DEEP PURPLE
Official product coming up from the Purple camp. They are set to release “Bombay Calling – Live In ´95” in different formats on August 28. This was the early days of Steve Morse and they did very well on their first trip to India back in the day. Two CD/DVD and Three Vinyl/DVD sets coming.
NANCY & LEE
The 1968 “Nancy & Lee” album from Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood is re-released on June 17. They made up a good team.
(Covers from official platforms)
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More ABBA nostalgia from the old collection. Here is Swedish retro publication Minnenas Journal (issue) 4 2013, with a nice shot from that magic night in Brighton 1974 when “Waterloo” crushed the competition. Four page story inside. Good times.
(My shot of said publication – cover image not credited)
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Commando 5543-5546 is out today in the UK. Just search “Commando comics” should you want to subscribe.
(Covers courtesy of Commando)
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Not much of a summer in these parts yet, it has to be said. We have had a couple of warm days, but so far the cold winds have prevailed. Today it rains, and that is a good thing. My annual holiday kicks in soon and I have some projects lined up that I am quite looking forward to (like building a deck for the cottage and doing some gardening). I have decided to skip the concerts that are coming up and concentrate efforts (and money spending) on these projects. What you see here is the view from my house (top floor) down towards the river. A couple of weeks ago I heard the engines of a large aircraft and looked out, and I saw a big Hercules aircraft fly over the water down there. I mean, I was litterary looking down on a passing aircraft. That is not happening every day, it was quite magical. The Air Force is busy these days. So is the Army, I have seen armed vehicles passing by in columns way more often than usual. A reminder of the sad realities of our times. I hope things out there will calm down.
(My shot)
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LONESOME BLUE
Lonesome Blue is a newly signed Japanese band that will release their first EP/blu-ray “First Utterance” in Japan on June 22. Today they added their second video onto their YouTube Channel, “Parallel World”, and it is an amazing song. Everybody is great, and the band consists of guitarist Narumi Suzuki (Disqualia, Destrose), singer (and former voice actress) Maiko Nomura, drummer Mizuki (Shinku-Horou), and bass player Yuuki Hirose (also a former voice actress). Special guest on “Parallel World” is violin player Ayasa from the band Morfonica. The violin/guitar parts are awesome. I think we have a band to look out for here.
JOHN WETTON
There is a John Wetton Tribute album called “Celebrating The Dragon” out, 21 songs on a double CD. Blind Golem is one of the bands that are featured on the release (a Uriah Heep track called “One Way Or Another”).
(EP/CD covers are from official platforms)
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It has been a lot of fun to delve into the old collection in recent days and Robin Millar´s classic 1980 four page article in SOUNDS about sexism in the rock industry is still a good read. Of course she was right on the money, especially with the Hard Rock & Metal acts, but everybody was guilty. I remember how this article created a lot of talk back in the day, she was certainly over the target.
The Deep Purple Family was well represented. Rainbow had just had a big hit with “All Night Long” that Roger Glover had to defend, David Coverdale was seen as a major offender and even Ian Gillan got his end of the stick. David kind of doubled down though, and Ian never cared too much neither (“Toolbox” anyone?). At the end of the day, there has to be a place for some sex in rock´n´roll, but I can see how 1980 was a boys club, pretty much. Things have changed for the better, and David Coverdale has an awesome woman in Whitesnake now, maybe making some amends in his own way? Attitudes has changed, and that is a good thing. I belong to a generation that saw it all though, no doubt about it.
(My shots of 75% of said article)
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I like the Ian Gillan Band. I certainly like the cover art on the current compilation CD “Return To The Source” by artist Peter Pracownik, and the booklet with some history by noted journalist Chris Welch is OK. But it stops there. By no means is this a Greatest Songs of the era, but a bizarre hotchpotch of stuff that do not leave a good impression. Three Purple classics are on it, live versions. The sound quality dips considerably on the final three tracks and at least they acknowledge that they are sorry about that. I will never listen to this set again, but I do like that cover…
(My shot of said CD/booklet)
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Grinding on with getting the Purple Family collection in order. I am at binder 18 now and it covers stuff from 1983-1984 in it (Rainbow, Whitesnake, Gary Moore so far). Here is a nice Whitesnake article from Bravo Magazine from that era when John Sykes was the new boy in the band (not sure what issue it is from). By the time they got to Sweden on the “Slide It In” tour, Mel Galley had broken an arm, and they were a five piece. You could say that John Sykes was the first guitar hero that Coverdale/Lord had worked with since the Purple days. Saw them in Stockholm and it was brilliant. The big Purple reunion happened right after that. Good times.
(My shot of said Bravo article)
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Here is yet another ABBA related Swedish crosswords magazine, Krysset Special (issue) 2 2016. Nice shot of Agnetha Fältskog on the cover, along with another well known artist called Lasse Berghagen (whom had done some work with Frida around 1971 in these parts).
(My shot of said publication, cover shots credited to Kjell Johansson & Kenneth Thorén)
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Here is a couple of releases that friends of the Deep Purple Family might enjoy. First you have this Deep Purple Vinyl called “Live In Amsterdam 1969 FM Broadcast” from the Magic Dice label. Five tracks live from Amsterdam and a couple of bonus tracks from Playboy After Dark (US TV). Then you have the new Whitesnake compilation “Greatest Hits – Revisited, Remixed, Remastered MMXXII”, that is going out in several formats now to coinside with the Farewell Tour. Both bands, incidentally, is out there touring right now. Check them out on YouTube (I also add good links all the time on Trinkelbonker facebook, but you know that).
(Album covers from official platforms)
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