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Deep Purple: The Book of Talesyn

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Harvest Records
Released: 1968.12.11
Time:
 65:19
Category: Pop/Rock
Producer(s): Derek Lawrence
Rating: **........ (2/10)
Media type: CD
Web address: www.deep-purple.com
Appears with: Ritchie Blackmore
Purchase date: 2012
Price in €: 1,00





 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] Listen/Learn/Read On (R.Blackmore/R.Evans/J.Lord/I.Paice) - 4:05
[2] Wring That Neck (R.Blackmore/Nick Simper/J.Lord/I.Paice) - 5:13
[3] Kentucky Woman (N.Diamond) - 4:44
[4] (a) Exposition / (b) We Can Work It Out (L.v.Beethoven/R.Blackmore/Simper/J.Lord/I.Paice/J.Lennon/P.McCartney) - 7:06
[5] Shield (R.Blackmore/R.Evans/J.Lord) - 6:06
[6] Anthem (J.Lord/R.Evans) - 6:31
[7] River Deep/Mountain High (J.Barry/E.Greenwich/Ph.Spector) - 10:12

Bonus tracks on the re-issue CD :
[8] Oh No No No" [studio outtake] (M.Leander/L.Russell) - 4:25
[9] It's All Over [BBC Top Gear session; 14 January 1969] (B.E.King/B.Berns) - 4:14
[10] Hey Bop a Re Bop [BBC Top Gear session; 14 January 1969] (R.Blackmore/R.Evans/J.Lord/I.Paice) - 3:31
[11] Wring That Neck [BBC Top Gear session; 14 January 1969] (R.Blackmore/Simper/J.Lord/I.Paice) - 4:42
[12] Playground [remixed instrumental studio outtake; 18 August 1968] (R.Blackmore/Simper/J.Lord/I.Paice) - 4:29

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Ritchie Blackmore - Guitar
Rod Evans - Lead Vocals
Jon Lord - Hammond Organ, Keyboards, Background Vocals, String Arrangements on [6]
Ian Paice - Drums
Nick Simper - Bass Guitar, Background Vocals

Derek Lawrence - Producer
Barry Ainsworth - Engineer
Stew Romain - Engineer
Peter Mew - Digital Remastering, Remastering, Restoration
Simon Robinson - Package Design, Project Coordinator, Sleeve Notes
Richard Imrie - Cover Photo, Photography
Koh Sakai - Liner Notes

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


LP Harvest 1968
CD Harvest 1996
CD [Harvest] EMI / Harvest / Premier 1996
LP ^EMI Music Distribution 1999
CD Spitfire Records 2000
LP Tetragrammaton 2000
CD EMI 2000
CD Spitfire Records 2000
CD EMI 2000
CD Victor Entertainment 2000
CD Eagle 2000
CD Video Arts 2003
CD Video Arts 2003
CD Vap 2003
Digi EMI / EMI Digital 2003
CD Teichiku Records 2004
CD Creative Sounds 2006
CD JVC Victor 2011
LP Hi Horse Records 2011
Digi Eagle Rock (Us) 2011
LP Scorpio 2012
CD EMI Music Distribution

Bonus tracks recorded in 1968 and '69 (BBC Top Gear sessions 14 January 1969).
Digitally remastered and restored by Peter Mew at Abbey Road Studios, London.

From '68, Purple's solid second serves up some meaty psych ( Listen, Learn, Read On and Shield ), some heavy covers ( We Can Work It Out and River Deep, Mountain High ), a furious instrumental workout ( Wring That Neck ) and even a hit single ( Kentucky Woman ). This fully remastered UK reissue adds 5 out-takes and BBC session tracks.



