Night

B2 Grabsplatter

B3 Into The Fire

B4 Child In Time

Deep Purple Mk1 *

Bass – Nick Simper
Drums – Ian Paice
Guitar – Ritchie Blackmore
Keyboards – Jon Lord
Vocals – Rod Evans

Deep Purple Mk2 **

Bass – Roger Glover
Drums – Ian Paice
Guitar – Ritchie Blackmore
Keyboards – Jon Lord
Vocals – Ian Gillan

Deep Purple BBC Link (234Mb)
 

REPOST: Deep Purple - Made In Europe (1976)

(U.K 1968 - 1976, 1984 - Present)
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This live recording, made in 1975, comes from Ritchie Blackmore's last three concerts with the band before leaving to form Rainbow. In support of Burn and Stormbringer, Deep Purple took to the road for many sell out shows over the next several years & recorded the final album of their long run with Warner Bros.

It features Deep Purple Mark III, with David Coverdale on vocals and Glenn Hughes on bass and vocals. Coverdale is a convincing hard rock singer, though he lacks the winning quirkiness of Ian Gillan, while Hughes is a busier and more up-front player than Roger Glover. While "Burn" and "Mistreated" are worthy successors to previous Deep Purple tunes, the remaining material is weaker, and overall, this stuff is definitely a couple of notches below the glory days of Made in Japan. But Blackmore, for his swan song, still manages to inject a good deal of excitement, and his invention and fire raise the proceedings up somewhat.

Deep Purple - MKIII

Review

In 1976, Deep Purple ended with a thud.

With no desire to carry on, the band split in 1976 after the ill-received addition of Tommy Bolin on lead guitar.  David Coverdale was eager to start a solo career where he could sing, and not “scream his balls off”.  Everybody else was just plain tired of it all.  Dutifully, the record company trotted out live albums and compilations, to keep the cash flowing.  Made in Europe, intended as a followup to Made in Japan, came first.  It was followed by Power House, When We Rock We Rock, Deepest Purple, Last Concert in Japan, Live in London, and many more.  The goal was not to provide fans with good quality unreleased music for them to enjoy.  The purpose was to make more money.

Live on their 1975 Tour

Made in Europe has since been superseded by better releases.  MkIII: The Final Concerts expanded and remixed this material, sourced from their last shows with Ritchie Blackmore.  He had already made the decision to quit, unbeknown to his bandmates.  More recently, the Official Deep Purple (Overseas) Live Series released full shows of two concerts, Graz and Paris.  It is always preferable to have the full show, rather than a song here or there sloppy edited and mixed into a live album.  Don’t you agree?

With only five songs, Made in Europe was hardly representative of Purple’s set at the time, but it seems a single LP was all that EMI were willing to invest in.  Producer Martin Birch was unable to get the same heavy, crisp sound that he got on Made in Japan.  This one is heavy, but that crisp sound is muffled under a blanket.

Live on their 1975 Tour

“Burn” is an apt opener, and both David and Glenn Hughes were in fine form that night.  Blackmore, Paice and Lord always are.  Yet Deep Purple sound almost…bored?  Playing by rote?  Blackmore’s guitar is also too buried in the mix.  The first of two jams is up next: “Mistreated (Interpolating ‘Rock Me Baby’)”.  While no one questions that this is one of the greatest songs in the Deep Purple MkIII catalogue, the live jam has always dragged.  Ritchie’s playing is still a delight, but they could have trimmed two or three minutes from the song.   That’s followed by a frantic “Lady Double Dealer”, never one of Purple’s finest.  Birch applies an irritating echo to the chorus, but that’s all for the first side.

The second side is dominated by 16 minutes of “You Fool No One”, the second jam.  Jon Lord takes center stage for the organ solo intro, but if you dig cowbell, this song is for you!  Could Ian Paice be the #1 cowbell player on the planet?  “You Fool No One” testifies to that.  He is absolutely the MVP on this track (for his drumming, too)!  Finally, the full gale force of “Stormbringer” brings the proceedings to an end, easily the best track on the disc.

L-R: Hughes, Blackmoore, Paice, Lord, Coverdale

What you say, no “Smoke on the Water”?  No “Highway Star”?  It appears EMI wanted to avoid song overlap with Made in Japan, so you get MkIII material and only MkIII material!  Nevertheless, this is a pretty good follow up to their 1972 epic. [extract from mikeladano.com]

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This post consists of FLACs ripped from CD and includes full artwork for both CD and Vinyl, along with label scans from my vinyl. It is interesting to note that the band depicted on the picture label for the UK vinyl release is inaccurate, depicting Tommy Bolin's face rather than Ritchie Blackmoore.  Bolin did not join the band until after their 1975 Tour, when Blackmoore left to form Rainbow - so poor effort on the part of their record company (see below)

NEW IMPROVED RIP

Track Listing

01 - Burn 7:32

02 - Mistreated (Interpolating Rock Me Baby) 11:40

03 - Lady Double Dealer 4:15

04 - You Fool No One 16:42

05 - Stormbringer 5:38

Vocals – David Coverdale

Bass Guitar, Vocals – Glenn Hughes

Drums – Ian Paice

Lead Guitar – Ritchie Blackmore

Organ [Hammond], Keyboards – Jon Lord

All titles recorded at:-

Graz in Austria on the 4th April 1975

Saarbrucken in Germany on 5th April 1975

Paris in France on the 7th April 1975

Deep Purple Made In Europe Link  (255Mb) New Link 14/12/2023

Deep Purple - Scandinavian Nights (1988)

(U.K 1968 - 1976, 1984 - Present)
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This classic Deep Purple concert was recorded by Sveriges Radio for a radio show called 'Tonkraft', held in Koncerthuset, Stockholm, on 12th.November 1970. This concert was originally released on vinyl in 1988 as 'Scandinavian Nights in Europe' and as 'Live and Rare' in the USA in 1992. The original master tapes were later discovered and are remixed for this release. The track order on this CD is different from the live set order.

