![[hand]](/hs-pics/portraits/hands/gillan9.jpg)
![[face]](/hs-pics/portraits/faces/mcbride3.jpg)
For money, for fame, for the chicks, and for the music
Several press clipping that are of a too marginal interest to post them individually.
Australian Guitar has a short feature on Hughes/Iommi collaborations on the occasion of recent reissues:
“I’ve always liked Glenn,” Iommi says. “We’ve been friends for many years and go way back. I’ve always loved his vocals. When they get older, most singers tend to lose their top range, but he can still do it. He can sing like there’s no tomorrow… It’s brilliant. And he’s very creative. It was a good thing when we started writing together. I still like a lot of the songs we recorded together on Seventh Star. It was very different for Sabbath, just because of the way he would sing and approach stuff.”
Guitar Player has some Blackmore quotes from over the years, talking in his infamously dry manner about various musicians:
Stevie Ray Vaughan was very intense. Maybe that’s what caught everybody’s attention. As a player, he didn’t do anything amazing.
Ian Anderson is a genius, especially with his later stuff. It’s horrifying to think how he wrote that stuff. But if you talk to him, he goes, ‘Oh, I just count two.’ But you can’t count two over that — it’s 9 over 5 1/2! Martin Barre and the rest of the group must have memories like computers to remember that.
Martin Popoff delves deep into his idiosyncrasies with a Goldmine piece titled The Top 20 Heavy Metal covers gone wrong. Hush is at #7, and Rainbow take on Black Sheep of the Family is at #4.
7. Deep Purple – “Hush”
I’m actually going with what’s known as “Hush ’88,” from the Nobody’s Perfect live album, because Deep Purple weren’t anywhere near a heavy metal band when they first covered this maddening song, along with the equally maddening “Kentucky Woman.” But in the ‘80s, sure, they were arguably a “heavy metal” band. What’s worse, however, is that the guys insist on playing this horribly dated, sing-songy, jittery and awkward Joe South song to this day, with your intrepid chronicler having to sit through it in Toronto as recently as 2024. Na (na na na) thank you. And by the way, thanks also for sticking “Roadhouse Blues” on Infinite.
Far Out magazine has some quotes from Gene Simmons and Brian May praising Ritchie Blackmore:
He even heralded a new brand of rock ‘n’ roll, and somewhere down the line, in a truly nebulous sense, you could argue that he is partly responsible for the new folk revival of the indie age thanks to the way he reappropriated the past. As Simmons explains: “When Ritchie plunged into medieval music it wasn’t so much as a surprise as a natural course of events. You know, there are people who enter this band thing for lots of different reasons. For money, for fame and for the chicks. It seems to me Ritchie Blackmore entered into this for the music.” Thus, he has never stopped exploring.
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
Gene unlike Paul (who is a dyed-in-the-wool Zeppelinista and makes at best lukewarm remarks about DP) always has nice things to say about Ritchie or DP – like that you can always hear the bass on DP albums proper while on Zeppelin records underneath all that echo you don’t.
I know he polarizes and is good for incendiary remarks, but I think he’d be a great entertaining dinner guest. And not a half-bad bassist either. Always my favorite Kiss member (also, reputedly, with the largest one!).
Tony Iommi seems to be a genuine Hughesy fan, which I find a bit surprising given how funky Trapeze always was while Sabbath were unfunky as hell. I guess Brummie boys stick together.
And I’m with Martin Popoff on Hush – no matter who plays it, it’s a silly, banal number to me, never could get to really like it. The only thing redeeming about the 1968 DP cover was Jon’s beautifully excessive organ solo. But the song as such? Meh … It’s part of Purple history, so I understand that they play it, but nothing I look forward to (though I have always thought that Mk III could have done something more interesting with it, yet they never played it). Kentucky Woman otoh I really like, cracker of a guitar solo too.
December 6th, 2024 at 08:18Well ok, I don’t know the person behind the opinion of Hush, but personally I really like the way DP incorporate it in their concerts!
Not everything needs to be “ rip-off-the-ears-and-pull-out-the-hair”, it’s really ok there are some gentler tunes too! 😊
December 6th, 2024 at 09:38It’s a bit of an Elvis number though, Karin. It has that feel, even a country & western slant in his jauntiness.
I like it when DP do ballads live, I wish they would do more, but Hush with its major key jolliness is an awkward fit for Purple.
December 6th, 2024 at 15:08in fact Hush after all these years they might even remove it from the lineup..
December 6th, 2024 at 23:13The song Hush is a 1967 ‘pop’ song, what else is it suppose to be????? As far as Uwe’s comment regarding helping the audience to overcome their insomnia issues, yes do play more ballads, that will work…………..for the insomnia that is! Cheers.
//www.loudersound.com/features/the-story-of-hush-the-song-that-blasted-deep-purple-into-the-us-charts-and-beyond
December 7th, 2024 at 05:39#3
December 7th, 2024 at 05:40That may be! But I don’t know the butter-tenor well enough (am I happy to say) to recognise any of him in Hush!
I certainly enjoy the way Mr Gillan execute that song 😍
A more in depth look at the song Hush for all those who don’t like it. I like it………….Cheers.
https://norselandsrock.com/hush-deep-purple/
December 7th, 2024 at 05:48@7
December 7th, 2024 at 10:53Exactly! What’s not to like ☺️
Hush – it’s a fun song and recognizable!
December 7th, 2024 at 16:09Women seem to really like as my wife does !
All good!
Mr. MacGregor, indeed it is. And not a bad one at that. I guess, DP like the grove to it and Uwe, here it is: the song to shake your butt to …DP were not too good in that field themselves. Did you notice they tried to come up with something similiar in Ted the Mechanic. Even the guitar line Ian sings along to seems to be an attempt to reproduce some nanana naa… Even if it’s not a fave of mine I say give me Hush before Black Night anytime!
December 7th, 2024 at 16:24Popoff’s silly. Saying “Hush” is dated must mean that all 1960s music is garbage, in his way of thinking. Hush is a quality tune, a classic: A good melody, Jon Lord’s fantastic keyboards, Blackmore’s guitar, etc. Rod Evans’ vocals were great. Gillan’s did a bad job on this track in 1988, to be sure, but gives it a good touch nowadays.
December 7th, 2024 at 18:25For what it”s worth, Ritchie said that “Hush” was his favorite Jon Lord DP solo. He was particularly impressed with Jon’s flawless articulation on the repeated chords that culminate the solo.
December 7th, 2024 at 20:41“Hush” was a fantastic way for the new group to introduce themselves to the world. A record that explodes out of the speakers, all five guys giving it 100%.
Not surprising that Popoff doesn’t rate it. He has a decided preference for slick, AOR-type, extremely polished hard rock.
In his book “Riff Kills Man: 25 Years Of Recorded Rock And Heavy Metal”, he gave the MKI albums 0 out of ten.
“Machine Head”, more justly, got a 9… But, bizarrely, was outranked by “Perfect Strangers” and “HOBL” which both got a 10!
No accounting for taste.
Fortunate for those who don’t like the “na na na” that the Joe South song DP recorded wasn’t the even more vocable-heavy “Games People Play”.
December 7th, 2024 at 23:32I have to come up to the defense of Martin Popoff who generally knows his music well, is sometimes a little contrarian, but certainly entitled to have his own taste too.
Great thanks for the article which was a treat and really dug deep, Herr MacGregor!
It’s the first time I have ever really concentrated on the Billy Joe Royal rendition and I must say that it beats to me both the Purple version (except for the organ parts of course) and the Joe South one. Billy sounds blacker, the song altogether more gospel music/RnB, I also think that the guitar grooves more. Purple’s take sounds less lively, more stately and especially Rod wasn’t really the singer to pull that number off credibly. Not Ian Gillan either, but as I mentioned before DC/GH could have really done it justice in a sort of Sam & Dave treatment.
I also don’t find the Purple version a radical deviation from Royal’s original, the trademark rhythm was already there with him too. What Purple did is certainly not a complete reinvention like Vanilla Fudge – that great Mk I role model – did with The Supremes’ You Keep Me Hanging On.
https://youtu.be/IjXiRN4I434
https://youtu.be/NCwzCQcjC0M
Anyway, I’m not denying that the song was pivotal for Purple’s career, is extremely hummable, can move butts, has its fans and even enjoys a certain longevity in unexpected Brit Pop circles:
https://youtu.be/gsdjZi0CIjU
(Kula Shaker’s version – not that far removed from Purple’s either – reached #2 in the UK Charts in 1997!)
When Mk VII first started playing Hush again (at the instigation of Steve Morse who couldn’t believe that they hitherto didn’t, at least not on a regular basis), I welcomed it as a breath of fresh air though a novelty number; by now it has grown a little long in the tooth as an encore, but of course it’s one of their major hits. Personally, I prefer the likewise 60s-infused Hallelujah as a song (which is also musically more diverse), but that is just me.
The article has also revealed to me the explanation for an anomaly that has long bothered me: Hush by DP wasn’t a hit in Germany, that general happy hunting ground for all things Purple. What I had not known was that Royal’s version had charted in Germany only a year before in 1967 so that Purple’s cover in 1968 came too early to climb the German charts anew. Hush has never been the Mk I track that German radio played the most, that honor fell to the somber ‘April Part 1’ which would even get played on religious commemoration days with its cathedral-feel and Ennio Morricone choirs in the background. 😂
Finally, re Mk II’s belated attempt to re-record Hush in 1988, I remember a Roger Glover interview from then where he said that the band spent two days in the studio trying to come up with an alternative arrangement, but failed and in frustration then reverted to recording pretty much a carbon copy of the original arrangement, which might explain why it doesn’t sound hugely inspired.
