814. Deep Purple / Made in Japan. 1972. 5/5

When it comes to nominating what the greatest live albums of all time are, this one generally comes close to the top of the list. In an era when bootlegging was beginning to take a stranglehold on the record market, allowing fans to hear their heroes in their live element whenever they wanted rather than having to wait for them to tour, this live release was almost in response to this occurring. In trying to capture a moment in time that was from all reports only ever to be released in Japan, it became a worldwide phenomenon, and sent Deep Purple's fandom racing to the stars.

The best part about live recordings is that they aren't perfect. There are mistakes, there are flips and flails and other such occurrences. the songs are played faster, or slower, or harder, or softer. The vocals are not pristine like they are after any number of takes in the studio, they are the real thing. You can't hide live if you can't sing. A live album is not supposed to be a carbon copy of songs as they are performed on studio albums, it is supposed to be expressive and entertaining, because when you go to see a band live, that's what you expect to see. And so it is here on Made in Japan.
The setlist is just terrific. "Highway Star" kicks it all off at great pace, before settling into the amazing mood swings of "Child in Time". If you've ever heard this song on the studio release, you will appreciate how good the song is, and how well Ian Gillan sings it. Until you hear this version, where Gillan's vocals are just amazing, reaching heights that are almost unobtainable, before the brilliance of Jon Lord's Hammond organ and Ritchie Blackmore's guitar turn this song into a live monster. This version is so much bigger and brilliant than the original version. The middle section where the keyboards and the guitars rumble through is a magnificent sequence. Then it's in to "Smoke on the Water', when it was still new and fresh and exciting for the band to play. This is followed by "The Mule" which, for all intents and purposes can be seen as a lost section. "Strange Kind of Woman" starts off the second piece of vinyl, before the two long and extensive versions of "Lazy" and "Space Truckin'" complete the album in style.
OK, so you can't always have everything your own way, and the fact that there are only seven songs on this release ha always been disappointing. Now, there could have been a lot more songs, covering their back catalogue to this point of their career, but the 1970's was rife with bands who performed free-form musical extensions of their songs. Now this isn't something that should be frowned upon in a live setting. In fact it is the perfect opportunity to do this kind of thing. The play off between Gillan's vocals and Blackmore's guitar is entertaining, as is the same play off between Blackmore's guitar and Lord's keyboards. That's a great element of the live performance. However... is there a need to stretch songs sooooooooo long that it becomes a drag? That the song itself is forgotten because the musical interlude has moved so long and so far away from what it began that you can forget about what song was actually being played? It's a bugbear of mine. Do we need a drum solo on a live album? In the modern day these songs get the skip button automatically, but it was more difficult on vinyl. as a record of the live gig played, yes, you do need to record it. When you are actually listening to the album though, do you want to listen to an eight minute drum solo? And as a case in point in taking the freeform too far, the conclusion to "Space Truckin'" is the best example. The original version of this song goes for four and a half minutes. Perfect. Brilliant. The version here stretches to almost 20 minutes. Again, as I have already stated, being alive album there is no problem with that situation coming about. But I'd have preferred to have heard another two or three songs played rather than fifteen minutes of expansive movement. I'm not trying to suggest it spoils my enjoyment of this album - it doesn't. I do love to hear Ritchie and Jon and Ian doing all of this stuff, showcasing what they can do. It's just that sometimes there is too much of a good thing, and some things can at times appear to go on just a little too long.

The great thing about this album is that you can hear how much the band is enjoying itself, and how innovative the musicianship is when these songs were still new to them and they could enjoy playing them without feeling as though they HAD to. It is a great live release. But the greatest live album ever? Well, straight off the top of my head I can think of Iron Maiden's Live After Death, Slayer's Decade of Aggression: Live and Ozzy Osbourne's Tribute which would rank higher with me, but it is certainly a classic, and a wonderful reminder of this band's golden era.

Rating:  Wait for the ricochet.  5/5