Is Deep Purple in the same league with Led Zeppelin?

[DennisM]

Breathtaking... what a sound!

I agree 100%. Jon Lord was the man!

 

[FretlessTodd]

Apples and Oranges. Love them both. I, honestly, can't compare them. They were/are not the same. I got to see Deep Purple also back during their Perfect Strangers tour. I will never forget it. Completely awesome! Don't worry about who was better or not. Enjoy the music. They both offer so much.

 

[WG Plum]

I agree that rankings are lame. (In the same way I agree that 2+2=4.) But I think the point is well taken that Zep are considered gods and dominate the classic FM best of lists, while DP is Rodney Dangerfield-like in getting no respect. And I find this a pity, since DP had musicians every bit as brilliant, imho. I'll let drummers argue over Bonham vs. Paice and most days I'd give zep the nod basswise (not that it's a competition.) But incredible as Plant was, he never could have done J.C. Superstar: . And Jon Lord is up there with Wakeman, Emerson, and Argent for me. The world is far better for his having been here. And for every novice struggling to master guitar solos from Black Dog or Rock n Roll, I give you Highway Star. Aside from the fact that both bands have mostly embarrassingly bad lyrics, Stairway and Smoke are equally perfect in their own overplayed ways. TBH, the lyrics to Smoke On The Water aren't quite Alice's Restaurant, but for telling a true story, they are pretty damn good. And not only is the riff as iconic as it gets, but Blackmore's solo is melodic, lean, and quintessential. I rarely post responses to questions like this, but where appreciation for DP is concerned, too much is never enough.

Interesting you bring up JCS. I'd argue John Paul Jones could cop most, if not all, of Alan Spenner's lines from the original cast recording, not so sure the bassist from Purple could do that. I agree for sure on Plant not being able to carry the role of Jesus, though.

 

[DJ Bebop]

I agree that rankings are lame. (In the same way I agree that 2+2=4.) But I think the point is well taken that Zep are considered gods and dominate the classic FM best of lists, while DP is Rodney Dangerfield-like in getting no respect. And I find this a pity, since DP had musicians every bit as brilliant, imho. I'll let drummers argue over Bonham vs. Paice and most days I'd give zep the nod basswise (not that it's a competition.) But incredible as Plant was, he never could have done J.C. Superstar: . And Jon Lord is up there with Wakeman, Emerson, and Argent for me. The world is far better for his having been here. And for every novice struggling to master guitar solos from Black Dog or Rock n Roll, I give you Highway Star. Aside from the fact that both bands have mostly embarrassingly bad lyrics, Stairway and Smoke are equally perfect in their own overplayed ways. TBH, the lyrics to Smoke On The Water aren't quite Alice's Restaurant, but for telling a true story, they are pretty damn good. And not only is the riff as iconic as it gets, but Blackmore's solo is melodic, lean, and quintessential. I rarely post responses to questions like this, but where appreciation for DP is concerned, too much is never enough.

Had a "rock band" come to my highschool once. Everybody turned out to see them. Their "show" was playing the songs of Jesus Christ Superstar.

It was the worst :Ol

Parants loved it!

 

[brainiac]

Never cared at all for Sabbath. Thought DP had a few great tracks. Zeppelin was by far the superior of the three, so much so that they were the epitome of rock during their reign. No contest.

 

[axelrod]

Back when I was a kid, Zep was tops and Purple considered somewhat less Important, less hard, less rock, frankly just weaker, but in revisiting them years later, early Purple was very serious stuff, and it's the later popular stuff that gets most of the attention, so as popular rock bands Zeps stuff seemed more impactful than Purples popular stuff, where I lived, and with who I hung out with, back when they were both active, but towards the end of the stadium rock era and the beginning of the punk invasion. Both contain immense treasures for those exploring music.

 

[anics]

whitesnake, rainbow and gillan. two great bands came from purple.
in rock and machine head. two classic albums, along with sabbath gave birth to metal. zep were more blues based then got a little heavier 4 or so albums in.

