«Machine Head» is Deep Purple’s sixth album and it came out on 30 March 1972 on Purple Records. It was recorded in December 1971 in Montreux, Switzerland, with the Rolling Stones’ mobile studio, produced by the band. The line-up is Ian Gillan on vocals, Ritchie Blackmore on guitar, Jon Lord on keyboards, Roger Glover on bass and Ian Paice on drums.
“`Country: United Kingdom
Genre: Hard Rock
For fans of: Led Zeppelin, Rainbow, Whitesnake
Deep Purple wanted a sound like their stage. They rented the Montreux Casino, but the night before they moved in, a flare from the audience at a Frank Zappa concert burned the building down. They took refuge in the empty Grand Hotel and set up their gear in a corridor.
Out of that night came «Smoke on the Water», with Blackmore’s famous four-note riff. The lyrics also mention «Funky Claude», Claude Nobs of the Montreux jazz festival.
«Highway Star» was written on the tour bus on the way to a show in Portsmouth. Blackmore played the riff when a journalist asked him how he writes songs.
Standouts are «Highway Star», «Lazy» with Lord’s organ solo, «Pictures of Home» and «Space Truckin’». «When a Blind Man Cries» was recorded in the same sessions but left off, ending up as the B-side of «Never Before». The album runs 37 minutes in its original version.
The sleeve was made by etching the title into a polished metal plate, which became a mirror in front of the band. The record became their biggest seller: number 1 in Britain, while «Smoke on the Water» climbed to 4 on the Billboard chart and «Never Before» to 35 in the UK. The 1972 Japanese tour also produced the live «Made in Japan».
See also
Rainbow’s «Rising»: how Blackmore and Dio built the blueprint for epic metal and Deep Purple open the European tour in Sofia with songs from «Splat!».
