Some have the fortune of living in areas where great acts pass through upon a frequent basis, but others don't. Certain artists aim to buck this trend, however. For the sophomore installment of Hit The Lights, which aims to chronicle the exploits of such artists, we speak to a vocalist for whom the word "legendary" wouldn't be deemed excessive. The man conducted a tour of the Soviet Union prior to the Berlin Wall's 1989 demise amongst a catalogue of other noteworthy dates, and to this very day, continues to tour in those parts of the world oft neglected. The man's main success lies with Deep Purple, but his lengthy curriculum vitae additionally boasts a stint as part of Black Sabbath, not to mention a lengthy solo career. And as for his name? Ian Gillan.
The last full length of original solo studio material from
Ian Gillan, namely "
Dreamcatcher", was issued in late 1997. Winding the clock forward by nearly a decade to late December 2005 in Cracow, Poland,
Gillan sat in a cafe with friend
Tommy Djiubinski who recounted how
Oscar Schindler had been active there during the mid 20th century. A woman walking behind
Djiubinski caught
Gillan's eye, distracting the vocalist's attention. "
Sorry, what were you saying?"
Gillan queried, to which his friend replied "
Ah, Ian you have one eye to Morocco".
Gillan apologised, and the conversation continued, but
Gillan was curious about the phrase so asked
Djiubinski regarding it.
Djiubinski gave
Gillan the full phrase, the phrase being "
You have one eye to Morocco and the other to The Caucasus". The two could only guess as regards its origins, though
Gillan filed the phrase away for future reference.
Three years later on June 10th, 2008, bassist Roger Glover's mother Brenda passed away, causing an unscheduled break in Deep Purple's tour schedule. Making various calls, Gillan discussed the possibility of a new solo album. In all, Gillan boasted thirty-eight tracks in various stages of completion. Half were discounted due to the fact they needed too much work in the allotted time span, whilst others were placed onto a shortened list. One specific track, untitled and without lyrics, Gillan felt should be the nucleus of the project. Co-written with Steve Morris, the track became entitled "One Eye To Morocco", the phrase additionally lending its title to the album's name. Rehearsals occurred for the greatest part of a week in Buffalo, New York. Following that, Gillan travelled with his solo group across the Peace Bridge, and drove north alongside Lake Ontario to Metalworks Studios in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. There, the bed tracks were recorded in three days. The album's sessions were subsequently concluded with producer Nick Blagona at his studio in nearby Dundas, Ontario. edel entertainment's international label earMUSIC issued "One Eye To Morocco" throughout Europe on March 6th, 2009, whilst its UK issue happened over a fortnight later on March 23rd. Eagle Records, meanwhile, has pencilled its release in for March 31st. Gillan recently toured South America as part of Deep Purple, battling through a cold. Telephoning the Deep Purple vocalist at his home in Lyme Regis, Dorset at 15:30GMT on March 13th, Ultimate-Guitar.com's Robert Gray sought further information regarding "One Eye To Morocco".
UG: Hello. Can I speak to Ian please?
Ian Gillan: Who's calling?
This is Robert Gray, and I have an interview with Ian scheduled for half past three.
Did you call? I'm sorry - the interviewer just prior exceeded his slot by roughly three minutes, so I'm sorry if you called earlier. Yes though, it's me here. Just one question though; why do you want to talk to me?
How do you mean?
Well, you work for Ultimate-Guitar.com.
Yeah, that's correct.
I was curious, that's all. Guitar publications don't ask me for an interview very often.
In short, readers are interested in your work - obviously, you're known as Deep Purple's vocalist and so on. Also, I think 'One Eye to Morocco' is a good album, and Ultimate-Guitar.com has previously conducted interviews with vocalists such as Roger Daltrey and so on.
Ok (laughs). Cool.
Anyway, how are you Ian?
I'm fine. If I break out in coughing, then that's due to the fact I'm just finishing off a stinking cold. I just returned from South America, and everything's great. Deep Purple's touring once again, so we're all happy.
You said that 'One Eye to Morocco' has its roots in late December 2005. You were in a cafe situated in Cracow, Poland, and had a meeting with your friend Tommy Djiubinski. How did this meeting come to inspire the album's title?
That was roughly four years ago, and was where I came to hear the phrase "One eye to Morocco". "One eye to Morocco" was half of a complete phrase, the complete phrase being "You have one eye to Morocco and the other to The Caucasus". At the time, it seemed to me to be a good musical metaphor; The Caucasus could be a Deep Purple equivalent, and 'Morocco' could be my naughty weekend away so to speak. 'One Eye to Morocco', the album itself, was recorded last summer. Roger's mum was very ill, and died in fact. For that reason, there was a break in Deep Purple's touring schedule. During that break, I travelled to Buffalo, New York with the thirty-eight tracks I had in the library. The tracks then underwent a selection process, and became whittled down. Following this, the tracks were rehearsed and recorded in a short period of time.