Songs on the album are mainly from the 'Deep Purple In Rock' album - released early in 1970, and long instrumentals from earlier albums. The two songs "Mandrake Root" and "Wring that Neck" took up half the concert in the early days, until the Fireball tour.

Deep Purple Mark II

This double-LP has some really good moments; I especially enjoy parts of "Mandrake Root", but the sound quality is disappointing, and the group's performance is uneven (and on occasion painfully out of tune).

The highlight of course is their #2 hit single at the time - "Black Night", with its catchy riff and enticing lyrics, which finished off their set list at the time. It is interesting to note that Black Night was not included on their In Rock album, mainly to attract fans who simply enjoyed their single but weren't interested in hearing more Deep Purple material. And the stalwart fans would of course buy both. Smart hey!

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Review [Dave Thompson]

Deep purple's follow up album to 'In Rock' was an especial bugbear. Despite the promising start to the sessions back in September 1970, the band's schedule didn't allow them to return to the studio; they'd scarcely even got any writing done. The only significant addition to their live repertoire in recent months was an improvisational leviathan built around the Rolling Stones' "Paint It Black," which itself was little more than the framework for a marathon drum solo.

It was certainly exciting in concert, but it neither said nor did anything for Deep Purple's hopes of advancing their own art. Increasingly, it seemed that the band had reached a creative impasse, finding it easier to allow existing numbers to grow in length than concoct new material.

A live recording made for Swedish radio broadcast at the Konserthuset in Stockholm, on November 12,1970, captured the dilemma. The band's classical excursions notwithstanding, this remains one of the earliest MarkII concert recordings to have been officially released, in 1988, as the 'Scandinavian Nights' album; it was, in fact, one of the earliest of their concerts to even be recorded (only a February 1970 BBC broadcast and a dynamic Aachen festival show from July predate it).

Scandinavian Nights highlights a live set that comprised just seven numbers, including a mere three from In Rock (admittedly volcanic assaults on "Child in Time" and "Into the Fire," and an impossibly overwrought "Speed King"), three that were little more than endless jams ("Mandrake Root," "Paint It Black," and a full thirty minutes of "Wring That Neck"), and, finally, the encore hit "Black Night." 

It is an exhausting listen and, in purely musical terms, an exhilarating one — the Bagshot Bullet, as the rest of Deep Purple nicknamed Blackmore's most frenetic playing, ricocheted wildly that night. But it is also the sound of a group that was swiftly vanishing up its own backside.[extract from Smoke On The Water: The Deep Purple Story. By Dave Thompson. ECW Press - 2004, p112]

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Review 2

Good lord, this is pure hard rock heaven. This is the Deep Purple I fell in love with. The absolute best live rock band ever. Ritchie Blackmore and Jon Lord could jam and jam and jam and jam and......  Ian Paice may have been the heaviest rock drummer ever with the exception of Keith Moon. Catch a buzz, play this loud because this is what rock once was.

Seven tunes over 109 minutes, what hard rock band besides Deep Purple could do those kind of workouts and not bore you to death? There are not enough superlatives in the English language to describe this monster "live" album.

Gillan, Glover, Lord 1970

Although most famous Made In Japan was released in 1972, the group performed at venues around the world and presented how they can make amazing show. The time between albums, "In Rock," and "Machine Head" was definitely the best in band's history and from this period of 1970's comes this album. Registered in Stockholm shows practically crazy and unbelievable energy of Deep Purple, along with the feats of individual musicians as solo and joint improvisations which reached its apogee in the nearly half-hour "Mandrake Root."

Paice, Blackmore 1970

Review 3

Scandinavian Nights is a double live album by the British hard rock band Deep Purple. It was originally recorded by Swedish National Radio for a radio show called Tonkraft at the Stockholm Konserthuset on 12 November 1970, but not released until 1988. The tapes were re-mixed by Tom Leader at Angel Studios in London.

The US double CD, released in 1992, was titled 'Live and Rare' (see cover below), while the European double vinyl and double CD, released in 1988, were both titled 'Scandinavian Night's. The European vinyl release contained a limited edition picture booklet. 

The original master tapes were later discovered and remixed for a re-release as Live in Stockholm by Purple Records in 2005 (see cover below), with improved sound quality. On the original release the song running order was adjusted to fit the timing-restrictions of vinyl,and the CD edition unnecessarily mimicked this; Live in Stockholm features the set list in the correct order.

A new edition of the album, titled Stockholm 1970, was released in 2014 by EDEL as part of "The Official Deep Purple (Overseas) Live Series" with additional material: two songs recorded in Paris in 1970; contemporary Jon Lord interview; a bonus DVD with Deep Purple's performance at Granada TV in 1970, previously released on VHS as Doing Their Thing.

