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Das making-of Machine Head
German edition of the Classic Rock magazine has “Das making-of Machine Head” as the cover story for their July/August 2023 issue (a.k.a. #121). This may or may not be somehow related to the English version of the same story published earlier this year. Anyways, our correspondent on the ground tells us that there’s nothing in the German story that we haven’t known before. The issue can be ordered directly from the publisher.
Thanks to Tobias Janaschke for the info.
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
Yo, yet another one ! All news is good news, & there are the young generation to inform…
WDWTWA has an interesting story line too, & perhaps they should be celebrating its 50th anniversary, as the MK-II’s 70’s under-sung gem…
Peace !
July 10th, 2023 at 23:08Predictably the WDWTWA release date has passed for any media celebration. ‘It’s only the glitter & shine that gets through’ as we know. Not to worry as we are familiar with it & that is all that matters at the end of the day. The same thing happened with Fireball didn’t it? I suppose they can’t do everything. Time will tell if Burn gets some treatment but I bet poor old Stormbringer will not. It is the way of things. Cheers.
July 11th, 2023 at 03:27@2…Well, for myself & any self respecting DP fan, WDWTWA “is” glitter-&-shine…But I get what you mean…
There’s a very good chance IMO that “Burn” will get some well deserved attention, especially with all the attention GH & DC have been getting in here of late.
“Stormbringer” for sure is an unusual DP album, simply because of its wide-scope of musical variety it contains. You’ll be surprised how many people aren’t necessarily DP fans, (& know the records), yet plenty of these folks know & love “Soldier of fortune”…Perhaps DP’s first “official” power-ballad. ( WABMC is an unofficial power-ballad, that’s taken a life-of-its-own too, especially with SM delivering the meat & potatoes )…
For all intents & purposes, “Made in Europe” raises-up any under appreciation for “Stormbringer” quite a few notches. And MiE itself seems to be a remarkably under-appreciated gem…
Peace !
July 11th, 2023 at 09:43@ 1
Dare I say… I doubt that the younger generation grabs a copy of Classic Rock to check what’s the flavour of the week … I don’t think anyone under 50 will ever read this … 😉 So we have to do the informing all by ourselves and pass on the flame … which can work very well as I know from experience.
July 11th, 2023 at 13:41Judging from front cover headlines, this is all UK Classic Rock articles a few issues back. I have no idea whether German edition Classic Rock has any national content at all.
“Das Making-Of Machine Head” is especially cumbersome “Denglisch” (a business-speak and social media-popular mix of ‘Deutsch’ and ‘Englisch’ abhorred by linguists). I wish I could say that they meant is as a joke, but in fact they were dead-serious (just oblivious of any elegance of language, probably an AI generated translation anyway). The “… fangen Feuer” sub-heading means “… catch fire”, a poor alliterating pun on the Casino event that would have worked better with Fireball or Burn.
WDWTWA fell through the cracks a little due to bad timing. Purple’s release policy in the last 15 months of the band’s existence was wanton and rushed. MH came out in March ’72, MiJ in Dec’72, WDWTWA already in Jan ’73. Three albums in 10 months! People were still digesting the MH/MiJ double (or triple!) whammy, but Purple management obviously wanted WDWTWA released before Mk II’s imminent demise would become too widely known.
The cover art (is there anything more fleeting than soap bubbles?), the inner gatefold media clippings and the album title were all harbingers that Purple had over-saturated the public, were meeting increasing resistance in the media and faced an uncertain future.
Musically it’s a fine, very adult album and I’ve never met anyone who both owned WDWTWA and actually disliked it. Compared to In Rock, Fireball and Machine Head, it’s just comparatively little known, My Woman From Tokyo (Purple’s most melodic single ever?) excepted of course.
It’s the only 70ies Mk II album they released after having attained true superstar status yet they survived its release for just half a year. In hindsight a managerial dereliction of duty of epic magnitude to let that happen, but also living proof how self-destructive, auto-aggressive and sheer bloody-minded Blackmore could be. Sinking your own ship takes some nerve, especially as it was by no means clear whether a new line-up would come into existence and be able to carry the torch of Mk II.
July 11th, 2023 at 15:19@5…Well said…And I do remember RG revealing in one-of-many interviews, that at the time of considerations for MiJ for world-wide release, ( since it was blow-away sound & performances ), that the US-of-A Record Company didn’t want a live-album, but a new studio record…Of course they got both lol !
