Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Deep Purple
Label: Polydor Records
Released: 1987
Runtime: 50:38
Rating: 4/5
After the huge success of »Perfect Strangers« (1984), which reunited the members of the classic Mark II Deep Purple lineup, the British hard rock greats decided in 1987, before heading into the studio, to keep up the same relentless pace and carry on the hugely successful story of their incredible comeback after being written off long ago. The only problem was that the traditionally tense relationship between charismatic singer Ian Gillan and the black-clad guitar virtuoso Ritchie Blackmore had soured badly again, hitting such a low that the two legends weren’t even speaking to each other anymore. The creative process behind »The House of Blue Light«, which was supposed to deepen the commercial success of its predecessor (superior in both artistic and sales terms), and ultimately failed to do so, was also rough going thanks to writer’s block when it came to coming up with fresh songwriting ideas.
In the end, a decision won out that is still the reason this album isn’t held in high regard by all the band members who played on it: they agreed to adapt their sound to the melodic rock/AOR production and songwriting trends of the day. Lord in particular, who was almost busier on synths this time than on the Hammond organ, his signature instrument, later regretted the bigger dose of AOR and the move away from the traditional vintage Purple sound. After the failed episode with the ‘American’ version of Rainbow, with which he had tried to win the hearts of American youth, Blackmore was an especially vocal champion of this direction, as he still hadn’t had his fill of electrified shows in huge stadiums. Meanwhile, Gillan’s patience with the man in black’s often bizarre whims was (once again) slowly running out, which shows both in the lyrics of »The House of Blue Light«, which carry a bit more cynicism than usual (though otherwise they’re the usual mix of drunken adventures and romantic mishaps), and in his singing, which is full of rage on much of the album.
Despite the negative energy surrounding the creative process, and the fact that most of the songs are a mirror of the era they were made in, »The House of Blue Light« is far from a bad album and is very solid as a whole, with a gem or two that could easily be called Purple classics. Sure, the Purple traditionalists got a bucket of cold water over the head with it, since you can miss the vintage Hammond organ sound and the complex instrumental variations are rather shy, but every track on the album is held together by a strong melodic backbone and a flood of Blackmore’s uncompromising guitar riffs, so the album as a whole hits almost as hard as »Perfect Strangers«.
The opening hard rock bomb »Bad Attitude« proves it right away, a neat fusion of Purple tradition and eighties synth technology, with synths whispering in the background under Lord’s nimble fingers. Blackmore’s scorching guitar riff is backed by Paice’s unstoppable drum fills, while Gillan, in a furious vocal delivery, tries to sound as dirty as he possibly can. The melodic energy charger »The Unwritten Law« is a rhythmically somewhat tougher number, where Blackmore’s inventive guitar phrases are vividly blended with Lord’s synth flourishes. Ritchie’s crafty guitar solo deepens the mysterious atmosphere even further. Gillan once again tests the durability of his vocal cords, while Paice seasons the ending with an infusion of shamanic rhythms.
The melodic rocker »Call Of The Wild«, which came out as the album’s only single and got a promo video, is by far the most commercial track on the record, with a pronounced AOR chorus, practically tailor-made for American radio stations, where, contrary to expectations, it didn’t achieve any notable success. The pompous chorus, backed by a decisive hook and an almost danceable rhythm, lodges itself in the average listener’s ear receptors in no time. At moments the band is hard to recognize because of the attempt to chase the sound trends of the day, even though all the protective instrumental trademarks are present throughout. »Mad Dog« is yet another attempt to fit melodic rock standards of the late eighties while keeping the recognizable sonic finesse, mainly thanks to Blackmore’s mighty guitar phrases and Gillan’s as-energetic-as-it-gets vocal delivery, with a heap of screaming flights. This time it’s Lord’s keyboard combinations that impress most, with the legendary keyboardist and composer moving successfully between synth innovation and organ tradition.
»Black And White« is an unusual dip into somewhat bluesier waters, which the opening harmonica sound sets up right away. The fast-paced »Hard Lovin’ Woman« tries to be a kind of conceptual sequel to the »In Rock« (1970) classic »Hard Lovin’ Man«, with which it has nothing in common structurally, but the lyrics are yet another classic Gillan erotomaniac ‘drinking song’ about a dirty girl. »The Spanish Archer« is a solid hard rocker with a feisty vocal approach, beefy guitar passages, mighty drum stampedes and a rustling organ backdrop.
The epic masterpiece »Strangeways«, a kind of successor to the classic »Perfect Strangers« in atmosphere and thanks to the similarity of its main riff, is by far the most ambitious and also the best creation on the album. The main builder of the mighty, melodramatic atmosphere is Blackmore’s main guitar riff, laced with authentic oriental melody. The cheeky blues rock experiment with the odd title »Mitzi Dupree«, ‘Mici Dupri’ in our parlance, where an iconoclastic guitar riff rules alongside feather-light piano arrangements, is yet another of Gillan’s drunken confessions, this one about meeting the Asian prostitute of the same name on a flight. The closing fast-paced hard rock, almost metal appetizer »Dead Or Alive« delivers an unexpectedly punchy finale with a string of crushing guitar passages backed by pounding bass drum, while Lord seasons it all with interesting sacral organ textures.
»The House of Blue Light«, which rarely gets a mention these days, was a worthy successor to its celebrated, artistically more accomplished predecessor, which puts it somewhere in the golden middle of Deep Purple’s studio output. Sadly, most of the (former) Deep Purple members didn’t have fond memories of this period. The eternal perfectionist Blackmore grumbled that most of the songs already written for the album had been re-recorded thanks to Gillan’s ‘merit’, while Lord concluded that the band had simply sold its soul to the AOR trends of the eighties and drifted too far from the traditional Purple sound, which is certainly true to a degree. After a successful tour, in the middle of which Blackmore injured his finger trying to catch a guitar in mid-air, the constant clashes between the man in black and Gillan reached a peak. At Blackmore’s initiative the legendary singer was fired, ending the MKII lineup once again. Gillan’s spot was taken by the American Joe Lynn Turner, Ritchie’s old buddy from his Rainbow days, giving birth to the short-lived MKV lineup, still not very popular among fans today and in many ways schizophrenic, which recorded just one album, the solid »Slaves And Masters« (1990).
One more important heads-up: all reissues of »The House of Blue Light« contain shortened versions of some of the tracks. They’re a transfer from the original LP. So buying the original 1987 CD is strongly recommended, as it has the ‘real’ (complete and correct) versions of the songs.
Lineup
Ian Gillan – vocals, harmonica
Ritchie Blackmore – guitar
Roger Glover – bass
Jon Lord – keyboards
Ian Paice – drums
Production
Roger Glover and Deep Purple
Track list
1. Bad Attitude (5:04)
2. The Unwritten Law (4:54)
3. Call of the Wild (4:48)
4. Mad Dog (4:36)
5. Black & White (4:39)
6. Hard Lovin’ Woman (3:25)
7. The Spanish Archer (5:32)
8. Strangeways (7:35)
9. Mitzi Dupree (5:05)
10. Dead or Alive (5:01)