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This post consists of FLACs ripped from my CD copy and includes artwork both Vinyl and CD releases.  Deep Purple MKII is my favourite iteration of this legendary band, who I have followed my whole life, starting as a teenager. I still remember the first day I heard "Black Night" played on the radio, and immediately thought the song was about a medieval Knight, and my misunderstanding only became apparent once I had purchased the single from my local record shop. And of course, when I bought their LP 'In Rock',  I was totally hooked.

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Track Listing

CD1

1. Wring That Neck (34:22)

2. Speed King (10:45)

3. Into The Fire (4:47)

4. Paint It Black (9:49)

CD2

1. Mandrake Root (28:40)

2. Child In Time (20:28)

3. Black Night (7:34)

Line-up / Musicians:

Jon Lord - Keyboards

Ian Gillan - Vocals

Ritchie Blackmore / guitars

Ian Paice / drums

Roger Glover - Bass

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Scandinavian Nights FLAC Link (691Mb)

New Link 14/12/2023

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Various Artists - TRAX British Made (1989) with Bonus Track

(Various Artists 60-70's)
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This is one in a series of compilation albums released by TRAX records (a subsidiary of EMI), namely British Made, Australian Made and American Made.  These compilations pay tribute to some of their most popular native artists and bands, showcasing some of the greatest songs every released during the 60's and 70's. The following post pays tribute some of the most popular and successful artists/bands from the U.K.
While looking at the 'Hall of Fame' listing on the back cover of this album, it was obvious that one name was missing, and so I have filled the gap by including Black Sabbath's mega hit "Paranoid" as a bonus track.
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Deep Purple - "Smoke on the Water"
When British heavy metal rockers Deep Purple arrived at the Montreux Casino, Switzerland, they were planning to record their album, Machine Head, in its concert area. On the eve of the recording session, Frank Zappa And The Mothers Of Invention were performing at the venue, where a concertgoer - later dubbed "some stupid" in "Smoke On The Water" - let off a flare gun, igniting a fire that burnt the casino to the ground.
The fire started small, but after part of the ceiling collapsed, Zappa ordered the audience out of the hall, He later recalled in an interview, "The auditorium filled with smoke and shortly after, the band had to escape through the backstage tunnel, [and] the heating system exploded blowing several people through the window. Though no one was killed, Deep Purple were forced to find alternate recording space with the help of Claude Nobs, founder of the Montreux Jazz Festival and one of that the heroes of that night, who pulled several kids from the fire, which destroyed Zappa's equipment and put the venue out of commission until 1975.
Deep Purple's iconic track from their album Machine Head "Smoke On The Water," which chronicles the events of that night, "came to me in a dream one or two mornings after the fire," bassist Roger Glover once said. Meanwhile, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore did justice to the drama of the event by adorning the lyric with a menacing four-note blues lick that is now probably the most famous riff in hard rock history [by Sara Farr. Date December 4, 1971 Country Switzerland]

Free - "All Right Now"
Pure and unadulterated, Free emerged as keepers of the flickering flame jf the British blues in a quartet of beautiful balance. Paul Rodgers's Huskily yearning vocals, clothes courtesy of the small ads in Melody Maker; Paul Kossoff stretching his timeless guitar licks with his Les Paul's sustain; teenage Andy Fraser's mile-wide bass; rock-steady Simon Kirke 4/4'ing the whole together on drums. Their manifesto was nowhere better proclaimed than on their 1970 hit "All Right Now".
Alexis Korner had suggested that they call themselves Free after his own blues trio Free At Last, and seemingly erupting out of nowhere, they found themselves up amongst the headline acts at the Isle of Wight Festival of 1970. Yet they were never able to build completely on that success, not least through trying to keep Paul Kossoff's drug addiction under control. 1973's 'Wishing Well', Free's final single, was a heartfelt plea from Rodgers to Kossoff - he failed to heed the song's message, and was dead within three years.

Jethro Tull - "Thick As Brick [edited version]"
Named after an eighteenth century agriculturalist, Jethro Tull recorded a one-off single that unfortunately appeared under the name "Jethro Toe" before building a reputation on the club and university circuit in the U.K. Incorporating rock, blues, folk, and jazz elements, their excellent 1968 debut album 'This Was' reached the UK Top 10. Their second set, Stand Up, released on August 1,1969, was Jethro Tull's only British chart-topper The contagious "Living In The Past" was a Transatlantic hit.
Firmly installed at the forefront of the burgeoning progressive rock scene, Tull were the first rock band of note to feature the flute as lead instrument. Yet in direct contrast to the introverted appearance that instrument might suggest, they possessed a strong visual image thanks to the onstage antics of their leaser, singer, chief songwriter, and flautist lan Anderson, whose persona can best be described as that of a hopping, bug-eyed tramp. The cover of their 1971 release Aqualung partially conveyed that. As the 70s progressed, the Tull became more popular in America than at home, with "Thick As A Brick" (1972) and "A Passion Play" (1973) both topping the U.S. album charts.
An erratic, wilfully perverse band, Jethro Tull have also embraced folk rock, hard rock, and world music at various stages in their lengthy career, indeed, that refusal to be categorized led to an unlikely triumph in the late '80s, when their album 'Crest Of A Knave' saw off Metallica to win a Grammy for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance [by David Wells]

