Track Listing

1. Highway Star
2. Maybe I'm A Leo
3. Pictures Of Home
4. Never Before
5. Smoke On The Water
6. Lazy
7. Space Truckin'
8. When A Blind Man Cries
9. Highway Star (2)
10. Maybe I'm A Leo (2)
11. Pictures Of Home (2)
12. Never Before (2)
13. Smoke On The Water (2)
14. Lazy (2)
15. Space Truckin' (2)
16. When A Blind Man Cries (2)
17. Maybe I'm A Leo (3)
18. Lazy (3)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2142 in Music
• Released on: 1997-09-08
• Number of discs: 2
• Formats: Extra tracks, Double CD
• Dimensions: .31 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Deep Purple were on the eve of breaking wide open when they made Machine Head, a record that launched a heap of hard-rock hits, not to mention the bulk of the live album Made in Japan. No fewer than three classics were unveiled here: "Highway Star", "Space Truckin'" and their biggest hit ever, "Smoke on the Water". Ritchie Blackmore's crunchy guitar was becoming the group's trademark and the throb that opens "Smoke on the Water" went miles in cementing his position in the pantheon of 1970s guitar deities. But the story here is the second disc, which is composed of remixes by Roger Glover that introduce long-dormant, more-energised variations on the originals and revive separate solos. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews

Fire in the Sky
Ian Gillan singing, Ritchie Blackmore on guitar and Lord, Glover and Paice all make this one of the finest albums that has ever been made. With two cds, a 28 page booklet and cardboard sleeve, this anniversary edition not only serves as a fitting tribute to Purple's masterpiece, but loyally remasters the original album, then remixes it into a wholly new experience.
The remasters cd is simply magnificent. Sit back somewhere comfortable (because trust me you wont be going anywhere)and crank up the volume.

Highway star opens the album perfectly- it's fast-paced, noisy trailblazing rock with a wonderful guitar solo, driven all the way by paice's relentless drums. Fantastic and worthy of its place on the 'best of'.

It all gets a bit jazzy and catchy for Maybe im a Leo, with a slowing of pace and plenty of time for echanging guitar and organ solos. The riff is a classic- its simple but you could hum it for days.

The speed picks up again for Pictures of Home which, i must confess, is my least favourite of the set... but a great song nonetheless. The remix does this one more justice i found.

The album's single is up next, in the form of Never Before. From a cool drum intro, through laid back guitars, this song suddenly turns into a rock'n'roll number which is both catchy and very playable even if you arent a huge heavy metal fan. It's good fun and has a commerciality to it that justifies its release, even if smoke on the water was to outshine it in terms of fame.

And then that riff kicks in. Smoke On The Water is so famous its ridiculous- everybody knows that riff and the rest of the song is just as excellent. The guitar solo here is superb and gillan's vocals are particularly good. It is the definitive Deep Purple anthem and deservedly so- i knew this riff long before i knew what song it came from.

Lazy is quite the opposite of its title. From an extremely noisy introduction into the jazziest guitar solo on the album, through increasing degrees of rock and roll with jon lord's organ churning out smooth melody after smooth melody, this has to be my favourit on the album. Gillan's laid back vocals are perfect and his harmonica adds to an already barnstorming masterpiece. The way this song builds from so little to so much totally excuses the cliche ending- only stairway to heaven does it better but this is so much more fun.

Space Truckin has a great intro, a groovy tune, funny lyrics and a riotous drum solo in the middle. A great all-rounder of a track robbed of a place on the 'best of'.

When a blind man cries, the B-side, is as laid back, bluesy, stylish and meaningful as one could hope for. With an understated solo and sedate vocals this is easy-listening stuff, a quiet and gorgeous classic.

Then there is the quadrophonic mixes, the remixes of the whole album, and everything else. The remix disc is worth a listen- it certainly (as someone else said) breathes new life into the original tracks but the basic album is the best in my opinion and worth the price of the set on its own.

This is my favourite Deep Purple album and one of the best i own. It simply defines 70s rock in a way even led zep couldn't have done- it has all the hallmarks of a great band (riffs, solos, talented players and a great singer)and still sounds amaing today. Buy it now.

Groundbreaking! Deep Purple at their best!
If you're looking for the best Deep Purple album, then look no further! Machine Head is one of the greatest albums known to rock. The Mk II lineup consisting of Ian Gillan on vocals, Ritchie Blackmore on guitar, Roger Glover on bass, Jon Lord on keyboard and Ian Paice on the drums are at their finest. Considering all that the band had been through at the time - read the 28-page booklet supplied with the album - witnessing the destruction of the Casino in Montreux as it was burned to the ground by "some stupid with a flare gun" (hence came the idea for the incredible Smoke On The Water) and being unable to find a place to record their songs for weeks - their skills and determination shine through in Machine Head.

The two discs supplied with the album are essentially the same, although it is interesting to listen to both. Disc 1 consists of the 1997 remixes, Disc 2 the originals. Both discs are truly awesome.

1. Highway Star - Superb, brilliant vocals by Gillan and fantastic guitar play by Blackmore. Probably the second best track on the album. 10/10
2. Maybe I'm A Leo - Just listen to that opening riff by Ritchie! This is an excellent track full of rhythm, one of the album's strongest. 10/10
3. Pictures Of Home - An ace song. Pictures Of Home simply reeks of perfection. 10/10
4. Never Before - Amazing. Never Before is just outstanding. 10/10
5. Smoke On The Water - Who hasn't heard of Smoke On The Water? With the greatest and most famous riff ever shredded, Smoke On The Water is the best song DP have ever done, bar none. 10/10
6. Lazy - Incredible, you'll want to listen to Gillan insisting you never get out of bed again and again. A great mixture of blues and hard rock. 10/10
7. Space Truckin' - Fantastic all over, the heaviest track on the album. 9.5/10
8. When A Blind Man Cries - The slow, tender melody track of the album. Gillan's vocals are heartbreaking. 9.5/10

I'd give these scores to the tracks on both discs.