You said that 'One Eye to Morocco' was your naughty weekend away. Had you been hoping to record a new solo album for quite some time?
That was kind of tongue in cheek, but no, not really (laughs). I write a lot, so the library builds up. None of the tracks I write are written for any specific purpose though, and certainly not for Deep Purple - we don't write that way. I was quite happy just working as part of Deep Purple; it's become such a thrill to work with those musicians of late, so I had nothing planned. The opportunity just arose really, so we had to quickly give the project some thought, and discuss how we could make 'One Eye to Morocco' a reality. Additionally, Nick Blagona was available, who I trust implicitly. Subsequently, we decided how we would record 'One Eye to Morocco'. I didn't want the album to feature a rock group, as it seemed pointless to venture in that direction. Of course, when you don't opt towards a rock rhythm section, and don't opt towards improvised guitar solos, the eventual result is a different beast altogether.. I was quite pleased with the result. I didn't quite know what it was, though I knew I didn't want 'One Eye to Morocco' to be a rock album.
Two to three weeks ago, I took part in a photograph session in Milan. It was quite weird, actually. Quite a few girls were present, such as my personal assistant, the hairdresser girl, the makeup girl, the translator, etcetera etcetera. Quietly in the background, they gave 'One Eye to Morocco' a spin.. They chattered over the album, and no-one really listened. I saw something in the corner of my eyes though; I tried to concentrate on having my photograph taken, and noticed all their bums moving. I thought "Ahh. Mission accomplished here". That's exactly what I wanted. As opposed to Deep Purple type material, you might describe 'One Eye to Morocco' as more thrusting. The album is much more intimate, and seductive.
I would agree. 'One Eye to Morocco''s vocals are slightly rhythmic, in my opinion.
The art of the rhythm guitar, which I love.
"Deep Purple's touring once again, so we're all happy."
Well, yeah. That's too long, and I took plenty of time off in addition to recording 'One Eye to Morocco' anyway. The album didn't take that long to realise. Also, I had some time off at Christmas - I put my feet up, had a couple of drinks, and watched some football on the television. For roughly six weeks, I didn't work at all. I write all the time anyway, with music taking up roughly twenty-five percent of my work time, I think. The rest of the time, I work on different things, most of which isn't in the public eye at all.
'One Eye to Morocco' is your first solo album of original material since 1997. How does it compare to the older solo material you've recorded over the years?
Well, each solo album has proved musically different. I recorded group material as part of Gillan during the seventies and eighties, cut when I wasn't part of Deep Purple's lineup. Consequently, I think working with a rock group, or rock style musicians, or a standard style lineup, was fairly natural insofar as keyboards, guitars, drums and bass are concerned. Following that, I recorded something completely different with Roger Glover called 'Accidently On Purpose' (1988), which I think is likely the greatest record I ever cut in my life.. The greatest gig I ever performed at was only witnessed by forty people, and the greatest record I ever cut in my life only sold roughly five thousand copies. I then recorded an album entitled 'Dreamcatcher' (1997), which featured good tracks really. However, I didn't have a budget, I didn't have a record company, and I didn't have a producer. People who know about such things have made comments regarding how similar 'Dreamcatcher' is to 'One Eye to Morocco', with the exception of production.
Why do you feel that 'Accidently On Purpose' is likely the greatest album you've ever recorded, even though it sold only roughly five thousand copies?
It's a subjective viewpoint. I think it's impossible to view your work as others view your work, and very often, you're subject to whether the tragically hip, trendy writers, or whoever it might be, decide to either laud or dismiss your work. As far as the commercial aspect is concerned, you can go according to trends. As far as the real work is concerned, you're judged by an audience based upon your live performances, so there are no issues in that respect. As far as other recordings are concerned, you really have to make your own judgment. Each track you write is like giving birth to a child really, and some might be good or bad, though you have to love them all nonetheless..
Rock is a difficult genre for musicians to play, and is an experience all round. I don't know many people, not many of my friends anyway, that play much rock music at home, or ever have. If you're judging by the early days, as part of blues, or whatever it might be, or rock, then rock's always been played, but never exclusively. I bring home Deep Purple record after Deep Purple record, and my family and friends have commented "Hmm, yeah.. Cool", but that'll be the last time that record is played. We then tour in support of that album, and forget about it. The same went for my other solo records - they're too demanding, and can't be played in the background (laughs). I brought home 'Accidently On Purpose' though, and in my circle of friends at least, it's been the most played record I've ever cut in my life. 'One Eye to Morocco' falls exactly into that category, though my judgment is obviously purely subjective. It'd be ridiculous not to have a viewpoint, wouldn't it?
(Laughs) Does it annoy you that whatever you record as a solo artist is always measured against your Deep Purple material? When people listen to your solo records, does it annoy you that some might not have an open mind, and have Deep Purple in their thoughts before they've even begun to listen to the record in question?