Supertramp - "Take The Long Way Home"
Formed in 1969 with the progressive agenda of making rock music which aspired away from dancing teenagers towards sedentary students, Supertramp eventually became a pop band - in all but image. Their combination of facelessness and chart success was the kind of thing only possible before the age of MTV.
Keyboardist Rick Davies and guitarist Roger Hodgson dominated the songwriting and singing, the latter's talent for quirky tunes giving him the upper tend as, with each album they released from 1974's Crime Of The Century, their fan-base and expectations of selling more next time grew. As the band's success had waxed with Crisis? What Crisis? (1975) and Even In J^e Quietest Moments (1977), the Britons relocated to me U.S. Breakfast in America (1979) was made in Los Angeles, every note soaked in FM radio sunshine. With the band themselves lacking in star personality, record cover imagery - spread across the foot-square canvas
of an LP sleeve plus press and billboard advertising -mattered a lot for them. The Breakfast in America sleeve's spoof Manhattan with cereal box skyscrapers and a diner waitress statue of Liberty was both clever and sunny. The music matched, with the singles "The Logical Song" (an infectious and dazzling exercise in rhyming words ending with "-al"), "Take the Long Way Home," "Goodbye Stranger," and "Breakfast In America" propelling the album to No. 1 in the U.S. charts on May 19,1979, where it resided cumulatively for six weeks. [by Mat Snow]

The Kinks - "Lola"
Given Ray Davies' later dominance, it's worth recalling that it was the Kink's guitarist Dave Davies, his frenetic younger brother, who gave the group's first singles their substantial mettle: he ripped up the speakers in his practice amp and hooked them with a couple of his Vox amps for the raw sound of 'You Really Got Me'. Dave and Ray fought constantly, like all good brotherly bands, but Ray's songwriting skills held sway. By 'Dedicated Follower Of Fashion' and 'Waterloo Sunset' the Kinks had segued to the very model of an English band, with their neatly observed cameos of life in Blighty, always serious but blessed with a twinkling, crinkled smile.
From there on it was but a sprightly stroll towards some concept albums, success in America following 'Lola' ('Celluloid Heroes' was the Hollywood parallel of 'Waterloo') and obeisance from Paul Weller, Supergrass and Blur - whose single 'Country House' was an undisguised tribute to the Kinks' 1966 'House In The Country'.
"Playing gives a great sense of self-expression, the energy you create by playing. I  used to get mad,
and I suppose I'm sort of schizophrenic at heart as well." [quote by  Dave Davies]
Interesting fact with their 1970 hit single "Lola".  The BBC banned the track for a different reason. The original song recorded in stereo had the word "Coca-Cola" in the lyrics, but because of BBC Radio's policy against product placement, Ray Davies was forced to make a 6000-mile round-trip flight from New York to London and back on June 3, 1970, interrupting the band's American tour, to change those words to the generic "cherry cola" for the single release, which is included on various compilation albums as well.

David Essex - "Rock On"
Rock On is the debut album of U.K singer/songwriter David Essex, released in 1973. Its lead single and title track, "Rock On", is still Essex's best known song in the United States. David Essex wrote this "rocker" to play at the end of the 1973 movie "That'll Be The Day."
Born David Albert Cook, in London in 1947, "Essex" loved playing soccer as a kid...and even dreamed of becoming a pro player. In his teens, he discovered music...playing drums in a local band before becoming a singer.
For the next two years, he toured England with the band 'David Essex And The Mood Indigo' releasing seven more singles in his native UK, before 1970! It was then that Essex also started honing his acting skills, grabbing small parts in small movies...and notably, he won the lead role in the London stage version of "Godspell" in 1971. His involvement with "Godspell" led to him being cast in the movie "That'll Be The Day," along with Ringo Starr and Keith Moon!!
Essex's movie character was a working class, aspiring rocker in pre-Beatles England...
He asked producer David Puttnam if he could write the movie's ending song...and Puttnam said....sure.
"Rock On" addressed the restless nature of his film character...a rock artist-wannabe, going through tough times. The song was also a tribute to the early days of Rock 'N' Roll...making mention of Carl Perkins' "Blue Suede Shoes" and "Summertime Blues" by Eddie Cochran!
Puttnam listened to the finished song, and decided not to use it for the film...saying that it was 'too weird"!   Not to be discouraged, David Essex eventually used "Rock On" to secure a recording deal with the CBS Records. "Rock On" would be his first single on the CBS label.
And so, FINALLY, everything came together for Essex as both a singer and actor!

Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel - "Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me)
"Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" is a song by British rock band Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released as the lead single from the band's 1975 album The Best Years of Our Lives. It was written by Harley, and produced by Harley and Alan Parsons. In February 1975, the song reached the number-one spot on the UK chart and received a UK Silver certification. It spent nine weeks in the Top 50. The track marked Harley’s first Number 1 hit single, entered the Top 10 in 15 countries and has sold around 1.5 million copies to date.
“People keep asking me, did I know at the time how successful Make Me Smile would become?,” Harley told Official Charts.com. “I was 23 years old and wouldn't have been considering the long-term future.
“But we all knew, in number two studio at Abbey Road, after we'd re-mixed it, that something special might just be in the air.”
“Alan Parsons, my co-producer and engineer, did a fantastic job,” he continued. “Which is why the record sounds so fresh and bright on the radio to this day, a full 40 years on!"

