For pure musicianship they are still one of the greatest acts anywhere.  And considering they were formed 54 years ago that is really astonishing.  And there are still three members from the early classic Mach II lineup.  I never thought I would watch the entire 13 minutes but I got sucked right in.  Nice short Hot 'Lanta segment.

Here's something to chew on:  In 54 years Ian Paice has been the only drummer Deep Purple has ever had. And I have NEVER once heard of him ever missing a gig.  That's got to be one of the most amazing feats in rock history.  

@robslob A few years ago he had a "mini stroke" and they canceled a few dates. Other than that, he is the iron man!!

@jszfunk Neil Peart wasn't the only drummer asked to play in Buddy Rich's big band some years ago. 

Ian was brought in by Buddy's daughter. 

Close up footage of Ian in the second part and he is kicking it!!

The problem with Buddy Rich for my tastes is he didn't like rock or country. Some blues but big band jazz all the way. Buddy did compliment Ian Paice, Neal Peart, Steve Gadd in his later years. Phil Collins said recently Buddy Rich was probably the best drummer we've had. Stick control, technique, speed and endurance were amazing. Buddy was 65 here and this has two outstanding drum solos.  Frankly I can't think of a rock drummer that could touch this here. Anybody think of a rock drummer who could play like this? 

Anyone think of a rock drummer that could touch Buddy. Two outstanding drum solos in the above. 

My problem with Buddy is he didn't play rock and roll. 

Buddy did compliment Neal Peart, Ian Paice and Steve Gadd in his later years and he liked Phil Collins. 

Phil said with stick control, technique, speed..Buddy was the best. 

I'm partial to the Blackmore era. I saw DP twice back then and Richie was one of the best guitarist I had seen. Still is!! 

This medley is fun, and I get a kick out of it, but I also hope it disappears soon. Deep Purple have such a vast catalogue, both old and new, that they shouldn't spend 10 minutes of concert time on covers. 

I do know covers please a crowd. Al DiMeola recently did a great interview with Rick Beato, and Dimeola notes that during his amazing flamenco performance, the massive crowd response he gets is when he slips the main riff from the Allmans' "Midnight Rider" in.

I get it. Cover bands at this point are loath to do "Mustang Sally" or "Brown-Eyed Girl" or "Sweet Caroline," but those songs make people lose their mind. Familiarity used to breed contempt. Not with a modern audience. 

Posted by: @jimsheridan

This medley is fun, and I get a kick out of it, but I also hope it disappears soon. Deep Purple have such a vast catalogue, both old and new, that they shouldn't spend 10 minutes of concert time on covers. 

 

They might keep it in the set or rotate it and out for this tour, just my thought. It is cool but I do agree about they're catalog. I think they have mixed it up(set list)  a little more over the last few years. I think they could do better. I have stated this before, but I think at this point in the bands career(and this applies to other's), I feel the majority of the people that go and see them are the "hard core" fans and not the SMOTW crowd. Not really winning to many new fans at this point? So why not treat the lifer fans and mix in 2-3 deep classic songs? Maybe some more Morse era stuff?

Yeah. In some ways, this medley is just not that different from what they've already done. They've been doing "Green Onion" for a while. Morse used to do a catalogue of classic riffs as the intro to "Smoke On the Water." It is fun, but they can do better.