When Faith No More disbanded in 1998, they released Who Cares A Lot, one of those annoying best-ofs that fans hate - all the hits they already owned in one form or another, including the relative "rarity" that was the band's cover of the Bee Gee's "I Started A Joke" that was tossed in as a cookie to entice someone to buy it, and this thing's not particularly "rare" either - most big fans would have this on a b-side somewhere. Of course, the label realized that, regardless of how amazing and influential Faith No More was and would eventually be, even die-hard fans were likely going to be hard-pressed to pick this thing up, so they tacked on the other crappy fan-incentive: a bonus disc of truly "rare" material. The disc as a whole is pretty shoddy - just some studio and live toss-offs that really no one needed to care about, especially the aimless "Hippie Jam Song." All the friggin' killer b-sides the band churned out for singles, all the live shows that must be sitting around on tapes somewhere and the best the label can come up with is this? Who cares a lot, indeed. Anyway, I would have traded the stupid thing back as an investment on something more worthwhile if it weren't for one little nugget of stupid fun - a quick just-over one-minute long live spazz-out in the form of a cover of "Highway Star."
I'd pretty much forgotten about that neat little bit until recently being baraged by commercials on VH1-Classic for a Deep Purple tour which, you guessed it, features a snippet of "Highway Star" and a few others, most notably "Space Truckin'." After a few repeats, I had that song firmly lodged in my head and sought out Who Cares A Lot's shoddy bonus disc for some satisfaction, having wholly forgotten that the tune on that disc was mere snippet of the original tune. A minute and seven seconds later I knew I had to seek out the real deal, and held out hope that sometime soon I'd run into a deal.
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Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - JR
The import set Live In Japan contains the rest of the concert recordings from which Made In Japan was compiled. It seems to me that the Live... recordings sound somehow less "beefy" than the Made... recordings, evidently some sound processing was done for the original live album; but there are two more versions of "Highway Star" recorded withing days of the originally released one.
2 - Dirk
Hmm. Actually Highway Star is one of those songs that I don't remember too clearly anymore.
I could hum the riff of "Into the fire" and of course "Space Trucking" but not "Highway Star".
Seems I have to check out its remains between my CDs...
3 - Mark Saleski
i love "Highway Star"...tho i've gotta ignore the lyric 'big fat tires & everything..'
4 - HW Saxton Jr.
I've gotta agree with Mark S. that the
lyrics are kinda dorky.Of course the use
of automobiles as a sexual metaphpor is
nothing new.Check out "Terraplane Blues"
by Robert Johnson or "My Little Machine"
by Sonny Boy Williamson #1 for example.
Just substitute "big fine ass" for "big
fat tires" blah blah blah. Still it's a
great driving song and Blackmore is just
going apeshit mad on the solo.
5 - Duane
Blackmore's solo on Highway Star is one of the more famous solos in rock music. He is not "going apeshit mad," but is in complete control. It is precise. It's the kind of solo that should be played note for note live, to the extent that that's possible. Remember that there are two guitars doing the solo. Blackmore is harmonizing with himself, which is part of what gives this solo a distinctive sound. Again, that requires precision, not apeshitness. I think what made that song such a grabber is the driving bass line and Ian's vocals, not the guitar parts. It has a good beat and all the kids seemed to enjoy dancing to it. I give it an 85.
6 - JR
Which version are we talking about? The studio version of "Highway Star" was all worked out; it is one of the rare occasions when Blackmore double-tracked a solo. Later, in live performances, he got progressively farther away from what he played on record. As I remember, the version from the BBC "In Concert" recording is fairly close to the studio version. But by the time of the Japanese tour in Aug. '72, he was pretty much just going apeshit.
7 - Duane
OK, I stand corrected. Thanks, JR.
8 - Douglas Mays
Highway Star is definately a favorite in the Deep Purple catalog for me.
I love what they do to other people's songs also. 'Kentucky Woman' (Niel Diamond) is such a great interpretation by DP
peaceloveguidance
9 - SFC SKI
How can you mention Blackmore's fantastic solo and not even give a nod to Jon Lord's incredible synth solo on the same song?
10 - HW Saxton Jr.
Duane,Good sir my statement that Ritchie
was "going apeshit mad" was only meant
to imply that he was playing at quite a
high energy level. Not actually primate
poop flinging insane. Please pardon my
etymological "ghettofication" of the
Kings English.
Besides I stand by statement vehemently.
On the version of "Highway Star" I have
from a Deep Purple show in Stockholm up
there in Sweden, Ritchie is indeed going
wild.Barely controlled feedback, serious
Whammy bar abuse & volume swells pepper
his solo on "Highway Star".
