Shades of Deep Purple, Deep Purple, Tetragrammaton, 1968

This was Deep Purple’s first album, containing their hit single, Hush. It is a mix of arty styles—I heard progressive, psychedelic, and classical. The blues and rock songs they covered, such as I’m So Glad, Hey Joe, and Help, are overwrought, I say. I heard a police siren at the start of Hey Joe, which also has some Bolero in it. Help, the Lennon-McCartney tune, is very slow and bluesy. I like the bouncy pop tune more.  Mandrake Root was one of their songs; I couldn’t tell if it was a love charm or hallucinogen. The Wiki article said the band knocked this out in a few days, and it does sound casual and a bit slapdash. The important measure of success for any first album is a big hit, so Shades of Deep Purple set the group up for years. When I bought it used in the ‘80s, I thought it would be more like Smoke on the Water.