To end this post on an agreeable note for all you Hush fans, I did kinda like the rendition of the song the Mk II gave in their mini-set at the RAH in 1969 just before the real Concerto (first released with the ‘Powerhouse’ barrel scrapings album in 1977):
https://youtu.be/MddxgJwLEbQ
Sister Karin especially should give that version a close listen as Big Ian channels his inner Elvis on it!
December 8th, 2024 at 07:09@ 11 & 14 – thanks for the heads up on that 1988 version of Hush as I have never heard that before. A real ‘ear’ opener that was, a bit uninspired sounding it is & not surprising with relationships in the band at tender hooks by then, particularly between Blackmore & Gillan. It makes me wonder why they did that alternative ‘new’ version at all. I remember the live version released on the Powerhouse album. Very Elvis like is Mr Gillan & he also had a little bit of Rod Evans in his voice to my ears, in a good way. Cheers.
December 8th, 2024 at 11:39@14
“ as Big Ian channels his inner Elvis on it!”
No he does not 😝😄
December 8th, 2024 at 11:55Like any DP fan. I started listening to the In Rock album. Later I went back to the beginning of 68/69. The first three DP albums psychedelic, progressive, British rhythm and blues have a lot of nice moments and indicate the potential that the band will soon fulfill, THERE are nice covers and original works from “Hey Joe”, “April”, “Lalena,” “Anthem” (the most beautiful piece of pop music ever sung by a hard rock band). The song Hush is a classic DP and I can’t imagine it not being on a DP concert setlist, who wouldn’t be moved by that bass line and Hammond solo with an infectious chorus!!???? .So when the band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, played with the inevitable SOTW they performed Hush, also in Canada at Live 8 in Barrie’s Molson Park on the 2nd July, with the time limit that the band had with SOTW and Highway Star they performed Hush.
December 8th, 2024 at 12:44How important and popular was that song. The band made, but this time, its author’s atmospherically similar song on the next album, the song “The Painter”. For me, Jon Lord’s best solo, surpassed even Ritchie’s solo, the exciting drumming of little Ian and the great voice of Rod Evans
My dear friends 😃
https://youtu.be/MRtTSzU6OB8?si=wUB7NZZsZgTos7_a
To listen to Madame Edith is just like listening to Elvis Presley 😆
Please remove the cheese from your ears and listen carefully to the amazing Ian Gillan! I do understand that with all the cheese in your ears you can mistakenly think that EP, the butter-tenor above all, had some influence on Ian G!
HE HAD NOT! 🤣
Ian G is a genius, a one of a kind singer, the very best of the ALL!
December 8th, 2024 at 15:53@16: He does sehr wohl, you stubborn heks! 😂
December 8th, 2024 at 17:52The Mark I DP has a sort of innocence about it, not trying to be too heavy etc. It is what it is & it remains a favourite DP of mine above many other era’s. Regarding Ian Gillan & his early output vocally, he does have Elvis stamped all over his singing. I am NOT an Elvis fan at all & will always look at him as over rated etc. But The 1960’s era Ian Gillan seems to be ‘possessed’ by him in certain aspects & that is not such a bad thing to my ears. Cheers.
December 8th, 2024 at 20:16You CANNOT really reason with women if they FEEL that something OUGHT to be different. Karin doesn’t want Ian Gillan to be influenced by Elvis und that is that. She doesn’t want to hear the “butter” in especially a young IG’s voice.
It’s a bit as if I started to deny Simon’s Gary Moore influence just because I don’t like Gary Moore. Doesn’t change the fact that Simon’s playing has GM written all over it. I will have to continue to like Simon accepting Gary Moore’s influence on him, tough luck.
And Karin, I don’t get the comparison to Madame Edith, are you trying to insinuate that Elvis who was recognized for excellent pitch sang a lot of bum notes? I think empirical evidence for that is scarce. We unterstand that you can’t allow IG to be influenced by him, but don’t insult the King as a technically bad singer, he was the exact opposite.
December 9th, 2024 at 00:06Really, only crap musicians like Jeff Lynne (or Shakin’ Stevens) admit to being influenced by Elvis:
https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/jeff-lynne-walk-of-fame-elvis-tour-6545992/
QUOTE
Interviewer: Were you always such a student of music?
JL: I suppose. I didn’t know if I should be a drummer or a guitar player so I had this plastic Elvis guitar with the one string, that I found in somebody else’s closet by the way, and also my older sister used to have all of Elvis’ records. Whenever everybody was out I’d put the records on and play drums to them on a piano stool. So that was how I learned those songs, just by banging to [them] and pretending I was in the group. I suppose like everybody does really, but I think that’s what happened. I suppose I was learning all the while then by just about how the structure is; when you stop, when you start again, simple stuff.
Interviewer: Do you remember the first Elvis song that you played drums to?
JL: I can’t because she used to have Elvis’ greatest hits — 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can’t Be Wrong, that was a great album.
Interviewer: Is there a favorite Elvis song today?
JL: I think my favorite Elvis one is probably “Anyway You Want Me.” My favorite recording, it’s only bass, drums, piano and a guitar, but it sounds enormous when it comes out of the speakers. Whoever recorded that, brilliant.
UNQUOTE
https://youtu.be/nAL3IOV0kF0
December 9th, 2024 at 00:32I don’t hear no Elvis influence with Big Ian. Not at all. Do you?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KSv25ZWSlM&pp=ygUdSWFuIGdpbGxhbiBhbnl3YXkgeW91IHdhbnQgbWU%3D
That’s like saying George Clooney patterned himself after Cary Grant, nothing could be further from the truth!
https://images.app.goo.gl/9zM3aaRMJew3QCVs5
December 9th, 2024 at 00:50@20
“ I am NOT an Elvis fan at all & will always look at him as over rated etc”
I second that MacGregor!🥰
Can we agree that EP was a genuine cheese-tenor 😄
Sorry I simply cannot hear any influence from that American singer in Mr Gillan! Not that I haven’t tried, I just can’t.
December 9th, 2024 at 05:18@21
🤣🤣🤣
“ And Karin, I don’t get the comparison to Madame Edith, are you trying to insinuate that Elvis who was recognized for excellent pitch sang a lot of bum notes? I think empirical evidence for that is scarce. We unterstand that you can’t allow IG to be influenced by him, but don’t insult the King as a technically bad singer, he was the exact opposite.”
Noooo that’s not what I’m implying!
What I am saying is this:
Compared to Ian Gillan, EP sounds a lot like Madame Edith from the hilarious sitcom Allo Allo!
I know a lot of you thinks EP is a marvellous singer, and I’m at peace with that!
But compared to Ian Gillan, EP, to me, is mediocre.
Ian Gillan had and has a wonderful soulful voice, very versatile!
Whereas, in my humble opinion, EP got famous for wiggling his hips and sounded so out of date, already when he was alive.
And please think about this: IF Elvis Aron Presley hadn’t been handsome and was wiggling his hips like a crazy man, would anyone ever had given him a second listening?
If he looked like Paul Potts (before he got his teeth fixed, which I found so sad, he was really charming before that) would EP had reached the “stars”?
Now listen to this:
https://youtu.be/3IrGLvkqUDM?si=teRXMIFTrWN9561w
Ian Gillan can do so much with his voice!
I just can’t see EP in front of Black Sabbath f.e – but Ian G did that!
Besides being a very gentle singer, Dreamcatcher!, he could scream his heart out, so that everyone listening was moved to tears!
https://youtu.be/OorZcOzNcgE?si=CAH82L49HJlMFVVf
You can’t deny that!?!
EP on the other hand… well ok, I don’t go there again, you know my feelings in that area 😄
And I’ll meet you halfway and admit that maybe every singer in that EP-period couldn’t help themselves trying to lean against his vocal, but oh man Ian Gillan was and is so much more!
Is that such a bad thing?
And please notice that I NEVER respond to your countless insults regarding my womanhood, because I know insults comes around when you know in your heart and mind you’re beaten 🤗😘
December 9th, 2024 at 07:44@22
Thanks so very much 😍
You remind me of my dear brothers here!
They also always insulted Jeff Lynne when they were out of a proper response and intelligent reasoning 😂😂
And doesn’t it speak volume that a “crap musician” – as you name Jeff Lynne – also admits he leaned very heavily towards EP? 😆🤣
I hope you will have a lovely day filled with yummy coffee and a big smile on your face (I know I will 😄)
December 9th, 2024 at 07:49@23
I’m really getting you on your toes, aren’t I? 😂😂
Oh yeah Cary Grant!
Well I have always preferred this guy
https://youtu.be/06RlwN0nddQ?si=tB70mWa8HBObRaIP
But we won’t let that be an argument 😁 (when there are so many other fun ones 😃)
December 9th, 2024 at 07:53But Karin, why did IG cover those Elvis tunes?
4 of them, if I remember correctly: Any way you want me, Trying to get to you, Ain’t that loving you baby and – above them all – the mighty Trouble.
December 9th, 2024 at 09:50Elvis was actually a baritone but could sing up in the tenor range when he wanted to, and had great pitch. His career is patchy due to being badly managed by Tom Parker, but from 54-62 and 68-72 he was in great form vocally. He was the first rock star and a tragic figure. His voice got me interested in music, and while Purple are my favourite Elvis will always be a big deal to me, his influence on music, and culture is massive, he’s unfortunately been reduced by bad impersonators to merely a fat guy in a jumpsuit when he was so much more than that. Still, we can’t all like the same things, otherwise it would be a very dull world.
