Deep Purple - The Battle Rages On...

The classic line up goes out with a B-A-N-G

It is so hard for the casual fan to keep track of what line up they are listening to when putting on a post-1980 album from DP. Steve Morse? Joe Lynn Turner? With this album, the listener is pleasantly surprised to get the classic "Made In Japan" line up that we all love (the last album to have it). The listener is rewarded even further with a REALLY GREAT album. This album has classic DP licks and riffs from beginning to end, with strong songwriting throughout.

Bottom Line:
Weed this album out from the others. It is likely their best effort since the band refromed for Perfect Strangers. June 17, 2008

Six maybe seven very good tracks on this one

There is some very good songs on this cd, the title track is one of them.
Anya is another great song and Ramhackle Man but other are not as good as we are use to with Deep Purple, like Lick it up or One man's meat.
Overall, this is a good addition to your rock cd collection but for sure this one is not the best from the band. January 9, 2008

The battle rages on and ended the mk2 lineup for good

As some say this isn't the same archivement with the dp mk2 lineup as "Perfect Strangers", but the spirit remains the same with the opening title "battle rages on" with hard pounding rock and synths.
With exception of the tracks "battle rages on" and "Anya" the album is good solid rock, but not hard. I enjoy this album as much as the other stuff with the dp mk 2 lineup, and that's why I purchased the album. I must admit I have not followed DP since this album, with exception of the title track from their 2005 album "Rapture of the deep". It's not the same without Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore...But they still know how to shake the very foundations of rock 'n' roll and with style and experince. Long live Deep purple and their Fans:-) May 23, 2007

The first song gets you, the rest keep you.

I have been a DP fan for over 30 years, I never tire of them and I enjoy every album or cd that they make. This cd was no exception! February 10, 2007

Gillan and Blackmore's final dance

This is the classic Deep Purple lineup, the legendary mk2's 7th and final studio album. Now maybe it's not quite the achievement of the 1984 reunion, let alone the glory days of 1970-1973, but it's still DEEP PURPLE.

The story behind this 1993 album is simple, it was initially recorded in 1992 with replacement singer Joe Lynn Turner (replacing Gillan in 1989), who fronted the Rainbow like "Slaves and Masters" album. Then, Turner got fired half way through the making of this album, when the old record company said 'WE WANT GILLAN BACK OR NO NEW ALBUM. Blackmore unwillingly had to accept the record companies wish - and the rest of the band as well, and so they rang up Mr. Gillan. In truth, Lord, Glover and Paice wanted Turner out and Gillan in, even before the record company called.

With the backing tracks already in the can, Gillan had a difficult job creating vocal melodies and ideas that would work with the pre-recorded music. Actually, with the help of bassist Roger Glover, they did a great job. I'm 100% sure this is much better than what Joe Lynn Turner had written and sung about. Gillan's probably the most underrated lyricist in the hard rock/heavy metal field. Whereas Turner's lyrics tend to be more Foreigner; Gillan's are more Dylan.

Of course Blackmore wasn't happy bringing Gillan back and left after the European leg of the tour. Thus, "The Battle Rages On" is the final album from the classic lineup. Any legendary band from AC to ZZ, would give their soul for an album this strong, so pick it up if you're a fan of the classic Deep Purple lineup.

Highlights: A Nasty Piece Of Work, Solitaire, Anya and the title track. November 2, 2006

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