Friday, June 10, 2011

Photos Of Deep Purple Wang



Yuck!

OK, if you were here yesterday, you saw THIS and you know that today's title doesn't really refer to a discolored penis. If you weren't here yesterday, you should read what I wrote then before you look at what's here today. It's only fair that you pay your dues, you know?

My thanks to good buddy and Deep Purple fanatic, Mark Alimo, who took all of these shots. There were some hundred or so in the pile he sent to me. Next time I run out of things to say, which is likely to be sometime soon, I'll probably go through the remainder and post some more.



The marquee in front of The Wang (which name can be verified by looking down and to the left, for you folk who don't automatically believe every word I write.)



L to R - Fast Freddie Goodman, Slow Suldog Sullivan, Mark "Normal Speed" Alimo. The blurriness should rightly only be affecting me, since I was the one loaded at this point, but maybe there was an earthquake just as the kind stranger who took this shot clicked the button.)


Openers Ernie & The Automatics. Yes, the majority of audience members are either bald, gray, or both (like me), but if you look closely you'll see a fair smattering of actual young folk in the crowd.



Fast Freddie looking particularly gruesome as he enjoys a water during intermission.



FFG and Mark being happy. I did not take this shot. They must have corralled some other audience member to shoot it. At this point, I was out in the lobby sucking down a ginormous can of Heineken in preparation for Deep Purple's appearance on the stage.



The Orchestra takes their seats prior to the lights going down and...



... Hmmmmmm. Look at that color! I wonder who's going to be playing? Green Day? The Moody Blues? Pink?



Well, DUH! It's Deep Purple! Ian Gillan (in black) singing (and mostly hiding drummer Ian Paice), with Roger Glover and Steve Morse on bass and guitar, while Don Airey holds down the keyboard position.



A better shot of Paicey behind the drum kit, along with Glover, Airey, Morse. Since Gillan appears to have left the stage, I'm guessing this is the instrumental portion of Lazy.



Nice shot of Glover, Gillan, and Paice, the three remaining members of the Mach II (1969 - 1973, as well as 1984 - 1992) version of the group.



Another shot of Roger. Seeing the Rickenbacker bass in this shot, I expect this may have been taken during either Smoke On The Water or Space Truckin'.



If you'll look at the background center of this photo, you'll notice the orchestra conductor leading the crowd in singing. This was during Smoke On The Water.



End of the show. Notice Roger Glover, ever the gentleman bass player, applauding the orchestra.



Roger Glover, during his bass solo prior to the entire band returning to the stage for the first encore, accompanied by the incomparable Ian Paice on drums. I delight in seeing Glover on stage playing. He's 65, an old warrior, still very much at the top of his game.



Probably during the first encore, Hush.



Just a nice shot, what with the purple shaft of light.



Paicey takes a short solo. Have I mentioned that I think Ian Paice is the best drummer in rock? I'm sure I have, but I felt like saying it again. That's because he is. His fills are marvels of syncopation, and his work on the hi-hat is spectacular.



General shot that nicely captures the buzz of a good concert.



Second encore - Black Night.




True end of the concert, following the encores. Notice both Glover and Paice applauding the orchestra this time.

Softball stuff on Monday, probably.

Soon, with... oh, I already told you what it would be.




25 comments:

lime said...

those are some really great shots of the concert. good location coupled with nice camera and skilled operator of said camera? in any event, thanks for sharing.

IT (aka Ivan Toblog) said...

Sully - your last two posts are almost like an episode of Two and a Half Men where the kid gets off saying things like, "He said New York Yankee," or other words which, in a stretch, might be taken to have a second meaning.
I know what you're really up to, though. You are trolling for pageviews, and with phrases like Deep Purple Wang you think it will bring them out of the woodwork.
I wish I'd thought of that.

Craig said...

Nice photos, and it looks like a fun concert.

I'm still trying to think of something snappy to say re 'Deep Purple Wang'. . .

Nope; I got nuthin'. . .

