With a storied career spanning over half a century and more than 20 studio albums (in addition to many live and best-of sets), Deep Purple are quite simply one of the most successful, renowned, respected and enduring bands in rock history.
The key word here, perhaps, is “bands,” given how many musicians have moved through Deep Purple’s ranks. Still, the resulting lineups created music that reflected the unique dynamic between the players at hand, prompting the popular reference to these as Mk. I, Mk. II, etc.
The resulting studio projects crafted by each edition have seen Deep Purple evolve from the arty, psychedelic searchers of the ‘60s, to the heavy-metal cornerstone of the ‘70s (with dalliances in funk rock, neoclassical rock, etc.), to the mainstream hard-rock royalty of the ‘80s and, later, freewheeling elder statesmen throughout the ‘90s and new millennium.
Each of these eras yielded albums of astonishing quality and, yes, a smattering of disappointing ones. That’s why examining every Deep Purple studio project is both a challenging and amazingly adventurous experience, capable of surprising even those who think they know the band’s discography inside out.
Here’s our ranking of Deep Purple’s albums from worst to best.
22. ‘Bananas’ (2003)
Everything about Deep Purple’s 17th studio album was just wrong. With the recent retirement of founding organist Jon Lord still a raw wound (and despite the venerable Don Airey stepping in as his replacement), the band seemed to be sleepwalking through the motions, almost parodying a parody of themselves. The careless choice of title and album cover art only seemed to reinforce this perception.
21. ‘The Battle Rages On…’ (1993)
The result of a somewhat mandated reconciliation with Ian Gillan after the poorly received “Deep Rainbow” experiment of ‘Slaves and Masters,’ ‘The Battle Rages On…’ holds the distinction of being Deep Purple’s unhappiest album. Yes, sporadic flashes of inspiration emerged in the unironic title cut and the sweeping “Anya,” but by all accounts, in most every other respect this was a miserable experience for both the band and their fans.
20. Slaves and Masters’ (1990)
You can’t really blame singer Joe Lynn Turner for rising to the bait cast by his former Rainbow boss Ritchie Blackmore and agreeing to join Deep Purple for 1990’s ‘Slaves and Masters.’ But the almost-universal groans that met this alliance were enough to drown out the solid, if unspectacular and suspiciously AOR-driven songs conjured up for this much-maligned LP. How could it possibly last?
19. ‘Deep Purple’ (1969)
Deep Purple’s first lineup (a.k.a. Mk. I) was seriously running out of steam on this eponymous third album. You can hear them grasping for direction amid the Summer of Love’s denouement, the as-yet unspecified concept of art rock, and the still-unclear rise of heavy metal. Hence the Donovan cover, “Lalena,” and only mildly compelling originals like “Why Didn’t Rosemary” and “This Bird Has Flown.”
18. ‘Concerto for Group and Orchestra’ (1970)
This musical summit between rock band and symphony orchestra is clearly the wild card in Deep Purple’s career discography, but that does nothing to diminish its fascinating accomplishments. The experiment, led by the classically trained Jon Lord, wasn’t entirely successful or it wouldn’t have been a one-off. But it was certainly important enough to generate welcome press for the transitioning Deep Purple ahead of their heavy-rock rebirth.
17. ‘Rapture of the Deep’ (2005)
‘Rapture of the Deep’ lacked bowl-you-over songwriting depth, but after the perplexing, embarrassing ‘Bananas,’ it proved that Deep Purple was still a band that took themselves seriously. “Money Talks” carried itself with all due gravitas, while the bittersweet “Clearly Quite Absurd” was anything but, and “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye” raged against the dying of the light.
16. ‘InFinite’ (2017)
‘InFinite’ illustrated that the comeback success of 2013’s ‘Now What?!’ was no fluke, reassembling the same team (right down to producer Bob Ezrin, who’d basically become a member of the band) to achieve similar, if slightly less consistent successes. “Time for Bedlam,” in particular, recalled their glory years.
15. ‘Shades of Deep Purple’ (1968)
Its hard to see the overnight success of Deep Purple’s first LP, ‘Shades of…’ as anything but a fluke, just like its undeniably catchy but hardly life-changing smash hit cover of Joe South’s ‘Hush.’ However, the formidable instrumental prowess and budding songwriting of Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord, et al was already evident in standout moments like the grooving “And Her Name Was” and the aggressive instrumental “Mandrake Root.”
14. ‘Abandon’ (1998)
Though it lacked the consistent rewards of 1995’s bounce-back ‘Purpendicular,’ 1998’s ‘Abandon’ helped prove that Deep Purple’s second, post-Blackmore incarnation was here to stay. And proof was such standout tunes as the spelling-challenged “Any Fule Kno Dat,” moody “Seventh Heaven,” melancholy “Fingers to the Bone,” and very fiery “Evil Louie,” where the band’s pleasure in each other’s company was made evident by their tight performance.
13. ‘Now What?!’ (2013)
Deep Purple had no way of knowing how their fans would receive the group’s first studio release in eight years, and first since Jon Lord’s sad death from cancer. But that close brush with mortality and the extended time off apparently lit a creative fire: Their 20th LP featured an eclectic song set that rarely amazed, but even more rarely disappointed.
12. ‘The House of Blue Light’ (1987)
Probably Deep Purple’s most polarizing album (so it stands to reason that we find it here, halfway up and down the list), ‘The House of Blue Light’ tried to mask the rot already setting into the reformed classic fivesome as best it could. The result was two vinyl sides with quite different creative agendas: the first aimed at fitting in with ’80s mainstream rock expectations (“Bad Attitude,” “Call of the Wild”); the second given to greater freedom (“The Spanish Archer,” “Mitzi Dupree”). But neither was entirely satisfying.