 

[tim gueguen]

Overall, apples and oranges, but keep in mind that while DP was around before Zep

They had a grand total of 6 months head start, with Shades of Deep Purple being released in July of '68, and Led Zeppelin I coming out in January 1969.

The "Europe versus US" comments are kind of amusing, because Deep Purple only survived initially because of the States. "Hush" went to number 4 in the US, and number 2 in Canada in '68, while reaching a lowly 58 in the UK. They wouldn't have a hit single in the UK until "Black Night" hit number 2 in 1970, and didn't have an album chart in the UK until Concerto for Group and Orchestra. Shades of Deep Purple reached 24 in the US, and 19 in Canada.

Someplace out there's at least one fan who thinks Deep Purple wasn't worth listening to once Simper and Evans left. Because there's always that guy out there.

As for the usual Zep plagiarism talk it's worth noting that Willie Dixon may have plagiarised as well. I seem to remember that Howlin' Wolf actually accused him of plagiarism.

 

[Crackhead666]

Very Simple. L/Z÷D.P×3.146.+ d.p/l.zμ = BLACK SABBATH.

 

[jerry]

I've always admired how Plant has handled his career post LZ, almost always growing, same with John Paul Jones.

 

[BrickBatMansion]

Deep Purple ALL THE WAY!

Im not gonna go back and quote ppl verbatim so I'll paraphrase a few............

JPJ could cop all of Spenners lines in JCSS but Glover cant? Just say no to drugs sir.

The lyrics to Smoke On the Water are godawful? Is a story song. Like old, classic country.

Ive never understood the hype of JPJ as a bassist. Ive had to learn songs from both bands and unless your just gonna slop thru it, Glover's work is pretty intense. Plus...that tone!

I think Smoke is far more iconic than Stairway..............but I think Kashmir is a stroke of genius. And I think Rat Bat Blue is one of the greatest "non hit" hard rock songs ever.

Ian Paice vs Bonham? Tuff call. I'll take Paice.

Page vs Blackmore? I'll take Page.

Roger Glover is in my top 3 fave bassists so there's that!

Jon Lord vs JPJ? Really?

Ian Gillian vs RP? REALLY? (Gillian had to be all of 17-18 when he recorded JCSS)

Flame away.
Meet me on the playground after school!

 

[coyote1]

I agree and who can touch Plant's vocal chops.

Ummm…. What Plant had was attitude and uniqueness in abundance. He did have range…. What he lacked was chops. He was so frequently off-key in live performance that, for any other act, it would be embarrassing.

since this is a Purple-Zep comparison thread, check out Strange Kind Of Woman on Made In Japan. As Gillan and Blackmore match riffs.

 

[Deleted member 165050]

Ummm…. What Plant had was attitude and uniqueness in abundance. He did have range…. What he lacked was chops. He was so frequently off-key in live performance that, for any other act, it would be embarrassing.

since this is a Purple-Zep comparison thread, check out Strange Kind Of Woman on Made In Japan. As Gillan and Blackmore match riffs.

I'd say Plant is a great rock performer with attitude, saw him once with Zep and with countless solo lineups since. He had quite a range in his younger days but even early on live used to stay away from the high notes he hit in the studio.

Gillan on the other hand could easily have been an opera singer or anything else, his range and vocal power were and are awesome. I'm usually not a fan of male vocalists but Gillan I can definitely listen to.

 

[jerry]

I'd say Plant is a great rock performer with attitude, saw him once with Zep and with countless solo lineups since. He had quite a range in his younger days but even early on live used to stay away from the high notes he hit in the studio.

Gillan on the other hand could easily have been an opera singer or anything else, his range and vocal power were and are awesome. I'm usually not a fan of male vocalists but Gillan I can definitely listen to.

I don't think any of them had the range that Glenn Hughes had and still has.
The tandem of Hughes and Coverdale was incredible!

 

[coyote1]

Ok, item for item comparison. IMO of course, but I do play the various instruments so hopefully that counts for something. Going for ‘heyday’ here, so forgive my past tense on folks who remain alive.

best versatile musician: JP Jones. Great talent, great bassist, great arranger, very good keyboardist, very good on a range of other instruments. This also obviously applies to live.
Best compositions: Zep.
Best production: Zep.
Best variety of compositions: Zep.

so Zep wins in the recording category. Now let’s move to live performance. And remember this is not just fuzzy memories, but demonstrable on a slew of official and bootleg live recordings.

