Search - Deep Purple :: Fireball (Dlx)

Themes of Hard Living with Dramatic Touches

Bud | Seminole, Texas, USA | 02/22/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After its first line-up fell apart in 1969, Deep Purple decided (or more appropriately, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore decided) to stray from their obvious classical music influence and focus on shaping their music into a much more deliberate hard rock form, making a hard-edged sound which would later be rightfully described as a part of the birth of heavy metal. By straying from their previous sound ("Concerto For Group and Orchestra" and later "The Gemini Suite" were the only significant "classical" breaths from this new era), 1970's innovative "In Rock" saw new additions Ian Gillan and Roger Glover joining Blackmore, Jon Lord, and Ian Paice, making for Deep Purple's most memorable line-up, and firmly established the band's new purpose.
As is always the case, a follow-up was in demand, but Deep Purple were plagued with a hectic touring schedule, thus the several start-and-stop visits to the recording studio, which certainly influenced 1971's "Fireball." Sometimes, Deep Purple pulled together musically better than they did personally, which gave their albums their luster, and the songs here are no exception. "Fireball" made one of this band's most unique traits even more obvious; it was here that DP (lyrically and musically) took the obligatory themes of fast-paced, hard-living rock and roll lifestyles, and placed them in dramatic structures that gave these seemingly cliched topics a unique perspective. 'The Mule' is the best example of this; it is a dense, heavy, and dramatic piece that features a brief but poignant and well-sung verse from Gillan, topped off most notably by Paice's disciplined and raging percussion. 'Fools' is another dramatic song which clocks in at over eight minutes and is highlighted by a lonely, melancholy solo by Blackmore (most likely using a guitar though it sounds like, and may be, a violin or cello). But it's the more traditional rockers that put "Fireball" in the same class as the other Mark II line-up albums; the title track became a radio favorite, and 'Demon's Eye' sounds as if it could have been recorded even by the later Deep Purple line-ups. The closer, 'No One Came' is on the edge of erratic, with an always clever prose by Gillan.
Finally, Warner Archives and Rhino Records have given "Fireball" a well-deserved treatment; this remastered package comes with the hit single 'Strange Kind of Woman,' two songs left off the album (one of which, 'I'm Alone,' is ironically one of the best songs on this CD) and an unreleased track straight vaults ('Slow Train'). Also included is 'The Noise Abatement Society Tapes,' a hodgepodge of quirky rehearsals, not to mention a detailed booklet with abundant liner notes by Simon Robinson and contributions from Roger Glover."

THINKING PERSONS HARD ROCK!

John | New York, NY USA | 10/14/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you like Deep Purple but don't own Fireball, you are in for a treat. This album is a hard rock masterpiece and Ian Gillan would totally agree with me. It's a shame that Fireball has been kind of forgotten about, it clearly holds up against In Rock and Who Do We Think We Are. If you're just starting to collect their albums, maybe you already have Machine Head, this one won't disappoint you. It is one of the great rock albums of the seventies. The diverse highlights include: Fireball, Strange Kind of Woman, Anyone's Daughter, Fools and No One Came. (The 25th anniversary edition also includes additional highlights: Demon's Eye, I'm Alone and Freedom) I'd easily take this album over any Sabbath or Zeppelin album. Gillan sings far superior to Ozzy or Plant, Ritchie Blackmore plays a more classically tinged and intense guitar, Roger Glover plays a more hard driving aggressive bass, Ian Paice plays a more sophisticated style of drumming, that swings and Jon Lord brings keyboards to the table, which puts them miles ahead of their rivals. One last note, Deep Purples songs are all original and not borrowed rip offs from old blues men (Zep) or spooky child like rock (Sab). This is the thinking persons rock music, raw and powerful. Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord and Paice are probably the best Deep Purple line-up of the seventies. PS: Please check out their 2003 album, Bananas. It holds up well after a hundred hearings.
I would say it is right up there with their classic seventies material. That is not easy to do."

Much more varied than MACHINE HEAD, but not quite as strong

Gavin Wilson | 08/09/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

""It could have done with another steamer on it," says organist Jon Lord in the wonderful sleevenotes to this remastered album. That, together with the inclusion of the studio doodle entitled 'Anyone's Daughter', was probably the reason why the 'Fireball' album didn't do as well as the two Deep Purple classic LPs sandwiching it ('In Rock' and 'Machine Head').While 'Machine Head' is a highly consistent LP, it isn't experimental. On the other hand, 'In Rock' and 'Fireball' both pushed forward the frontiers of progressive hard rock. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose for trying new things, and perhaps 'Fireball' tried too hard to be different. Purple's main audience at the time were cash-starved males in the 12-to-17 age group. (That's why the band regularly spoke of releasing reduced-price double LPs as a thank-you to their fans, and why they refused to include on their LPs singles which had already been released such as 'Black Night' or 'Strange Kind of Woman'.) In the early 70s, most hard rock fans of that ilk had a strong aversion to country-and-western music. Purple quickly removed 'Anyone's Daughter' from their concert repertoire, but by then it was too late for the LP, where the song's presence was screwing up fans' enjoyment of side one.I listened to this album once, around 1972/73, and never felt motivated to hear it again until buying this remastered set. It improves steadily with each play, slowly revealing its treasures as you get used to the breadth of tracks on offer. I think Ritchie Blackmore has it roughly right: the best tracks are 'Fireball', 'No No No' and 'Fools', as he says on the sleevenotes. But 'Demon's Eye' and 'No-one Came' are pretty good too. To my ear, the band's influences come from far and wide: the opening to 'No One Came' bears similarities to the Doors' 'The End'; and the start of 'The Mule', particularly with Paice's rolling drum style, sounds like a pastiche of the Who's 'Tommy' period.This remastered CD is the definitive version of the album: the sound is much clearer than on the original rush-released CD version of the mid-80s. The sleevenotes are a gem, particularly Roger Glover's discussion of life in the lonely Devon cottage, where, because he had no wife or girlfriend, he had to sleep in the damp kitchen with several roadies. Much drinking occurred. The band dabbled in seances at night: Blackmore attacked Glover's door with an axe, Glover chased Blackmore with a broken chair leg. (Ever wondered why Ritchie had that demonic look in some photos of the period?) Most of the furniture ended in the fire when they ran out of logs.This album has been hugely underrated in the past, particularly by me. Many thanks to Roger Glover and the Deep Purple Appreciation Society for resurrecting and polishing it to near-perfection."