Bands including Humble Pie, Soft Machine and Deep Purple performed on this day in 1969 at the Jazz Bilzen Festival in Bilzen, Belgium.
Yes was also scheduled to perform, but appear to have cancelled.
This concert came as a very early stop on Deep Purple’s European Tour. This tour saw them traveling around England and other European countries, introducing their new Mark II lineup to crowds. Their previous lineup, the Mark I lineup, had not performed as much on the European continent. They played most of their concerts in North America or within the United Kingdom. They also performed a few concerts in the Scandinavian region, including their debut concert. The band had thus far struggled in the European market, however; this concert tour likely helped put them on the map.
The group reportedly played “Wring that Neck” and “Mandrake Root”. Both of these songs originated with the Mark I lineup, though the Mark II lineup had begun writing their own material at this point. Some setlists also have them performing “Paint it Black”, a cover of the song by the Rolling Stones. “Paint it Black” traditionally was Ian Paice’s solo spot within the set at this time in their history.
This set is particularly notable in Deep Purple’s history as the first known stage recording of Mark II. Parts of it were officially released as part of the History, Hits & Highlights ’68 – 76 DVD.
Thank you so much for reading. If you enjoyed this post, please consider donating on my ko-fi page or becoming a patron on my patreon. I appreciate your help!