The Book of Taliesyn is the second album by English rock band Deep Purple, released by EMI's Harvest Records in the UK (1968), Tetragrammaton in the US (1968), and Polydor in Canada and Japan (1969). The album follows the psychedelic/progressive rock sound of Shades of Deep Purple; however, there is a harder edge to several songs, beginning to show the new sound Deep Purple would introduce in 1970 with Deep Purple in Rock. Also, the original tracks are longer and more diverse than the ones on Shades of Deep Purple, proving that the band had expanded their creativity and ambitions when it came to writing their own material. The album name was taken from a famous 14th century Welsh manuscript, containing certain poems attributed to the 6th century poet Taliesin. The title "The Book of Taliesyn" appears in the lyrics for the song "Listen, Learn, Read On."

Deep Purple was booked for a rather excessive tour in the United States, starting in October, as a result of the unexpected success gathered there concerning their debut album Shades of Deep Purple, fronted by the single "Hush." The single was a massive hit in the States and was the spawn of their sudden popularity there. Their American label had pushed them back into the studio just a couple of months before the touring began, even though their debut album hadn't been released in the United Kingdom yet. Other reasons for the push for more studio recordings was of course the lack of songs for a live set and the fact that studio work would of course garner more songs. In early August 1968, they entered the studio for rehearsals and sessions. Rushed into recording new material, the band was not exactly overflowing with ideas. The situation was much like the one they had been in during the recording of Shades of Deep Purple. With a lack of originals, they included several covers, as the material they had been working on was not good enough for an album. These songs were instead performed over BBC sessions for a radio show, "Top Gear", hosted by John Peel.

Deep Purple ventured in the studio with an ambition of coming up with much better original material than their previous effort, as well as including some covers. Finesse recordings began in early October and ended on the tenth. The band had not originally planned on being in studio all the way to October, but production was enthusiastic and everybody in the band had a sense for perfection, especially Ritchie Blackmore. "Shield" and "Anthem" were recorded first, followed by "Wring That Neck," "Listen, Learn, Read On," "Kentucky Woman," and "Exposition/We Can Work It Out." "River Deep - Mountain High" was always intended as the final track, so its recording was postponed until the other tracks were finished. The song was taped on the 10th of October, which ended their recording in studio. In charge of production was Derek Lawrence, who had also produced their previous album. The tapes were mixed in both mono and stereo. The mono tapes were trashed, as neither of the two labels had any use for them in any matter. The mixing was supposed to be overseen by the band members, but their schedule in October was so tight that Lawrence did it without them. This dismayed the band at first, but the result sound-wise turned out better than on their debut.

Overall, the final album has a cleaner, heavier and more polished sound than their debut. Just as on Shades of Deep Purple, time they had been awarded to write and record was very slick, so they had to perform under pressure. Also, with a request for a new album coming only three months after their first album was recorded, they came in with fewer original ideas. However, the longer time given to record helped, which provided them four lengthy original songs for the final album. Shades of Deep Purple has four originals included as well (only one of these, "Mandrake Root", was played live after 1969), but that album also contains four covers, as opposed to Taliesyn which contains three. The expanded focus on originals for this album would be even further developed on their next venture in the studio.

The cover of the 1968 album shown here, was created by the illustrator and author John Vernon Lord who coincidentally appears to share the same name as the band's keyboard player, Jon Lord. The Book of Taliesyn was the only record cover John Vernon Lord ever designed and, according to the artist's recent retrospective, the original artwork was never returned.

The brief from the artist's agent is detailed in Drawing upon Drawing as follows:
"The agent gave me the title saying that the art director wanted a 'fantasy Arthurian touch' and to include hand lettering for the title and the musicians' names. I mainly drew from The Book of Taliesin, which is a collection of poems, said to be written by the sixth century Welsh bard Taliesin."
The fee for the job was £30 (minus 25% for the agent). John Vernon Lord was, until recently, Professor of Illustration at the University of Brighton.