The Pretenders - "Brass In Pocket"
Chrissie Hynde moved to England in the early 70's, looking for the kind of magic the British invasion had promised to an alienated girl in Akron, Ohio. What she found was punk, and she immersed herself in it. When in 1978, she founded The Pretenders with three Hereford lads - guitarist James Honeyman-Scott, bassist Pete Farndon, and drummer Martin Chambers - something - to use a phrase from this song - so special was born: a rock band with a punk attitude and pop smarts.
The title "Brass In Pocket" came from an English northern expression for having money about one's person, although the song is concerned with matters carnal rather than financial. In Hynde's lyric and vocals, she adopts a masculine predatory approach, announcing, "There's nobody else here, no one like me," although a shadow of vulnerability reveals itself in the way every chorus rises in an indignant insistence that she has to have some of her quarry's attention.
The song - which at one point Hynde told producer Chris Thomas would be released over her dead body - became the first UK No. 1 of the '80s on January 19, 1980 helped on its way to the top by a slinky back beat, a clean guitar sound, Hynde's throaty but velvety voice, and the frisson generated by nobody being able to tell in her litany of what she was going to use to get her man whether she was singing "Gonna use my arms" or "arse." [by Ignacio Julia]

Thunderclap Newman - "Something In The Air"
When Thunderclap Newman made UK No. 1 on July 5,1969, during the last summer of the '60s, their song "Something In The Air" almost seemed like a hymn to the Sixties' revolutionary spirit. By 2000, its composer, John "Speedy" Keen, had sanctioned the track's use in a way the idealistic young man who wrote it would have been horrified by back in 1969: as background music in a commercial for the ultimate corporate airline British Airways.
The trio who formed Thunderclap Newman -drummer/vocalist Keen, conservative-looking barrel house pianist Andy Newman, and a precocious 15-year-old guitarist named Jimmy McCulloch - were originally recruited by The Who's Pete Townshend for a movie soundtrack. That this ad hoc group was mismatched was illustrated by the fact that their one album Hollywood Dream (1969) contained some good songs which collectively never seemed to gel. Even on "Something In The Air," Keen's ethereal, floating melody
was interrupted by an incongruous Newman honky-tonk piano break. However, on this track at least it worked and Keen's plaintive, reedy voice forewarning that the revolution was imminent and intoning the rousing refrain "We have got to get it together - now!" was all over the airwaves upon the record's release.
Little did Keen and his colleagues know that the song was really one last act of defiance by their generation before their ideals died with the start of a new, more cynical decade. [by Sean Egan]

Joe Cocker - "With A Little Help From My Friends"
Joe Cocker's flailing arms, parodied by John Belushi on Saturday Night Live, always gave the impression of a man who was out of control, an impression sometimes heightened by Cocker's lifestyle: it belied a deep, respectful passion for R'n'B, and Ray Charles in particular. After paying hard-earned dues around northern clubs, his rise to fame was swift: a UK Number One single with his cover of 'With A Little Help From My Friends' (the friends included Jimmy Page and Steve Winwood), and notable appearances at Woodstock and the Isle of Wight. The rambling, shambling Mad Dogs ft Englishmen tour of the US, organised by Leon Russell in 1970, was a saga of exhaustion (sixty gigs in three months) and self-destruction, and the strain nearly did for him. But Cocker was made of Sheffield steel, re-emerging to duet with Jennifer Warnes on 'Up Where We Belong' and jump-start his career.

Rod Stewart - "Maggie May"
In the '60s, The Beatles had topped UK and U.S.single and album charts all at the same time but never technically with the same product, it took Rod Stewart to achieve what even the mighty Fabs hadn't. Still the frontman of The Faces but increasingly becoming better known for his solo albums, in 1971 Stewart recorded his LP masterpiece, 'Every Picture Tells A story'. As usual, it was made up of a highly unusual mixture of folk, soul, and rock, an epic version of "I'm Losing You" rubbing shoulders with Stewarts beautiful rustic evocation of frontier life, "Mandolin Wind." It also featured a collaboration between Stewart and classical guitarist Martin Quittenton about the artist's first sexual conquest.
Despite a raunchy theme and a catchy, jangling melody set off by an arresting mandolin solo, all driven home by Stewart's unique emotional rasp, Mercury Records didn't think that the song was hit material, relegating it to a B-side, instead, "Reason To Believe" was chosen as the album's single. But fate in the form of DJ opinion intervened, and the single "Maggie May" was given the radio play she deserved; on October 9, 1971, the song topped the singles charts in the UK. it had made the top spot in the United States on October 2, the same day as the album had topped the U.S. album charts. With the album also lodged at NO. 1 in Britain, it made for an unprecedented double-double whammy. [by Melissa Blease]

Elton John - "Your Song"
Elton John is a superstar in the truest sense of the word. It might sound corny, but Elton is one of the few performers not only to survive the seventies but actually to blossom during their fickle years. Unlike most "stars" of this decade who have a nasty habit of disappearing within the span of three albums, John has risen from total obscurity to the top of the heap—outselling just about all the current competition. He is to the children of the seventies what the Beatles and the Stones were to the sixties' generation.
In 1969, Elton's first single, Lady Samantha, was released. It was a well-received but stiffed. By the time Elton's first album, 'Empty Sky', was released, the world was aware of his presence. The record, unreleased stateside until 1975, was fairly crude, produced on a four-track tape deck by Brown. But it proved that Taupin-John had talent. Brown allowed Gus Dudgeon to take over for his follow up LP and the hit single "Your Song" appeared at the top of the charts. Released as the B-Side to "Take me To The Pilot", U.S and disc jockeys preferred it to the A-Side and played "Your Song " instead.  Elton's career had started in earnest.  Your Song was also released as a single in the UK in 1971, but in this case it was the A-Side.
From that point onward, Elton and Bernie continued to grow in every musical respect and the hits kept on coming and coming. The rest of course is history.

