70s rock legends admit farewell tour was just ‘a joke’

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Ian Gillanof the popular 70s rock band Deep Purple has made a shock revelation, confessing the group didn’t have intentions of retiring when embarking on their 2017 tour The Long Goodbye. 

The English rock band first formed in 1968 and was made up of vocalist Rod Evans, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, bassist Nick Simper, keyboardist Jon Lord and drummer Ian Paice. 

Releasing their debut album, Shades of Deep Purple, the same year, they saw industry success in America, reaching number four on Billboard’s Hot 100 with a cover of Joe South’s song “Hush.”

However, their upward trajectory did not continue, and their self-titled second album saw low sales. 

In 1971, however, the band underwent a transformation. In addition to recruiting a new lead singer, Ian Gillan, and bassist Roger Glover, they adopted a heavier sound and leaned into the world of rock. 

In the years since, the band has seen four different lineups and an eight-year hiatus, but they have since gone on to release 23 studio albums, with their most recent in 2021, and are considered one of the ‘most influential bands ever’ according to Planet Rock. 

Now, frontman Ian, 79, has opened up about the band’s 2017 tour, which seemingly teased a retirement as it was called The Long Goodbye. 

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‘That was a joke, actually, because it was the promoters,’ he said. ‘And someone said, “We’ve gotta sell some more tickets.” And it’s the good old standby, the farewell tour.

‘So I said, “OK, we’ll call it ‘goodbye’ tour, but let’s call it ‘the long goodbye’, and let’s make the emphasis on the word ‘long’,’ so it’s kind of an enigmatic phrase”.’

Ian’s confession contradicts one he made in 2018, when he told Ultimate Classic Rock radio they had been considering retirement. 

In an interview with the broadcaster, he said that at the time of brainstorming the tour, a few members of the band had health problems, and someone, he couldn’t remember who, asked if they were ready to ‘call it a day’. 

‘Getting a decision from Deep Purple is always very tricky. So I guess there were a few nods and “hmmmm,” “well,” “yeah,” “maybe,” “I don’t know … “ So we [said] , “Let’s call it ‘The Long Goodbye,” and that way, wecan make our decision later”,’ he said. 

Guitarist Steve Morse left the band after the tour in 2022 to care for his late wife, who died in February this year. He was replaced by Simon McBride. 

It appears the band has all but changed their minds in the six years since the interview, as Ian told SiriusXM that they are not ready to slow down. 

‘There’s no intention to stop,’ he confirmed. ‘We’re already booked to the end of ’26, in the planning stage, in the diary, with all the projects we’ve got for Deep Purple. So, yeah, years to come, hopefully.’

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