11. ‘The Book of Taliesyn’ (1968)
Arguably the Mk. I formation’s finest hour, ‘The Book of Taliesyn’ saw the young group bending (“Listen, Learn, Read On,” “Shield”) but not exactly breaking (“Kentucky Woman,” the fearsome “Wring that Neck”) under the strain of psychedelia’s cultural onslaught. These days, Rod Evans’ histrionic voice simply doesn’t sound big enough for Deep Purple, but it would be shortsighted to ignore the considerable success enjoyed by the original quintet.
10. ‘Whoosh! (2020)
They came in with a gutsy motto: “Deep Purple is putting the ‘Deep’ back in ‘Purple,'” and delivered. Rather than endlessly noodling, ‘Whoosh!’ got right to the pile-driving point. Only a pair of these throwback rockers go past five minutes, and most are less than four. That tight focus helped Deep Purple completely reclaim their towering legacy on this late-career gem. They then closed the circle by returning for a rumbling ride through “And the Address,” from 1968’s ‘Shades of Deep Purple.’
9. ‘Stormbringer’ (1974)
Even with Blackmore already half-checked out, conspiring to launch his new musical venture Rainbow, the sheer talent of all those involved in ‘Stormbringer’ guaranteed an often spellbinding, if not always entirely consistent, listening experience. The bombastic title track, the funky “You Can’t Do It Right” and the uncharacteristic ballad, “Soldier of Fortune” were all top-notch in their own peculiar ways, but the rest of the songs suffered.
8. ‘Who Do We Think We Are’ (1973)
‘Who Do We Think We Are’ is, far and away, the weakest album cut by the vaunted Mk. II lineup, which, by 1973, was fraying under the pain of incessant touring and the fractured relationship between Gillan and Blackmore. Nevertheless, they still conjured up some magic with the perennial fan favorite “Woman From Tokyo,” the hypnotizing “Super Trouper,” and kinetic blues shuffle “Rat Bat Blue,” before taking a nap across much of the remaining tracks.
7. ‘Purpendicular’ (1996)
After the unhappy debacle that was ‘The Battle Rages On…,’ most everyone left Deep Purple for dead, assuming it would take a minor miracle to resurrect the long-in-the-tooth ensemble again, not least without the once-again departed Blackmore. But a small miracle is what they got in the well-traveled Steve Morse, who helped the group deliver an undervalued gem in ‘Purpendicular,’ especially on stellar offerings like “Loosen My Strings” and “Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming.”
6. ‘Perfect Strangers’ (1984)
Deep Purple’s long-anticipated comeback, following a nine-year hiatus, ‘Perfect Strangers’ was well worth the wait, simultaneously drawing upon the group’s signature sound while modernizing it for the ’80s. And while those then-new production techniques have dated the album somewhat, nothing can dull the lasting power of the suitably emotional title track, the devious “Knocking at Your Back Door,” and lesser favorites like “Mean Streak” and “A Gypsy’s Kiss.”
5. ‘Come Taste the Band’ (1975)
Blackmore’s absence (he had recently departed to form Rainbow) caused many people, including Jon Lord, to dismiss ‘Come Taste the Band’ as something other than a “true” Deep Purple album. But that was before Steve Morse racked up more years of service with the band than Ritchie ever did. Still, the short-lived, Tommy Bolin-enhanced Mk. IV lineup snatched victory from the jaws of defeat with this imperfect, but oftentimes brilliant LP, including the exquisite “Owed to a ‘G’ / This Time Around.”
4. ‘Fireball’ (1971)
‘Fireball’ is, in many respects, the most underrated and eclectic creation of the glorious Mk.II lineup. The opening title track was a bona fide scorcher, “Strange Kind of Woman” was a perfect single, the country-inflected “Anyone’s Daughter” a career rarity — and a hoot — and “No One Came” an incredible ensemble piece, reflecting Deep Purple’s singular power in a live setting, but captured in the studio.
3. ‘Burn’ (1974)
Deep Purple’s Mk. III lineup saw the band swapping Gillan and Roger Glover for David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes. Their first record, ‘Burn’ is quite simply a colossal album that gets better with every year that passes. Except for its forgettable instrumental closer, “‘A’ 200,” every song is an absolute monster in its own way, with the kinetic title cut, the irresistible “Might Just Take Your Life” and the massive burn-the-house-down blues catharsis of “Mistreated” as the particular standouts.
2. ‘Machine Head’ (1972)
‘Machine Head’ is Deep Purple’s most essential and influential album, hands down, what with timeless classics like the unbeatable show opener “Highway Star,” maybe the band’s best ever pure single in “Never Before,” the irrepressible “Space Truckin’,” and the mother of all riffs in “Smoke on the Water.” But it falls just short of being their best because remaining cuts “Pictures of Home” and “Lazy” fall just shy of spectacular and “Maybe I’m a Leo” is a flat-out disappointment. But it’s still a must-own.
1. ‘Deep Purple In Rock’ (1970)
Just like Mount Rushmore, only with five, instead of four, legendary faces, ‘In Rock’ is Deep Purple’s most important album. Their wholesale reinvention as hard rock doyens and heavy metal godfathers, it saved the group’s career from its late ‘60s doldrums with an amazing set of songs, including blistering standards like “Speed King,” “Bloodsucker,” “Into the Fire,” the driving “Flight of the Rat,” and the epic peaks and valleys of “Child in Time.” Giving it the nod over any one of Deep Purple’s four or five greatest albums is obviously subject to debate, but we feel it edges them all!