December 9th, 2024 at 11:15DEEP PURPLE Frontman: ELVIS PRESLEY ‘Was The Greatest Singer That Ever Lived’
January 3, 2007
Play the Latest Hits
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DEEP PURPLE frontman Ian Gillan recently spoke to Classic Rock magazine (web site) for its latest issue in which the stars of rock (plus some assorted rock-loving comedians, sportmen, MPs and other riff raff) nominate their “rock icons.” The following is Gillan’s explanation for why Elvis Presley belongs on the list:
“I lost interest in Elvis Presley after he made the ‘Blue Hawaii’ film [in 1961] and went to Las Vegas, but in his prime nobody could touch him.
“Michael Parkinson once asked the famous New Zealand soprano Kiri Te Kanawa about the greatest voice she’d ever heard, probably expecting her to name [Luciano] Pavarotti or Maria Callas, but she said, ‘The young Elvis Presley, without any doubt.’
“Elvis’s voice was unique. Like so many others, he had natural, technical ability, but there was something in the humanity of his voice, and his delivery. He was very influenced by Southern blues, and he helped to prove that you could have this bizarre mixture of country ‘n’ western, blues and folk music. Recordings were very honest in those days, and they stand up remarkably well.
“I was an avid collector of Elvis’ early stuff; for a young singer he was an absolute inspiration. I soaked up what he did like blotting paper. It’s the same as being in school — you learn by copying the maestro. His personality was also extremely endearing. The shaking of his hips was deemed sensational back then, but unlike Little Richard or Chuck Berry, his interviews were very self-effacing. He came over as gentle and was generous in his praise of others.
“It was immaterial to me that Elvis didn’t write his own songs. Those were very different days, and he selected whatever suited him best from material supplied by publishing houses and teams of writers — all of whom were extremely conscious of his style of delivery.
“Although he appeared in some awful movies, Elvis could also be pretty damn good as an actor. ‘Love Me Tender’ [1956] and ‘Jailhouse Rock’ [1957] were both really good but ‘King Creole’ [1958] was my all-time favourite. Gradually, though, his youthful vigour and uninhibited style began to ebb away. For me, he sang the last time in the movie ‘GI Blues’ [1960].
“Along with the rest of DEEP PURPLE I once had the chance to meet Elvis. The rest of the guys went along, but I couldn’t stand seeing my hero after he’d changed so much. Those early records are still incredible, though. They can re-mix them and make them hits for the younger generation, and Elvis will always be the King. The reason is simple: He was the greatest singer that ever lived.”
https://blabbermouth.net/news/deep-purple-frontman-elvis-presley-was-the-greatest-singer-that-ever-lived
Gillan covering Trouble is enough to hint of an Elvis influence
December 9th, 2024 at 12:41The woman is stubborn in her resistance. Back in the good ole medieval days, there would have of course been a plethora of means and methods to dislodge such obdurate refusal of enlightenment and realignment with faith.
I guess, liebe Karin, you and that guy Ian Gillan simply will then have to disagree on how pivotal Elvis was for him. What does he know about what moved and inspired him as a teenager, your ears just have to know better.
https://blabbermouth.net/news/deep-purple-frontman-elvis-presley-was-the-greatest-singer-that-ever-lived
IAN GILLAN:
“Elvis’ voice was unique. Like so many others, he had natural, technical ability, but there was something in the humanity of his voice, and his delivery. He was very influenced by Southern blues, and he helped to prove that you could have this bizarre mixture of country ‘n’ western, blues and folk music. Recordings were very honest in those days, and they stand up remarkably well.
I was an avid collector of Elvis’ early stuff; for a young singer he was an absolute inspiration. I soaked up what he did like blotting paper. It’s the same as being in school — you learn by copying the maestro. His personality was also extremely endearing. The shaking of his hips was deemed sensational back then, but unlike Little Richard or Chuck Berry, his interviews were very self-effacing. He came over as gentle and was generous in his praise of others.”
***************************************************************************
@24: “Sorry I simply cannot hear any influence from that American singer in Mr Gillan! Not that I haven’t tried, I just can’t.”
Not even here, between 01:31 and 01:53? Seriously?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrSq4oZKYak
In that case, the human mind’s power to negate reality is indeed boundless.
🙉 🙈 🙊
December 9th, 2024 at 14:44@28
Well Max, I don’t know!
Maybe he felt sorry for the soon to be forgotten singer 😁
Or maybe he wanted to make sure that in 2024 and ongoing there would be topics on thehighwaystar to be discussed 😃
You must admit we’re having fun here (I know I am 🤣)
December 9th, 2024 at 16:48@29
December 9th, 2024 at 16:50You got it RB! It would certainly be a very dull world if we always had to agree on everything! 🥰
@30
Robin, thanks so much for letting me read that again, Uwe copied it in here some time ago, but it’s always fun!
I always giggle at this:
“ I lost interest in Elvis Presley after he made the ‘Blue Hawaii’ film [in 1961] and went to Las Vegas, but in his prime nobody could touch him.”
And I promise you, I am having fun here 😂
December 9th, 2024 at 16:52@31
In Danish we have a saying: du er for nem !
Sorry Uwe, I just mixed something up here, let me explain:
No I don’t deny that Ian Gillan once was inspired by the cheese-baryton/tenor!
How can I with the heavy burden of evidence you all are giving here?
What I really, honestly in my heart think is this (now listen carefully, I shall say this only once 😉):
I think that Ian Gillan sounded and sounds WAY WAY WAY better than EP!
I guess you’re right that on some point Ian G looked up to the American singer, but as Robin showed in his post, Ian lost interest after ‘61!
EP doesn’t move me at all!
December 9th, 2024 at 17:00Ian Gillan has the most wonderful voice, always had, always will have, and in many years from now, it will forever be Ian Gillan I will listen to!
For me EP was a footnote, nothing to care about actually.
Ian Gillan on the other hand has made so much touching, wonderful singing, that have moved my heart and mind beyond what I thought was possible!
Ok? Ok!
@31
“ Not even here, between 01:31 and 01:53? Seriously?”
No really not!
I let René listen to it, and he is really good at spotting influences, and when he asked me: “who should Ian Gillan sound like here” and I replied “well Elvis Presley”, he just laughed!
December 9th, 2024 at 18:38🤔
And seriously I’m not making fun now, do you honestly think that Ian G sounds like EP here?
“Whereas, in my humble opinion, EP got famous for wiggling his hips and sounded so out of date, already when he was alive.”
Karin, excuse me, but you have no idea how singers sounded BEFORE Elvis came over the radio in the early to mid 50s, his voice was a revolutionary revelation back then. He had black elements in his voice, sang in a different rhythm and had an androgynous look, his breathy vocals were deemed sexually alluring and sensual to the point of being vilified as obscene and youth-endangering;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eNH-74FnyI
he broke all molds known for a male white singer hitherto. His vocal style was so completely different and new in the 50s, that he was severely attacked by then already established artists like Frank Sinatra as simply a passing fad and “not a real singer”.
“And doesn’t it speak volumes that a “crap musician” – as you name Jeff Lynne – also admits he leaned very heavily towards EP?”
It does. I was being ironic –> “showing that you really mean the opposite of what you are saying”, I appreciate Jeff Lynne (and own all his solo albums plus all ELO albums). Unfortunately, the HS site doesn’t offer italics for posting so that I could have followed the old publishers’ rule
“irony always in italics, so that readers may recognize it”.
I was attempting to nudge you into the direction that it is somewhat … let’s say ironic! … that artists you seem to especially like such as IG, Jeff Lynne and, dare I say, Shakin’ Stevens are all dyed-in-the-wool Elvis fans, yet you discard him as someone who only got to where he is via shaking his hips (which by the way, you could not see him doing when his voice came over the radio – in the 50s TVs were still rare and moreover early TV shots of Elvis did not show the lower part of his body because his hip work was deemed offensive).
“And please think about this: IF Elvis Aron Presley hadn’t been handsome and was wiggling his hips like a crazy man, would anyone ever had given him a second listening?”
I am thinking about this deeply and ask a profound return question: You think that Ian Gillan would have ever been asked to audition for Purple had he been fat and looked like the Hunchback of Notre Dame? Blackmore is on record for saying that Ian’s looks played a role in him getting the job, it’s showbiz after all, and Blackmore was always concerned about visuals, he was himself a vain and image-conscious man.
Both Elvis and Ian Gillan were handsome and photogenic in their respective eras and that helped their success no doubt, but it doesn’t diminish their vocal talent.
Finally, comparing a performance of Child In Time from 1970 against Elvis is hilarious: When Elvis had his first hits on the radio in the early 50s, a song like Child In Time would have been banned and/or met incredulity by radio people and listeners. Already what Elvis did was pushing the envelope and many radio stations refused to play his records.
The point, however, is: Without Elvis, we wouldn’t even have gotten to Child In Time. Elvis’ success opened the doors for black falsetto shriekers like Little Richard into the world of white radio and Little Richard in turn not only inspired Ian Gillan, but also Arthur Brown who then impressed Ian (as he himself has admitted) to incorporate screaming into his vocal style. IT ALL COMES FROM SOMEWHERE, KARIN!
That is not to say that Ian Gillan is an Elvis impersonator or copycat, he is so much more; of course he developed his own style. But holding that Big Ian is an awesome vocalist and Elvis somehow laughable reminds me of calling an omelette your favorite food, yet finding eggs repulsive and to be dispensed with. Or saying that you like birds, but finding reptiles gross, without giving thought to the evolutionary fact that birds and reptiles by their shared biological features like construction of lungs and heart are today still closer related to another than either (i) mammals and birds with another, or (ii) reptiles and amphibians with each other. Feathers are modified scales.
