Perfect Strangers? Deep Purple 1984-1993

By the end of 1973, Deep Purple Mk2 was no more. Ian Gillan had been replaced by David Coverdale on vocals whilst Roger Glover had been replaced by Glenn Hughes on bass and vocals. It left the nucleus of Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord and Ian Paice to take Deep Purple in a new direction, which eventually came to a halt with the Mk4 line-up in 1976. With Deep Purple In Rock (1970), Fireball (1971), Machine Head (1972) and Who Do We Think We Are (1973) to Mk2’s credit, many fans lived in hope that one day, the band would get back together — with the music press occasionally courting the odd rumour that it would happen! Finally, in April 1984, the reunion of Deep Purple Mk2 was announced. Fans had got their wish. Or had they? With the landscape of rock and pop music having changed since the band’s success in the seventies, and with each member of Deep Purple Mk2 having nurtured very different careers as individuals by that point, a reunion was never going to be plain sailing! In this this book, Laura Shenton MA LLCM DipRSL examines the merits and challenges of what it was for Deep Purple Mk2 to get back together in the eighties. Included is a critical analysis of Mk2’s second round of albums: Perfect Strangers (1984), The House Of Blue Light (1987) and The Battle Rages On… (1993).