Large numbers of grey-imports of MiJ followed with official W.B. release of the album, ( since it sold so well ), also had-to-arrive-first before WDWTWA, since WDWTWA would have made MiJ out-of-date, since those recordings were from the MH tour.
Too much too soon perhaps, but what an awesome podium of DP recordings to arrive in such a short time.
qt.”(but also) living proof how self-destructive, auto-aggressive and sheer bloody-minded Blackmore could be. Sinking your own ship takes some nerve, especially as it was by no means clear whether a new line-up would come into existence and be able to carry the torch of Mk II”.
And no-one approached IG to reconsider his decision to leave…But that bollox was sorted-out in 1983-4, & we got another solid dose of Mk-II for nearly a decade. Much needed too.
Peace !
July 12th, 2023 at 01:39This makes me wonder what happened to Fire In The Sky,the MH book that was talked about some years ago.
July 12th, 2023 at 12:57Does anyone have an update ??
“The cover art (is there anything more fleeting than soap bubbles?), the inner gatefold media clippings and the album title were all harbingers that Purple had over-saturated the public, were meeting increasing resistance in the media and faced an uncertain future.”
You, again, totally lost me here.
If there ever was a LOST MOMENTUM in their career this was it.
There was a huge demand after the succes of Made In Japan and had the management been more rational they d have known this gave the band years to stay around and dose the efforts in order to get refreshed again.
July 12th, 2023 at 22:02It’s still pending. I check every couple of weeks, and as of a few minutes ago (just like a year ago, it seems), it’s still being finalized. Maybe one of these days it will be available. The first book, “Wait For The Ricochet”, is an absolutely phenomenal recounting of the making of “In Rock.” Best DP book by a long shot – highly, highly recommended.
July 13th, 2023 at 01:06– .
@ 6 – Any band member supposedly approaching Ian Gillan in 1973 to ‘reconsider’ would have been told, “NO I am out of here”. He wouldn’t have stayed would he? Why? And that is before Blackmore had his say. It was never going to happen. Regarding live albums being not favourable for certain record companies, it seems to work both ways that one. It was just the timing of things at that time, too much too soon as you said. Some artists were encouraged to release a good live recording. Different strokes for different folks perhaps? I have read different views on that scenario with certain artists, a record company dead against a live release, then when another company releases it & it becomes really popular they are annoyed or if that company is connected to their company they say ‘I always thought that live recording was essential’ or words to that effect. It is a fine line at times. Remember Blackmore talking about record companies or management comments ‘WE are going up the charts, this is great etc”‘ & when it is the opposite ‘YOU are going down the charts, this is a failure etc etc.” Cheers.
July 13th, 2023 at 04:49Das Making of Machinehead und der bösen Richard von Blechmoor!!
July 13th, 2023 at 06:50Ist ja klahr, oder?!
@ #7…I have been asking that same question for quite a while now and all I get is Crickets chirping……….
July 14th, 2023 at 20:22RV, sure a lengthy break might have saved Mk 2 and have Ian Gillan reconsider, also commercially the band was at a peak, BUT THEY WERE UNHAPPY!!! Gillan liked neither MH nor MIJ, he wanted DP more progressive like on Fireball. And he didn‘t like how Blackmore ran the band and the others always acquiesced.
By the time WDWTWA came out, Purple had the writing on the wall. Ian Gillan had handed in his notice already in the fall of ’72, Glover had followed suit realizing the others wanted to row him out, they were checking out Glenn Hughes when they should have been promoting WDWTWA of which they only played Mary Long live. Ritchie and Paicey had been moonlighting with Phil Lynott. At that point, no one wanted to save Mk II.
July 14th, 2023 at 23:47@9-Thank you,George.
July 15th, 2023 at 14:12Yes, Wait for the Ricochet is a fine book.
That’s why I held out high hopes for Fire In the Sky.
@10…Yo, IG is on film circa 2000 stating that “When I handed-in my resignation, no-one approached me to discuss it, so I assumed they wanted me to leave”…
This may be an excerpt from the “MiJ” DVD, or possibly even the Classic Albums MH DVD. I have both lol, so you’ll have to come over for coffee some-time-soon, & bring your Digital Storage Device.
Peace !