You don’t have to like Elvis’ style and singing voice, you can also say that the 50s are a time too remote for you to identify with or in any form appreciate, that is all fine, but there is no need to denigrate his role in the development of popular music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt7Akjzkc54
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N81IktPflsA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tiBYUzRLmI
December 9th, 2024 at 19:47Yes, right down to the ‘uh-huh-huh’ which Marc Bolan also copped off Elvis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGx7nrjn0ic
So much Glam Rock owed a heavy debt to Elvis:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_yljTntHyk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UW6EIJI8nw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LL0xUq_eBMo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_59VTEpn2U
It was in fact an accusation often lobbied against Glam Rock by critics in the 70s: That it was a music looking backward not forward and that it was just an archaic blueprint of 50s rock’n’roll and its theatrics.
Even 80s hit ‘I’m On Fire” by Bruce Springsteen (not a Glam Rocker!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrpXArn3hII
was originally intended for Elvis (Springsteen wrote it for him, but Elvis’ unexpected death curtailed any attempts to get it recorded in a releasable form), it would have likely sounded something like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6Rb-C6ZNzI
And this is another Elvis-type number from the 80ies:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClxXDfvtoj0
Billy Idol was yet another Elvis fan (and not just on the basis of his crooked smile)
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSXzFfwLyTl7DSxkMv_iVK-4bp-Hmwb0Qn7ng&s
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSHfa-QT5Iy8koJWCCU5lXSpNgeOut-6OU9Fbz-eLrrrBZ3xALtNB95v25_27MH2QijL5g&usqp=CAU
and is today the proud owner of one of Elvis’ guitars.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQtXuO5_knjJwEuZ3ox9A1PffkUwf0JIuDi8qplWhRBWtwlVHQYfqZosHgAiooMUlFSzys&usqp=CAU
December 9th, 2024 at 20:45I prefer Ian Gillan’s voice to Elvis’ too, but then I was born 1960, not 1945 or 1950. But calling him ‘a footnote, nothing to care about actually’ in popular music is an incendiary statement by our favorite Danish heks!
https://i.giphy.com/AbJC05Hi2kv4c.webp
December 9th, 2024 at 20:56@37
“ Karin, excuse me, but you have no idea how singers sounded BEFORE Elvis came over the radio in the early to mid 50s, his voice was a revolutionary revelation back then. ”
Yes I do know! I was fed up with that kind of music when I was an innocent little girl, and had no saying what-so-ever of what was played in our house!
Maybe that’s why I am taken revenge big time 😝😄
“I was being ironic –> “showing that you really mean the opposite of what you are saying”” <- ohhh that’s what ironic means! Thank you very much 😉☺️ I learn new stuff every single time I’m in here😇
“ Without Elvis, we wouldn’t even have gotten to Child In Time.” <- ok, I don’t deny that! But it doesn’t have to mean that I love EP’s voice, because I don’t…
On the other hand, without Mozart, Bach and Tchaicovsky we wouldn’t have the schmaltz! And without that…. And so on and so forth!
“ You think that Ian Gillan would have ever been asked to audition for Purple had he been fat and looked like the Hunchback of Notre Dame?”
🤣🤣 I’m too bashful to answer that question!!
On the other hand I have never denied EP was very alluring to the young girls! But that alone doesn’t make his voice better!
And actually, Ian Gillan is a very, VERY handsome man, no doubt about that, but as I have said before: he could look like a gnome with that voice, and I would still prefer his singing to everyone else’s!
@39
“ But calling him ‘a footnote, nothing to care about actually’ in popular music is an incendiary statement by our favorite Danish heks!”
Well I was bored and needed to spice things up a bit! 😅😅
Can we come to a conclusion?
December 9th, 2024 at 22:33EP made some music, a lot of you like his voice, that’s fine by me 😃
Ian Gillan is a marvellous singer, and songwriter, and I truly appreciate his voice, and I honestly can’t stand EP, is that ok?
Many Elvis fans would say he was at his vocal peak from 1960-65, following his army stint. During which he worked with a vocal coach and extended his range significantly.
English rockers of a certain age all seem to be unanimous in preferring his 50s records though. Perhaps due to the material, and the then new-ness of the rock’n’roll sound, as much as the singing.
It’s true that after the army, he never again sang with the same bluesy rasp heard in “Jailhouse Rock” or “One Night”.
Remarkable that even at the very end, when he was in visibly poor health, his voice was anything but frail.
December 10th, 2024 at 00:47Including this well-known example, where he decided to deviate from the setlist and sing “Unchained Melody”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfnZbjFPSrU
Karin, I’m Catholic and therefore able to grant absolution, you are free to dislike Elvis’ voice! There are people who can’t stand Bob Dylan’s voice (even when he is hitting notes correctly) and others who have issues with Joan Baez’ singing. I never really liked Dennis De Young’s (Styx), Kevin Cronin’s (REO Speedwagon), James LaBrie’s (Dream Theater) or Steve Hogarth’s (Marillion) voices either, it’s like a certain type of spice or herb you don’t like, it’s not their fault that I have issues with it and they are technically all fine singers of course. Hell, I don’t even really like Robert Plant’s various vocal tones and he is of course a brilliant singer who has influenced legions of other singers, more so than anybody who ever sang with Purple.
Liking Elvis’ tone and vocal mannerisms is a matter of taste, his place in the history of pop music and in opening a pathway for black music into the white world a historical fact.
December 10th, 2024 at 08:23That is pretty painful seeing Elvis like that in 1977, I couldn’t finish watching it. He really was ‘caught in a trap’ with all the bullshit expectations put on him. One of the most negative things certain people can do to others. Some of the earlier 70’s performances are good though, I like him a bit radical, not as smooth & clean cut like in the really early days. Sorry Karin, Uwe has done it again, he has lured me to the ‘other side’. Just joking. Seriously though that band he had then was superb, Ronnie Tutt on drums, say no more. James Burton on guitar, Jerry Scheff on bass guitar & Glenn Hardin on keyboards. I have the Roy Orbison and Friends ‘A Black & White Night’ concert from 1987 on dvd & the TCB Elvis band is the backing band there for Roy. Not to mention the other stellar ‘all stars’ in the band, many well known musicians. A fantastic performance from all on that. Have to love some of the old rock’ n roll from the other side of the pond. Cheers.
December 10th, 2024 at 09:04David St Hubbins and Nigel Tufnel loved Elvis. To me, this is the ultimate testament to his vocal ability and charisma. Whatever these guys love, I love, too.
December 10th, 2024 at 09:16Oh my, Skippy, that Elvis link is heart- and gut-wrenching, he was visibly falling apart as he stuttered and stumbled on stage, but that voice could still muster emotion and pack a punch. But even his backing band musicians look worried.
The love affair many British rockers had with early Elvis was also in part due to his arrival bookmarking the end of the dreary and somber immediate post-war times (which in the UK lasted longer than in most other places). Elvis began to make waves in the UK just as food rationing there ended. The kid from Memphis was a harbinger of a new era.
December 10th, 2024 at 09:23@42
So – all in all we’re agreeing that you’re allowed to like the musicians and vocalists you prefer, but when I’m making innocent remarks about my feelings towards the butter-tenor above them all, then suddenly I’m a “you stubborn heks! 😂”!
Ok now you’ve mentioned several times about your religious affiliations, and I’m afraid I don’t know much about the catholic religion and culture, but are you influenced by the Roman-catholic church when you throw these allegations towards me?
Well let’s not go into that, as Ian G sings: “Vavoom” – ohh sorry wrong line, I meant this one:“I won’t discuss religion it always causes a fight” 😄😄
“ his place in the history of pop music and in opening a pathway for black music into the white world a historical fact.” <- sweetie, I have never denied that! Not at all! NOT AT ALL!
What I have said is that for me EP is nothing more that a mediocre hip-swinging guy who may or may not have sung in a manner that made a lot of younger boys standing in front of their mirror with a hairbrush in their hands and imitating him!
On the other hand, when I listen to Deep Purple, Georgia Satellites and bands like that, I’m pretty sure rock’n’roll would have found it’s own pathway, EP or no EP!
It was a natural development!
I read once that when Beethoven and later on Tchaikovsky, made their wonderful music, a lot of people thought the world was going under!
Or in good old Danish: verden er af lave ☺️😉
Maybe EP was the key figure, I really don’t know, but I do know that sooner or later rock would have surfaced.
And last but not least:
December 10th, 2024 at 09:37As you’re entitled to have your own very well-founded opinions, so am I!
And no, I’m not a witch! According to René I’m really sweet, funny and a very good coffeemaker 😄
But I really enjoy our bantering in here 🥰🤩
@43
Oh it sure was sad MacGregor 😞
I can understand of all – ALL – the magnificent info I get in here, that EP wasn’t to decide for himself, and that is the most sad of it all 🥺
Who knows how he had turned out hadn’t he been the first to shock the masses with his “dangerous” moves and songs?
I guess Bill Haley and his comets weren’t so difficult to digest as EP was later on? I don’t know, wasn’t born yet ☺️
“ Sorry Karin, Uwe has done it again, he has lured me to the ‘other side’” that’s ok sweetie, Uwe has a certain way of manipulating our minds 😂 🤣😆 (sorry didn’t mean that Uwe! Or yes I did 😄)
I just know when I hear Ian Gillan sing “Gypsy’s kiss” I almost am ready to forgive EP for being a nuisance if it really indeed was his doings that made that band (Deep Purple), that siger (Ian Gillan) and that song (Gypsy’s kiss) available for me to enjoy immensely 😍😍😍
December 10th, 2024 at 09:48@45
Not to re-manipulate you my dear southern-neighbour, but take a listen to this:
https://youtu.be/UNacKTzsTw0?si=DAUEbh7hFt4cK9tC
Isn’t that way better than anything the American crooner ever made?
