Search - Episode Six :: The Roots Of Deep Purple: Complete Episode Six

Too talented for their own good?

04/08/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In recent years a lot of my favorite music is from bands nobody's ever heard of. THE MOVE. THE IDLE RACE. And here, EPISODE SIX. I first encounted them on a really bad-sounding LP. Even at that I sensed some wonderful recordings in there. This CD, with its superior sound quality, confirmed it! Not only does it collect every "A" and "B" side they ever released, but several previously unreleased tunes as well. The 6 immensely talented people in this band cover a wide range of musical styles as they knocked out one fabulous pop song after another. You'll probably hear bits of The Moody Blues, The Grass Roots, The Beach Boys and a number of other bands' influence, but it's all THEM. I suppose nobody knew how to categorize or market them-- because try as they did, they never had a real hit. What a crime! But you can listen to it all here, great tune after great tune. My faves are "I Hear Trumpets Blow", "True Love Is Funny That Way" (a warning about unexpected break-ups), "Mighty Morris Ten" (Roger Glover's hot-rod song!), "Morning Dew" (the best version of it I've ever heard), and an absolutely gorgeous cover of the standard, "The Way You Look Tonight". You know, it's felt these guys were on the verge of finally making it-- until their vocalist & bassist quit to join DEEP PURPLE! Instead, we're left with this wonderful "footnote" in pop & rock history."