s a third installment from the highly successful Warner Brothers label era recordings of Deep Purple, “Come Taste The Band” finally sees a compact disc release for the first time in almost two decades. Newly remastered from the original Warner Music vault tapes, this rocking first and sadly final album from the Mark IV line-up introduces the late great Tommy Bolin on lead guitar along with David Coverdale, Glenn Hughes, and the founders Jon Lord and Ian Paice.

Things kick off with the fireball laden “Comin’ Home”. A rip roaring keyboard from Jon Lord, and David Coverdale’s vocals truly define the spirit and integrity of these hard rock champions. And this is just the first song…hang on!

The multi-talented Glenn Hughes continues his resume of signature tunes as the hit single from the album “Getting’ Tighter” follows a long line of Purple classics. Bolin’s bluesy feel and Paice’s rhythmic drum patterns made this a very good listen then, as it is today. A definitive stand- out track.

For the prog-rock crowd, the Purple develop two songs into one “ This Time Around”/ “Owed To G” For the money, this dual exercise in style and world class musicianship stands as a cornerstone for this album and for this era of the band. Lord’s flawless playing, Bolin’s ability to create different tones and Paice’s accents truly built this as one of the more defining moments from this recording.

Shortly after this recording, Tommy Bolin had died and Deep Purple took a break as a unit from recording for almost another decade. But before they moved on, they left us with one incredible recording called “ Come Taste The Band” Out of print for almost two decades, now back, newly remastered and sounding better than ever. Enjoy!