Ranking the Discography: Deep Purple Part X: Come Taste the Band

With Blackmore busy with Rainbow, Deep Purple recorded their first album without him. He was replaced by Tommy Bolin. Bolin had played in many bands, often as a replacement (for example, he replaced Joe Walsh in the James Gang) . Bolin suffered from addictions to several drugs, including cocaine and heroin. This line-up is Mark IV, and this album is its sole appearance. The band disbanded temporarily after the album, allowing Bolin to record a solo album. Unfortunately, Bolin died of a drug overdose. This was also the last album to feature Coverdale and Hughes. The album had two singles: “Getting Tighter” and “You Keep On Moving”. It reached #19 in the UK and #43 in the US.

Members:

David Coverdale: vocals

Glenn Hughes: vocals, bass

Tommy Bolin: guitar

Jon Lord: keyboards, piano, synthesizer

Ian Paice: drums

The Tracks:

1. “Comin’ Home”: This is a great opener. Coverdale has good vocals and Lord ‘s keyboards sound great.
2. ” Lady Luck”: This song has a good bassline. It’s the only song on the album that was co-written by a writer who isn’t a member of the band, Jeffrey Cook. Bolin sounds good here.
3. “Gettin ‘ Tighter”: Hughes sounds excellent here, and Paice has some good drumming.
4. ” Dealer”: Bolin sounds good here too.
5. “I Need Love”: Not a fan of this song. I don’t think the band’s chemistry is good.
6. ” Drifter”: This has Coverdale’s best vocals on the album.
7. “Love Child”: Lord has some good keyboards on this one.
8. “This Time Around/Owed to ‘G ‘” : The second half of this song has a good instrumental portion.
9. “You Keep On Moving “: Pretty good closing number.

Final Verdict: Tommy Bolin doesn’t sound bad, but I felt as if he had a tough act to follow. For the situation, he was good. Overall, this album feels like an experiment. It’s been called “not a true Deep Purple album” by both Jon Lord and Ian Gillian (although Lord does say that it’s surprisingly good). I did like what I heard, but I can see why it’s not well -received.

Grade: B-

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