Deep Purple Releases ‘Machine Head’ Super Deluxe Edition
by Best Classic Bands Staff
Deep Purple’s 1972 classic album, Machine Head, which unleashed one of rock’s most notable guitar riffs—four notes, in G minor, played on a Fender Stratocaster by Ritchie Blackmore on “Smoke On the Water”—has gotten a Super Deluxe Edition for its belated 50th anniversary. Rhino is honoring the album’s enormous legacy with a comprehensive version introducing new mixes and previously unreleased live recordings. (See the complete track listing below.) Machine Head: Super Deluxe Edition arrived on March 29, 2024, as a 3-CD/LP/Blu-ray set. It’s available for order in the U.S. here and in the U.K. here.
Highlighting the collection are several different versions of the album, including new stereo and Dolby Atmos mixes by Dweezil Zappa. The 1974 quadraphonic mix and a newly remastered version of the original album are also featured, adding depth to the extraordinary set. Listen to Zappa’s newly remixed stereo version of “Smoke On the Water.”
On March 1, the classic track received its first official music video. The animated production faithfully interprets the story of the song’s inception.
Related: Much more on how the classic rock song came to be
From the Feb. 6 announcement: The Super Deluxe Edition also contains two captivating live performances. The first, recorded on March 9, 1972, at the Paris Theatre in London, captures the group’s unrivaled stage presence during the “Machine Head Tour.”
The second, previously unreleased, was recorded in April 1971 at the Montreux Casino in Switzerland. Deep Purple planned to record Machine Head there that December, but the venue burned down during a concert by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention right before the sessions began. The fire, caused by “some stupid with a flare gun burned the place to the ground” as it was immortalized in “Smoke On the Water.” Since its debut, the song and the album have left an indelible mark on music, inspiring countless bands around the world.
In the aftermath, guitarist Blackmore, keyboardist Jon Lord, singer Ian Gillan, bassist Roger Glover, and drummer Ian Paice relocated to the nearby Grand Hotel (empty for the winter season) to record the album. Despite the chaos, the band managed to create its most successful album ever, topping the U.K. album chart and cracking the Top 10 in the U.S., earning a double platinum certification in 1986.
The previously unreleased Montreux concert promises to be a highlight for fans. The audience recording covers songs the band recorded prior to Machine Head, including “Child In Time” (from 1969’s live Concerto for Group and Orchestra), “Speed King” and “Into the Fire” (from 1970’s Deep Purple in Rock), and “Strange Kind of Woman” (from 1971’s Fireball).
The new Dolby Atmos and 2024 mixes provide fresh and immersive perspectives on this classic album and were made by Zappa using the original tapes. In the liner notes, he writes: “It’s one of those records where I think, ‘How did they come up with this?’ It’s got classical influences in the guitar and the keyboard, but then it’s got the blues and there’s little bits of funkiness. And you have this singer who has the most killer voice. All these things come together in a way where it doesn’t sound like commercial music, yet people got really excited about it. It’s a fascinating recipe.”
Glover and Paice offer fans a close-up look at the new set:
MACHINE HEAD: SUPER DELUXE EDITION Track Listing
LP: Dweezil Zappa 2024 Remix
Side One
“Highway Star”
“Maybe I’m A Leo”
“Pictures Of Home”
“Never Before”
Side Two
“Smoke On The Water”
“Lazy”
“When A Blind Man Cries” – B-side
“Space Truckin’”
CD One: Dweezil Zappa 2024 Remix
“Highway Star”
“Maybe I’m A Leo”
“Pictures Of Home”
“Never Before”
“Smoke On The Water”
“Lazy”
“Space Truckin’”
“When A Blind Man Cries” – B-side
2024 Remaster
“Highway Star”
“Maybe I’m A Leo”
“Pictures Of Home”
“Never Before”
“Smoke On The Water”
“Lazy”
“Space Truckin’”
CD Two: In Concert ’72
Introduction
“Highway Star”
“Strange Kind Of Woman”
“Maybe I’m A Leo”
“Smoke On The Water”
“Never Before”
“Lazy”
“Space Truckin’”
“Lucille”
“Maybe I’m A Leo” – soundcheck
CD Three: Montreux ’71
“Swiss Yodel” *
“Speed King” *
“Strange Kind Of Woman” *
“Into The Fire” *
“Child In Time” *
“Paint It Black” *
“Wring That Neck (Hard Road)” *
“Black Night” *
“Lucille” *
Blu-ray (Audio Only)
Dweezil Zappa 2024 Atmos Remix
“Highway Star” *
“Maybe I’m A Leo” *
“Pictures Of Home” *
“Never Before” *
“Smoke On The Water” *
“Lazy” *
“Space Truckin’” *
“When A Blind Man Cries” – B-side *
1974 U.S. Quad Mix
“Highway Star”
“Maybe I’m A Leo”
“Pictures Of Home”
“Never Before”
“Smoke On The Water”
“Lazy”
“Space Truckin’”
Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound Mixes
“When A Blind Man Cries” – B-side
“Maybe I’m A Leo”
“Lazy”
* previously unreleased
7 Comments so far
Jump into a conversationI’m a sucker for these remixes. I always enjoy the albums that needed “todays”s tech. And suffered from the “if only they had this technology back then” syndrome.
I already bought the remixed Humble Pie Live at the Fillmore which has all 4 shows on it. It’s excellent
One of the best live albums in rock history
Smoke On The Water is one of those tracks that my brain don’t bear no more. Everytime i play Machine Head i skip it. Enough is enough!
Lol. I thought I was the only one that skipped over it. There must be others as well. Try playing it in a band 5 nights a week for about 5 years!
It’s always so strange to me to realize all these great rock stars are now old men. It’s just bizarre. You never think they’re gonna get old but of course they do. Shout out to Ian Paice. That guy was such a fantastic drummer…
‘Long ago and far away’…damn we were fu*kin’ crazy!!!