Deep Purple's American label, Tetragrammaton, issued two singles. "Kentucky Woman", with the instrumental "Wring That Neck" (titled as "Hard Road" in the US) as the B-side, was the album's main promoter, much like "Hush" had been for Shades of Deep Purple. It was released in December, after the album had been out for a couple of months. While strictly a B-side, "Wring That Neck" would be used regularly in their live concert set, even into the Mark II era, as it allowed Blackmore and Lord to display their instrumental talents to audiences. The "Kentucky Woman" single did not flop, peaking at #38, but to the dismay of the label it was nowhere near as big a success as "Hush" had been. In an eager attempt to improve sales of the album, another single was released in December, a heavily-edited version of "River Deep - Mountain High" (which ran over 10 minutes on the album), with "Listen, Learn, Read On" as the B-side. The single was not a success, charting lower than "Kentucky Woman", but it actually beat Ike and Tina Turner's version for some time.

Their English label, EMI, issued the "Kentucky Woman" single as Tetragrammaton did, but they stuck with that. EMI did not release the "River Deep - Mountain High" single, feeling it didn't have the potential to impact the charts in England and that it wasn't worth giving a shot. Not surprisingly, the album sold to a much lesser degree in the UK than overseas and it was widely overlooked there. That had also been the case for Shades of Deep Purple. John Peel, head of the Top Gear radio show, had previously met the band while they were playing at his show. After great expectations, he had mixed reactions for the final album:

"The group have done some fine things for Radio One and they excite when they play live. I don't understand where this record went wrong, it is all too restrained somehow. They recorded "Wring That Neck" much better for a recent Top Gear."
In 2000 The Book of Taliesyn was remastered and re-released with bonus tracks from the period.



Several months after the innovative remake of "You Keep Me Hanging On," England's answer to Vanilla Fudge, was this early version of Deep Purple, which featured vocalist Rod Evans, and bassist Nick Simper, along with mainstays Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord, and Ian Paice. This, their second album, followed on the heels of "Hush," a dynamic arrangement of a Joe South tune, far removed from the flavor of one of his own hits, "Walk a Mile in My Shoes." Four months later, this album's cover of Neil Diamond's Top 25, 1967 gem "Kentucky Woman," went Top 40 for Deep Purple. Also like Vanilla Fudge, the group's own originals were creative, thought-provoking, but not nearly as interesting as their take on cover tunes. Vanilla Fudge did "Eleanor Rigby," and Deep Purple respond by going inside "We Can Work It Out" -- it falls out of nowhere after the progressive rock jam "Exposition," Ritchie Blackmore's leads zipping in between Rod Evans smooth and precise vocals. As Vanilla Fudge was progressively leaning more towards psychedelia, here Deep Purple are the opposite. The boys claim to be inspired by the Bard of King Arthur's court in Camelot, Taliesyn. John Vernon Lord, under the art direction of Les Weisbrich, paints a superb wonderland on the album jacket, equal to the madness of Hieronymous Bosch's cover painting used for the third album. Originals "The Shield" and "Anthem" make early Syd Barrett Pink Floyd appear punk in comparison. Novel sounds are aided by Lord's dominating keyboards, a signature of this group.

Though "The Anthem" is more intriguing than the heavy metal thunder of Machine Head, it is overwhelmed by the majesty of their "River Deep, Mountain High" cover, definitely not the inspiration for the Supremes and Four Tops 1971 hit version. By the time 1972 came around, Deep Purple immersed themselves in dumb lyrics, unforgettable riffs, and a huge presence, much like Black Sabbath. The evolution from progressive to hard rock was complete, but a combination of what they did here -- words that mattered matched by innovative musical passages -- would have been a more pleasing combination. Vanilla Fudge would cut Donovan's "Season of the Witch," Deep Purple followed this album by covering his "Lalena"; both bands abandoned the rewrites their fans found so fascinating. Rod Evans voice was subtle enough to take "River Deep, Mountain High" to places Ian Gillam might have demolished. Some CD reissues contain an additional five tracks.