December 10th, 2024 at 09:53I think so too (see what I did there? Manipulated you gently to think like I do 😆)
@42
Hey I forgot something!
You mention Bob Dylan among other singers, and then it suddenly dawned on me:
What I love most about a singer is actually his, or her, personality!
If a singer is able to make fun about himself, has this lovely self-ironic attitude and don’t think he is way too important to breath the same air as the rest of us, then he can actually sing like Bob and I will enjoy it immensely anyway!
But – if he is very well aware of his own importance and very full of himself, then he can be the best singer in the world, and I will still get the creeps!
Ian Gillan comes around as this funny guy who doesn’t think he is larger than life! That, along with his magnificent and wonderful voice, makes me completely devoted to his performance!
And where do I detect that about Ian G, you might wonder, I’ll tell you immediately: from the lyrics in his songs! To me the lyrics are as important as the melody, and a person can’t be an uptight selfish “…” (<- insert your own phrase here) and write lyrics like that!
Whereas another singer, who shall remain nameless, (well ok it’s the butter tenor 😉) to me he seemed to be too absorbed into his own being!
December 10th, 2024 at 10:44I might be wrong! I don’t know! Maybe he actually once in a while said to Priscilla: alright darling, get some coffee and read the paper while I vacuum and make dinner, but somehow I really can’t get that picture in my mind ☺️
Can you?
As late as 1954, parts of Liverpool looked like this:
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/24/12/55746647-10647621-image-a-17_1648124461872.jpg
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/24/12/55747969-10647621-image-m-38_1648125459720.jpg
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10647621/Back-1950s-UK-faces-return-living-standards-not-seen-70-years.html
The UK hadn’t suffered under German bombing as much as vice versa (for the very simple reason that the Luftwaffe was never really designed as a strategic long range air force, but as a tactical “flying artillery” accompanying Wehrmacht ground troops from the air), but for a multitude of reasons, British reconstruction took quite a bit longer than the German post-war “Wiederaufbau”. That all has to be counted in for Elvis’ cultural significance at the time, he was what we nowadays call a game-changer.
The UK Charts of the early 50s before the advent of Elvis were populated by stuff like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9H0YMtyCcM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOHGWjWUl9Q
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–j7wvtOi1s
If you were a teenager in the UK in the early 50s, the stifling anti-youth climate must have driven you mad.
And then this guy appeared out of nowhere:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXiX3cl03DE
It really must have felt as a cry of cultural liberation similar to seeing this motley crew of skilled musicians in 1976 …
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emVigxNJhjA
December 10th, 2024 at 11:50@50
Thanks for the article 👍🏼
Aww who could forget Tommy Steele!
Of course I get the historical background, and no, born in ‘67 I wasn’t too influenced by the postwar conundrum (as it seemed to be, not living in and through it) but I did also get the feeling of freedom, thus personalised by the hippies!
Just still saying this: EAP or no EAP, rock’n’roll would have happened eventually! 😊
December 10th, 2024 at 21:12Ritchie often mentions James Burton & his guitar prowess along with Scotty Moore & Buddy Holly etc. A much sort after guitarists is Burton and very much respected. I also have him on the John Denver DVD Wildlife concert, he worked with Denver for many years. Rock ‘ roll, rockabilly, country, it all has it’s place.
December 10th, 2024 at 21:21@ 47 – “ Sorry Karin, Uwe has done it again, he has lured me to the ‘other side’” that’s ok sweetie, Uwe has a certain way of manipulating our minds 😂 🤣😆 (sorry didn’t mean that Uwe! Or yes I did 😄)” Well Uwe is a lawyer as we know Karin, so whoever let him into this building we will never know, he he he. Still we all have our own minds & ‘never the twain shall meet’. Elvis has left the building. Cheers.
Karin, I know all about witches. I had one in my family. Back in the bad old Nazi times when an all-‘Aryan’ genealogy was deemed important, my mother like the rest from her class had to research her ancestors on the basis of church baptism records etc going all the way back to the Middle Ages. Anyway, what she found was that one of our female ancestors was one of the last witches burned on the market place in my home town of Dieburg. (Of course, in the twisted world of the Nazis that was something to be proud of, Himmler had a penchant for the occult and saw witches as part of authentic Germanic paganism that should eventually retake the place of Christianity in the ‘Tausendjähriges Reich’.)
So be nice to me, you dune dweller, or I might cast a spell!
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/cf/2b/51/cf2b5173224aa824bed968e65fef09a0.gif
We still have the ‘Hexenturm’, we’ve kept in good shape, just in case!
http://waterclerk-on-tour.de/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Dieburg-32-230910-14.40-burg-dieburg-schloss-albini-08-1.jpg
When I was a kid “Bewitched!”/”Verliebt in eine Hexe!” was amomg my favorite TV shows.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-HKzoB2ZLA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_-dCMfi1sU&t=192s
December 10th, 2024 at 22:54@49 – Karin, Priscilla didn’t have to vacuum or make dinner either! Theirs wasn’t necessarily the happiest marriage – both of them had their share of extra-curricular activities – but it was certainly an opulent lifestyle.
Was Elvis too absorbed into his own being? Can anyone say, who didn’t know him personally?
He was certainly dedicated to his art. Staying up all night to do thirty or more takes of a song until he was satisfied. Almost always in the room with the band, recording vocals at the same time. (With the exception of some of the quickie movie soundtracks, where he sang along with already-recorded backing tracks.)
And doing “Surrender” over and over again until he could nail a complete take, rather than punching in the difficult last line.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfAu5sEI57U
But offstage he was known to be considerate and kind. For example, paying poor Jackie Wilson’s medical bills after his tragic onstage collapse.
And when Charlie Rich was embarrassed at having botched the national anthem at a baseball game, with Elvis in the audience, E went up to him and complimented him on his bravery for accepting the gig. Saying that he wouldn’t have dared to try it, given the terrible acoustics at the stadium.
June Juanico’s memoir, “Elvis in the Twilight of Memory” tells a touching story of a visit Elvis made to a young fan in hospital. Etc, etc.
He was certainly responsive to feedback from people he respected. Songwriter Don Robertson – who invented the “slip-note” style of piano playing later popularised by Floyd Cramer – wrote many songs for Elvis. And told how after Elvis recorded “Love Me Tonight”, he took Don aside at a party to play it for him. Don said he loved the record, and Elvis was delighted. He played the record again, and it became a memory that Don always cherished: the two of them sitting in a quiet room listening to the music they’d both had a part in creating.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiQCWHMmLyA
Some might say that he was over-sensitive to other people’s opinions. More than one Elvis biography states that when he played Priscilla a song he had co-written, “You’ll Be Gone”, he was so dismayed by her negative reaction that he never tried to write again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gs1OUgjczAw
Whether we like Elvis’ music or not, whether or not rock’n’roll still would have happened without him…
December 11th, 2024 at 02:40Deep Purple wouldn’t have sounded the same without Elvis. His singing clearly influenced both Rod’s & Ian G’s vocal styles… His guitarist Scotty Moore’s work clearly influenced Blackmore’s playing… Titles of songs that he recorded appear in the lyrical pastiche of “Speed King”… DP even quote “Too Much” at the beginning of “Why Didn’t Rosemary”.
I cannot believe I forgot about Living Colour’s ‘Elvis is Dead’ song from the early 90’s. ‘A black man taught him how to sing”. A satirical look at the Elvis ‘phenomenon’ perhaps? Little Richard? Cheers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nvpRkn_R5g
December 11th, 2024 at 03:52@52
He certainly is MacGregor 😄
But I guess I’ve found a crack in his shield! Tell you more about it later when he is not listening 😉
And you’re completely right! EP has left the building for good! 👍🏼
December 11th, 2024 at 07:46@53
A real one Uwe??? 😳
Or was she merely a clever herbalist? Or did she invoked the dissatisfaction of influential people? Was she a beautiful woman and then other women hated her and had her removed?
In Denmark there have been several examples of women being harassed for being clever, unattainable, beautiful and herbalists 😰 women who didn’t submit to the supremacy of men! (or because of envious, jealous women)
How people have treated each other awful!
I did not know that about Himmler! I actually had the notion that Hitler und Co was under heavy influence from the Roman-Catholic church! As far as I remember the Pope himself blessed their wrong-doings.
Personally, I stay far away from flirting with the dark deeds!
Well I have a song in my head, this one:
https://youtu.be/qrSq4oZKYak?si=xPN2SxLH3hsY–cb
Oh it’s nice 😍 😍
December 11th, 2024 at 08:03I wonder why I haven’t heard it before, but maybe it was a bonus track I never got on the record I had?
Mr. MacGregor – no prejustice here concerning lawyers please!
Havn’t you heard that 99 % of all lawyers give all the rest a bad name?
December 11th, 2024 at 10:00@58
Aww Max 🤣🤣🤣 good one!
I do believe our very own lawyer in this house is belonging to the 1%!
December 11th, 2024 at 10:34@54
“ Theirs wasn’t necessarily the happiest marriage – both of them had their share of extra-curricular activities – but it was certainly an opulent lifestyle.” <- Skippy, I didn’t know that!