July 16th, 2023 at 02:58If I had been Ian Gillan and my longstanding guitarist had been raving all the time about what a great singer Paul Rodgers was, I would have started thinking too. Big Ian’s voice was one-of-a-kind, but he wasn’t a raspy blues & soul shouter (nor hired as such).
I think the rift was between Gillan wanting Purple to be more encompassing in styles and Ritchie wishing to narrow it down to what he did best (and perhaps also what he perceived the public to like best – sales numbers don’t lie). Ritchie began disliking Ian’s ideas like the middle part of Woman From Tokyo (for me a high point of the song), he’d never ever play that part live, or his off-the-wall vocal melody idea on Painted Horse
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6M2Xq5JZuJw
which Blackmore vetoed to be included on WDWTWA. Listening to the backing track, I can perfectly envisage what Ritchie wanted to hear, something akin to how Rodgers, Coverdale or Turner would have sung it, slightly laid back and bluesy. Gillan of course did no such thing and gave it an Art Rock & Pop/Prog treatment with his double-tracked harmonies more at home with what you would expect on a Sparks or even a YES album. It must have been a huge, fully erect middle finger to Ritchie, LOL.
When Gillan/Glover were severed from Mk II, what DP irretrievably lost (until the reunion) was a very English Prog/Art Rock & Pop touch which had always been there, Ritchie’s recipe riffmeister orgies notwithstanding. Gillan/Glover had brought that to the band from Episode Six.
Coverdale/Hughes, the kids from the Midlands/Up North, brought something else to the equation: Blues, Soul & Funk + an altogether more American sounding joint lead vocals style, but Purple never ever really ventured near Prog/Art Rock & Pop again with them. Tracks such as You Fool No One (with its Cream style drawn-out harmonized vocal melody over a very rhythmic setting) or A 200 were as Prog as Mk III ever got on Burn and there is nothing in the least Prog on Stormbringer (though it’s a varied and skilled album).
That’s not knocking the Coverdale/Hughes tandem, there was just no Prog in them by their musical nature, but OTOH Ian Gillan could have never credibly done something like Love Don’t Mean A Thing or Hold On either.
July 16th, 2023 at 16:17“Gillan liked neither MH nor MIJ”
I do know he allegedly did not like his performance om MIJ.which made me reconsider /think about HOW I judged it, etc.
For many years there wasnt much I could tap into at the time.
Of course no internet but being one of the “heavy rock deplorables” in a village where everyone my age went disco I had to discover things on my own for a long time.
The tiny circle around me sharing my taste all said MIJ was killerstuff.
Questions arose, even more later on reading ” We ve done much better shows” . Was this true?
When REUNION came one of the things I thought was he now has to battle with a very popular performance he does not like.
Fact is that, like others, he said things and did things anyway…. Like milking MH and ofcourse MIJ for decades since RB left, he could have ditched it all and go FIREBALL all the way.
In the beginning it got exiting.
I more than once said they should have released a compilation tripledisc of the Lord/Morse era with mostly rarely done stuff.
Again, why wouldnt it sell?
GH for many years tried to distance himself for decades from his DP legacy but still did a lot of it after he sobered up.
During the 90 s he more than once vehemently announced he d do it no longer.
In the end he did/does Evenings of ONLY DP tracks.
Did he change his mind or is it just for the money?
Likewise Gillan.
If they really had felt sincerely the Morse material was good enough they d promoted the songs without end.
Ticketbuyers thinking otherwise so again unwillingly touring around without doing what he always said : progress
DC kept playing his 1987 cards again and again.
I think its a shame, really.
I always liked the versatility in the catalogue
and though I m not a Morse fan I think they ought to have decided differently.
Maybe play seperate sets for die hards and people that only want to hear the same thing, decade after decade.
I ve been told they re too lazy to do things like that.
I dont know, sounds like a lame reason.
July 16th, 2023 at 19:07@ 17- ha ha ha, “heavy rock deplorable’s” that is a good one indeed, I like that. I might use that one occasionally, as long as that is ok? I would be copywriting that one, even if just for posterity. I agree regarding backing the newer material in a live setting. It has always made me wonder as to why it wasn’t played more at times, looking at set lists from afar over the years. We have discussed this before many times. Is it fear of losing ticket sales, popularity or something, I don’t know. If the new material is good enough play it & support it more, mix it up. Even though so many want or crave the oldies but goodies (myself included) It is always a good balance of sorts is it not? @ 18 – good comments regarding Gillan & the progressive English element in DP. As we know he ventured down that road with TIGB, although it sounded like it didn’t work to my ears in many ways (vocally etc) at least they tried it out. Regarding Painted Horse I do agree with it not being on the WDWTWA album. To me it sounds too soft, not dramatic enough for want of a better description.. Some may say the same about the wonderful song Our Lady, but that has as much stronger melody & a more dramatic feeling to it, a great song to my ears.
