Whitesnake

Reviewing my blogs I realized I’d never reviewed this band, per se, though I’d mentioned them earlier.  A proper blog entry is in order at this…juncture.

In 1976 Deep Purple had run its course, with the Mark IV line-up crashing and burning.  Although their sole album with guitarist Tommy Bolin, Come Taste The Band, was up to standard, it turns out he had a heroin addiction the rest of the band had no clue about – until they toured overseas in places like Indonesia where he couldn’t score from local sources and he buzzed out on withdrawal symptoms.  Hint:  “drugs are bad, m’kay?”

The band decided to call it a day and go their separate ways, Bolin himself dying of a heroin overdose a few months later. 

Ian Gillan, fired from Mark II a few years before, formed a solo band.   Ritchie Blackmore, who quit after two albums with Mark III, started his own band, Rainbow.  The most substantial project was Whitesnake, centered around vocalist David Coverdale.

Initially this was just the name of his first solo album (David Coverdale’s Whitesnake), followed by Northwinds.  Then he started a proper band, Whitesnake, with an EP, Snakebite, and an album, Trouble.  This early stage of the band was R&B, classic rock, with provocative album covers and a familiar sound.  Maybe too familiar – my high school buddy Sean C. dismissed them as Led Zeppelin clones.

Subsequent discography:  Lovehunter, Ready An’ Willing, Come An’ Get It, Saints & Sinners, Slide It In.  Of these, my favorite is a toss-up.  Lovehunter has by far the best album cover, with the attractively proportioned and above all naked woman riding an improbably large snake (which isn’t even white, by the way), but I’m less keen on the music itself.  I did get the t-shirt of the album before getting the album itself, even wearing it to high school on the last day   Saints & Sinners has my favorite collection of songs, including the original versions of “Here I Go Again” and “Crying in the Rain”, which resurfaced on the self-titled album, and the very first song I ever learned to play on guitar, the title track itself, “Saints & Sinners”. 

The line-up tended to change regularly, with singer Coverdale the constant along with guitarists Bernie Marsden and Mickey Moody.  Ian Paice and Jon Lord ( >> 3/5 of Deep Purple Mark III/IV) served a short stint, as did bassist Neil Murray.  Glenn Hughes was never asked to join.  This era ended with Slide It In, released in 1984.  Sadly, I never got to see this era live; my brother and I only started going to concerts in late 1984. 

At this point Coverdale took the band in a completely new direction, more hair metal, Dokken, Motley Crue, etc. with the self-titled album three years later (1987)  Having said that, he mastered the genre and the album sold like crazy.   It was this tour that I finally got to see them play live – Baltimore Arena, 2/4/1988.  “Still of the Night” is probably one of their best songs.

Whitesnake, Slip of the Tongue, Restless Heart, Good To Be Bad, Forevermore, The Purple Album, Flesh & Blood.

White I have all the prior albums, I don’t have all of these.  We did see the Purple album tour, at NYCB Westbury on Long Island (7/27/15), the night after seeing Deep Purple.   This album has Coverdale, with his current lineup, cover Deep Purple Mark III and IV songs, from Burn, Stormbringer, and Come Taste The Band.  Can’t say I enjoy these versions as much as the originals, but I certainly did enjoy hearing them again, along with the rest of the material, on Long Island. 

David Coverdale vs. Glenn Hughes

As noted on Facebook, I’ve digested Burn and Stormbringer – the two Deep Purple Mark III albums – yet again.  Moreover, back in 2015 I caught Whitesnake at the NYCB Westbury on their Purple tour, in which they played ‘Snaked versions of DP Mark III & IV songs along with Whitesnake songs. 

The backstory on the Purple album is that Coverdale had originally planned on working with Ritchie Blackmore.  These days Blackmore is doing his Blackmore’s Night stuff, Renaissance music, though very recently he whipped out the Stratocaster again and did some electric shows.  Long story short, the reunion didn’t work out.  [For that matter, current Purple nixed Blackmore’s bid to play with them at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, despite current guitarist Steve Morse waiving objection to this, presumably because Ian Gillan hates his guts, for good reason.]  So Coverdale is the only former DP member in this project, which remained a late model Whitesnake endeavor.  

One person he didn’t indicate contacting was Glenn Hughes.  His recent deal with Black Country Communion was on hold thanks to Joe Bonamassa’s busy solo schedule.  But I can figure out why.  It looks like the two of them don’t get along together.

Deep Purple Mark III & IV.  In 1973, Mark II fell apart when Ian Gillan quit and Roger Glover was fired.  The remaining members decided to hire vocalist David Coverdale and bassist Glenn Hughes to replace them.  They put out Burn & Stormbringer before Blackmore quit, complaining of the excessive soul/funk direction the band was going, which he dismissed as “shoeshine music”.  They got Tommy Bolin to replace him (Mark IV), did one album, Come Taste the Band, and then disbanded after the trainwreck of a world tour supporting the album.

So what happened next?

David Coverdale.

Whitesnake.   David Coverdale formed this band, which has two phases:  blues-rock (1976-84) (White Snake through Slide It In) and hair metal (1987-present) (self-titled Whitesnake through Purple).   Jon Lord and Ian Paice were in the band on Ready & Willing (1980), making this 3/5 of Mark III.  I prefer the earlier incarnation, and “Saints & Sinners” was the first song I learned how to play on guitar.   The bluesier incarnation certainly has more interesting and provocative album covers, Lovehunter being my favorite.  The Snake is Coverdale’s animal and he’s been the only consistent member.   He really doesn’t need a solo band as this is firmly under his control.   [Steve Harris’ solo album British Lion really makes no sense.] 

Technically White Snake and Northwinds are solo albums, with Trouble being the first actual Whitesnake album. As a practical matter I consider them the first two Whitesnake albums. 

He did a one-off album with Jimmy Page, Coverdale-Page.  It’s heavier and not as AOR as I thought it would be.  I guess this came from all those complaints that Whitesnake was essentially ripping off Led Zeppelin.  Sean C at ASP was a big proponent of this thesis.  After having heard Led Zeppelin I through CODA, and White Snake through Slide It In (not sure anyone would accuse hairmetal ‘Snake of this) I’d say it has a modest plausibility, but not a whole lot. 

Glenn Hughes.

He recorded three albums with Trapeze before joining Deep Purple.  He has 14 solo albums from 1977 (Play Me Out) to 2016 (Resonate), of which I only have Music for the Divine (2006).  There are the three albums with Deep Purple Mark III and IV, plus umpteen live albums associated with those two lineups. 

Black Sabbath & Black Country Communion.    Hughes did a one-off album with Pat Thrall, bounced around, did Seventh Star with Black Sabbath – right after Born Again with Ian Gillan – and eventually wound up with Bonamassa, Jason Bonham, and Derek Shirinian as Black County Communion. 

To be fair, he’s toned down the “shoeshine music” somewhat over the years, but never completely.  And generally he remains on the bass as well as vocals, still a Fender Precision.