Joe Viglione - All Music Guide



Die schon beim Debüt auffällige und mit "Hush" recht erfolgreich praktizierte Vorliebe für Coverversionen pflegen Deep Purple erneut bei ihrem zweiten Longplayer von 1969. Hier geben sie nach "Help" wieder den Beatles ("We Can Work It Out") die Ehre, zudem Neil Diamond ("Kentucky Woman") und Ike & Tina Turners Hit "River Deep, Mountain High", in einer beinahe orchestral inszenierten Version. Nicht nur beim Opener "Listen, Learn, Read On" ist offenkundig, dass das britische Quintett allmählich zu seinem Stil findet. Mehr noch beim instrumentalen "Wring That Neck", das Ritchie Blackmore als Podium für starke Gitarrensoli nutzt und fast schon alle Elemente ihrer späteren Rock-Dramaturgie aufweist. Selbst "Kentucky Woman" gewinnt dank Jon Lords mitreißender Orgel und treibender Rhythmik deutlich an Dynamik, ebenso der mit "We Can Work It Out" gekoppelte Instrumentalpart "Exposition", der auf Lords klassische Ambitionen verweist.

Mit dem eingangs poppigen "Anthem" bekommt Sänger Rod Evans sein Podium, ehe Streicher das auf dem dritten Album ausgeweitete "April"-Thema anspielen. Für Deep Purpologen ist The Book Of Taliesyn --- in seinen musikalischen Stimmungen vorgeblich vom Barden des legendären König Arthurs inspiriert --- ein Schlüsselwerk, weil es sowohl dem kompakteren Rock-Sound späterer Zeiten phasenweise vorgreift und Jon Lords bald intensiv ausgelebte Nähe zur Klassik andeutet. Fünf Bonustracks, davon drei bei Top Gear-Sessions der BBC mitgeschnitten und allesamt bislang unveröffentlicht, machen die klanglich stark aufgemöbelte CD aus der Remastered Collection noch attraktiver.

Claus Böhm - Amazon.de
 

 L y r i c s


Listen, Learn, Read On

In ages past when spells were cast
In a time of men in steel
When a man was taught no special thing
It was all done by feel

So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the Book of Taliesyn

Hear the song of lovely Joan
Her sound so sweet and clear
In the courtroom of the King
Among children and the peers

So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the Book of Taliesyn

"Now hear ye the words of Taliesyn,
on the foaming beach of the ocean,
in the day of trouble,
I shall be of more service to thee
than three hundred salmon..."

The hare he bounds across the page
Past castles white and fair
Past dreaming chessmen on their boards
With a fool's mate as a snare

So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the Book of Taliesyn

"Three times I have been born
I know this from meditation..."

The bird he flies the distance
From pages two to six
Past minstrels in their boxes
To the waters of the Styx

So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the Book of Taliesyn

Don't take the pictures lightly
Listen to their sound
For from their coloured feeling
Experience is found

So listen, so learn, so read on
You gotta turn the page, read the Book of Taliesyn

"All the sciences of the world are collected in my breast,
for I know what has been, what is now,
and what hereafter will occur..."


Wring That Neck

(instrumental)


Kentucky Woman

Kentucky Woman
She shine in her own kind of light
She'll look at you once in a day
And what's wrong is alright
And I love her,
God knows I love her

Kentucky Woman
She gets to know you
She goes to own you
Kentucky Woman

She ain't the kind that gets turned
at the drop of her name
There's somethin inside thats she's got
turns you on just the same
And she loves me
God knows she loves me

Kentucky Woman
She gets to know you
She goes to own you
Kentucky Woman

I don't want much
The Good Lord's earth beneath my feet
a gentle touch
from that one girl in life is sweet and good
There ain't no doubt, I'm talking about

Kentucky Woman
She gets to know you
She gets to hold you
Kentucky Woman
Kentucky Woman
Kentucky Woman


Exposition

(instrumental)