July 16th, 2023 at 23:37@ 15- I am cursed with the flu (devil bug) at present (third time this year), so must wait for a full recovery before venturing out into the real world. I do own the Machine Head Classic albums dvd. I will check that MIJ one out, I think I have read about it before somewhere. Cheers.
Furthermore regarding the Painted Horse song & a strong familiarity with the vocal melody to Woman from Tokyo. “Fly into the rising sun, Faces smiling every one” & the first two lines on the following two verses are incredibly the same as Painted Horse .”Child on a painted horse, Streams that will run their course’ And the first two lines on the remaining versus etc. I don’t know which song came first but Woman from Tokyo certainly has all the ingredients of a very clever rock song to me & a superb start to the album. Painted Horse has always sounded like an outtake song, an extra not needed. A touch flat in it’s delivery & I can see why it was left off the album. I have thought that from first hearing it in 1981 when purchasing the Powerhouse DP album. Cheers.
July 17th, 2023 at 03:42@17…IG is renowned for not liking his performances that were / have been recorded live, typically stating that he had, or was recovering from a cold or flu, especially regarding MiJ…
Early 1970’s Mk-II “do” have “better” shows available, & with solid sound too…But here-in lay the issue, how good is the sound ???…MiJ sounds superb, no question at all, & still stands the test-of-time. It continues to display a timelessness about itself & energy that still bubbles & boils, even 50-years on.
Other exceptional performances would have to be “Stockholm 1970”, “Live in London 1972”, & for myself “Copenhagen 1972”, are all stellar performances. And the re-issues via the DP (overseas) Live Series have a sound quality that ball-parks MiJ. The “Longbeach 1971” show is quite good too, but the people mixing take their time in getting a good overall balance of sound, but it does arrive. Perhaps today’s audiences prefer the shorter numbers presented in a gig, but I simply love the longer extended solo sections of that early 1970’s era. eg 4 x songs spread over 70+ minutes says “bring-it-on” for my tastes.
In the modern era, post RB, the quality of the music shot-up 10-fold imo, hands down. The band was better than ever, but to answer your query, the early Mk-II had radio-play, & lots of it. especially since the industry all-round was growing…eg Radio was moving from AM into FM, amps & guitar rigs were selling like crazy & generally improving along-the-way, & shows were getting larger & larger all the time.
By the time Mk-II reformed, everything possible growth wise in these industries had already peaked, ( MTV, arena gigs, Band-Aid etc etc ), & there was much-much more competition, & the sounds that early DP helped pioneer, were changing dramatically. So even though the boys had some really good “radio friendly” tunes available, they were lucky to get air-play yet alone find any significant chart placings in the singles arena, particularly in US-of-A charts. Album sales continue a steady growth however I’d suggest. And it’s likely because of this reason of little radio-play, that a lot of very-good songs get overlooked during concerts since they haven’t gotten the radio-play that cements the tunes in peoples awareness. And even if radio-stations were playing their tunes whilst touring in present-time, it was the older hits from MH that got the air-time…So the band is guided by industry to continue to play these older tunes.
This is also why DC keeps playing the 1980’s WS tunes. Radio & industry demand dictates / guides what people want. At least its assumes as such.
I think that the band is fair in its set-list, delivering a balance of old tunes, whilst blasting out solid new efforts.
Peace !
July 17th, 2023 at 04:31He didn’t like MiJ for his vocal performance, he had just had a bout of bronchitis and you could still hear it a little, his voice sounds rougher than it usually did (back then). But some people like his vocal performance on MiJ just for that gnarly edge it had on that first Japan tour, it befitted the slightly frantic performances of those three nights.
Machine Head he thought was a step backwards from the more experimental Fireball album, he felt DP were beginning to repeat themselves with that album for the first time. And, yes, Machine Head is a more straightforward album than Fireball, also “safer”, but I always appreciated the quality of the songwriting on it. Fireball is more jammy, less perfect, but also more daring, sort of the White Album of Deep Purple.
