Deep Purple

Grabsplatter is an uptempo instrumental guitar / organ work-out with a very varied and confusing history.

A track known as John's Stew, which was 3:50 minutes long, was recorded on the 31st October 1969 for the Stuart Henry BBC radio show broadcast on the 9th November 1969. John's Stew had some improvised vocals about "a mean-eyed woman".

An instrumental song entitled Grabsplatter (4:32 minutes long and sounding very similar to John's Stew) was released as a track on the New, Live and Rare Volume 3 EP (extended play single) in October 1980. It was stated as being a BBC recording from between September 1969 and February 1970. Some references state: autumn or late 1969 (autumn in Europe is September / October). The excellent Deep Purple Diary website by Nigel Young, has the recording date for this track as the 23rd September 1970 which is the correct date. This same track was later released on The Anthology album in 1985. When this album was re-issued on CD in 1990 the track listing was changed and all rare tracks including Grabsplatter were sadly omitted.

An instrumental track entitled Bullfrog (7:17) and credited to the band Green Bullfrog was released as an album track in 1971. Green Bullfrog was a one-off jam session band consisting of Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Paice, Albert Lee, Big Jim Sullivan, Chas Hodges, Rod Alexander, Earl Jordan, Tony Ashton, Matthew Fisher and produced by Derek Lawrence. The liner notes from Ritchie's solo retrospective CD Rock Profile Volume 2 state that this track is based on a riff originally entitled John or Jam Stew. It also sounds very similar to Grabsplatter!

A track titled Jam Stew (2:30) was released on the 25th anniversary CD re-issue of In Rock. It was stated as being a previously unreleased instrumental track. The sleeve notes indicate that this track was recorded in November 1969 and was also sometimes known as John's Stew. (Are you still keeping up?)

I'm Alone released as the b-side to Strange Kind Of Woman in 1971 owes it's basic song structure to Grabsplatter. I'm Alone was also released on the Deep Purple Singles A's and B's compilation album and as a bonus track on the 25th anniversary edition of Fireball.

Slow Train released as a bonus track on the 25th anniversary edition of Fireball also owes a lot of it's basic song structure to Grabsplatter.

Grabsplatter itself remained unavailable on any official CD release until... the Listen Learn Read On 6CD Box Set from EMI Europe in 2002!

So there you have it, I'm surprised you managed to read this far - thanks!

I thought you may like to know that the track was also released on an EMI sampler entitled "Heavy Duty" here in New Zealand in the early 1980's, which also included the live "Bird Has Flown" that appeared on the "New Live & Rare Vol. 3" EP. "Heavy Duty" also included some (at that time) rare early Iron Maiden tracks & music from a few other bands that appeared briefly around the NWOBHM boom.
-- Euan McLeod, New Zealand, February 1999

References:

• The Highway Star - the official home of Deep Purple on the Net.
• Listen Learn Read On 6CD Box Set
• Radio & TV Broadcasts page
• Martin Ashberry from MASH's page
• The Deep Purple Diary by Nigel Young
• Booklet by Simon Robinson for the Compact Singles A's & B's CD, page 13.
• Liner notes by Simon Robinson for Ritchie Blackmore's solo retrospective CD Rock Profile Volume 2
• In Rock 25th anniversary CD booklet.
• Fireball 25th anniversary CD booklet, page 7.

Send comments and ideas to Brian Currin