By Steve Newton I really appreciate rock music, and I’m very thankful to the musicians whose talent has given me such joy over the years. Sometimes, when I hear something that really turns my crank–like a particularly awesome guitar solo–I even ask God to bless it. In previous blogs I’ve asked Him to bless exquisite … Continue reading God bless Ian Paice’s drumming on Deep Purple’s “Burn”
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 12, 1985 By Steve Newton On Saturday night, in the wilds (well, not quite) of Chilliwack, Matrex were doing their best to make the natives restless. Their set at the Fiddler II Cabaret included about eight originals (some of which they’re currently putting on a 24-track demo at Pr0file Studio), as … Continue reading Matrex goes over big in Chilliwack with a little help from Deep Purple
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 7, 1984 By Steve Newton After leaving his band of four years, Rainbow, Roger Glover is back again with the original lineup of seventies supergroup Deep Purple. Glover supplied the bottom end for Purple on such powerful tunes as “Smoke On the Water” and “Highway Star”, but often had to stand … Continue reading Roger Glover plugs new solo album Mask, keeps mum about Deep Purple reunion
By Steve Newton I did my first interview with Roger Glover back in August of 1984, two months after the release of his solo album Mask. He called me up from a “kitchen” in Vermont, and told me that he was recording an album there. At first I thought it might be another LP by … Continue reading That time Roger Glover called and told me that Rainbow was finished, it was time for Deep Purple (again)
By Steve Newton Deep Purple was one of my favourite bands in the seventies, so it was a real kick to finally interview Ian Gillan in 2006, when he called me up from a tour stop in Buffalo, en route to a gig in Vancouver. He was promoting his star-studded Gillan’s Inn album, a celebration … Continue reading Deep Purple singer Ian Gillan celebrates 40 years at the mike with the star-studded Gillan’s Inn
By Steve Newton Back in September of 1989 I interviewed American guitar great Steve Stevens, who was touring behind his debut solo album, Atomic Playboys. That LP included a cover of the 1975 Sweet song “Action”, which Stevens said he thought was a Queen song at first. At one point in the conversation I asked … Continue reading That time I suggested to guitar great Steve Stevens that he might want to cover Deep Purple’s “Highway Star”
By Steve Newton I did my second interview with Deep Purple bassist Roger Glover back in March of 1985, when the band’s Mark II lineup–composed of him, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, singer Ian Gillan, keyboardist Jon Lord, and drummer Ian Paice–had reunited to record the Perfect Strangers album and embark on a sold-out world tour. At … Continue reading That time back in 1985 when Roger Glover told me about the reunited Deep Purple’s first jam session
By Steve Newton The vast majority of my music interviews over the last 40 years were originally published in the Vancouver weekly, Georgia Straight, but I’ve also done some writing for other publications. Back in 1998 I interviewed guitar god Steve Morse–who’d been with Deep Purple for four years at that point–for Experience Hendrix, a … Continue reading That time Deep Purple guitarist Steve Morse thanked me for bringing up the topic of Hendrix
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, FEB. 12, 1998 By Steve Newton For the past couple of months I’ve been getting advance promotional copies of Three Seeds, the debut CD by a Winnipeg quartet called the New Meanies. At least three copies came across my desk at different times, making me think that either Virgin … Continue reading The New Meanies’ Damon Mitchell got the guys in Deep Purple to sign his copy of Made in Japan
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, APRIL 21, 2005 By Steve Newton Seventies-rock fans who just can’t wait for the May 3 reissue on Rhino Records of Deep Purple‘s 1974 Burn album can get a similar taste of the eight-track era with the new release from Glenn Hughes. As most dino-rock fanatics know, Hughes was … Continue reading Album review: Glenn Hughes, Soul Mover (2005)
By Steve Newton As most dedicated Deep Purple fans know, Joe Satriani was once a member of that legendary band. The Bay Area guitar wizard joined in December of 1993 after the volatile Ritchie Blackmore quit and left the group high-and-dry in the middle of a tour. Satch only stayed in the lineup for a … Continue reading That time I asked Ian Gillan if he ever wished Joe Satriani had become a permanent member of Deep Purple
5 guys from Chilliwack High’s Class of ’75 rob hall photo By Steve Newton The title track wasn’t always the best song on an album in the ’70s. But when you were standing in the record store, rabidly poring over the brand new LP by your favourite band, that title could get deeply imbedded in … Continue reading The 30 best title tracks of the ’70s, from wicked to freakin’ awesome
By Steve Newton I was 18 years old when Deep Purple released the album Come Taste the Band, so being a huge fan of the band since Fireball, I bought it. It took me a while to get into it–it didn’t have the immediacy of a Machine Head or Burn–but eventually I grew very fond … Continue reading That time Roger Glover told me that he was “disgusted” when he saw Deep Purple with Tommy Bolin
