DPAS LIVE REVIEW

The Hughes Turner Project
EUROPEAN TOUR 2002

Prisma, Västerås, Sweden. September 9th 2002

I saw the Hughes Turner Project gig in Västerås, Sweden last night and it was brilliant. Glenn Hughes was so happy and so into it. I have simply never seen him like this before - ever!

The band is very good. The crowd went nuts, Huhges and Turner had them eating out of their hands. This project is very interesting, the interest is obviously there, and the vibe is just right. These ex-Purple men have both got a lot of stick from some fans, and here they are with a ton of attitude, happiness and charisma. I call it poetic justice.

They served up some real classics and the odd solo track, not a ballad in sight though. Glenn sang "Mistreated" and it was great to hear him back up Joe in "King Of Dreams". "Stormbringer", "Burn", "Highway Star", "Jealous Lover"(!!) and "Seventh Star" kicked major ass.

They sold copies of the new live album from Japan outside but there is no way that the Japanese band could touch this line-up. First off all, the shows here in Europe feature Joakim Marsch, the guitar player who performed on the Hughes Turner Project studio album, and he is a very talented individual. In addition, the whole band performed well. And as I said, Glenn was awesome. I knew that Joe would be because I saw him in good shape a couple of years ago, but although I have seen Glenn on many occasions I´ve never seen him like this. And it slowly occurs to me why he couldn´t do this in Deep Purple - Ritchie Blackmore told him to keep to his side of the stage. God, what a loss. You will all know what I mean when you have seen this tour.

The Deep Purple family is in very good shape today, it really has improved a great deal since the 80´s. What talent we have on display right now! Don´t miss it, this could be one of the most exciting periods in the Deep Purple family's entire history, and the Hughes Turner Project is right in there waving that rock´n´roll flag with pride. I left the hall with a huge smile, knowing I had seen rock history.

review: Mike Eriksson, Deep Purple Forever (Sweden)

check out Mike's website in our Selected Links fan club section

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