When I went to see McCartney, I think they didn't let us bring cameras into the arena. I know that, when they got to the singalong on 'Hey Jude', all the ushers in the universe suddenly appeared throughout the arena, threatening with expulsion anyone who had their cell-phone open to a non-paying friend or family member. (Not, you know, that I would ever do anything like that. . .)

Michelle H. said...

Great shots! One day, I'm imagining you taking one of your bass guitars to a concert where you have backstage tickets. The band asks if you can play, you do a rocking rendition of Stairway to Heaven and the band asks you to join them for the rest of the tour.

Just make sure they spell "Bonston" right on the tee shirts.

Suldog said...

IT - Bingo!

No, really. I consistently get the most page hits via Co-Ed Naked Snow Jogging and Naked Photos Of... which were actual posts at one time. So, why not? The pervs may be disappointed at first, but maybe one or two will stick around.

Suldog said...

Craig - There were ushers coming over to Mark, here and there, to admonish him, but he is made of stern and stubborn stuff. And he really was being unobtrusive with it. I don't believe he was bothering any other patrons, so no guilt on that account.

Suldog said...

Lime - You're quite welcome. Nice to re-live it!

Michelle - You know, I've actually heard of the occasional drummer being called out of an audience. I specifically remember some fan sitting in for Keith Moon during a Who concert. However, someone who has to play actual notes is a bit more problematic.

(That sounds like a horrible dig at my drumming brethren. I don't mean it that way, at all. It's just that the drums can be stripped down further than most other instrumentation and still be passable, whereas playing one string or whatever will get old quick.)

(not necessarily your) Uncle Skip said...

If I hadn't actually seen the Wang, even stayed at the Radisson a block away, I'd have... What?

Ooh, look a squirrel!

Anonymous said...

Loved seeing these! Last year we lucked in to a Foreigner/Styx/Kansas concert (for free!) and it was mostly, um, older folks like us, but there were actually quite a few youngsters in the crowd, too!

Buck said...

Have I mentioned that I think Ian Paice is the best drummer in rock? I'm sure I have, but I felt like saying it again. That's because he is.

Bzzzt! Wrong, Bucko. The correct answer is Charlie Watts... IBM's Watson knows this and you don't. A case could be made for John Bonham, but he's dead.

Ananda girl said...

"Deep Purple" was enough to get me here quickly... though seeing the name "Wang" on a wall tickles me.

These are great pics! Mr. Alimo must have a good camera unlike my digital.
These are worth framing! Thank you for sharing them.

Shammickite said...

Cool, man.

Shammickite said...

What about Ginger Baker.... of Cream... I met him once. Great drummer.

Daryl said...

What Lime said .. I can hear the noise, er, music pulsating throught these photos ..

Hilary said...

Nicely done.. I can practically smell the air.

Chris said...

Great shots. Now, I'll admit that I'm not all that familiar with Deep Purple beyond their classics, but as far as drummers go (and they don't go very far, normally), I'd have a hard time believing that anyone compares that well with Neal Peart (Rush). I've seen them live, and Peart is simply unbelievable.

But as someone once said, De gustibus non est disputandum. Or something like that.

Karen said...

Fun!

Ericka said...

looks like a great time!

Suldog said...

Buck - Oh, my. We do have a difference of opinion here, but I like you. Therefore, I'll just go the "agree to disagree" route, rather than start arguing the merits of rock drummers. If there's anything that would probably put my readers to sleep faster than softball talk, that might be it :-)

Suldog said...

Shammickite - Oh, my. See my comment to Buck, concerning Charlie Watts :-)

Sandy Kessler said...

and another of my teams has bitten the dust

Craig said...

My son says Keith Moon. But, uh, what the Knucklehead said about diputing gustibus. Or whatever the heck. . .

Craig said...

And hey, just for the complexity of his kit, what about Carl Palmer?

(*skchnozzzzzzz*)

Carolina said...

I'm sure I've spotted Craig in the audience ;-)

Anonymous said...

Buck's crazy... Charlie watts over Ian paice...not even close.
"FFG"