Highway Star (song)

"Highway Star" is a song by the English rock band Deep Purple. It is the opening track on their 1972 album Machine Head and is the fastest song in tempo on the album. It is characterised by long, classically-inspired guitar and organ solos.[4]

"Highway Star"
Cover of the 1972 Japan single
Song by Deep Purple
from the album Machine Head
ReleasedMarch 1972
Recorded6–21 December 1971
Montreux, Switzerland
Genre
Length6:09
6:39 (The 1997 Remixes version)
LabelEMI (UK)
Warner Bros. (US)
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Deep Purple
Machine Head track listing
8 tracks
  1. "Highway Star"
  2. "Maybe I'm a Leo"
  3. "Pictures of Home"
  4. "Never Before"
  5. "Smoke on the Water"
  6. "Lazy"
  7. "Space Truckin'"
  8. "When a Blind Man Cries"

History

This song was born on a tour bus going to Portsmouth in 1971 when a reporter asked the band how they wrote songs. To demonstrate, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore grabbed an acoustic guitar and began playing a riff consisting of a single "G" repeated over and over, while vocalist Ian Gillan improvised lyrics over the top. The song was refined and was performed that same night.[5] The song first appears on the 1972 LP Machine Head. The track remains one of the band's staples in live concerts, and was the set opener even before it was released on any album.

The very first live version released, recorded live for German TV program Beat-Club in September 1971, is featured on the History, Hits & Highlights '68–'76 DVD. It is the opening track on the live albums Nobody's Perfect (1988), Come Hell or High Water (1994), and From the Setting Sun… (In Wacken) (2015).[6] The most famous live version is featured on the 1972 live album Made in Japan. The Guardian said, "Blackmore’s playing is like a force of nature on the Made in Japan version; those slashing chords in the intro, and that amazing solo featuring the distinctive neo-classical descending runs, combining the spirits of Bach and Jimi Hendrix."[7]

Structure

The structure of the song consists of a 35-second bass/guitar introduction, before the band launches into the thumping opening riff, which soon leads into the first vocals section (0:55). The first two verses are sung, then Jon Lord begins his organ solo (2:14). This part consists mostly of fast, arpeggiated notes with a late Baroque/Early Classical influenced feel and makes use of the harmonic minor scale. The organ solo lasts for about a minute, then Ian Gillan sings the third verse of the song (3:24). At the conclusion of the third verse, the guitar solo starts (4:04), and lasts for just under a minute and twenty seconds. Blackmore wanted a very Bach like sound and worked out the solo note by note over the chord progression Dm, Gm, C, A which itself was borrowed from Bach.[8] Then, the fourth and final verse, which in the original recording is simply a repetition of the first verse, is sung, finishing around 6:10. Depending on the version, there may be a 15-second-long exit section before the end of the song. When the song is played live, Gillan has been known to improvise its lyrics, as seen in the official video for the song.[9]

The guitar solo would gain recognition when readers of Guitar World voted it No. 15 in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Solos".[10]

Covers

The song was covered by the Gwar side project X-Cops in their 1995 album You Have the Right to Remain Silent..., with the lyrics changed to reflect the band's police brutality theme.

In 2012, a tribute album featuring cover songs from Deep Purple's Machine Head was released, titled Re-Machined: A Tribute to Deep Purple's Machine Head. On this album, a live recording of "Highway Star" was featured by rock supergroup Chickenfoot, as well as a version recorded by Glenn Hughes, Steve Vai, and Chad Smith.[11]

Other bands to record the song include Angelus Apatrida, Point Blank, Stryper, Metal Church, Buckcherry, Type O Negative, Faith No More.[12]

The cover of the song by Kaleb James was included in the track list for the Nintendo DS title Elite Beat Agents.

References
  1. Vinny Cecolini (20 June 2015). Shootin’ the Sh*t — Volume One: Conversations with Rock Anti- Heroes, Icons & Metal Gods. BearManor E. p. 58. GGKEY:WN9DDZBW0R5.
  2. Martin Popoff (2003). The Top 500 Heavy Metal Songs of All Time. ECW Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-1-55022-530-3.
  3. Jeremy Wallach; Harris M. Berger; Paul D. Greene (27 December 2011). Metal Rules the Globe: Heavy Metal Music Around the World. Duke University Press. p. 47. ISBN 0-8223-4733-4.
  4. ":::: Roger Glover – the official website". Archived from the original on 11 March 2007.
  5. Roger Glover Interview at stevemorse.com
  6. "From the Setting Sun... (In Wacken) by Deep Purple on Apple Music". iTunes.
  7. Tim Hall (23 July 2015). "Ritchie Blackmore – 10 of the best". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  8. April 2015, Guitar World Staff 13. "100 Greatest Guitar Solos: No. 15 "Highway Star" (Ritchie Blackmore)". guitarworld. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  9. deeppurpleos (10 May 2010), Deep Purple - Highway Star-German TV, retrieved 6 July 2016
  10. "100 Greatest Guitar Solos: No. 15 "Highway Star" (Ritchie Blackmore)". guitarworld.com. 13 April 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  11. "Re-Machined: A Tribute to Deep Purple's Machine Head - Various Artists - Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.
  12. Steve Huey. "Who Cares a Lot: Greatest Hits - Faith No More - Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic.
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