Best bassist: tie. JPJ and Glover and Glenn Hughes were all great players who held a solid bottom for the rest of the craziness in those bands.
Best vox: Ian Gillan. range and chops.
Best frontman: Plant. Great stage presence.
Best “rhythm keyboards” tie. JPJ and Lord both did great support work.
Best ‘lead’ Hammond: Lord, hands down. Ferocious soloist, exciting player, deployed ringmod to get synth effects out of the organ.
Best rhythm guitar: tie, sorta. Though Page did more varied stuff and I credit him for that, when you listen to what Blackmore does while the singer is singing, and while Lord is soloing, it works to support that.
Best lead guitar: Blackmore. Even when he wasn’t ‘on’ it was still good, and when he was ‘on’ it was dazzling. Page just never quite got to that level when playing live.
Best drums: sorry to those of you who love Bonham. I get why you do, and certainly he was great in his own right. But Ian Paice is just a monster player, who had plenty of thunder in his playing AND incredible musicality and swing.

 

[pigpen ridding]

Blues are not written, they evolve. Led Zeppelin continued the tradition. Blues is essentially one song, with different tempos, feels, mix and match lyric phrases... The idea of plagiarism doesn't even apply

Deep Purple is not in the same universe with Led Zeppelin. DP is for head bangers.

first of i agree led zeppelin is in a totally different league as Deep Purple as for blues being an evolving traditions as a blues musician i would say that is true but where your wrong is were you say the idea of plagiarism doesn't even apply is rubbish and if it didnt apply then why did Willie Dixon sue them twice and win? i dont have any problem with a musician taking parts of other peoples work but in least give the original artist the credit there owed which is something led zeppelin was always reluctant too give credit to anyone preferring to try and say it was all there own work whole lotta love is a good example early copies only show page plant bonham jones as the writers but all later copies included dixon`s name after they settled out of court rather than fight a losing battle

 

[Brent Cain NZ]

Fascinating discussion going on here. Sure does prove that music is an intensely personal thing & that we all have different opinions about the relative merits of both bands. As a teenager in the 1970's here in NZ my friends & I were all listening to Zep, Sabbath & Purple. I loved listening to all those bands at the time & discovering their back catalogue & influences. I was mortified when Gillian & Glover left Purple & initially did not like Burn. Now I realise bands & artists in general need to grow & that new influences can on fact be a very good thing. Burn is now a personal favourite. As far as the discussion goes I feel Purple are every bit as great as Zep but musically different. We should celebrate those differences & continue to disagree. After all isn't it all a celebration of two outstanding bands. Take care out there.

 

[cdngtrplyr]

Deep Purple was definitely the better live band ♫♪♫ otherwise they were in the same league.

 

[Cernnunos]

Led Zeppelin did a lot of tunes that were...derivative - minor twists of old blue stuff, etc. Deep Purple was more original/creative in their songwriting.

Also, if you’ve seen Deep Purple live, they could flat out play. The guys in Zeppelin were often “not able to perform at their best”.

Watch Live Aid. Jimmy Page tried to blame their less than stellar performance on Phill Collins, who sat in on drums. From what I saw and heard, Phil was the best prepared person on the stage, not the least.

I love a lot of things about Led Zeppelin, but there was a lot of baggage as well. If they'd been able to live up to and perform at their potential, they would have been much better. When I saw Deep Purple in the 80’s, they weren’t a shadow of their former selves - they were better.

As much as I LOVE LZ, you're right. When I watched Song Remains the Same, I just kept thinking, "Didn't they bother to warm up?" The first half of the movie is a lot of sloppy musicianship. Once they were warmed up, they were great, but that's almost half a movie later. :-/

 

[Bass Man Stan]

I've seen both a couple times and never really thought about what band was better.
I really like chocolate ice cream, but sometimes a scoop of vanilla is better.
I'm just glad to have been there, it was a magic time.