What The Hell Happened To... 04.21.08: Deep Purple - Bananas

Posted by Dan Marsicano on 04.21.2008

Dan Marsicano returns this week to look at an album from the legendary band Deep Purple. Bananas, released in 2003, shows the band trying to keep up with the times while relying on their trademark sound. What makes this album special from any of their modern releases?

The Introduction

What the hell is up, 411?! It's your main metal man with the name Dan, other than Haggerty of course, Dan Marsicano and I have made my return after a two week absence. I know, you all missed me, but have no fear…I am back to look at the albums that you should be listening to, but aren't for whatever reason (must be that new Panic At The Disco album…you young ones love that album).

This week, I'm taking a trip to a time where the world was a better place, where Britney Spears was still kind of sane, and where gas prices weren't fucking insane…2003. Ah, the good old days.

Deep Purple was entering its 35th year as a band and riding high on a wave of success generated by the addition of Steve Morse on the guitar about a decade prior. It was five years since their last album,Abandon, and the band was dealing with the retirement of long time keyboardist Jon Lord, with Don Airey of Ozzy Osbourne fame replacing him.

Bananas was the band's attempt at mixing blues elements with their classic rock sound to create an album that fans and critics adored, but didn't do much on the charts. The problem was that the band was trying to keep their old fans and gain new ones at the same time. You know how fickle young people are about their music; why listen to some solid rock music that actually has a message behind it when you got the new Blink 182 album out?

Enough of my old-man ranting, as we got an album to look at. So take out your credit cards and get ready to spend some well-earned money on an album that, in my opinion, should be named alongside Fireball, Perfect Strangers, and Machine Head as one of the essential Deep Purple albums.





The Band

Ian Gillian-Vocals
Steve Morse-Guitar
Roger Glover-Bass
Ian Paice-Drums
Don Airey-Keyboards


The Track Listing

1. House of Pain-3:34
2. Sun Goes Down-4:11
3. Haunted-4:23
4. Razzle Dazzle-3:29
5. Silver Tongue-4:04
6. Walk On-7:04
7. Picture of Innocence-5:11
8. I Got Your Number-6:01
9. Never a Word-3:47
10. Bananas-4:51
11. Doing It Tonight-3:29
12. Contact Lost-1:28


The History

Obviously, I got 35 years of history to discuss in order to get us to where we are in 2003. So, I'll try to be as brief as possible, since anybody that knows about Deep Purple knows that their history is a bit…well, it's a bit long, to say the least.

Deep Purple was formed in 1968 (now, before any of you send me angry e-mail's, yes I know that the band was around before that, but the band became known as Deep Purple in the spring of 1968) with Rod Evans on vocals, Richie Blackmore on guitar, Nick Simpler on bass, Ian Paice on drums, and Jon Lord on the organ/keyboard. This lineup would record their debut album Shades of Deep Purple, The Book of Taliesyn, and a third album titled after the band's name.

After these three albums, all recorded within about a year and a half, Evans and Simpler were fired and Gillian and Glover were brought in. This lineup, famously called the "Mark II" lineup, would record several successful and famous records, the most popular one being 1972's Machine Head. However, after only being together for about three years, both Gillian and Glover were forced out due to internal tensions between the band members. The "Mark III" lineup was formed, which had vocalist David Coverdale and bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes replacing the two former band mates.

Like most Deep Purple lineups, this one only lasted about two years. Even with two huge albums, 1974's Burn and Stormbringer, Blackmore felt unsatisfied with the band's change in sound, which incorporated more funk elements.

Most bands would quit at this point, but not Deep Purple. They continued on, getting Tommy Bolin to replace one of the greatest guitarists in rock music, at the time. Now, in what I will be calling the "DP Curse," (no sick thoughts people, cmon!), this lineup would fall apart after only one album, 1975's Come Taste The Band. Bolin's drug problems were getting the best of him and would lead to his untimely death on December 4, 1976 at the age of 25.

The band broke up for almost a decade, involved in side projects. In 1984, the original "Mark II" lineup reunited and released Perfect Strangers, which bought Deep Purple back into the mainstream. However, in classic DP fashion, Gillian would be fired in 1989, after the band released one more album, 1987's The House of Blue Light. To make a very long story short, Gillian came back, yet again, they released one more album together, The Battle Rages On, and Blackmore left AGAIN in 1993, never to return.

Finally, Deep Purple got a stable lineup with Steve Morse on guitar in 1994. This lineup has had only one change, the retirement of Jon Lord in 2002, replaced by Don Airey. The band, up to 2003, has released two albums, 1996's Purpendicular and 1998's Abandon.

So that is the short end of the history. Am I missing some stuff? Hell yeah (don't get me started on Joe Lynn Turner's time in the band), but that's as basic as it gets.


The Analysis

When I was a teenager, I had only heard of metal legends Metallica and Megadeth. To say that my knowledge of rock and metal music was limited would be the understatement of the century. To me, Deep Purple was only a band on some random classic rock station my parents listened to. When I finally got some common sense and picked up Machine Head, I knew it. From the first scream from Gillian to the slow fadeout of the band jamming away in "Space Truckin'", I was enamored with the band.

From there, I slowly worked my way through the Mark II portion of the band, becoming more of a fan as the years went on. Sadly, I still haven't gotten into the band's earlier albums, or the Mark I version, (it's on my to-do-list…a very long to-do-list), but thanks to Deep Purple, I was able to embrace classic rock as more than just some decent hits on the radio (Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath were also big factors for me).