And I guess those “extra-curricular activities” didn’t involved learning another language or improving their cooking skills ☺️
Actually I don’t know anything about him! I know 2 things: he was a genuine butter-tenor, he died overweight, and he… wait a minute, I know three things about him (sorry am way too influenced by the hilarious “nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition” by my other heroes Monty Python 😂😂) oh wait the third thing is that apparently a lot of male singers were heavily influenced by him! (I’m told, actually im still not completely convinced 😉)
“ Some might say that he was over-sensitive to other people’s opinions.”
Yeah, I’ve guessed that much! People who tend to binge eat often have serious problems with their self esteem 😥 (either that or they starve themselves or suffer from bulimia 🥺)
“Deep Purple wouldn’t have sounded the same without Elvis. His singing clearly influenced both Rod’s & Ian G’s vocal styles.” <- you might be right there, no matter what it’s impossible to find out now!
When I listen to this:
https://youtu.be/H0sR9oYfcxc?si=kdcUh6TOLHGp65KY
I have to admit I don’t hear EP at all!
December 11th, 2024 at 10:57What I do hear is a young fun-loving Ian Gillan singing, heavily influenced by his time as a – ohh what’s the English word 🤔 sorry guys my mind is preoccupied with other things, what I mean is when he sang in a church choir (isn’t there a specific word for that?)
That’s what I hear! I’m pretty sure I will get tons of examples where you clever people can prove me wrong and I promise I listen to everything, but so far I haven’t found any proof 😊
Define “real one” for me, Karin, as regards “witch”? A lot of “witches” were simply midwifes who knew how to help women with births or abortions or spiritual women in tune with nature and herbal medicine, some of them with a pagan-naturalist background. All of that was a thorn in the eye of the Catholic Church and it retaliated accordingly. My assumption is that all “witches” murdered were innocent. And in modern times we have freedom of religion in any case, that includes Satanism and the occult (or denying the teachings of St. Elvis …), you’re free to worship how many goats you want
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyxrzUe_TDM
as long as you are not harming others.
***************************************************************************
Re opulence and Elvis: I’ve been to Graceland, I was expecting a huge and lavish mansion, but it wasn’t, more the modern 60s house of someone affluent, but not really stinking filthy rich. It had the air of economic saturation, but nothing Trumpian or David Coverdale’ian
https://www.tluxp.com/blog/lake-tahoe-real-estate-news/whitesnake-singer-selling-his-incline-village-estate
about it, it’s not really huge either, there are a lot of music rooms though.
As a person, Elvis was even a little shy and full of self-deprecating humor. Musicians in his various backing bands would never say a bad word about him. Unusual for the time and for someone from the South especially, he also didn’t have a racist bone in him. While not really a political person, he was in favor of Civil Rights and the black community adopted him early on, many black artists who were his contemporaries lauded him as a door opener and for giving them chances. And while they would pull their noses at people like Pat Boone and Bill Haley for sanetizing black RnB for their purposes (doing covers of songs by black artists), they viewed Elvis as authentic.
***************************************************************************
The Catholic Church supportive of Nazism? Not really. It didn’t speak loud enough against Nazism for sure (especially not the Vatican), but many Catholic priests were part of resistance movements in all European countries, including Germany. And while it is true that there is a certain antisemitism ingrained with Catholic teachings (“the Jews nailed Jesus to the cross”), things like eugenics which the Nazis so favored were totally anathema to the Church’s dogmas.
My hometown Dieburg was predominantly Catholic, in the last free vote before the Nazis took over, the Nazi Party only came out third however: well behind the center-right Zentrum (in the Weimar Republic the party of the Roman Catholics) and the center-left Social Democrats (back then predominantly Protestant). There was even a saying
“Dieburg was such a black hole (‘black’ being the color identified with the conservative Zentrum) that it didn’t even turn brown (‘brown’ being identified with the uniforms of the NSDAP)!” 😎
In general, the Nazis wanted to do away with organized Christian religion after the war; during the war there was an uneasy truce for tactical reasons, with the German Protestant Churches perhaps a little more Nazi-friendly (but there were many Protestant resistance fighters as well).
Hitler as an Austrian was born Roman Catholic as was Goebbels who came from the Rhineland, but they both became raging atheists as young men at the latest, Himmler’s religious beliefs were rooted in Germanic paganism and regularly scorned by both Hitler and Goebbels who thought it all superstitious hogwash.
After the war though, the Vatican played a rathervignominious role in helping former Nazis (who had all of the sudden and very conveniently rediscovered their original faith after Hitler shot himself) escape secretly to South America, the so-called ‘ratlines’/’Rattenlinien’.
Finally, in countries like Spain and Croatia, fascism and Roman Catholicism were indeed bedded together most of the time.
***************************************************************************
Rock’n’Roll Girls was a non-album B-side, later re-releases did include it on the album Naked Thunder though. It’s the number were Ian does an Elvis style middle section though you disagree!
***************************************************************************
Max, I knew the day would come when lawyer jokes would arrive here, let’s get the three best ones out of the way quickly:
“What do you call 100 lawyers chained and gagged at the bottom of the ocean?”
“A good start.”
______________________
The States of New York and New Jersey had a long argument about which one of them should accept more locations for toxic waste dumps and which one had to admit more lawyers for practice. Finally they decided to pull straws. New Jersey got lucky: It pulled the toxic waste dumps.”
______________________
“A cruise ship hosting a lawyers’ annual congress sinks unexpectedly in the Caribbean. The survivors on rafts are being circled by sharks and the predators take out one victim after another. Finally one of the non-lawyer survivors cries to the lawyers on their raft in despair: ‘Why the hell don’t you get attacked?!’ Quips one of the lawyers shrugging his shoulders: ‘Professional courtesy from colleagues!’ “
December 11th, 2024 at 17:58Post #666 in an undulating stream of juvenile posts with terrible double entendres:
“Priscilla didn’t have to vacuum …”
That sucks (or not), for Elvis I mean, he deserved better.
(I’m sorry, Herr MacGregor, I couldn’t resist, it just crawled out of me.)
December 11th, 2024 at 19:10@ 62 – apologise you should too Uwe, even I didn’t think of that one. You are getting worse old son, time for some ‘absolution’ me thinks. Say your prayers Uwe. Cheers.
December 11th, 2024 at 20:40@61
“ Define “real one” for me, Karin, as regards “witch””
Well according to their own perception of their doings!
I remember reading a book whereas some women did in fact commit themselves to the ‘dark one’, but if it was their way of scaring other citizens I don’t know. My comment was meant as this: women who were brilliant herbalists or very beautiful (and thus the target of envious women), compared to women (or men) who flirted heavily with the darker forces and admitted to do so.
“St. Elvis” – oohh my 😂🤣
“I’ve been to Graceland” <- then you really ought to visit Randers and this – among residents in Randers known as ‘DisGraceland’: (I didn’t made up that endearing nickname ☺️)
https://www.memphismansion.dk/
Thanks for the thoroughly detailed response regarding the Catholic Church and the nazis. A lot of that I did not know 😊
Regarding “Rock’n’roll girls: “It’s the number were Ian does an Elvis style middle section though you disagree!” <- ohh it’s a wonderful tune! And if you think of the “middle section”, 1.41 there is a vaguely “a-ha-ha”
that with great good will and ingenuity reminds a little of your King! The rest of the song? Not so much!
Especially Ian’s voice is amazing and way better than, well you know who 🤣
By the way, can’t we agree now that EP indeed has left the building and let him be?
I understand and appreciate your need to identify with EP, a lot of guys apparently need to have someone to look up to ☺️
In this song:
https://youtu.be/4C-QuE1Pbb8?si=bRMP_6xGWbIz2MYP
It’s obvious that Roger G and Steve Morse are singing backing vocals, but after have been listening very carefully in good headphones, I can only hear Ian G’s voice and not the two other gentlemen! Can you detect their voices?
So long from me, with the genuine wish that your hours may be filled with really good coffee and laughter (or at least a little smile now and then)
December 12th, 2024 at 07:06“compared to women (or men) who flirted heavily with the darker forces and admitted to do so …”
Out of prudence and precaution, the male working assumption about WIMMIN should ALWAYS be that they are ALL in league with the forces of darkness! 😂
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a5/ec/05/a5ec05e1edee09551ac34234118ad261.gif
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgomTOOgl8M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBtuk4JcYTs
Not that I mind, I always found the occult interesting from an anthropological view. And the Church of course used that whole witch persecution craze to subjugate women, perhaps because it feared (in the Middle Ages the Church was still wary of keeping an enduring position in society) a resurgence of paganism which they saw embodied in women’s quests to seek spirituality also outside of the Church manosphere. Paganism in contrast was often rooted in matriarchy. Nature is a woman/womb.
*************************************************************************
“It’s obvious that Roger G and Steve Morse are singing backing vocals, but after have been listening very carefully in good headphones, I can only hear Ian G’s voice and not the two other gentlemen! Can you detect their voices?”
Just barely, almost like an echo. But what I do hear is that Roger and Steve are once again off-key (as they nearly always were when singing backings on that song) which explains why the backing vocals track was turned down to almost inaudibility. Except when Glenn Hughes was in the band, DP has never had even halfway decent backing vocals, there was never someone in the band of the backing vocals caliber of, say, Bernie Marsden or Ken Hensley. Roger can carry a tune in the studio on his solo albums, but his background vocals live (also with Rainbow)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW8UQRqCXWE
(Listen to Roger off pitch at 04:45.)
were always iffy.
