Deep Purple’s most famous number, and the most often played guitar shop riff in the history of music, is in fact an account of a terrible fire that destroyed a building in Montreux, Switzerland, where the band were booked to record an album.
The album, (Machine Head), got made eventually when the band found an abandoned hotel to hole up in for a few days, along with a mobile recording studio owned by the Rolling Stones, but the ill-fated building did not fare so well.
The Casino was destroyed and had to be completely rebuilt, re-opening again in 1975.
In fact it was Frank Zappa and the Mothers Of Invention who were playing at the Casino De Montreux on the night of the fire, the 4th December 1971. A fan fired a flare gun into the roof space of the building causing the blaze.
Purple's song refers to the fan as "some stupid" and the smoke on the water was the smoke from the blaze being reflected in the water of Lake Geneva beside which the Casino building was situated.
Below you will see the Celebrated Rockbottoms Store where you can get track listings and further details on each recommendation. If you purchase from this store you will be helping to fund my research as I do receive a small commission.
No comments:
Post a Comment