Deep Purple’s distinguished career is being extended by a late period, dare I say, Purple patch. Albums seem to be coming at a swifter rate and 2020’s ‘Whoosh’ received the band’s best reviews and chart placings in years, being followed by ‘Turning To Crime’, an album of the songs that influenced them.

None of the latter made the setlist this night for what was originally scheduled to be the ‘Whoosh’ tour, and was now happening two years and two postponements later. Sadly in that time, Steve Morse first was given leave of absence then ended his 25 year plus tenure with the band to care for his ailing wife.

There was a very healthy O2 crowd with the bottom bowl full as well as a fair few blocks in the upper tier paying testament to their enduring appeal. The crowd was a mix of the boomer generation who grew up with them, occasionally accompanying younger family members they were trying to educate and those of my age, aware of their significance and growing up on Purple family tree bands but who only came to be personally acquainted with them when the Mark 2 line up reformed.

There couldn’t have been a more fitting support than Blue Oyster Cult, one of the bands that could match Purple for a half century career: indeed they opened with ‘Stairway To The Stars’ from their debut album, with some nice interplay between the now shaven headed Richie Castellano on keys and Buck Dharma on guitar before things came right up to date with ‘That Was Me’, from their newish comeback ‘The Symbol Remains’, but staying faithful to their sound.

In any BOC set, three songs in will come ‘Burning For You’ with Buck’s smooth vocals and guitar solos which included an extra flourish at the end, but worryingly a crowd of Purple diehards was rather subdued and I looked round to see if anyone was raising their glasses to the usual intro to ‘Golden Age Of Leather’- where the vocal harmonies were in fine fettle- and couldn’t see anyone doing likewise.

A second newie in ‘Train True’ was rather like those times Aerosmith do the blues before ‘E.T.I’ saw Eric Bloom emerge from the shadows he had been kept in, both with the stage lighting and comparatively few lead vocals, and Richie sang ‘Hot Rails To Hell’ with the same gusto with which he charged around the stage.

We reached their traditional closers with a fine rendition of ‘Godzilla’ yet even at the opening chords to ‘Don’t Fear The Reaper’ (where Buck was as mellifluous as ever) the expected rush of people to their feet never materialised, indeed from my vantage point near the back of the front block I spotted just one fan, who swiftly gave up the ghost. A bonus though was the set was allowed to overrun its time slightly with ‘Cities On Flame With Rock’n’ Roll’ with the usual sight of band members line astern during the closing jam. It was an admirable set which deserved a more effusive audience response.

An updated ‘In Rock’ Mount Rushmore carving of the band formed the backdrop as we anticipated Deep Purple. Fortunately from the intro onwards everyone on the floor this time was to their feet and stayed so for the whole show, while as the band entered Ian Gillan, deliberately or otherwise, seemed to turn round and momentarily head back through the stage door before turning round again.

As they opened with perhaps the quintessential Purple song in ‘Highway Star’, there were two questions to ponder and the answer would determine the tone of the evening. How much of the 77 year old’s voice remains? And how would new boy Simon McBride fare as only the fourth guitarist in the bands history?

The answer to the first was really good – other than an attempt at the screams on the chorus which was the one time he was tempted out of his current range, he sounded great and barely missed a note, though his face was a study in pained concentration at times. As for the guitarist, he was fluid and effortless but with a harder edge than his predecessor, and it wasn’t just the Stratocaster he was wielding that made his style closer in spirit to peak Ritchie Blackmore.

The shuffle of ‘Pictures Of Home’ was equally excellent with the Purple trademark of being able to single out the musical excellence of each of their players and a swapping of solos between Don Airey and Simon, then a pair of songs from Whoosh illustrated their late career renaissance Ian holding his arms round Simon and bassist Roger Glover during ‘No Need to Shout’ and ‘Nothing at All’ with some very fresh sounding organ and guitar interplay.

After the usual dedication to Jon Lord, and an intro from Simon where his extended note holding was worthy of fellow countryman Gary Moore, ‘Uncommon Man’ saw Don pay tribute to his maestro predecessor with some parping keyboards. The jamming on ‘Lazy’ also sounded fresh including Ian playing harmonica, and preceded by a homily from him unlike his usual whimsical intros, his singing on ‘When A Blind Man Cries’ was immaculate and you could feel the warmth towards him. He also sounded great on ‘Anya’, perhaps the surprise of the night and a rare song from that overlooked period when the post reunion Purple went for a more mainstream commercial sound.

Many of us took a breather to sit down during Don’s classically inspired solo slot, with the few bars of ‘Maybe It’s Because I’m A Londoner’ which is a trademark when they play shows in the capital, leading into the classic ‘Perfect Strangers’ though I felt this was one of the few songs where Simon didn’t really make his own mark.

It was also a sign we were moving into the traditional closing phase of a Purple show, continuing with ‘Space Truckin’, Roger grinning youthfully as he charged across the stage pointing his bass at the crowd.

Thankfully, rather than the tired extended medley of famous riffs that has preceded it for some.years, Simon contented himself with a single chord to break into a ‘Smoke On The Water’ faithful to the original. But given how iconic the song is, I was disappointed the atmosphere was a tad flat with few in the seats to their feet, and not many people around me even singing along.

In a fairly short set, there was time for the usual two encores – ‘Hush’ with extended organ and guitar battle and, preceded by a bass solo from Roger, ‘Black Night’ again dragged out with audience participation and a confident looking Simon teasing the crowd. A minor gripe was that these last five songs have been exactly the same for many tours now and a predictable second half setlist might be ripe for shaking up.

Yet this gig was a triumph on nearly every level. Simon McBride has fitted in seamlessly to this indomitable machine of seasoned players, and his guitar playing has added a sharper edge, and it was a revelation how good Ian Gillan sounded. In the autumn of their career there may be even be an argument for saying this legendary band are as good, or maybe even better, than ever.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

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Power Plays w/c 21 April 2025

THE DEVIL WEARS NADA Late Night Talking (Eonian Records)
DROWNING POOL Madness (SBG Records)
PARKER BARROW Make It (indie)
REDIKIN Nailed It (Wormholedeath)
PENNY FOUNTAIN Euphoria (indie)
CRY FOR MERCY Saving Grace (indie)
VIGILANTES Life In The Fast Brain (indie)

Featured Albums w/c 21 April 2025

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2024 (Singer Songwriter)

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