Slaves and Masters (Deep Purple, 1990)

It's quite a shock (and yet the joy of the randomness!) to go from Deep Purple's finest live album to quite possibly their worst studio album. Circumstances relating mostly to band politics and personnel have caused the fans to revile this album as dishonest and a betrayal of the spirit of the reunion from 1984. One need look no further than Joe Lynn Turner's cornball lyrics and strained delivery than to know that this album just isn't good. However, I will try to say a few nice things about it.

First off, it's better than 1987's The House of Blue Light in the guitar and keyboard department. Jon Lord sounds very synthetic on that album, and synths were never his strong suit. This album restores the Hammond organ to the front of the mix. Also, probably savoring his victory over rival Ian Gillan, Ritchie Blackmore is playing his heart out, with a ferocity not heard since the Rainbow days. Of course, this may have something to do with the band being more ex-Rainbow than at any point in its history. Also, there are actually some thoughtful arrangements throughout. While songs like "Breakfast In Bed", "Love Conquers All" and "Fire In the Basement" are definitely not high points in the Deep Purple story, songs like "Fortuneteller" and "Wicked Ways" have a depth that neither of the Ian Gillan-fronted albums that sandwich this one can match.

Thankfully, for the continuing success of the band to this day, the Joe Lynn Turner experiment was promptly aborted following this album. The next album, The Battle Rages On, however, had plenty of its own problems, which ultimately led to the downfall of Ritchie Blackmore and the rebirth of the band as a more flexible and creative force through the remainder of the 1990's and to the modern day. Any of the albums following this one and Battle have a savviness you won't find here, pretty remarkable (and against the grain) for a band that has aged far more gracefully than most.