We Can Work It Out

Try to see it my way
Do I have to keep on talking till I can't go wrong
While you see it your way
Run the risk of knowing that our love will soon be gone

We can work it out
We can work it out

Think of what you're saying
You can get it wrong and still you think that it's alright
Think of what I'm saying
We can work it out and get it straight or say goodnight

We can work it out
We can work it out

Life is very short and there's no time
For fussing and fighting my friend
I have always thought that it's a crime
So I will ask you once again
I'll ask you once again

Try to see it my way
Only time will tell if I am right or I am wrong
While I see it your way
There's a chance that we might fall apart before too long

We can work it out
We can work it out

Life is very short and there's no time
For fussing and fighting my friend
I have always thought that it's a crime
So I will ask you once again
I'll ask you once again

Try to see it my way
Only time will tell if I am right or I am wrong
While I see it your way
There's a chance that we might fall apart before too long

We can work it out
We can work it out

At least we can try
We can try out to work it out someday


Shield

Mama plays a queen on the hill built on a dream
While the children play in the field
Papa smokes the pipe of a sweet and better life
But how strong is the shield?
Can peace be found on the carpet above ground
Where sky is forever blue

So let it pass baby now, the slow and riding cloud
Which may take me from you

Many things a man can lose
His self, his rights, his views
But never his heart or his love
So take this hand of mine and climb baby, climb
To the hill up above

Now you can play a queen on the hill built on a dream
While our children play in the field
I can smoke the pipe of a sweet and better life
And trust in the strength of the shield

So trust in you love, and Lucy of above
And let light pass like a wheel
Don't take the chance of life's hectic dance
Kiss the strength of the shield

The seeker will be found by the looker on the ground
And to his wish he will yield

Fate will add its wooden horse
And time will change its course
And hold the strength of the shield


Anthem

When the night wind softly blows through my open window
Then I start to remember the girl that brought me joy
Now the night wind softly blows sadness to tomorrow
Bringing tears to eyes so tired
Eyes I thought could cry no more

If the day would only come
Then you might just appear
even though you'd soon be gone
When I reached out my hand

If I could see you
If only I could see you
To see if you are laughing or crying
When the night winds softly blow

In my dark and whispering room
Memories still bring me a numbness to my feelings
Take my hand and brush my brow
In the warm and fevered dark
Heart is madly beating
My crazy thoughts are burning
When the night winds softly blow

If the day would only come
Then you might just appear
even though you'd soon be gone
When I reached out my hand

If I could see you
If only I could see you
To see if you are laughing or crying
When the night winds softly blow

If the day would only come
Then you might just appear
even though you'd soon be gone
When I reached out my hand

If I could see you
If only I could see you
To see if you are laughing or crying
When the night winds softly blow


River Deep, Mountain High

When you were a young girl
Did you have a rag doll
The only doll you've ever owned
Now I'll love you just the way you loved that rag doll
Only now my love has grown

It gets stronger as the river flows
Deeper baby, heaven knows
Higher, as it goes

Do I love you, my oh my
River Deep, Mountain High, yeah, yeah, yeah
Do I love you, would I cry
Oh I love you baby, how I love you baby

When you were a young girl
Did you have a puppy
That always followed you around
Well I'm gonna be as faithful as that puppy
No I'll never never let you down

Cos it gets stronger as the river flows
It gets deeper baby, heaven knows
It gets higher, so much higher, as it goes

Do I love you, my oh my
River Deep, Mountain High, yeah, yeah, yeah
Do I love you, would I cry
Oh I love you baby, how I love you baby

I love you baby like a flower loves a spring
I love you baby like a robin likes to sing
I love you baby like a schoolboy likes his pie
And oh I love you baby, River deep, Mountain high


Do I love you, my oh my
River Deep, Mountain High, yeah, yeah, yeah
Do I love you, would I cry
Oh I love you baby, how I love you baby
 

 M P 3   S a m p l e s


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