And quit being soooooooooooooooo damned
scienfuggintific!!! Over analysis takes
the fun out of lifes simple joys, amigo.
No need to analyze a great meal,a good
fuck or a rockin' guitar solo.They just
is or they just ain't.
Peace Love and Marshall Stacks, HW.
11 - Duane
Look, Mr. HW Saxton Junior, can the sarcasm and your superior above-it-all attitude. What's with the "Good Sir" crap? And it's "King's English," not "Kings English." The King's English actually includes proper apostrophization. Do you know about that? I believe that the subject of this post was the song "Highway Star." If you have a problem with my comments on the song, you may disagree. But don't presume to tell me what I can or can't say, you, with your three exclamation marks. A little excitable, are we? Why are you trying to overanalyze my comment? Calm down, Junior, and find yourself a girlfriend. Sounds like you a need an outlet for all that pent up hostility.
And to SFC SKI, good point. The keyboards were an integral part of the overall sound and feel to the song.
12 - HW Saxton Jr.
Duane,First off I was just goofing a bit
on this.Second, if I WAS being sarcastic
you would know it.I do not give a fuck!
about this enough to really give it too
much energy.
I already do have a girlfriend thank you
very much. As for the grammatical gaffe,
eh lalalalalalala. This isn't a thesis,
a term paper or an article.I don't care.
YOU'VE taken that post way outta context
Duane.
PS: Superior Attitude? Hardly.Are you in
the throes of an inferiority complex ???
On a good day I'd consider myself about
as bright as a small appliance bulb.On a
bad day my Doberman pinscher can beat my
ass at Chess.Your personal attack on me
is really bitter and very distasteful.
Seriously.Wow,unmuthafuckinbelieveable.
13 - HW Saxton Jr.
Furthermore Duane,my post DOES address
your statement about my comments in
regard to "Highway Star". Something you
failed to note in your much too witty
riposte. Lighten Up Francis, jeeezus.
14 - Eric Olsen
Um, tut tut.
So anyway, Made In Japan has the definitive "Smoke On the Water" - 11 comments and no one mentions this elemental nugget of truth?? Made is essentially Machine Head live, which is the band's best album in the best possible Nihongo-frenzied setting.
15 - JR
Burn is Deep Purple's best album. Machine Head is a collection of great riffs and solos, silly lyrics and not terribly melodic singing, recorded with rather poor sound quality.
16 - SFC SKI
"Machine Head is a collection of great riffs and solos, silly lyrics and not terribly melodic singing, recorded with rather poor sound quality."
Well, if I remember correctly, DP had gone to Montreaux, on the Lake Geneva shoreline, making the record with a mobile recording lab, but they did not have much time, that might explain the sound quality. All in all, it was a great rockin' album.
17 - Mark Saleski
c'mon...everybody was stoned out of their freakin gourds back then.
what's sound quality got to do with it?
lighten up!
18 - JR
Not saying Machine Head's shortcomings keep it from being a great album; it's just not Deep Purple's best. Maybe second best (excluding live albums). Arguably fourth or fifth best... a matter of taste, I suppose.
19 - Eric Olsen
whether it's their best or not, it's their definitive, career highlight album
20 - Mark Saleski
actually, i have a hard time comparing Machine Head to Burn because i'm not a big coverdale fan.
it's not that the music is 'bad' or anything...it's just that it has a different feel to it.
21 - Douglas Mays
I'm a long follower of Deep Purple. When BURN came out, that was the end of DP as we knew them. I always wondered how far they could make it into the mid-70s blah world of music. They did OK.
Oh, good to take notice to Jon Lord, keyboards. How about his intro to LAZY?! Him and Keith Emerson could go head to head in the abuse the B-3 contest.
plg
22 - JR
whether it's their best or not, it's their definitive, career highlight album
That's hard to argue with here in the U.S. Though from what I've read, In Rock seems to have made a bigger impact in Britain.
23 - Eric Olsen
my favorite DP song is actually "Woman From Tok-ay-o"
24 - Douglas Mays
all I can say is that maybe Deep Purple wasn't history's most definitive rock band. But they were good enuf to be their own drug. "yeah, I feel like smokin' some Deep Purple. We smoked that Stones last night man, Do Purple tonight" If you want Deep Purple, you gotta get the real stuff.
So, give them points for having the abiliuty to be selected over the rest of my album collection. And, as I see Deep Purple footage sometimes on VH1 Classics, They are holding out well in the "time honored" catagory. Sounds pretty damn good sometimes. Wouldn't recommend drinkin' it everynite.
peaceloveguidance
25 - Mark Saleski
my favorite Deep Purple song is "Disturbing The Priest".
...except that it's really a Black Sabbath song with Ian Gillan singing.