12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Purple at their Best!, Mar 8 2006
By J. Bartek - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Live In Europe 1993 (Audio CD)
Here it is, finally after all these years someone took the inicative to properly released one of the greatest live Deep Purple sets! Two complete shows from their 25th anniversay tour, and it was as if the classic line up of Gillan, Glover, Blackmore,Lord, and Paice had never been apart...The sound is crisp and clear, and they never miss a beat! The Stuttgart show is the real gem here with Blackmore on fire! the entire band is right on for this show from the opening of 'Highway Star' to the closing of 'Smoke on the Water'the band is tight, never miss a beat! the solo's in Anya stand out as one of Ritchie's greatest performances. The band run through a number of classics, a few from the 84 reunion, as well as the then latest release, 'The Battle Rages On'. The second show from the NEC in Birmingham, picks up where the Stuttart show finishes...another great show. If there is a gripe about this show is, this is the show with the infamous water tossing incident, where Ritchie didn't show up on stage till just about his solo in 'Highway Star'...Jon Lord does an outstanding job on the keyboards keeping the enthusiasm while Ritchie is 'missing in action'. Once he appears, the band is tight and sound great. It is a pleasure to hear 'Anyone's Daughter' live, as this was never done live in their heydays in the 70's. If there is one gripe about the setlist its that 'Strange Kind of Woman' is missing from both shows, and the booklet explains why....No matter how much internal fighting there was offstage, it is pure magic onstage! This set is a must for Deep Purple fans, and even the casual Purple fan. BUY this set, you WON'T be disappointed!!!!!
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Stuttgart '93...a magical night., Mar 12 2006
By Micaloneus - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Live In Europe 1993 (Audio CD)
The 16th of October 1993 will go down in Deep Purple history as the "classic" lineups last GREAT live recording. It's all there. The magical performance, the great sound quality and the amazing crowd. These two discs from Stuttgart, Germany are worth the price alone, which is a good thing because the other concert (discs 3 & 4) from Birmingham, England is already out in DVD form. What a waste. Even though it's a solid show, the taped concert from Munich just prior to Stuttgart was a much, much better concert. Oh well. It still gets a big 5 stars for Stuttgart alone. If you're a DP fan you must hear this magical night in Germany.
DEEP PURPLE:
Ian Gillan - Vocal
Ritchie Blackmore - Guitar
Jon Lord - Keyboards
Roger Glover - Bass
Ian Paice - Drums
Long live Deep Purple!
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Stuttgart Show is worth the price alone!!!, Jun 28 2006
By Jeremy A. Davito - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Live In Europe 1993 (Audio CD)
I'll admit it; I'm narrow-minded. I am a HUGE Deep Purple fan, and have collected music and video from Mk. 1 to Mk......what version are we on now? I lost track....anyway, to me, Deep Purple is the Mk. 2 version...to me, Deep Purple isn't the same without Ritchie Blackmore & Ian Gillan.
That being said, and being a huge Rainbow/Blackmore's night fan as well, I was royally pissed when I listened to the NEC show first. Both of the Ian's, Jon & Roger were kicking butt, but Ritchie must have been asleep....he played what he had to to keep the show going, but nothing more. It was a below-average Deep Purple show. Sound is great, songs are great, but don't expect anything from Ritchie you haven't heard before better.
Then I put on the Stuttgart show.
I am contemplating replacing my entire stereo system because 130 watts per channel isn't enough to do justice to the Stuttgart show. It's the complete opposite of the NEC show....everyone is in absolute top form, and Ritchie & Jon absolutely SHRED. There are moments where Blackmore just goes off into space, and the band follows as usual...and then comes back roaring and tearing, but so intensely that you think you're listening to them in 1972, not 1993. Actually, I'd say even MORE than the old days, particularly on "Anya". The Stuttgart show is an excellent swan song for the Blackmore era Purple. And the liner notes are great, too. This is NOT a redone version of "Come Hell Or High Water"....THAT CD is a brutally chopped up version of this disc. The guitar passage before "Smoke" is way longer, and I'm not gonna get into the rest.....if you are a Purple /Rainbow/Blackmore fan, this is a MUST-HAVE set. Forget the NEC show....Put the Stuttgart show on and make the volume so loud your ears bleed!