So, when I found out that Deep Purple had just released a new album, around 2004-ish, I knew I had to have it. So I downloaded it (yes, I know…you can leave your angry comments on the bottom) and it was radically different from their old sound, the one I had become accustomed to. Bananas was one of those albums I kept on my IPod, waiting for the day when it would all click with me.

That day is now, believe it or not. Being an amateur music critic has helped me to better appreciate albums that I couldn't before. Bananas is a perfect example of this. With Bananas, Deep Purple showed a newfound energy and willingness to add some blues influences into the band's core sound.

"House of Pain" is a brilliant choice for the opening track. It wouldn't sound out of place on any of the band's 70's albums, with a catchy chorus that is helped by Morse's upbeat riffing. Hell, there is a guitar solo, followed by an organ solo, followed by a duel organ and guitar solo. If that doesn't scream "1970's rock," I don't know what the hell does.

The rest of the album is a mix of hard rock and some slower-paced songs. "Haunted" is one of the best ballads that the band has ever written and almost beats "Wasted Sunsets" off of 1984's Perfect Strangers. Of course, it doesn't come close to "Soldier of Fortune," which was on 1974's Stormbringer, but then again, what ballad can?

The first half of the album is great, with "Razzle Dazzle" being an immediate highlight. This song is Don Airey's to own, with not one, but TWO, amazing organ solos. Hell, Morse doesn't even get a chance to get a solo in, but that's fine, with Airey's playing being entertaining enough.

It's the middle of the album where the band really hits its stride. "Walk On" is a slow burning song that seems to be building towards something, but never gets there. It's not a bad song, but it just seems to meander around for a bit before finally going somewhere with about two minutes left. Thankfully, the next three tracks are back to back to back classics.

"Pictures of Innocence" is one of the heaviest tracks on the album with a chorus that has Gillian almost barking the lyrics at the listener. Morse and Airey bring a bluesy touch to the song and get in their solos, making the song feel like a B-side off of Burn. This song, along with "I Got Your Number," was co-written by former keyboardist Jon Lord. "I Got Your Number" has the band is firing on all cylinder and only lets up for a brief melodic section with Morse getting in a great solo. I would call it the best one on the album, but we haven't gotten to "Never a Word."

"Never a Word" should be played at every future live Deep Purple show. The track is largely instrumental, ala "Lazy", with Gillian only singing in the last minute. What makes this track fantastic and an instant classic is the fact that there is so much going on, with clean and acoustic guitars playing at the same time, and Airey's classical style organ work interplaying with the rhythm section, that it could have turned out to be a mess once Gillian gets in. However, Gillian shows some phenomenal restraint on the vocals and sings in a low key, almost whisper, which just adds so much more atmosphere to the song. If you want a reason why Ian Gillian is still one of the greatest vocalists alive today, look no further than "Never a Word."

Steve Morse has fit right in as guitarist, this being his third album with the band. His solos are not as extravagant as Blackmore's were, but they don't need to be. I would argue that Morse put way more emotional, and possibly even more technical, impact into his solos than Blackmore ever did. Just listen to the instrumental "Contact Lost" for a perfect way to add emotion into a solo without sounding cheesy or neo-classical. The rhythm section of Paice and Glover is still as strong as ever. They don't get any chances to really show off their talents, which is a shame, considering how skilled both these musicians are.

I saved the best for last though. Don Airey had huge, and that's an understatement, shoes to fill with Lord retiring. Airey pulls it off though and breathes some new life into the band's sound. Airey is so good that some fans thought Lord actually did the organ/keyboard work for the album. He also interacts with Morse on dueling solos, the highlight of their collaboration being the two minute outro to the title track, which has them battling for the top spot on the song with blazing solo after blazing solo.

After reading up on Bananas and listening to it several times, I still wonder why the album never caught on. I mean, their next album, 2005's Rapture of the Deep, was quoted by Gillian as selling more than Perfect Strangers. Maybe it was the fact that there wasn't a clear cut single released (not that I know of), but then again, would anybody, save the longtime fans, get excited about a new single from Deep Purple? Would MTV go "Holy shit, guys, we got some new Deep Purple. Put that shit on TRL asap. Someone get Gillian on the show"?

Of course, the answer to all those questions is no. Nobody in the mainstream media would care. Rolling Stone would put some 300 word review about it on page 106 and then hype up the new White Stripes album or 50 Cent's ballin' new jam.

So, if you like good old fashioned hard rock music, with some beautiful melodies and even some head banging moments, pick up Bananas. Hell, all of you that bought Rapture of the Deep should owe it to yourself to go back and pick up Bananas. In a career full of line up changes and internal dissension, it's nice to hear a record that just kicks ass. That's it; nothing more, nothing less. Deep Purple sounds like they are having fun…isn't that what rock music should be about in a music scene full of dark lyrics and bands trying to raise the brutality level one step higher?


The Conclusion

Well, that was a rant filled edition, but I had a good time listening to an underrated masterpiece from an underrated band.

I hope you all enjoyed this week's edition. Leave me feedback on the bottom and I'll get back to you if you all have any questions. Next week, I'm going back to Billy Joel's catalog to find an album most of you casual Joel fans have never heard. It's going to be a great one next week, so come back to the House of What The Hell Happened To!