Dave, Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich - "The Legend Of Xanadu"
Dave, Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich were a flamboyant quintet, named after the five friends' nicknames, formed in Salisbury in 1961. From 1965 to January 1970, the group spent more weeks in the UK singles charts than The Kinks or The Who. They first entered the UK charts in December 1965 with "You Make it Move".
A string of hits followed including Hold Tight!, Bend It! and Save Me and a UK number one single with the whip-cracking "Legend of Xanadu", in 1968. In fact, they were such hit-makers that they spent more time on the English singles charts in 1965 to 1969 than the Beatles!
Two of their albums charted - their eponymous debut, in 1966, followed a year later by If Music Be the Food of Love... Then Prepare for Indigestion.

T-Rex - "Get It On"
By March 1971, Marc Bolan was on the top of the world, and at the top of the charts. Just three months after his band T Rex's "Ride A White Swan" frustratingly stalled at No. 2, their latest single, "Hot Love' had risen to No. 1 and the band were back at Top Of The Pops, to perform the hit for the nation.
Marc was looking cool that afternoon. He'd just picked up a new silver lame jacket and matched it with hip-hugging white trousers. But, as he picked up his guitar to head out onto the soundstage, he felt a hand on his arm. He looked around; it was Chelita Secunda, a publicist friend of Bolan's wife June. "One thing before you go..." Deftly, Chelita daubed some eye-shadow "across his face, and then brought out some glitter, patting it across his cheekbones, tiny teardrops that shimmered in the light. Musicians had worn make-up onstage before, but this was something new, something bold. He now looked glamorous - but, shockingly, glamorous in the way that a woman would - something accentuated by his corkscrew curls, which always looked suspiciously like a lady's permanent. It didn't matter that the cameras didn't close in on Bolan's face until the final chorus of the performance, the "La la la" that chased "Hot Love" to its fade. One glimpse of it - a blinding sparkle beneath the studio lamps - was all it took to ignite glam rock, the dominant sartorial style of the UK charts over the following years.
Following the success of  "Hot Love",  Bolan released his next single soon after called "Get It On", taken from his highly acclaimed LP 'Electric Warrior', which shot to #1 on the charts, reaffirming that Glam Rock was the next big thing in pop music.   [by Dave Thompson]

The Sweet - "Ballroom Blitz"
Having scored early successes with shamelessly teenybop-oriented singles like "Funny Funny" and "Co-Co" (penned by the prolific hit-making duo Micky Chinn and Mike Chapman), Sweet turned a corner with the heavy-riffing "Wig-Warn Bam," which entered the UK Top 75 on September 9,1972. Their following series of Top 10 entries, although still master-minded by the Chinnichap duo, saw them shift effortlessly into relentlessly pounding heavy rock, albeit shot through with a frivolity that was essentially pop ("Blockbuster," "Hellraiser," "Ballroom Blitz," "Teenage Rampage"). Simultaneously, Sweet's classic line-up of Brian Connolly (vocals), Andy Scott (guitar), Steve Priest (bass), and Mick Tucker (drums) left no stone unturned in their relentless search for new eye-catching costumes, exploring every possibility inherent in outrageous coiffure, glitter, sequins, face paint, loin cloths, and feathers, not to mention a penchant for shiny metallic thigh-length boots. This quest to go further out than T Rex, Slade, and the rest won them recognition as the band who had taken the glam look to the outer limits.
This accolade proved a two-edged sword, with many critics writing them off as little more than low-grade teen fodder. In retrospect, however, it's hard to deny that Connolly's expressive vocalizing, Tucker's imaginative powerhouse percussion, and Scott's all-round musicianship set them apart from most of the competition. Indeed, when Scott replaced Chinnichap as Sweet's songwriter, he delivered gems like "Fox On The Run" and the Ivor Novello Award-winning "Love Is Like Oxygen."

So, how did their 1973 hit "Ballroom Blitz" come about? It was art out of chaos. Pop art. The Sweet‘s “Ballrooom Blitz”, Glam Rock’s catchiest, trashiest, most lovable song, came from a riot that saw the band bottled off the stage, at the Grand Hall, Palace Theater, Kilmarnock, Scotland, in 1973. Men spat, while women screamed to drown out the music. Not the response expected for a group famous for their string of chart hits, “Little Willy”, “Wig-Wag Bam” and the number 1, “Block Buster”.

Why it happened has since led to suggestions that the band’s appearance in eye-shadow, glitter and lippy (in particular the once gorgeous bass player Steve Priest) was all too much for the hard lads and lassies o’ Killie.   When the man at the back of the theatre said "everyone attack", and the room turned into a ballroom blitz. Whatever the cause of the chaos, it gave Glam Rock a work of art, and Sweet, one of their finest songs. [by Gavin Michie]

Roy Wood and Wizzard - "See My Baby Jive"
Written by singer Roy Wood, who made his name in the 60s as co-founder of The Move, "See My Baby Jive" was among Wizzard’s six top 10 hits.
Wood performed with other local groups until forming The Move with Carl Wayne, Bev Bevan, Ace Kefford and Trevor Burton in 1966. They secured a recording contract and their first single, Night Of Fear, reached number two while Blackberry Way topped the charts. The Move enjoyed five other top 10 hits, including Flowers In The Rain, the first song played on Radio 1.
“While still recording with The Move, Wood formed the Electric Light Orchestra with Bev and Jeff Lynne as he wanted to create pop songs with classical overtones. He co-wrote and co-produced the first album before forming Wizzard.

