#1 for week of November 16th, 1963.
Happy 100 reviews! Somehow I've stuck with this blog despite the massive amount of songs that are forthcoming. Hopefully "Deep Purple" keeps me in that happy mood. While I have heard other versions of this song in passing, I haven't heard this #1 hit version, until today.
Naturally, this rendition of "Deep Purple" is not the original version of the song. The song was written by Peter DeRose in the 1920's and it is in fact that version that Ritchie Blackmore's grandmother wanted her son's band to play. Instead they subsequently took their name from the tune. So in some ways, you can thank this song for inspiring the name of one of the greatest hard rock bands of all time.
Nino Tempo and April Stevens were a brother and sister duo who could perhaps be seen as the 1960's version of The Carpenters. Although the former had a more rock sound as opposed to adult contemporary pop. Still, I was expecting Nino and April's version of "Deep Purple" to be a really soft and tender ballad like other renditions of the tune. So much to my surprise, a rather rocking piano and harmonica-led instrument track kicked in instead and I knew this was something special.
Vocally, Nino's vocals mostly have an almost rocker-edge to them. April's vocals compliment this by being much more gentle and sweet, but not saccharine. The bridge section, with April speaking the lines and Nino responding is just a tad on the sugary side, but I'm willing to overlook that minor detail. The two have a really nice blend of vocals and that helps give the song some extra character.
Do I think this song deserve to be a #1 hit? Honestly I do. We finally have a song that doesn't sound like it's shackled to the 1950's. The instrument track and the unique harmony vocals could have easily been recorded as late as 1965 and still sound fresh. For taking a song that could have been a sleeper and making it sound relatively interesting, I'd say, good job.
Final Verdict- A nice uptempo rendition of this song which manages to sound much fresher than some of the other songs reviewed from this year. The bridge of the song may be a bit twee, but otherwise I'd certainly listen to this again.
Coming Up Next - "I'm Leaving It Up To You" by Dale & Grace.
Until Next Time - I'm Dr. Rock, looking forward to, and also afraid of, the next many reviews to come!
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