The Very Best of Deep Purple

Some bands have far too many "deep cuts" that never get airply to ever be fully represented by just a "best of" collection. Queen, The Beatles, etc. etc. The "hits" are almost a watered down version of what those great bands could really do, so a "Greatest Hits" collection just doesn't cut it for them.Not so with Deep Purple. While they did many fine songs not on this cd, the BEST of what they did from 1968-1984 is mostly here, and what a collection it is. Easily two of the best songs from the early Rod Evans days are "Hush" and "Kentucky Woman," and they are present and accounted for. "Hush" is probably the better known song, but I've always preferred "Kentucky Woman." The two best known songs from the later David Coverdale era ("Burn" and "Stormbringer") are also here and they blend surprisingly well with the rest of this cd (whereas the Rod Evans songs are most definitely a little "different"; still good though).In between the Evans/Coverdale songs though lies the heart of this collection, and that's 10 tracks from the vintage "Mark II" lineup of Deep Purple (Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Ian Paice, Ritchie Blackmore and Jon Lord). As someone who has all the albums Deep Purple has done, I can say that I do listen to the individual albums from time to time. But when I want a cd without a single weak cut and that includes nearly all of my favorites from all of their albums, THIS IS IT. Highway Star, Child In Time, Space Truckin, Strange Kind of Woman, etc. are ALL every bit as good as the overplayed "Smoke On The Water" and "Woman From Tokyo", so if you're looking at this cd for just the "radio" hits, by all means get it, but expect to hear some stuff you probably haven't heard before that you will like just as much as the hits (if not more).Tacking "Knocking At Your Back Door" onto the end of this collection seems a bit odd, since all the other cuts are from albums recorded more or less continuously in the years 1968-1974 and then this cut comes from an album a full 10 years later ("Perfect Strangers" from 1984). So I'd almost rather have seen "Knocking" omitted and another 70's cut included instead, but hey, it is a great song and the name of this album is... the Very Best of Deep Purple, so I can see why it was included. In reality, their 1984 album is so good anyway that you'll want that too anyway, but THIS cd is a great place to start exploring Deep Purple. From there, check out "Perfect Strangers", "Machine Head" and their classic live album, "Made In Japan". You won't regret it!All in all, I would strongly recommend this to anyone that likes any Deep Purple you've heard on the radio or any fan of 70's hard rock in general. It's all great stuff from a band that was definitely recognized in their time, yet still has to qualify as a vastly under-rated band.

I'll be entirely upfront and say that outside of tunes like "Hush," "Woman From Tokyo," and "Smoke On The Water," I knew very little about Deep Purple until just a couple of years ago. While I knew that they are considered to be one of the founding fathers of what would eventually be called "heavy metal," I never really took any deeper interest in the group. I've been listening to other metal forefathers like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath for years, but it has only been recent that I've decided to explore the band that featured artists like Ian Gillan, Richie Blackmore, Ian Paice, Glen Hughes, David Coverdale, and the man who made me appreciate keys in metal, Jon Lord.This album is basically a loaded disc full of very popular tracks by the band. All have been brilliantly remastered and each instrument, especially Lord's keyboards, get a fresher sound. I could break the album down track by track, but in all honesty there isn't a bad one in the bunch.The album is a perfect introductory course in all things Deep Purple. Vocals are carried by Gillan on most of the tracks, with Rod Evans, Coverdale, and Hughes on a few of the others. My favorite tracks on the album include "Space Truckin," "Child In Time," and "Hush." Also, one of the greatest tunes ever written and performed (at least to me), "Highway Star," is included on this album.If you're a longtime fan of Deep Purple and just want that "one disc collection" to play over and over, I recommend this album. If you're more like me and have just started exploring the group, check this album out. It will make you hungry for more Purple, and you won't be let down.

Great Deep Purple music. A good mix of songs to listen to.

It's a good collection but could of made it better more songs I would of pay more money for a 2 CD collection and get more songs

I've always been a fan of Deep Purple and the bands they went on to form after break up, has all the best tracks, and with the sound system I have in my car, Focal's K2 ES KX3E's and K2E in the front and rear doors, 2 Rockford Fosgate T1D212 12" sealed box subs with 600 watts to the Focal's and 1,500 watts to the subs with a DSP and it's like I'm hearing these songs for the first time in their truest form

It's Deep Purple at their best

If you're a hardcore fan, this collection isn't for you: you, naturally, have obscure favorites of your own that probably aren't featured on this CD. Of course, if you're that hardcore, you probably own all those albums and as such have no need for this collection, which is instead targeted to the more casual fan. If you fall into this latter category, rejoice, because this is an excellent sampler of Deep Purple's most well-known hits.The collection touches on all the major Purple "eras," with the focus being primarily on the "Mk II" period in which the band generated most of its classic material. Mk I and Mk III don't go ignored, though, which is much more than can be said for bargain-bin "best-ofs" you might stumble across. While it's not comprehensive, per se, this collection is your best bet if you're interested in owning an inexpensive but high-quality audio overview of this stellar band's storied career.