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Rating: Considering what happened to their historical colleagues, I have always considered it a peculiarity of the Purple not to be stylistically too dependent on a guitarist. And I was wrong. A direct consequence of the sensational split with Richie Blackmore was the definitive abandonment of the baroque elements that had marked the discography immediately preceding this album. However, pay attention: “Come Taste The Band” is not just “a Purple album without Blackmore.” Instead, heavily influenced by the inclinations of the various musicians who created it, it presents us with a band still at the peak of its capabilities (the choice of the album title was never more fitting). So, unless you belong to that category of audience who becomes morbidly attached to their idols, you will find this to be a work rich with interesting insights.
First and foremost, the stylistic roots and verve of the prodigious Glenn Hughes. The bassist, on this occasion co-singer with Coverdale, infuses some of the album's splendid tracks with his characteristic songwriting. “Getting Tighter,” a sensational funky-rock sample, offers a Hughes with overwhelming vocal tendencies. Standing out in this track is the sound of Tommy Bolin's Strat, fiery and certainly as capable as his illustrious predecessor. Still “made in Hughes” is “This Time Around”: to the notes of Jon Lord's piano, the soulful intensity of the English singer peeks through this time. Of an entirely different nature are tracks like “Coming Home” or “Lady Luck,” decidedly more in the Whitesnake style (a band that would be born from Coverdale's idea, right after the definitive split that would follow the release of this album). Both “Drifter” and the splendid “You Keep On Movin” seem less victims of a single member’s personality, suggesting a greater desire for stylistic cohesion among the various influences of the band. I conclude this quick overview with the Hammond digressions of “Love Child.”
After tasting them, it becomes difficult to argue that this “Come Taste…” represents a second-rate episode in the long and not qualitatively homogeneous discography of the English group. An album to rediscover, with a hard rock flavor, soulful nuances, and a funky aftertaste. For once, it's better not to trust the critics and go buy it. The late Bolin jamming with his colleagues declared: “Come see the band! Come taste the band…” There’s nothing left but to heed his advice.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
02 Lady Luck (02:46)
She was a juke-box dancer
A blue eyed gypsy queen
She always had an answer
For what she'd done
And where she'd been
A feathercane Lady Midnight
For all around to see
She spoke with words of wisdom
And this is what she said to me
Lady luck
C'mon give me what I want
Pull me up
Lady luck
If I see you again
I will call you my friend
I have always been a sinner
But then the lady came along
She stole my heart and turned me 'round
'Till I didn't know right from wrong
She whispered words of kindness
I'd never ever heard before
Golden words and silver tongue
Till I really couldn't take no more
Lady luck
C'mon give me what I want
Pull me up
Lady luck
If I see you again
I will call you my friend
C'mon shake me
03 Gettin' Tighter (03:36)
When night time comes
And I'm ten thousand miles away
Just lose yourself
And watch the band kick back and play
Get up--keep in line
It's gettin' tighter all the time
You say you're feelin' fine
It's gettin' tighter all the time
Get a load off your mind
This place is right
It's hard to find
The mood is set alright
It's gonna be a long long night
You keep spinnin' 'round
You find it hard to touch the ground
And time is all it takes
You'll find it easy once you make
Get up--keep in line
It's gettin' tighter all the time
Gettin' tighter
Gettin' tighter
06 Drifter (04:01)
I was born a rambling man
An' I never got the chance
To settle down an' get a hold on love
Takin' air an' movin' around
Is all I can see that I'm doin'
An' it is bringin' me down
Drivin' on a highway going nowhere
Desolation destination
Guess I'll find it somewhere
I know if there's trouble
I ain't takin' the blame
That's why I keep movin'
So nobody knows my name
Born a loser
I'm beyond the law
Women behind me
Never can find me
They can never get together
What I've been here for
Cos I'm a drifter
Rollin' on
Ain't wastin' my time no more
09 You Keep on Moving (05:17)
You keep on moving
Far away far away
You keep on moving
Far away far away
Everyday wheels are turning
And the cry still returning
Dawn will soon be breaking
The day has just begun
You put your arms around me
Like a circle 'round the sun
Dance across the seasons
To a place that no one knows
Where angels fear to tread
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Other reviews
By Bonzo
It's not possible to forgo enjoying an album of such caliber, just for the absence of the legendary Gillan, Blackmore, and Glover.
The missing signature, on a delicately crafted work, almost a flout at Blackmore, almost as if to affirm 'we have found a great replacement and we can design an entire album tailor-made for him.'
By Stanlio
He never played the same things twice, he said he perceived the notes a fraction of a second before playing them, almost like magic.
"He didn’t play many notes, he played the right notes!" – Billy Cobham on Tommy Bolin.