Of course, IG himself must have realized that his lasting fame and wealth were built on exactly those two albums, namely MH and MiJ (which in essence is MH live with a few previous stage favorites added,) and he probably views those albums differently today.
July 17th, 2023 at 05:22@17 Couldn’t have said it any better!
July 17th, 2023 at 08:38Why didn’t Ozzy leave Black Sabbath after “Master of Reality”!? Why didn’t Plant leave LZ after “Led Zeppelin III”!? ,why didn’t David Byron leave Uriah Heep after “Look at Yourself”! ?.
July 17th, 2023 at 13:15It’s a shame that DP didn’t have a manager like Led Zeppelin had in Peter Grant.
Ian Gillan ruined or stressed his voice in the early 70’s Purple. Too much falsetto screaming & totally unnecessary at times ( less is more). Just listen to how he ruins that MK1 classic Mandrake Root. But that is who he is or was at that time. He was up against a wall of sound from the other members & as we know that is his instrument. He was young & that is rock ‘n roll isn’t it? Little Richard use to go off vocally didn’t he? Regarding the difference to Fireball & Machine Head I agree, they are chalk & cheese. Fireball always sounds more dramatic to me & I love it. It has longer songs also, more musical interludes. However MH is the one, the GOLD capstone sitting on top of the great pyramid, for want of a better description. They are both great albums to my ears. Cheers.
July 18th, 2023 at 01:21Thanx for the added replies, guys.
Nice idea, Copyright a variation on the Hillary Clinton quote.
I suppose it would not fly and it was pun intended? Maybe Gene Simmons can help me out here? 🙂
I m not experienced in that field, Maybe I should have been.
Now, not long ago, I encountered some pics of mine. made in Limburghal, Genk 1985 in a photobook.
I once sent some to the Belgian DP FC in the mid 80 s , they ended up in a book which I BOUGHT a few years ago!!!!
And the FC man got paid, seeing his name on the credits!
I contacted the guy who published it and he replied I could fetch some money if I could show him the negatives.
Unfortunately, unlike the old days, things got chaotic here, so at the moment no idea where they are.
They also got scratched and would need some AI or something to fix that.
I d not like to mail these original negs as well.
But weird to see someone else take credits for it.
It makes me think again.
I made pics on that evening this man also published in Diep Peurpel way back.
One great pic was Roger close up saluting during the announcement of UNDER THE GUN.
There were more nice ones and only colours would need to be ” neutralised” . Did use daylightfilm for that one.
Later on I made slides, EKTACHROME it was called, I think.
It wasnt a perfect solution but I pushed the ASA of it sometimes got great ones out of it, incl from Brussels 87, Rotterdam 87, Nurnberg 87.
What can I say?
July 20th, 2023 at 17:46@24…IG possibly over-reached / stressed his voice simply because he couldn’t hear himself in those times…
On stage, RG had a massive rig along side JL’s, & behind IG was IP, & then the claimed 200-watts of RB’s Marshall. And all this sound is coming from behind him.
The Front-of-House system was/is in-front of the stage,( or at least along side it at far L & R ) so poor IG got a heck-of-a-lot of music from behind, & “his” amplified sound was in-front of him, or at the far-sides of the sound coming in-between the others on stage. And the stage monitors ( if any ) were well under powered.
All the early MK-II concert-footage available, clearly indicates IG at some point, fingering his ear whilst eye-balling the “sound-man” to increase his volume, since he couldn’t hear himself clearly.
eg. A qt from MiJ…IG… “I’ll have some more monitor if you’ve got it” ?…
Reply… “Can we have everything louder than everything else”…
Peace !
July 22nd, 2023 at 12:54Now don‘t start blaming poor ole Roger for Big Ian‘s monitor difficulties, Gregster! Typical, no one ever mentions the bassist EVER unless someone has to be the culprit for sound issues!
July 23rd, 2023 at 23:07@27…LOL !!!
RG’s rig in the early 1970’s could put-out plenty of volume & thunder…In fact, it’s often so finely embedded in the wall-of-sound coming off-the-stage, it takes on an almost secret life of its own.
I’m pretty sure that during the encores of the ’72 Copenhagen show, his volume level increased dramatically, & even thinned-out RB’s stacks lol…At least for Fireball…
Peace !
