Deep Purple’s First Ever Covers Collection Shows In Its Case, ‘Crime’ Does Pay

Courtesy: earMusic

Deep Purple has, over the course of its life, released 21 albums, 45 (yes, 45) live recordings, and earned countless awards while seeing its albums go gold and platinum (some multiple times platinum for that matter).  For all that the band has done over its life, there is one thing that it has not done.  That one thing that the band has not done is release a covers collection.  That is until this week.  The band released its first ever covers collection, Turning to Crime Friday through earMusic.  The 12-song (technically about 16 because of the medley that makes up the record’s finale track) record is an interesting new presentation from the band.  Its interest is due in large part to its featured covers, which will be discussed shortly.  The band’s performances thereof are of their own interest and will be discussed a little later.  The songs’ sequencing rounds out its most important elements and will also be examined later.  Each item noted is important in its own way to the whole of the collection’s presentation.  All things considered, they make the compilation another interesting addition to this year’s field of new covers sets and an equally interesting first ever covers set from Deep Purple.

Deep Purple’s first ever covers collection, Turning to Crime, is a unique new offering from the band, especially considering that it is the first time in the band’s more than 50-year life that it has released a covers set.  The record stands out in part because of its featured songs.  The songs are of note because of their diversity.  The band takes audiences all the way back to 1946 in this collection with a cover of Louis Jordan and His Tympani Five’s hit single, ‘Let The Good Times Roll’ and all the way up to 1973 with a take on Little Feat’s fan favorite song, ‘Dixie Chicken.’  Along the way, there are also covers of songs from the likes of Fleetwood Mac (‘Oh Well’), Jimmy Driftwood (‘The Battle of New Orleans’), and Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels (‘Jenny Take A Ride’).  Also featured in this collection are covers of Bob Seger’s ‘Lucifer,’ Cream’s ‘White Room,’ and Bob Dylan’s ‘Watching The River Flow.’  The song styles are so different from one to the next.  Case in point is ‘The Battle of New Orleans.’  This song was originally considered a country music song.  ‘Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu’ by Huey ‘Piano’ Smith is…well…a boogie woogie type composition.  Little Feat’s ‘Dixie Chicken’ meanwhile is more of a roots rock type work while yet another song, ‘Lucifer’ is more rock oriented.  Simply put, the songs that are featured throughout this record show a wide range of styles and sounds from one to the next.  It makes for its own appeal. 

What’s more some of the songs are more well-known than others and vice versa.  They are not all major hits/standards that so many other acts might cover and have covered.  Case in point is Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Oh Well.’  According to research, the song was not a major hit for the band here in the U.S. but fared much better in the U.K. and around the world.  It peaked at #55 in the U.S. and #2 in the U.K.   ‘Dixie Chicken’ is another example of the record’s lesser-known songs.  It was never actually used as a single for the band’s album by the same name, but has been considered a fan favorite among the band’s most devoted audiences.  ‘Jenny Take A Ride,’ on another note, peaked at #10 in the U.S. following its debut in 1965, and #44 in the U.K.  So again what audiences get here in terms of the songs is a collection of compositions that is diverse not only in its sounds and styles, but also in its overall familiarity and popularity among audiences.  That the band clearly put some thought into this aspect of the record is to be highly commended.  The band’s performances thereof are of just as much applause as the songs themselves.

One of the most notable of the performances featured in this record is of ‘Shapes of Things.’  Originally crafted by The Yardbirds in 1966, the song peaked in the U.S. at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.  Meanwhile in the U.K, it peaked even higher at #3 on the country’s Singles Chart.  Deep Purple’s take on the song stays pretty much true to its source material.  The only real notable difference is that instead of the production that was so familiar of bands of that era, Deep Purple instead put its own more familiar stamp on the sound here.  Now, Deep Purple’s cover is longer than the original by more than a minute, clocking in at three minutes, 40 seconds versus the original’s run time of two minutes, 26 seconds.  That is because Deep Purple adds in a guitar solo after the song’s initial break.  By comparison the original song’s break is only momentary and does not feature the solo used here.  Regardless, the solo – which is almost prog in its approach – is a nice touch to the whole.  The keyboard solo added to the mix here also plays into the extended run time, but is also enjoyable in its own right.  Overall, the whole of the cover is just as enjoyable as the original, just with a slightly new identity.

