Deep Purple, one of the longest-running and most prolific hard rock bands, first emerged in the psychedelic era of the late 1960s. The band stood out because they played much louder than any of their predecessors. The classic seventies line-up (with virtuoso guitarist
Ritchie Blackmore, the complaining tenor of
Ian Gillan and the classically trained keyboardist Jon Lord) was a blueprint for many
… hard rock and metal bands that followed in their footsteps. The later years were characterized by many line-up changes. The singers David Coverdale and Joe Lynn Turner and the guitarists and Steve Morse were once part of the group. From the eighties onwards, few reunions took place with the most important band members from the illustrious past.more