July 25th, 2023 at 11:58Sonically, squeezed between Jon’s roaring organ and Ritchie’s dominant Strat, poor Roger had to make a stand! And he did, inter alia with intended-for-PA-use-only Martin Bass Bins integrated in his stage back line. Once he had those and the Rickenbacker, you heard him well indeed! His sound on Made in Japan is pants-creaming awesome.
But there is no such thing as a too loud bass, trust me!
July 27th, 2023 at 03:29Agree about hearing a decent bass guitar sound with plenty of volume & it happens when there isn’t a distorted guitar to compete with. So much easier on the ears not having that noisy distorted riffing guitar getting in the way of the sonics of everything else. Am I growing older, yes indeed, are my ears over that sound yes they are. Being a trusted older Sabbath fan that is saying something, but it does get too much at times. The Heaven & Hell gig in 2007 was enough as great as it was. That Iommi wall of sound as grand as it is did muzzle Geezer’s bass sound in certain ways. Give me Chris Squire’s bass rig any day, no noisy guitarist to compete with in Yes, well not with Steve Howe at least. Roger Glover didn’t have to compete with a riff based distorted ‘metal’ guitarist in Blackmore, meaning the chugging riff based theme, so he did get out there with his sound at times. Although with Morse & some of his riffs that may have changed, I don’t know. Motorhead, no thanks! Cheers.
July 28th, 2023 at 23:45@29…The general trend with bassists that I’ve noticed has been a clean & pure sound, that regretfully is easily over-powered, or lost-in-the-mix. The sounds heard are also indicative of direct-input into a studio desk, thus avoiding an amp, & enhancing the single-coil-type open sounds. At present, I’d bet-my-cojones that RG is DI-ed on stage now-days, as well as Simon. We may see speaker-boxes on stage, & they may well be active, but the sound-source / amp is behind-the-scenes, at least these are my thoughts after reviewing the South American show broadcast a little while ago. I didn’t see any amp-heads, perhaps some processors.
@30…Everyone’s tastes change over time, but you do drift back to your roots for 2nd-helpings from time to time. Everyone has their moments when it’s time to crank-that-volume-dial-up, & let “In Rock” do its thing…
Wait & see lol !
Peace !
July 30th, 2023 at 09:04@ 31 – the good old days indeed. Regarding older bass rig setups with certain bands, the competing factor was usually against the guitarist (possibly some drummers, but they are much more innocent in their approach) & that was certainly a good reason to crank or distort the bass rig. A good example is John Wetton in King Crimson. He came from the band Family, no distorted bass there however upon joining the menacing Crimson with Fripp’s nasty guitar tone he probably thought, ‘if you cannot beat them might as well join them’. After Crimson he didn’t have that distorted sound with Uriah Heep or UK & other bands. Even including a brief stint in Wishbone Ash. Those pesky lead guitarists again, they have a lot to answer for. Just who do they think they are? Cheers.
July 30th, 2023 at 22:43@32…Yes, having a little fuzz-tone on the bass guitar does work OK, in the right tunes. Jack Bruce, Felix Pappalardi, John Entwhistle, Geddy Lee all used some “fuzz” in their tone, though possibly the sound was the result of the amp being cranked wide-open too.
You also have to be careful with the lower notes & using fuzz with a bass, as it can sound like a wet-fart too…And that’s possibly why you don’t hear it too often. Felix Pappalardi squeezed-out the sounds successfully within Mountains catalog imo.
Peace !
August 2nd, 2023 at 14:10I’ve got a a Place In The Line for a Woman from Tokyo!
August 5th, 2023 at 13:01and Mary Long getting Rat Bat Blue for Our Lady !
Love WDWTWA!!
30,000Turn out for Deep Purple !
@34…
I’m not sure if you’re a Super Trouper or a Smooth Dancer, but that’s all-right…
Yes, WDWTWA is glorious imo too…
Which concert are you referring the 30,000 turn-out to ?…
Peace !
August 7th, 2023 at 09:42Ah, the old distorted/overdriven vs. clean bass sound dispute! It resurrrges!!!
