‘Voice of Rock’ Glenn Hughes performs ‘Classic Deep Purple’ at Penn’s Peak in Jim Thorpe on Sept. 8
From a press release:
Former Deep Purple bassist and singer Glenn Hughes, known to millions as the “Voice of Rock,” a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, and the current frontman for rock supergroup Black Country Communion, announced today that he will be performing classic Deep Purple material live during a nationwide tour in August and September.
The tour promises to be dynamic, turn-back-the-clocks, two-hour live extravaganza homage to his tenure in Mark III and Mark IV incarnations of Deep Purple, one of music history’s most seminal and influential rock and roll groups. It will stop at Penn’s Peak in Jim Thorpe on Saturday, Sept. 8 at 8 p.m.
Tickets, which are $22 in advance or $27 the day of the show, go on sale this Friday, April 6 at 10 a.m. and will be available at ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster outlets, the Penn’s Peak box office (325 Maury Rd., Jim Thorpe), and Roadies Restaurant and Bar (325 Maury Rd., Jim Thorpe). Penn’s Peak box office and Roadies Restaurant ticket sales are walk-up only; no phone orders.
“I’m excited to be touring the ‘Classic Deep Purple Live’ in the U.S. late this summer,” Hughes said. “I first toured ‘Classic Deep Purple Live’ in Australia and New Zealand last year and it went down like a storm. We’re also touring the show throughout South America in April and international festivals throughout the summer. By the time we tour the U.S., then the U.K. in October, we’ll be on fire.”
As well as Hughes on lead vocals and bass guitar, the touring band also features Soren Anderson (guitar), Jesper Bo Hansen (keyboards), and Fernando Escobedo (drums).
Deep Purple took a quantum leap when the then-20-year-old Glenn Hughes was seconded from British funk rock outfit Trapeze in mid-1973. As bassist and co-vocalist (with David Coverdale), he helped steer the legendary rock group in the progressive direction of “Burn” (1974), “Stormbringer” (1974), and “Come Taste the Band” (1975) while touring the world for three years.
His solo debut album “Play Me Out” (1977) preceded later albums with Black Sabbath and Gary Moore. The last 25 years have seen a rush of solo work and collaborations for the “Voice of Rock,” including mega-hit “America: What Time Is Love?” with the KLF in 1992, appearances with Joe Satriani/G3, and four critically acclaimed top-selling studio albums released between 2010 and 2018 with rock super group Black Country Communion featuring Joe Bonamassa, Derek Sherinian, and Jason Bonham. Hughes was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016 as a member of Deep Purple.
Taking a page and inspiration from the Blackmore/Coverdale/Hughes/Lord/Paice Deep Purple Mk III California Jam and Made in Europe era, the upcoming live show features the Purple classics “Burn,” “Stormbringer,” “Might Just Take Your Life,” and “Mistreated,” among others, plus tracks previously never performed live by the original Mk III lineup.
Classic material from the Tommy Bolin Mk IV period is also featured, including “Gettin’ Tighter,” Hughes’ funk rock extravaganza, plus the brooding Coverdale/Hughes masterpiece “You Keep on Moving.”
Deep Purple Mk II hits “Highway Star” and “Smoke on the Water” are also featured because, as Hughes points out, “I did play both these numbers during my time with Purple, and they were mainstays of the live set when I was in the band. As my manager pointed out to me, the first time ‘Smoke on the Water’ was ever played live at Madison Square Garden was when David and I were in the band in 1974. I love singing ‘Highway Star’ too.”
Hughes continues, “A few years back, I cut a barnstorming version of ‘Highway Star’ for the ‘Machine Head’ anniversary tribute album with my good friends Steve Vai and Chad Smith. I’m not playing anything on the forthcoming tour that I didn’t either play live or record in the studio with Purple.”
“Glenn Hughes Performs Classic Deep Purple Live” is the first time he has performed a show solely of Deep Purple material since his last show with Purple at the Liverpool Empire on March 15, 1976. Not one to wallow in nostalgia, hence his extensive and varied career post-Purple, Hughes feels the time is right to acknowledge and pay homage to his past, his musical legacy and, most importantly, to one of rock and roll’s most acclaimed, influential, and successful rock bands.
“I can still sing the songs, in some ways even better than I did in the ’70s,” says Hughes. “I can still perform them with the same energy that was on the stage back then too. I feel that the time is right. It’s fun to get back into character of my days with Purple. I’m looking back at my life and I want to remember the good stuff. I’m incredibly excited to perform these songs, as they helped define the genre. I can assure you, the new show is going to blow your mind.”
