Lazy (Live)

(Made In Japan, 1972)

The first album I got was Fireball, at the age of eight. The title track is so amazing, and it doesn’t even have a guitar solo. But I also love Speed King. I’m a bit unusual in that I love the album Machine Head, but I got Made In Japan first, so it’s the live versions of those songs that I prefer. When I heard the studio versions they sounded a little tame – great, obviously, but still a little lame.

“For that reason I’m going to go with that incredible version of Lazy from Made In Japan. But I’ve also got to mention Demon’s Eye [from Fireball], and Fireball itself. Also Speed King, and Pictures Of Home, Child In Time [laughs]… just about all of them, basically.

“Purple’s music from that early era had such a great impact upon me. I grew up in a country [Sweden] that had no radio, TV or video – this was in the seventies. Before hearing Purple, the only thing I knew was John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, which my mother had on cassette and I loved. The first time I heard that double bass drum [imitates the intro to Fireball] it was like a fucking meteor flew into the side of my house. You have to understand that during that era that was zero rock’n’roll in Sweden. Then I got In Rock, which was fucking insane. My life was changed.”

YNGWIE MALMSTEEN

“I’ve always loved the version of Lazy that appeared on the double live album Made In Japan. It’s a great showcase for the depth of musicianship of the Mk II line-up. It’s pretty much a jam. After a quick tune-up there’s a spectacular ring modulated organ solo, followed by some guitar noodling hinting at the riff to come. Then the jam starts for real and it is just so exciting. There’s even a little humour injected at one point. The fact that Purple had been playing together non-stop for so long is evident in how tight this all feels.”

BEN MATTHEWS, THUNDER