After the 80ies were an era of cleaner-than-clean bass sounds (largely because bass amps for the first time became widely available that could provide squeaky clean sounds at even highest volumes and everyone wanted to sound like Mark King of Level 42), the 90ies with the advent of Grunge and Nu Metal made distorted/overdriven/non-hifi bass sounds more popular, it became all of the sudden cool to have a “dirty” bass sound. That type of sound wasn’t “invented” then, even in the 60ies and 70ies some (never the majority though) bassists preferred what was often called a “British sound”. You can add Jim Lea of Slade and Mel Schacher of Grand Funk Railroad to the names already given by Messrs Gregster/MacGregor. Add modern day Glenn Hughes (he played with less distortion as a young man) who for my taste is by now a bit too distorted, but of course he can do no wrong in my unwavering adulation!
I’ve tried to play with a more distorted/overdriven sound – it doesn’t work for me, which constitutes an alarming drop on the coolness Richter scale, I realize that. But I have this adolescent trauma of not being heard in a rehearsal space with my puny first few bass amps; with a 50 watt or even 100 watt bass amp you don’t stand a chance against a guitar amp with even just half or a quarter of that power. And turning up meant eventual distortion – and not of the good kind. My traumatized brain signals to me to this day that a distorted bass sound means lack of power and headroom. When I started on bass, I had to play with a pick high up on the neck, 12th fret and higher, to even hear myself. (Both elements of my early playing have stuck with me, though I have over time made amends as regards amp power, see below …)
I don’t mind a little overdrive, but it’s not more than the seasoning of an otherwise clean sound to me. These days I play a clean 500 watt Markbass amp and a very overdriven 500 watt Orange amp (aptly named ‘Little Terror’), I play them simultaneously, I like my treble and bass frequencies clean and the mids a little dirty, best of both worlds, and the combined 1.000 watts give even a traumatized youth like me a semblance of reassurance that I will never again not be heard! And if I really need extreme distortion, I have a Boss OBD-3 Bass Overdrive at my feet. About which my band mates encouragingly quip: “Don‘t use that too often, Hornung, and, more importantly, tell us when ahead of time, so we can get out of the room first!“
Motörhead? That outfit needed at all times a true bassist, they only had a baritone rhythm guitarist. Live (I saw them thrice over the decades, with Fast Eddie, Brian Robertson and Phil Campbell) that sound was awful to my ears, it lacked real depth and sublows. Motörhead sounded to me like something was wrong with the PA system. Fürchterlich.
August 7th, 2023 at 17:51Interesting bass comments & thanks. I don’t like hearing a ‘distorted’ bass as I do tend to lean towards clarity in most cases. Chris Squire’s sound was manna for me in 2003. Little Terror, does that mean we can now refer to you as the ‘bass beast of terror’, sorry that phrase is an older one from Fripp himself in regards to John Wetton. However as Wetton is no longer with us & the 70’s are long gone, there could be an opening there, he he he. Motorhead indeed, or should that be no thanks. When that gig was cancelled way back in 1984, the Gods probably did intervene. I had heaps of cotton wool with me, I didn’t know what else to use. I sort of wasn’t looking forward to the aural assault in that sense but couldn’t keep away as it was in my home town all the way out in the sticks. Not to worry, it isn’t a gig I regret missing. Cheers.
August 7th, 2023 at 22:44@36…
Whoa…1,000-Watts…We hear you lol !
Peace !
August 7th, 2023 at 22:52Don’t know which concert that was- it’s in the inside of the album cover of WDWTWA.Always thought that to be cool !
August 8th, 2023 at 12:00Smooth Dancer – like to think so but then again – not so sure!
I know, 1.ooo watts sounds crazy, but with technology advancement being what it is, the whole rig takes up less space and weighs less than my old Ampeg SVT 8×10 ‘refrigerator’ stack with just 300 watts. And I play at 9 o’clock or less, BUT I NEED HEADROOM JUST IN CASE !!! (Cue in calm background voice of psychiatrist, “Yes, of course, Uwe, but can we discuss this just a little longer?”)
August 8th, 2023 at 16:18@ 40 – what your amp doesn’t go to 11, that is disappointing. Maybe that is what your psychiatrist wanted to discuss further, he he he. Cheers.
August 8th, 2023 at 22:48@ 40…
Nothing exceeds like excess…
It’s like having a big V-8 cruising down the hwy at low rpm’s, or you can have a small 4-cyl doing the same thing at double-the-rpm’s…
Less wear & tear, & easy-going thunder is completely understandable imo.
Peace !
August 9th, 2023 at 02:59