“Wizzard's first five singles were top 10 hits. Their debut song, "Ball Park Incident", climbed to number six in 1972, followed by two number ones, "See My Baby Jive" and "Angel Fingers".  After Wizzard, Wood concentrated on solo work and producing.

Black Sabbath - "Paranoid" [bonus track]
Faced with the challenge of capitalizing on a successful first album, Black Sabbath responded with the soundtrack for an urban nightmare. Sabbath - bassist "Geezer" Butler, guitarist Tony lommi, drummer "Bill Ward, and vocalist John "Ozzy" Osbourne - specialised in dark, bluesy power chords and grinding sense of doom. Though common currency for today's heavy rockers, this sounded like nothing less than the Devil's playlist to listeners still grappling with the demise of The Beatles.
Sabbath's heaviness was distinct from Led Zeppelin's. The latter's music revolved around sex. Sabbath talked of anything but. On Paranoid, they addressed militarism ("War Pigs"), heroin abuse ("Hand if Doom"), comic book rumbles ("Iron Man"), and the aftermath of nuclear war ("Electric Funeral"). For a great many record buyers, however, Paranoid's most relevant numbers evoked horrors closer to home. On the title track, the band - at loggerheads with management, reeling from an exhaustive tour schedule - may have been speaking from the heart or simply posturing. Either way, the song "Paranoid" - an unexpected hit single and one so unusually uptempo as to make one think it was by their speedier metal rivals Deep Purple - remains one of rock's most harrowing depictions of mental anguish ("People think I'm insane because I am frowning all the time").

Their eponymous debut of the previous February was the album that for many kick-started the whole heavy metal genre but Paranoid is Black Sabbath's masterpiece. [by Ralph Heibutzki]
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This post consists of MP3's (320kps) ripped from my CD copy of this EMI compilation and includes full album artwork for CD & Vinyl. I'd also like to acknowledge the inclusion of record label scans, kindly supplied by  Mr.Purser with thanks.  As mentioned, I've included Black Sabbath's mammoth hit "Paranoid" as a closing bonus track to counter balance the opening mega hit "Smoke On The Water " by Deep Purple. Hope you enjoy this great British sampler.


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Track Listing
01. Deep Purple - "Smoke on the Water"
02. Free - "All Right Now"
03. Jethro Tull - "Thick As Brick [edited version]"
04. Supertramp - "Take The Long Way Home"
05. The Kinks - "Lola" 
06. David Essex - "Rock On"
07. Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel - "Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me)
08. The Pretenders - "Brass In Pocket"
09. Thunderclap Newman - "Something In The Air"
10. Joe Cocker - "With A Little Help From My Friends"
11. Rod Stewart - "Maggie May"
12. Elton John - "Your Song"
13. Dave, Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich - "The Legend Of Xanadu"
14. T-Rex - "Get It On"
15. The Sweet - "Ballroom Blitz"
16. Roy Wood and Wizard - "See My Baby Jive"
17. Black Sabbath - "Paranoid" [Bonus Track] 
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TRAX British Made Link (147Mb) New Link 08/02/2024
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Deep Purple - Unauthorised Live at Knebworth, England (1985) Bootleg

(U.K 1968 - 1976, 1984 - Present)

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The comeback concert that Deep Purple played at Knebworth in 1985 went down in history as one of the muddiest rock concerts of all time.

As Blackadder once remarked about a girl with the worst personality in Germany – that’s up against some pretty stiff competition. It rained all day. The mud was six inches deep. Chemical toilets were in their infancy. I think you get the picture!

Radio One’s Friday Rock Show rather splendidly decided to record the concert for prosperity.

The concert broadcast started late evening: the “stellar” line up was Mama’s Boys, Mountain, Blackfoot, UFO, Meatloaf and Deep Purple, at least half of whom were pretty obscure even then. The Scorpions also played the gig, but had a live album out, so chose not to be part of the actual radio broadcast.  This bootleg comes from this radio broadcast and is excellent quality.

Knebworth 1985

Being the second Knebworth rock festival of the decade ( we won't count the Jazz fests or the Christian Green Field festivals held in 82/83 ), funds were provided by a consortium which included Paul Loasby, who was the promoter of the Monsters of Rock festival held at Castle Donington . The object was to provide a major concert venue for the reformed Mark 2 Deep Purple.

Although there was a license for 100,000,( which caused all sorts of problems, mainly due to police costs, which were excessive ) around 80,000 punters showed on the day . The weather was appalling, it rained and rained , so much that this show is now referred to as "Mudworth " by those who were in attendance. During the 70's, Knebworth had been very lucky with its weather, the weather gods of the 80's were not so kind !

However, even the privileged have to rough it sometimes and Richie Blackmore had to make his way to the stage clutching a brolly in one hand, protecting his guitar with this 'uncool device'. He also wore gumboots to keep out the mud !

