Los Angeles, California: Robert Plant, Ian Gillan, Rob Halford… rock’n’roll has unleashed a lot of screamers over the years. Alice Cooper, David Bowie, KISS… and a lot of showman as well. But every one of them, whether they admit it or not, owes a singular debt to just one man – Arthur Brown. Even his band – The Crazy World of Arthur Brown – remains one of the most perfectly named groups that any performer has ever conceived.
It’s close to 60 years since Brown and his Crazies burst onto the scene, when “Fire” not only became one of the biggest hits of 1968, it also gave the singer the nickname that he has proudly won ever since. He truly was the God of Hell Fire and, so many decades later… he still is.
And, releasing today on all digital platforms, his new single “Hush” proves that Brown still boasts one of the most dynamic voices around.
Written by Joe South and a 1967 hit for Billy Joe Royal, “Hush” is best remembered in many quarters as the first ever single by Deep Purple in 1968, at a time when the band was still finding its way across three early albums featuring future Captain Beyond vocalist Rod Evans and Johnny Kidd and Warhorse bassist Nick Simper alongside the expected Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord and Ian Paice.
A number 4 American hit (48 places higher than Billy Joe’s original), “Hush” might not be regarded as highly as some of the later Purple’s own compositions. It remains a stone-cold classic, however, and as Cleopatra Records’s upcoming Purple Storm tribute to Deep Purple came together, nobody doubted that it should be included. Nor that Brown was the person to voice it.
He didn’t make the record alone, of course. Behind Brown storms a dream team backing band featuring Joel Hoekstra (Whitesnake, Trans-Siberian Orchestra), Alan Davey (Hawkwind), Jürgen Engler and Chris Lietz (Die Krupps), Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge, Cactus, Rod Stewart), each of them determined to transform what was originally a fairly innocuous little song into a head banging hurricane.
Brown’s vocal sounds as though it could have been recorded way back when; Hoekstra’s guitar slashes as though the future’s on fire, and Appice’s drums have seldom received such punishment in the past. And then there’s that organ solo which comes straight out of the Jon Lord school of key-crunching virtuosity.
“Hush” has never sounded so heavy.
As for Purple Storm, it makes landfall on November 13, on CD, digital and a beautiful purple vinyl double album, with its dozen tracks tracing Purple’s tempestuous metal heyday from its breezy beginnings through to 1984’s Perfect Strangers.
“Highway Star,” “Child In Time,” “Space Trucking’,” “Smoke On The Water,” “Black Night,” “Burn”… every track stands paramount among the songs that truly confirmed Purple’s superstardom; while the featured players represent several generations of rock glitterati – L.A. Guns, Angel, Chris Adler, Chris Poland and David Ellefson (Megadeth), Ronnie Romero, Graham Bonnet and Bob Daisley (Rainbow), Jonathan Cain (Journey), 616, Pat Travers, Thor, Rick Wakeman (Yes, David Bowie), Mick Box (Uriah Heep) and more.
CD/VINYL: https://cleorecs.com/search?q=purple+storm
DIGITAL: https://orcd.co/purplestorm
Track listing
1. Highway Star – Derek Sherinian, Billy Sheehan, Chris Adler, Girish Pradhan, Gus G
2. Smoke On The Water – George Lynch, Derek Sherinian, Vinny Appice, Graham Bonnet, Joe Bouchard
3. Space Truckin’ – L.A. Guns
4. Child In Time – Chris Holmes, Alan Davey, Jürgen Engler, Ronnie Romero, Jonathan Cain, Fred Aching Rios
5. Perfect Strangers – Pat Travers, Jordan Rudess, Greyson Nekrutman, Oni Logan, Tony Campos
6. Woman From Tokyo – Angel
7. Burn – Doug Aldrich, Bob Daisley, 616, Jonathan Cain, Bobby Rondinelli
8. Hush – Arthur Brown, Alan Davey, Joel Hoekstra, Carmine Appice, Chris Lietz
9. Fireball – Marc Lopes, Steve Di Giorgio, Simon Wright, Charlie Parra del Riego, Claudio Pesavento
10. Speed King – Thor, Derek Sherinian, Chris Poland, Marc Lopes, David Ellefson, Fred Aching Rios, Brandon Ellis
11. Black Night – Rick Wakeman, Bernie Shaw, Bob Daisley, Mick Box, Simon Phillips
12. Stormbringer – Jason McMaster, Marty Friedman, Rudy Sarzo, Claudio Pesavento, Brian Tichy