MACHINE HEAD

I often have a bias against a group's most popular album. This is because it is usually overrated or they tend to focus on one (or maybe two) songs. Something special about this album is that it really does deserve the title of Best Deep Purple album.

Now of course, everybody has heard of Smoke on the Water, the song you hear amateur guitarists play until your ears bleed (other than Smells Like Teen Spirit). While I will not say it is the album's best track, it does deserve much of the praise it gets. The other most-well known track is Highway Star. It is well-known, but not as much as Smoke. It is simply an all out rocker.

The songs Maybe I'm a Leo and Never Before are both great songs and have many blues characteristics that define Ritchie Blackmore's guitar style. The closer Space Truckin' is filled with power-chords and sounds very 70's metal.

The album's two crowning jewels are the blues-influenced Pictures of Home and the 7-minute long Lazy. The former features exquisite performances by all of the members (including a bass solo!) and the later is a mostly instrumental performance that twists and turns throughout the song and features great guitar solos courtesy of Ritchie.

This album is everything great about 70's rock (and pretty much all rock in general) rolled up into one album. Despite my bias' against band's most popular albums, this one truly deserves its popularity.