On another note, the band’s performance of Bob Dylan’s ‘Watching The River Flow’ is another example of the importance of the band’s performances here.  Dylan’s original composition is a very distinct 12-bar blues style composition that is driven by its guitar and piano line.  It conjures thoughts of so many vintage Mississippi blues songs through its three minute, 35 second run time.  Deep Purple’s take on the song is slightly shorter, coming in at three minutes, five seconds.  It is much different in its overall presentation, too.  Instead of the 12 bar blues approach that Dylan took on his original work, the band took more of a blues based rock approach, if that makes any sense.  The blues influence is there, in other words, but is more of a supporting role than the main star here.  Instead, the band opted for more of a rock approach here.  The band’s take is different from its source material, needless to say, but is still interesting considering that the band decided not to just copy and paste so to speak.  It is yet another important example of the importance of the band’s performances throughout the collection.

‘Caught in The Act,’ which closes out the record, is yet another example of the noted importance of the band’s performances.  This song is a medley of covers of ‘Going Down,’ ‘Green Onions,’ ‘Hot ‘Lanta,’ ‘Dazed and Confused,’ and ‘Gimme Some Lovin’.’  Again, the band puts its own unique touch to each song here.  Case in point is the cover of ‘Green Onions.’  Rather than taking the subdued, cool approach used in the original, the band’s take on this song is more akin to something that one might expect from ZZ Top, what with the rich bass and guitar lines.  The covers of ‘Dazed and Confused’ and ‘Gimme Some Lovin’’ are just as unique in their approach as they clearly show Deep Purple’s trademark hard rock stamp. Yes, the original compositions are obvious in the mix, but Deep Purple’s trademark keyboards, guitars, etc. really amp up the songs and make them interesting in their own right.  When these covers are all considered along with the other covers examined here and with the rest of the record’s featured performances, the importance of the band’s takes on the featured songs shows its importance just as much as the diversity in the songs themselves.  This is still not the last of the record’s most important elements.  The collection’s sequencing rounds out its most important elements.

As noted already, the songs that are featured in this collection are diverse throughout the record.  While they re diverse, their sequencing keeps the record’s energy stable from beginning to end.  This is the case even as the songs’ sounds and stylistic approaches change from one to the next.  The up-tempo works move so fluidly and solidly, ensuring listeners’ maintained engagement, again, because of that smart sequencing.  It basically doubly keeps things interesting for audiences and brings everything full circle to complete the record’s presentation.  When the appeal that is ensured through the record’s sequencing is considered along with the featured songs and the band’s performances thereof, the whole makes Turning to Crime rare proof that in this case, crime does pay.  Yes, that awful pun was intended.

Deep Purple’s first ever covers collection, Turning to Crime, is an interesting offering from the band.  It proves itself worth hearing at least once in part because of its featured songs.  The songs are important to the presentation because they are diverse in their styles, sounds and notoriety.  The band’s performances of the songs are just as important to the record because they give the songs unique new presentations while staying mostly true to the original compositions.  That gives audiences even more reason to remain engaged and entertained.  The songs’ sequencing rounds out the record’s most important elements.  That is because it ensures the songs’ diversity is fully audible while also keeping the record moving fluidly from one song to the next, thus keeping the energy stable throughout.  Each item examined here is important in its own way to the whole of the record.  All things considered, they make the collection an enjoyable new offering from Deep Purple even being its first ever covers set.

Turning To Crime is available now.

More information on Turning To Crime is available online along with all of Deep Purple’s latest news and more at:

Website: https://www.deep-purple.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialdeeppurple

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_DeepPurple

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Johnson’s Sophomore LP Is Everything That Is Good And Right With Rock And Roll

Courtesy: Big Johnson Records

American Idol winner Caleb Johnson is scheduled to release his new album Born From Southern Ground next month.  The rocker and his backing band, The Ramblin’ Saints will release the 10-song record June 14 through Big Johnson Records.  Listening through this latest offering from the singer and his fellow musicians – which is actually Johnson’s sophomore album – it goes without saying that this new record could be the record that breaks Johnson into the mainstream and makes him more than just another alum from that TV karaoke contest.  That is due both to the record’s musical arrangements and its lyrical themes.  ‘Sugar,’ which comes early in the record’s run is just one of the songs that serves to support those statements.  It will be discussed shortly.  ‘Hanging With The Band’ does just as much to support those statements, both with its full electric and acoustic takes.  It will be discussed a little later.  ‘It’s Not The End’ also supports the noted statements.  When it is considered along with ‘Sugar,’ ‘Hanging With The Band’ and the rest of the record, the whole of BFSG becomes a work that makes Johnson more than just another one-off winner of one of TV’s many karaoke contests, but a truly viable rock star.