View of the arena at Knebworth 1985 © Henry Cobbold

As for the music, opinions are polarized to a degree that we have rarely experienced when researching concerts. It appears that some people don't really rate most of the support bands and others love their sets . However, almost all agree that the Scorpions played an absolute blinder of a set. Their success was down to being extremely energetic, having a good sound mix and being on top of their game, which , in many cases regarding the supports, was arguably not the case. Some attendees argue that Mountain, UFO and most particularly Meatloaf, were well past their prime. Blackfoot have been either slated , or praised and no one seems to have a good word to say about Alaska.

Some reviews state that Deep Purple played a great set, with the gum booted Blackmore on fire due to the fact that he was annoyed as buggery at life in general, the rest of the band working well together and the erratic Gillan singing well; while  other reviews say they were apathetic and uninspired and were better in the old days. I expect the two hour wait between the end of The Scorpions set and the commencement of Purple's set either honed the anticipation or dulled the expectations for the various reviewers. [extract from UK Rockfestivals]

Concert Review  (By Mark Putterford, the Kerrang! No 98, July 11-24 1985, p. 42)

So who doubted them then, eh? C'mon, WHO DOUBTED THEM!  

As Deep Purple plugged into the driving power of 'Highway Star' and rocked rampantly through 'Nobody's Home' with Ritchie Blackmore rolling in and out of some astounding solos, the years fell away meekly and the reincarnation of a legend exploded on us in a fireball of glory.

I can't quite imagine that anyone expected the re-grouping of Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord and Paice on the same stage to be a disappointment, but with a brain-boggling multitude of bare forearms thrusting rhythmically to a remarkable fresh recollection of the ancient 'Strange Kind of Woman', it all seemed faintly unreal. And when, after a short blues passage, Lord and Blackmore dueled viciously throughout a frighteningly pacey rendition of 'A Gypsy's Kiss', it was distinctly lump in throat time. Twelve years? Sheesh!

With Ian Gillan looking and sounding healthier than he has for years, the epic brilliance of 'Perfect Strangers' revealed some flashing lasers during its haunting middle riff and 'Under The Gun' typified the fresh determination of a band reveling in the electric excitement of a truly momentous occasion.

Blackmore in particular appeared to be enjoying every note; dressed inevitably in black (including black wellington boots!) and with that familiar white Strat riding on his slim hips, he stood with left knee twitching in a contentment confirmed with the occasional shake of the barnet, flicking elaborate hand-signals in all directions and blazing up'n'down the frets like only he can.

The Knebworth Perimeter Fence

A nod of Blackmore's machine head and Purple's classic blues romp 'Lazy' unfolded into Ian Paice's drum solo, the stage transformed into a titanic temple of technical excellence, swamped in colour and illuminated by the pumping adrenaline of a long-awaited homecoming. Say what you will, he's still the best rock n' roll drummer in the world for my money.

Next up, Lord's eerie keys, Glover's bobbling bass and Paice's punching drums led the crowd into a massive cheer of recognition for 'Knocking At Your Back Door'. And then Rainbow's 'Difficult To Cure' instrumental found Jon Lord amusing himself like a mad professor in his lag during a lengthy, roaming solo. Finally, Ian Paice's wispy hi-hat shuffled into the sprawling 'Space Truckin'' which, as the green pencil-thin lasers bounced off huge mirror balls spraying the thousands with a swirling mass of stars and a blinding array of lights flashed wildly, climaxed with Blackmore's chaotic solo echoing savagely around the vast field like a violent thunderstorm.

After a dazzling deluge of sparks had showered the stage and more or lasers jerked sharply here and there, Purple returned with a 'Woman From Tokyo' and 'Speed King'. Here, Lord and Blackmore stood shoulder to shoulder rifling riffs at each other and splashing about in wild abandon before charging back.

Masses of whizzing fireworks overhead threw light on the orgiastic ocean of bodies and heralded another encore in the shape of 'Black Night', and after what seemed like hours of cheering, the band trooped on yet again to play 'Smoke On The Water', with Blackmore and Glover swooping guitars halfway through. To cap it all, a firework display which made the Battle Of Britain seem like a total non-event mushroomed into the heavy, foreboding blanket of clouds, and hey... I didn't even realise it was raining! [ extract from Highway Star]

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This post consists of MP3's (320kps) ripped from a Grapefruit CD (thanks to DaveL at Midoztouch) and includes the usual generic red artwork.  I have also included artwork for the more extensive bootleg release entitled 'In The Absence Of Pink' (a 2 CD / 2LP set) which some say derives its name from the lack of females in the Knebworth crowd (See covers below).

The quality of the recording on this bootleg is excellent and as the above review states, the band was on fire even though the crowd was soaked.

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Track Listing
01 - Intro / Toccata 1.31
02 - Highway star 5.35
03 - Strange kind of woman 8.04
04 - Perfect strangers 6.07
05 - Lazy 3.20
06 - Space truckin' 24.47
07 - Speed king, Fade Away 8.58
08 - Black night 6.22
09 - Smoke on the water 7.43

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Deep Purple were:

Ritchie Blackmore (guitar)

Ian Gillan (vocals)

Roger Glover (bass guitar)

Jon Lord (organ, keyboards)

Ian Paice (drums)

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Deep Purple Unauthorised Link (74Mb) New Link 18/12/2023

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