The Book of Taliesyn

by

Deep Purple

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And for me that's a very good thing. I'll be honest, heavy rock isn't my thing, so I do feel a little bit strange doing a Deep Purple review. The thing is, if you didn't know 'The Book of Teliesyn' was by DP there's little chance you'd guess. It's one of those wonderful albums that lies right on the cusp between psychedelic and progressive rock. Opening with the echo-drenched 'Listen Learn Read On' with it's eastern-style guitar riff and cosmic lyrics, you'd be forgiven for thinking you're listening to an Electric Prunes album, or perhaps early Pink Floyd. 'Wring That Neck' and 'Kentucky Woman' quickly take you into more bluesy territory, but the overall impression is still of some pretty weird, most likely US West Coast psychedelic. Indeed, DP were a lot more popular in the States at this point in their career. The second half of the album is pure prog rock, along the lines of The Nice or ELP, but better, I think. Quite a claim, I hear you say. Well, check it out. With flashes of classical influence and some demon organ playing, this stuff really rocks out. The appropriately titled 'Anthem' and 'Shield' are the real Prog opuses here, but there's also two very interesting covers: Ike and Turner's 'River Deep Mountain High' and the Beatles' 'We Can Work it Out'. Both are played in a very different style from the original, and surprisingly they work. I love this album and, having only just acquired it, will be blasting it out to the neighbourhood on a daily basis. Awesome stuff!

The stumbling blind genius that was MkI Deep Purple (Blackmore Evans Simper Lord Paice) gets its second outing - better than the first album; not as good as the third. Most of the lyrics are complete blather, there's the obligatory poppy cover version or two to keep the US hits going and some tantalising glimpses of the future (and of futures that never happened).

For the best and worst of this lineup, check Exposition/We Can Work It Out, where a brilliant reworking of Mussorgsky's Night On The Bare Mountain runs (via the 2nd movement of Beethoven's 7th) into one of the most appalling Beatles covers, with guitarist Ritchie Blackmore cluelessly tramping through the song like a skinhead kicking his way through a flowerbed. But there's the instrumental Wring That Neck, a live staple for years that set the scene for the guitar-organ interplay that became Purple's trademark; then there's the beautifully low-key Anthem and the inventive, curious Shield with its menacing, minor-key motif.

The Vanilla Fudge influence is less pronounced but this still sounds nothing like the band that made Smoke On The Water. Like all MkI Deep Purple albums, a fascinating curio.