I will treasure Machine Head as long as I live. An absolutely classic album, full of the greatest guitar riffs and solos by Blackmore and intense singing by Gillan. The whole band deserves the highest of praise for their amazing performance on this album. An eternal classic!!

I Love Her, I Need Her
Long before the days when Ritchie Blackmore resided in a castle somewhere in Germany playing lute and calculating new and devious ways to annoy his fan base as well as spoon his wife, he was actually responsible in part for some of the finest rock music ever. From `In Rock' through to the end of Mk III era Deep Purple were a sensational rock band with all the vitriol, fevered egos, bad tempers and seriously good songs you could ever ask for. `Machine Head' is a total no brainer for rock fans everywhere simply because it's all fantastic.

Deep Purple simply were the finest musicians around in the early 70s (well in rock music...and does anything else really matter?). The bands stable line up for this whole period revolves around three of the biggest muso's ever namely; Ian Paice, Jon Lord and of course everyone's favourite Quaker Ritchie `I hate Gillan' Blackmore. These guys could simply out play anyone around at the time. In a era of straight ahead "mummy daddy mummy daddy" double bass playing Ian Paice is a breath of fresh air even today, a technically astounding drummer with a tone to die for and yet still he never overplays. Jon Lord actually made the organ a force to be reckoned with in the hard rock world, seriously listen to the ballsy intro riff on `Space Truckin'' and not only is he `eavy he's `umble too Jon can play the most intricate and bizarre stuff on his organ; classically trained but with a rock attitude. Ritchie Blackmore actually is Satan; he's a guitar genius and a true wizard with the fastest rock licks going in the early 70s. Jimmy Page thought he woz all "master of the occult" and whatnot but he may of bought all of Crowley's used tissues and such but Blackmore was truly evil...no man has brought such incredible joy to his fans and at the same time been an absolute prick. Roger Glover, although one of the bands more modest members (i.e. somewhere between the comparative fire and ice of Blackmore and Gillan...so erm luke warm water) was a fantastic bassist who has some truly memorable moments on this album, including a bass solo that doesn't actually piss me off. Ian Gillan is frankly the most fun you'll ever have with rock vocals, everything is delivered with a "I've just given you crabs" grin and a such gusto. His range is phenomenal, no one screams like Gillan, not even Halford has a better howl than are favourite Ritchie winder upper did in the early 70s.

So I like DP, you like DP, your sister likes DP and your mum prefers DT, but what about the songs? Well, the original `Machine Head' album has seven tracks but the band actually wrote eight classics for the album...so erm I can't really complain. `Highway Star' is one of those songs you simply must write your car off too, do it drunk too! Honestly, the police will understand just tell them that you were listening to `Highway Star'. It's one of the all time great rock tracks and if I'm in "where does this relate to metal?" retard mode I could say it's a huge evolutionary step forward in speed metal. And those lyrics? A work of literary genius! Is it a car? Is it a girl? Either way you know Ian would. The guitar and organ solos are a something to behold, silly and most enjoyable, oh Ritchie marry me! Other stand outs in this album of standouts include `Pictures of Home' which is notable for an absolutely mental drum intro, silly 4th guitar harmonies and Gillan wailing about being stuck on a Swiss mountain...and why not, farmer's daughters won't really fit this. `Smoke on the Water' ah yes, now remember kids if you go into a guitar shop, turn the distortion on full and play this on the bottom E string the shop owners are legally obliged to give you a free guitar...Wow! Anyway, overplayed it is but still a great song I mean its got to be just for being that memorable and its like Deep Purple and Switzerland's national anthem (`Cherry Orchids' or `Cherry Pie' by Celtic Frost just missed out). `Lazy' is a bluesy jam and just so wonderful, I've had those guitar licks stuck in my head for years. A fine ode to inertia and a all time Purple classic. `Space Truckin' is a riff monster, the beginning distorted organ sound is sonic bliss and the guitar takes a backseat for the most part but when it comes back its simply a joy to behold. Paice's drums groove on this one and he's got a great solo. The lyrics? `C'mon, c'mon lets go space truckin' Oscar Wilde (Zakk's nerdy older brother) would of spent years trying to top that. Blackmore hates funk, but this is really funky hard rock (funk needn't be overpowering and crap like say the Red Hot Chilli Peppers) so once again the man in black is full of contradictions. Ritchie you enigma! Why can't you be mine!

Even the albums more lowly tracks are still masterful, `Never Before' is the most poppy and all the better for it. `When A Blind Man Cries' is a wonderful bluesy piece of melancholy (but wasn't it a bit cruel to get Jeff Healey to play this? Hey, why don't we get Stephen Hawking to play `When a Cripple Fails at the Decathlon'? ).
`Machine Head' is a completely solid piece of work, I've listened to this hundreds of time and its energy, class and consistency are always impressive. So as such I'll give this a perfect rating, because it deserves it.

So if you like me are madly in love with the hallowed grooves of `Machine Head' feel free to do any of the following;
Ask Ritchie Blackmore how to play `Smoke on the Water' *don't ask Steve Morse he can't actually play it, but he tries, bless him*
Ask Ian Gillan the story behind `Smoke on the Water' he hasn't told anyone in a while, no one asks him that question.
Shout "oh my god Elton John!" at Ian Paice.
Tell David Coverdale `Smoke...' is your favourite of his songs
Ask Glenn Hughes how Tommy Bolin is these days.
Shout `Freebird' at any Deep Purple or Blackmore's Night concert.