Caleb Johnson & The Ramblin’ Saints’ new album Born From Southern Ground is one of the most surprising records to be released so far this year.  It is a work that proves Caleb is the real deal and not just another forgettable member of one of the show’s season lineups.  These statements are supported early on in the album in the form of ‘Sugar.’  The song’s musical arrangement almost immediately conjures thoughts of Lenny Kravitz’s hit song ‘Are You Gonna Go My Way’ thanks to the guitar riff.  That same riff is echoed in the song’s chorus, adding even more to that comparison.  The inclusion of the keyboard line in the verses leads to a slight comparison to Peter Gabriel’s equally famed song ‘Sledgehammer.’  The two comparisons don’t seem to work in concept, but the way in which Johnson and his fellow musicians have used those influences makes the song in general work quite surprisingly well.  In fact they make this arrangement one of the song’s best compositions.  While the composition in itself makes for plenty of enjoyment for listeners, it is just one part of what makes the song such a strong addition to the record.  The song’s accessible lyrical content adds to its appeal.

Johnson sings in the song’s lead verse, “It’s late in the evening/And my fever’s getting high/You know I got a sweet tooth that can last all night/You go the power/’Cause your love is so divine/Well just gimme some of that sweet sugar/Make me feel satisfied/Gimme some of that sugar.”  He continues in the song’s second verse, “Now, someone call the doctor/’Cause my love is fading fast/I think I broke my fever/But this hunger will not pass/Somebody help me/Please my appetite/Just gimme some of that sweet sugar/Make me feel satisfied/Gimme some of your sugar/Little kiss on the cheek.”  There’s pretty much no doubt about this song.  This is one of those come hither, randy type of songs that is certain to get people moving in more ways than one.  That is the case both in terms of these lyrics and the song’s upbeat musical arrangement.  When the two elements are considered together, the end result is a work that shows with ease just what makes BFSG a success.  It is just one of the album’s most notable offerings.  ‘Hanging With The Band’ is another easily accessible addition to BFSG, and shows in its own way what makes the album such a strong new offering from Johnson and company.

‘Hanging With The Band’ stands out, just as with ‘Sugar,’ in part because of its musical arrangement.  This applies both to the song’s full electric take and its acoustic version.  The electric arrangement conjures thoughts of Bob Seger and Zac Brown Band (fitting, considering that BFSG was recorded at Brown’s Southern Ground Studios).  The song’s acoustic take stands very well on its own merits in terms of its arrangement.  In gives the song a whole new identity, as a matter of fact; an identity that is just as enjoyable as the song’s electric take.  It’s not the first time any act has ever crafted such an arrangement, but it is no less enjoyable here than in the case of other acts.  To that end, it does plenty to keep listeners engaged and entertained.  It is just one part of what makes the song stand out.  The song’s lyrical theme does just as much to make the song appealing.