And Ian Gillan really doesn’t want people to sing along with him live, not with Purple, not with GILLAN and not with Sabbath. The Ian Gillan Band, which had good harmony vocals due to John Gustafson and Ray Fenwick, and the Naked Thunder Tour which featured a backing vocalist were exceptions to the rule. Which is a bit strange as both Ian and Roger came from Episode Six which was a dedicated harmony group.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jhqrle8QdWQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9MEu08Sz4
But no, DP were never Uriah Heep or Queen and never will. I’d say their backing vocals live are about as ‘good’ as Judas Priest’s, meaning not very good at all. 😁
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4_gcS0dZtM
December 12th, 2024 at 12:42The problem with only one vocalist, yes it does become the same old same old really quickly. Also the shorter songs & yes there are a plethora of mighty short songs out there but……. Mind you that also happens with harmony vocal groups too. More instrumental music breaks it up & clever arrangements keep the melodies to the fore & even create new ones. “Those were the days my friends we thought they’d never end, We’d live the life we choose, We’d fight and never lose, For we were young and sure to have our way” etc etc. I suppose we could revert to a few clichés, ‘too much is not enough’ or ‘just a little is enough’. It is a fine line at times. Cheers.
December 12th, 2024 at 20:11@ 65 – Uwe I am appalled, how could you forget the mantra song of songs, a cover yes it is, but a classic. All those ‘evil’ women out there, I don’t know. Back when we were young & breaking up with a girlfriend, this was the song to sing along to. Those poor ladies, copping all the blame, when it was more us, or I should say me, that possibly, allegedly caused the problem, or a little bit of the problem. Help, I need a Lawyer, now! Cheers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IE8lXuSDVNU
December 12th, 2024 at 21:17@65
No no no! Evil Woman, Jeff wrote that one as a cry out after a very sad love affair. Apparently the lady cheated on him. He may have had difficulties coping with that, don’t blame him, but she was an ordinary mean lady! Nothing occult there 😄
I’m not so sure why Cliff Richard made that song. He was so clean in his attitude, I remember a lot of people (read: women) were shocked when he made that.
“Nature is a woman” – of maybe women are natural! Compared to you artificial men 😉
I’m amazed you can detect Roger and Steve’s voices! I really can’t. I wish I had the same set as Rick Beato, you know where he can separate each instrument and each voice.
“Ian Gillan really doesn’t want people to sing along with him live,” <- but why not? Not that I don’t find his voice enough, but why not? In Episode Six, as you also mention, they had beautiful harmonies.
December 12th, 2024 at 23:19Funny episode in “Space Truckin’” at the “Hell and High Water” tour, Ian G tries to give Roger the microphone, but Roger refuses very strongly and Ian G laughs, so maybe sometimes he wanted people to sing with him?
On the other hand, Ian G’s voice is so strong that he doesn’t need any back up 😉
@67
How come it’s always the women’s fault when a breakup happens???
Some men can be really mean too! Just saying 😉
December 12th, 2024 at 23:22@66 – yes, groups with only one singer do tend to sound rather samey after a while. Especially in concert. Even a bit of averagely good background singing can really fill out a band’s sound.
@65- some of the MKI material had rather prominent and tuneful backing vocals.
“Hush”… “Anthem”… “One More Rainy Day”…
On “Love Help Me” Nick’s falsetto is so prominent as to give the record a bit of a Beach Boys sound.
Really out of MKs I-IV, MKII was the only lineup that had just one voice doing all the singing.
Of course the entire post-84 era largely continues that trend. As you say, must be a Gillan thing.
December 13th, 2024 at 02:18Herr MacGregor, I actually thought about posting the Sabs‘ Evil Woman, but then decided against it out of fear, with the occult image of BS and all, I did not want to provoke Dark Goddess Karin into anything rash, before we know it she‘s back at her cauldron preparing what she calls coffee … Danes in the kitchen are always a life & safety risk.
*************************************************************
“I’m not so sure why Cliff Richard made that song. He was so clean in his attitude, I remember a lot of people (read: women) were shocked when he made that.”
Not as shocked as when he came out a few decades later, revealing that his professed interest in women – like Robert Halford’s and Barry Manilow’s – had always been of a more academic nature only! 😎
*************************************************************
Ian Gillan isn’t the only one a little particular about who is singing with him on stage. Dio was like that too (though Jimmy Bain with his tuneful pop voice sang quite a bit on Catch the Rainbow live). Joe Lynn Turner had Roger’s shaky vocal support live slyly and elegantly replaced at one point by having two female backing vocalists join him on stage – against Blackmore’s initial wishes who was worried about Rainbow’s hard rock image -, but Little Joe persevered and was proven right eventually – it didn’t sound bad at all. Bands as diverse as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Brian May Band and Mötley Crüe have been working with background chicks (was use of that term just now low pc? 😇 ) forever, no one would dare calling the three “unrock”.
I like Gillan’s voice, but I think some vocal support would help him pace himself better on today’s tours. I’m a bit disappointed that Simon’s vocal capabilities aren’t used more live. At a recent gig, I heard Simon – obviously just for the heck of it and impromptu – sing harmony to the chorus of SOTW (ie not just replicate what Ian sang) and it sounded great. If they worked on that a little …
December 13th, 2024 at 12:16“I’m amazed you can detect Roger and Steve’s voices! I really can’t. I wish I had the same set as Rick Beato, you know where he can separate each instrument and each voice.”
It’s a game of subtraction for me. I know what an undoctored voice in the studio or live sounds like, so in my mind I blot out Ian’s voice, but still hear something – very faintly – in the background and can hear the pitch inaccuracies which automatically remind me of the many times I’ve seen and heard Roger and Steve do the backing vocals to that track live (it always sounded similar, Steve is no great singer either, hardly surprising given his penchant for instrumental music). [Actually quite seldom that an American rock musician has almost no backing vocals capabilities, they are generally quite good at that.]
But don’t feel bad, lille heks,
https://museen.de/imgbstr-9965046.jpg
the backing vox of Steve/Roger are really mixed down to inaudibility, they must have been particularly bad on that specific night! 😁
December 13th, 2024 at 13:05“How come it’s always the women’s fault when a breakup happens???”
It just is, Karin, don’t deny it. Messrs Glenn Frey & Don Henley of the Eagles have answered profoundly everything there is to this question long ago! 😉
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqccEpqvwPY
“City girls just seem to find out early
How to open doors with just a smile
A rich old man, and she won’t have to worry
She’ll dress up all in lace, go in style
Late at night, a big old house gets lonely
I guess every form of refuge has its price
And it breaks her heart to think her love is only
Given to a man with hands as cold as ice
So she tells him she must go out for the evening
To comfort an old friend who’s feelin’ down
But he knows where she’s goin’ as she’s leavin’
She is headed for the cheatin’ side of town
You can’t hide your lyin’ eyes
And your smile is a thin disguise
I thought by now you’d realize
There ain’t no way to hide your lyin’ eyes
On the other side of town, a boy is waiting
With fiery eyes and dreams no one could steal
She drives on through the night, anticipating
‘Cause he makes her feel the way she used to feel
She rushes to his arms, they fall together
She whispers, “It’s only for a while”
She swears that soon she’ll be comin’ back forever
She goes away and leaves him with a smile
You can’t hide your lyin’ eyes
And your smile is a thin disguise
I thought by now you’d realize
There ain’t no way to hide your lyin’ eyes
She gets up and pours herself a strong one
And stares out at the stars up in the sky
Another night, it’s gonna be a long one
She draws the shade and hangs her head to cry
She wonders how it ever got this crazy
She thinks about a boy she knew in school
Did she get tired, or did she just get lazy?
She’s so far gone, she feels just like a fool
My, oh my, you sure know how to arrange things
You set it up so well, so carefully
Ain’t it funny how your new life didn’t change things?
You’re still the same old girl you used to be
You can’t hide your lyin’ eyes
And your smile is a thin disguise
I thought by now you’d realize
There ain’t no way to hide your lyin’ eyes
There ain’t no way to hide your lyin’ eyes
Honey, you can’t hide your lyin’ eyes”
Now that’s a proper lyric! And it doesn’t mention ‘wizards’, ‘towers of stone’, ‘whips & chains’ or ‘blood on the sand’ once.
December 13th, 2024 at 17:07@71
“ I did not want to provoke Dark Goddess Karin into anything rash, before we know it she‘s back at her cauldron preparing what she calls coffee … Danes in the kitchen are always a life & safety risk.” <- 🤣🤣🤣
Before you actually have tasted my coffee you really can’t comment like that! 😆
“ he came out ” <- really? He did? I had no idea….
“ was use of that term just now low pc? 😇” well compared to what you normally call me (see the above quote) it was actually very high pc 😂
“ I like Gillan’s voice” <- well that’s the big diff between you and me, because I love his voice! It’s like soft sweet caramel in the ears, like tropical juice with ice cubes and like the very very good coffee I make with a little splash of milk 😉
December 13th, 2024 at 17:39@72
“ the backing vox of Steve/Roger are really mixed down to inaudibility, they must have been particularly bad on that specific night” <- but did they know they couldn’t be heard?
December 13th, 2024 at 17:49If it was me singing my heart out and I then discovered I was fazed out I would be quite vexed 😟 ( or maybe I would just be quite surprised I was put in front of a microphone in the first place😄)
@ 69 – it isn’t as I stated Karin & as we know there are usually two sides to every story. Not always though as some people are rather manipulative at spreading only one story. Anyway all joking aside in regards to a song or two, I agree in regards to Cliff Richard. He of all people trying to summon the devil, even ELO doesn’t really work. That is why I reminded Uwe of the ‘darker’ song, even though it wasn’t originally Sabbath’s song, surely it fits the more sinister occult imagery of the darker forces at play. Crow were the original writers & performers of that song & it sounds strange to hear the original after all these decades. Cheers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7k5QotUzn
December 13th, 2024 at 21:39I will have to always admit that when I see Gillan hold the mic up to another band member I always think, don’t. Cheers.
