Perfect Strangers was the album that re-united the classic Mark II line-up. I wasn’t into Deep Purple at all at the time. Of course I knew about them and I knew about the status this line had among fans. I mean, what could possibly go wrong, Ian Gillan on vocals, Ritchie Blackmore on Guitar, Roger Glover on bass, Jon Lord on keyboards and of course Ian Paice on drums. My expectation skyrocketed even if I wasn’t into the band at the time.
I was, however, not very impressed with the album when it was released. I can’t really remember why since it was a while ago. But I decided to give it another go in 2026. So about 42 years after the release I’m reviewing it. Mindblowing really. And it also makes me feel kind of old…
But when I listened to this again I immediately found that this is an album with a very classic sound. Not necessarily classic Deep Purple sound, because I still can’t really say that I’m an expert on the sound of this classic band. So is this really an in-depth review? Well, no… It’s more a chance for me to display my view of the album.
I loved the album that was released after Perfect Strangers – The House of Blue Light, which was also the first album I ever bought on CD, and Perfect Strangers is more straightforward, a little less bluesy and more “oriental in it’s sound. For me, the songs aren’t really that catchy on this album even if you’re quite adequate in every sense of the word.
So, I would rate this as quite ok, but not fantastic!