The song, lyrically, is another relatively simple work, on the surface.  It is a song that finds Johnson celebrating the simpler times in his life.  On a deeper level though, that celebration becomes a statement that will resonate with listeners as they think about the joys of the simple aspects of their own lives.  He sings in the song’s lead verse, “Sometimes on hot nights like this/I can’t help but reminisce/About the wild-eyed, getting’ high, reckless innocence/Teenage girls and hometown boys/Just making out and making noise/Never knew fear/Just cheap beer and cigarettes/Dive bars, guitars, singing Turn the Page/Said one day, we’ll make it/Hit the big stage/Good times when life was easy/Wild nights and whiskey dreamin’/Rock and roll queens and kings every single summer/Live loud and it didn’t matter/Drove fast and loved even faster/Memories comin’ rushin’ back like the spell I’m under/Makes me close my eyes, get high and drink a cup of gin/Tonight’s alright with you/I’m hanging with the band.”  He continues in the song’s second verse, “Who says all those days are gone/When everybody sings along/I’m still pissin’ off every single neighbor in the neighborhood/I hope this party never ends/Love my family, I love my friend/I would take a trip back if I could/Dive bars, guitars, singing Walk This Way/Said one day, we’ll make it/Hit the big stage/ Good times when life was easy/Wild nights and whiskey dreamin’/Rock and roll queens and kings every single summer/Live loud and it didn’t matter/Drove fast and loved even faster/Memories comin’ rushin’ back like the spell I’m under/Makes me close my eyes, get high and drink a cup of gin/Tonight’s alright with you/I’m hanging with the band.”  There is no doubt from this, that again, this song is a celebration of Johnson’s life pre-celebrity.  While most of us may never know the celebrity life, it still is a story to which so many listeners can relate.  That is because it will lead listeners to appreciate the simplicity of their own lives; those friends and family, and just being able to live life.  That accessibility through the song’s lyrical content couples with the accessibility of the song’s musical arrangement and creates a whole that is yet another clear example of what makes BFSG a strong new offering from Caleb Johnson.  It still is hardly the last of the songs that can be cited in supporting that statement.  The even more powerful song that is ‘It’s Not The End’ is yet another example of what makes the album so strong.

‘It’s Not The End’ presents in its musical arrangement an old school, piano-driven ballad that is certain to appeal to a wide range of listeners.  The song starts off simply with that piano and Johnson’s vocals in the opening measures before gradually building to its climactic, almost gospel style finale.  What is truly interesting here is that Johnson’s vocal delivery this time actually echoes that of former Journey front man Steve Perry.  The whole of the arrangement is a work that exhibits great power that will certainly create great emotion in listeners’ minds and hearts.  That power and emotion grow even more through the song’s uplifting lyrical message of believing in one’s self.

Johnson sings in the song’s lead verse, “When you’re/Feeling/Like there’s nothing to believe in/It’s not the end/You’re fighting…battling your demons/It’s not the end/The angel beside you/Is waiting to show you the way/It’s not the end/It’s just the beginning/Let go of yourselves/While you’re holding on/If you’re lost in the dark/No matter where you are/The sun will shine again/No, it’s not the end.”  He continues in the song’s second verse, “When your hope and faith is wearing thin/It’s not the end/there’s a new day/Blowing out the candle in the wind/Let it begin/So right here and now/The pain and the doubt/Let it all out/It’s not the end/It’s just the beginning/Let go of yourselves/While you’re holding on/If you’re lost in the dark/No matter where you are/The sun will shine again/No, it’s not the end.”  This is hardly the first time that any artist or act across the musical universe has ever presented such a message, but that does not make it any less powerful and welcome in Johnson’s case.  If anything, this message, coupled with the song’s equally powerful musical arrangements is just as welcome as any similar song from any other performer or act past and present.  It even brought tears to this big tough guy critic’s eyes.  Yes, that was just admitted to here.  The joining of the song’s arrangement and lyrical content is certain to make this song a fan favorite both on record and in person at Johnson’s shows.  It could just as easily be used for so many movie soundtracks and commercials.  That is how much the song stands out in whole.  When it is considered along with the equally accessible songs noted here and the rest of the album’s works, the whole of the album becomes a record that not only certifies Caleb Johnson as a bona fide rock star, but in itself “births” new hope for the future of rock and roll.

Caleb Johnson started out his career in the music industry as a contestant on a TV karaoke contest show.  Now years after he won the 13^th season of that competition show, he has released in his sophomore album Born From Southern Ground, a work that exhibits everything that is good and right with rock and roll.  It also certifies Johnson’s place in the music community.  That is made clear through the songs discussed in this review, as well as the rest of the album’s songs.  When they are considered together, they make Born From Southern Ground one of the year’s most welcome surprises and one more of the year’s top new rock records.  Born From Southern Ground is scheduled for release June 14 through Big Johnson Records.  More information on the album is available online now along with all of Caleb Johnson’s latest news at:

 

 

 

Website: http://www.calebjohnsonofficial.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/IdolCalebJohnson

Twitter: http://twitter.com/CalebJohnson

 

 

 

To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment reviews and news, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it.  Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment reviews and news in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.