(Rock) Deep Purple. The Very Best of Deep Purple [IMPORT] ① - 2000, MP3 (tracks), 320 kbps

THE BAND: Over the years - Rod Evans (vocals), Ian Gillan (vocals), David Coverdale (vocals), Joe Lynn Turner (vocals), Ritchie Blackmore (guitar), Tommy Bolin (guitar), Steve Morse (guitar), Nick Simpler (bass), Roger Glover (bass), Glenn Hughes (bass)..... Jon Lord (keyboards) and Ian Paice (drums & percussion) have appeared on every Deep Purple release.

THE DISCS: (1998) 28 total tracks on 2 discs clocking in at approximately 138 minutes (70 minutes on disc-1, 68 on disc-2). Included with the discs is a 22-page heavy duty glossy purple booklet containing an extensive 15-page history of the band, song titles, and what songs came from which albums and year released (sadly no band photos or song lyrics). This compilation follows the band from 1968-98. Digitally remastered sound. Label - EMI Records.

ALBUM REPRESENTATION: Shades Of Deep Purple (2 songs), Book Of Taliesyn (3), Deep Purple (1), A's & B's (2), In Rock (4), Fireball (2), Machine Head (3), Who Do We Think We Are (1), Burn (2), Stormbringer (1), Come Taste The Band (1), Perfect Strangers (2), Slaves & Masters (1), Purpendicular (1), Abandon (1), unreleased - "When A Blind Man Cries" from the "Machine Head" sessions - released on the 2-disc Anniversary edition only (1).

COMMENTS: A collection like this has been a long time coming. A band with such a deep and rich rock history deserves such a tribute. There are several compilations out there, but this double disc set is worth the search (and I truly believe the single disc mixes simply can't do the band justice). Disc-1 concentrates on the early years, 1968-72 only... the sound is dated, but so much of the music from the late 60's is (the remastering helps a tad bit, but not much). Disc-2 has a much broader ranger - following Deep Purple from 1972 through 1998. THE GOOD: Most, if not all, the staples are here - "Hush", "Black Night", "Speed King", "Child In Time", "Strange Kind Of Woman", "Fireball", "Highway Star", "Smoke On The Water", "Woman From Tokyo", "Burn", "Perfect Strangers", "Knocking At Your Back Door", "King Of Dreams", "Ted The Mechanic", etc. The history contained in the liners notes is extensive. Chronological order is a plus - you can hear the band really mature over the years with their sound and line-up changes. Great remastered sound (especially) on the later era material. Many of the tracks are "Anniversary" remasters and/or remixes of which Roger Glover produced. THE NOT SO GOOD: Minor things really. I understand 6 songs from the early Rod Evans era is probably necessary here, but I was never a big fan of the 60's Deep Purple. Track 2, "Mandrake Root" - as much as it the liner notes say it's an early penned Blackmore treasure... I find it 6 minutes of absolute Hell to get through. "Hard Road (Wring That Neck)" sounds more like ELP than Deep Purple thanks to Jon Lord's overbearing keyboards. The crooning vocals in the middle of "The Bird Has Flown" are downright scary. This "DP 30 : Very Best Of" does a very good job taking songs from the wide catalog of Purple's albums over the years, but some albums were passed on - "Made In Japan" (and several other live albums), "House Of Blue Light", "The Battle Rages On"... and "Bananas (2003), "Rapture Of The Deep" (2006) released after the fact. No representation from one of the best live rock albums of the 1970's ("Made In Japan") is simply wrong. DP was always a great band live and there should have been at least 1 live track here. Several songs are missing - the most critical being - "Space Truckin'", "Mistreated", and "The Mule"; as well as some other deserving songs like ""Spanish Archer", "Anya", "Sail Away", "Lick It Up", "You Fool No One", and "Lazy". Utilize the space - between the 2 discs there is 22 unused minutes. OVERALL: "30" represents an excellent mix of Deep Purple tracks despite a few minor things wrong (and what compilation is perfect?). I firmly believe this is their best compilation to date - too bad it's now considerd an import. Lots of music from a legendary band, digitally remastered sound, classic Deep Purple songs (5 stars).