December 14th, 2024 at 04:08@73
Aww beautiful lyrics 🥺
And very sad indeed!
As MacGregor states in @76: there are always two sides! And again, not every woman is as portrayed in “Lyin’ eyes” by the very prominent band Eagles.
You know the vocalist from Sex Pistols? He once made this:
December 14th, 2024 at 06:52https://youtu.be/Az_GCJnXAI0?si=DylG4Phd64pf7GhZ
Talking in cliches, I guess some (not all) men pulls away like that before anything serious happens.
And then again, I blame the mothers! Withdrawn mothers that haven’t learn their boys how to communicate with girls!
@69
December 14th, 2024 at 08:05Sorry 😔 you’re right MacGregor, I just anticipated our lawyer in the house to blame me and my sisterhood, so I anticipated the events, and rightfully so 😉😄
Liebe Karin, Sir Cliff always was and always will be gay as a goose and that’s alright. It was widely known, but he’s never owned up to it officially, sadly so. These days he just doesn’t deny it as vehemently as he used to. He lived with his manager and his manager’s mother for many years, calling them his family. Never married a woman and never had a lengthier relationship with one. Bit sad that someone like him left the closet door half-closed, but I guess it’s a generational thing.
@75, Karin, Roger’s and Steve’s backing vocals weren’t mixed down at the concert, but only in the aftermath for the release of the official video. It was likely quicker and less a hassle to do it that way rather than have them patch up things in studio or have Gillan double-track his vocals. Whenever I heard Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming live, Roger’s and Steve’s backing vox were well-audible if not always well-sung. The thing is, the more you do backing vocals in a band, the better you get at it, it is very much experience, practice and control. In DP Mk II backing vox are (much like with Judas Priest) only a half-arsed thing that is only done very occasionally.
December 14th, 2024 at 15:59@80
“Sir Cliff always was and always will be gay as a goose” <- well yeah, I just hadn’t heard he finally came out 😊
I just had a misfortune: there is a second-hand shop online in Scandinavia! I found some old cds with Deep Purple I didn’t had. The person who is selling has a big bunch of cds, dvds and blue rays, so I had to buy them all to get the two records I didn’t had in the first place. So I placed a bid…….
Just to find out that the person does not send! He or she is living in Sweden, I live in Denmark 😐
If there isn’t anyone who is outbidding me, then I’m the proudest owner of a gigantic amount of DPs best records, and I can’t get them 😑
Isn’t life just funny sometimes 😜😄
So happy coffee exists 😍
Have a wonderful Sunday everyone and enjoy this:
December 15th, 2024 at 06:44https://youtu.be/QSo0duY7-9s?si=PJC_y9GhT7m-KRig
Since when are Sweden and Denmark that far apart? Historically, you Danes were always good for little plundering forays up north against the peaceful, docile and largely agriculturally living poor Swedes. You make it sound like the seller lived somewhere in Asia! 😂
So tell René it’s time for another visit, jump in your Volvo, harness the reindeers or set the sails of the dragon head longboats and off you go! And we all know: Whenever a Dane voluntarily crosses the border to Sweden, the miraculous result is that the average IQ in both countries rises. 😈
December 15th, 2024 at 13:19@82
“ jump in your Volvo” <- 😂😂😂
It’s not the distance dear Uwe, it’s the time that is lacking!!
December 16th, 2024 at 09:44But the Swedish person came to my rescue and closed down the add.
No offense meant, I have been driving Volvos and nothing but Volvos since the early 90ies, and Edith at least for the last 25 years. They’re good cars. 480, 850, V70, V70 Cross Country, XC70, V40, C30, V90, XC40, Edith and I have been through a few of them.
The German saying about Volvos is that “You can drive them to a protest march or to the golf club, either scenario fits equally well.” They never get stolen either, they aren’t (and never have been) a popular “currency” for car thieves. 😁
Nothing wrong with Chinese cars. 😂
December 16th, 2024 at 22:50@84
Ohh nice selection of cars 😃!
I was giggling because have you ever seen the danish invention of a “car”?
Please Google “ellert”
The Swedish people have made such lovely cars, safe cars (Saab wasn’t half bad either) but the “proud” Danish people made this:
https://youtu.be/qK-WgZ5j5No?si=mpoTBgcCt5C7oUfQ
Now I will go away, ashamed to be Danish, drink some coffee and hope the world will forgive us some day….
December 17th, 2024 at 07:54(Wouldn’t mind some consolation 😞)
I remember a Barista & waitress lady who I used to work with that owned a SAAB, the one that sort of looked similar to a Volvo at that time from 20 odd years ago or more perhaps. She loathed it one day when I accidentally said to her, ‘how is the Volvo going’? If looks could have killed. Anyway word got out in the resort & a few others used to niggle her with a similar line as she thought she was really special & obviously loved the ‘stigma’ that came with a SAAB & NOT with a Volvo. Each to their own. I don’t mind any of those different vehicle manufactures from Europe as I used to work with a Alfa Romeo dealer many years before that. Ford & Holden only back then here in Oz, well there were a few others I knew, Renault, Peugeot and a few British, I even owned a Morris Major ‘Elite’ at one time. Take note of the word ‘Elite’ as it was a classy vehicle!The name Volvo sounds like a confectionery bar or something similar, don’t you think? Cheers.
December 17th, 2024 at 22:59Why do you thieving and plundering Vikings always steal our ideas?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A73CFC7Hgh0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0dEzY-xld8
December 18th, 2024 at 00:02@86
Ohhh it’s easy to mess things up with over-sensitive people!
At least it wasn’t an “Ellert” she had 😆
Alfa Romeo is a very handsome car, but my experience is that they easily break down!
December 18th, 2024 at 07:59@87
Well sweetie, that’s all we can do!
Die Kabinenroller looks much more sophisticated than the Danish-produced “Ellert” 😄
December 18th, 2024 at 08:02I could imagine Ritchie learning to drive in one of those tiny three wheelers. Does he still not drive at all? I remember many decades ago he didn’t drive at all and he had never had a license. Maybe he rides motorbikes these days. No I cannot imagine that at all. Cheers.
December 18th, 2024 at 08:56Finally, Herr MacGregor is divulging his romantic past: a fiery barista and waitress lady with a Saab! You could start a movie on that premise. Or a song …
https://youtu.be/uPudE8nDog0
Anyway, by the time of this steamy liaison, Saabs were Opels/Vauxhalls, i.e. the brand belonged to General Motors since 1989 (it never made money for them) just as Volvo was bought in 1999 by by the Ford Motor Company which in 1989 had already acquired Jaguar and Land Rover. Only Volvo trucks remains Swedish to this day, Saab of course went broke once GM stopped the life support systems.
And Volvo doesn’t sound like a candy bar, it is Latin for “I roll”!!! That said, it always reminded me of something sweet too, but that was more a similarly spelled part of the female anatomy. Let’s not digress too much on that and make Herr MacGregor all uncomfortable again.
Saabs were nice cars, I especially liked the quirky “black panel” function which allowed you to turn the whole dashboard pitch-black at night except for the speedometer thereby creating the illusion you were sitting in a fighter plane. Aces high! 😎
December 18th, 2024 at 14:46“Alfa Romeo is a very handsome car, but my experience is that they easily break down!”
Too true. Alfas are great cars if you want your car mechanic to be your Romeo and see him (and his macho car-oil-greasy hands …) on a more regular basis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrpXArn3hII
December 18th, 2024 at 16:29Herr MacGregor @90: He learned late, but learn he did in the 80s. He was 39, so it must have been the year of the reunion.
That said, he always had it in him even before!
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/e1/db/13/e1db137a8b7df79d84817c4a0dc2742f.jpg
As of 2016, he still had a Mercedes-Benz 300 SE (already bought in license-less days)
https://img.welt.de/img/motor/mobile154832975/5987939067-ci23x11-w2000/Brad-Elterman-Archive-2.jpg
which was vintage by then and prone to breaking down so he only used it for short forays on Long Island, complaining about the repair costs it inadvertently caused. The family car was some Ford SUV. He says he likes to drive (preferably on German country roads/Landstraßen, not Autobahnen!), but in a leisurely way.
More on Blackmore the manic motorist here, actually a very entertaining interview (zero music content) evidencing Ritchie’s remarkable navigational skills seeking out German castles, so rev up that google translator!
https://www.welt.de/motor/article154832977/Es-gibt-zu-viele-Idioten-auf-den-Strassen.html
December 18th, 2024 at 16:53Volvo is drum talk Uwe, I roll etc. Seriously I think the first time I noticed a Volvo all the way out here in Australia would have been during the 1980’s sometime. A long time ago and from my memory they were a ‘new’ European car here then compared to BMW, Mercedes, Porsche & the others that I previously mentioned. Even the humble old Citroen was quite popular out here back then. As I have often stated, things do move slowly out here at times. Cheers.
December 18th, 2024 at 20:12@92
😆😆 very nice link to the Boss, but I do prefer this one:
https://youtu.be/IKFM6mQqRn8?si=lMx9ULEqJraUjKK1
Whereas the Alfa Romeo is the PrimaDonna!
December 19th, 2024 at 07:28“… drum talk … I roll …” 🤣
Citroëns are such lovely cars!
Until that fateful moment you for the first time have to open the hood and access any part of the engine for even a minor task such as replacing the plugs or changing oil. Then realization about the French engineering mind and how service accessibility is not the first thing on its mission statement of beauty hits you like a brick, n‘est-ce pas? 🤗
December 19th, 2024 at 13:16