
By: Jay Broderick - Established in 1968, London, England rockers Deep Purple have had an amazingly long career. 57 years later, and the band is still touring and recording music. But things could have gone vastly different for the band when original guitarist Ritchie Blackmore left (for the second time) in 1993.
In 1993, the band released their 14th studio album The Battle Rages On... While on tour promoting that record, Blackmore left the band. Unfortunately, the album is stained in the annals of Deep Purple lore, and is regarded as one of the band's worst albums. With the lack of fanfare, and the departure of their guitarist, Deep Purple was on the verge of all out collapse. Often regarded as the Godfathers of Heavy Metal, the disintegration of the band would have been heartbreaking.
Enter Steve Morse. Now regarded as one of the greatest song writers, and guitarists of all time, Morse has been nominated for multiple Grammy awards. His arrival in the Deep Purple camp injected new life into a band that was suffering from creative fog, and he would go on to become the longest serving guitarist in the band's history. Steve Morse was active on 8 Deep Purple studio albums over a 28 year span, only having hung up his electric guitar in 2022.
Today, the first album that Steve Morse recorded, and the one that instilled a rebirth in Deep Purple is 29 years old. At a time when Grunge had really taken over the scene, Deep Purple released Purpendicular.

Purpendicular kicks off with the groove laden "Vavoom: Ted The Mechanic". A blistering guitar lick greets us during the opening seconds, and the band's new guitarist's influences are immediately noticed. The sound appears free, with great guitars, and Ian Gillan's vocals are fun as hell. It's a complete 180 degree turn from the previous record, and this track became a favourite concert opener for many years hence.
The groove on this album continues with "Loosen My Strings", despite the tempo coming down considerably compared to the album's opening number. Full of soul, smooth guitar melodies, and Gillan's gentle vocals makes this a fan favourite. It's a 6 minute ride that makes you feel. It's a taste of what music is all about!
With a couple other slower tracks at 3. and 4., the tempo picks up again for "Cascades: I'm Not Your Lover". Dueling keyboards and guitars midway through amps this song up another notch. It's a hard rocking track that kicks some serious ass.
The Folk/Celtic sounding "The Aviator" was one of 2 official singles released from Deep Purple's 15th studio album (the other being "Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming"). Man, what a gutsy move. The melody on this one is completely genre bending, and vastly innovative for a hard rock band. If you don't get a great big smile listening to this, then I just don't know...
While some tracks like "A Castle Full of Rascals" and "Somebody Stole My Guitar" have that classic Deep Purple sound, the rest of the album progresses in the same fashion. Completely flipping Deep Purple on its head. This could be the final nail in the coffin for some bands, but the change breathes new life into one of the most important bands in Rock and Roll history.
Purpendicular Album Lineup
Ian Gillan - Vocals
Steve Morse - Guitars, Backing Vocals
Jon Lord - Keyboards
Roger Glover - Bass Guitar
Ian Paice - Drums

Track List
"Vavoom: Ted the Mechanic" - 4:16
"Loosen My Strings" - 5:57
"Soon Forgotten" - 4:47
"Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming" - 7:29
"Cascades: I'm Not Your Lover" - 4:43
"The Aviator" - 5:20
"Rosa's Cantina" - 5:10
"A Castle Full of Rascals" - 5:11
"A Touch Away" - 4:36
"Hey Cisco" - 5:53
"Somebody Stole My Guitar" - 4:09
"The Purpendicular Waltz" - 4:45
Purpendicular has since come to be regarded as one of Deep Purple's greatest works. That's quite the accomplishment considering albums like Machine Head, Perfect Strangers and Burn are in the fold. When things seem hopeless, dare to be different. Deep Purple did. And the rest is history!
Album Release Date: February 5, 1996

Deep Purple Online
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