Comments for Deep Purple, Live at the California Jam

BEWARE THIS CD!!!!!!! The production on this release is worse than many bootlegs! Although the performance is outstanding, the whole thing sounds like it was recorded thru a telephone in the parking lot. The sound does improve towards the end, but is it worth the money? I would suggest seeking out the video, which doesn''t sound much better, but at least you can see what''s going on. Jim C.

Recorded April 6, 1974 at the Ontario Speedway which was the site of the first California Jam. Televised live in the U.S. by ABC TV, the concert is famous for Ritchie Blackmore`s impaling of a too close TV camera with his Stratocaster. After that he had a roadie pour gasoline over his amps and proceeded to set them on fire, causing a huge explosion and reportedly setting Ritchie`s hair on fire. Actually Purple`s appearance almost never happened when Blackmore balked at going onstage before dusk. ABC almost announced Purple had cancelled when their road manager quickly hopped on stage announcing Purple was having equipment problems but would be out soon. His quick thinking set the stage (literally) for an unforgettable show.Cal Jam was the coming out party for the MK 3 version of DP featuring then unknown singer David Coverdale and former Trapeze bassist Glenn Hughes. The album BURN had just been released and was featured in their current shows. Now they were appearing before some 350,000 people and millions more on TV. They did not disappoint! They ripped into "Burn" which became DP`s classic opener for the next several tours. They followed with two more songs from BURN, "Might Just Take Your Life" & the eternal blues wailer which highlites Coverdale`s golden pipes, "Mistreated". During this Coverdale comments on his struggles with flying insects, saying he keeps "swallowing the odd fly". Next up was "Smoke On the Water" which was given a different flavor live with Coverdale and Hughes dueting on the reprise of the first verse (the third verse is omitted by MK 3 & 4`s live arrangement).They go back to BURN with an extended version of "You Fool No One" which incorporates "The Mule" giving Ian Paice a chance to shine. Wrapping up the set is a 20+ minute version of "Space Truckin" in which Blackmore proceeds to destroy his guitar. Purple`s mayhem at this show caused them a $10,000 payment to cover the broken TV camera and a stage tech`s damaged hearing and a near arrest for the pyro Blackmore. ABC, at first upset with the band, calmed down when they began to get credit for staging this incredible rock event. "Live at the California Jam" is a good transcript of this historic evening. The sound quality could be better in places but certainly gives a good idea of the power displayed at this show. Only the video of this show (if you can find one) would give a better picture of this evening in April 1974.(Thanx to Bruce Pilato`s great liner notes on this CD for much of this info)

I remember the mc saying deep purple had a complicated set up and it would be awhile before the start of their show. now, some thirty one yrs. later i read blackmore didn't want to play before dusk. i don't blame him but we got there the night before and endured everything that goes w/ being around 300,000 people and i can tell u from my heart to yours, we drove from phoenix az. just see deep purple and we certainly weren't the only ones. there would have been a riot if they canceled. when we watched it on abc weeks later we knew history had been made and it is still true decades later. i still hum burn on occasion.