Well, I haven't met anyone yet that does that. In actual fact, I think there's likely a misunderstanding about what a Deep Purple audience is these days. I haven't seen any long hair at a Deep Purple show for roughly five years, and I haven't seen any dark T-shirts either. The average age of our audience is roughly eighteen years old, and they seem to be extremely open minded, and extremely joy loving. They sing along, and give a lot of energy. It isn't the crowd of old, for sure.
You felt that one track was the nucleus of the 'One Eye to Morocco' project. The track only possessed music at the time, and later came to be the album's title cut. How did the music to that track cause you to feel that it would become the nucleus of the project?
Well, that was on my mind. It wasn't called "One Eye to Morocco", though I actually forget what it was called - it had just a number, I think. The project initially featured thirty-eight tracks, and that was the track which stuck out. I thought "Everything has to match that, and that's the criterion". If a track suited what eventually was "One Eye to Morocco", then it featured upon the album, or the short list at least. If the track didn't suit "One Eye to Morocco", then the track returned to the library. I'm glad the album underwent that process, since everything feels as though it belongs in the same room at the same time. It worked out very well.
Many of 'One Eye to Morocco''s tracks were co-written with Steve Morris, or with Michael Lee Jackson. How would you describe the songwriting chemistry between you, and these guys?
Well, they're mates really. Interviews bear similarities to songwriting chemistry; most good interviews greatly resemble conversations, and aren't question and answer affairs. As far as mates are concerned, the reason for the chemistry between me and Steve Morris is based on beer. He travels down from Liverpool, and we both spend several days working in the studio. He says "What about this?". I respond "Ah, cool", and subsequently work upon the idea in question. "What about this?" I say, and Steve replies "Aye. Yeah, ok". We then record some ideas hum-de-hum, and what I call gibberish lyrics. I'm more concerned with the sound of the words, as well as the melodies, the structure, the arrangements, and the early stages than I am with the actual lyrics themselves. The lyrics themselves are penned later. As a matter of fact, if a track isn't really at a fairly late stage of development in terms of having gibberish words, and a fairly complete arrangement in terms of tunes, verses and choruses, then that track is dumped after roughly twenty minutes anyway. If it becomes a struggle after roughly twenty minutes, then the track won't be natural. Me and Steve Morris share a similar approach to songwriting in that respect.
Steve is quite a rocker, and likes to add a load of thundering drums and guitar solos all over the place. When we recorded 'One Eye to Morocco', that's why we banned him from the studio as I didn't want the album to feature those type of stylings. Michael Lee Jackson is American, and inherits much of that American Southern blues and Southern rock type of feel which we don't have in the UK. Consequently though, he gave a lot. When he was part of the group during my last solo US tour, he performed a track entitled "Texas State of Mind". I thought "I'm going to steal that for my next record", as I couldn't have written that alone, or with Steve Morris, or anything. "Texas State of Mind" is purely an American contribution, and yet I can interpret that number and feel very good about it. "Texas State of Mind" is a road song, and concerns a guy who gets horny about driving down to see his girlfriend. That's an emotion everyone can understand.
So you feel that songwriting is extremely natural, and organic?
Organic, yeah. As I said, it's mostly to do with beer, and happens to be a hobby so to speak. I spend roughly twenty-five percent of my time writing music really, and I write other things during the rest of that time. I still had plenty of time off, so songwriting is something we love to do. If you're a writer, you like to write, and if you're a songwriter, you like to write songs. If you're a painter, then the same applies. I have other things that I do in my life - I like to make furniture. I'm pretty good with wood, so when I have the opportunity, I knock up pieces of furniture. We're not short of furniture, if you know what I mean.
Do you read books a lot?
Yeah, I do a lot of that too. Absolutely.
Have you been reading any particular books of late?
Well, yes. Eighty percent of the books I read are related to research into the two topics that I spend most of my time on, which are science and theology. It's a lot easier nowadays, as I don't have to go to the library so often or whatever, and can do a lot more research online. I would recommend anyone reading Edwin Abbott's 'Flatland' (1884), which would give readers an entirely new perspective not only on Victorian culture, but on our understanding of dimensions in a simple, simple way. As for the rest of the material, I just read junk, trash and so on. Right at the moment, I'm reading 'The Ground Beneath Her Feet' (1999) by Salman Rushdie.
How is that novel progressing thus far?
It's crap.. Well, it's not crap. 'The Ground Beneath Her Feet' is beautifully written, but it isn't as beautifully written as with an understatement like John le Carré, who I consider to be a far superior novel writer than Salman Rushdie. Rushdie is great, but by God, he does waffle (laughs).
Why do you prefer John le Carré's novel writing?
John le Carré doesn't waffle, and has every bit as good a turn of phrase as Rushdie. In fact, he has a better turn of phrase since he paints a more impressionist type of picture with his pen stroke than Rushdie. Rushdie, though, can get you lost in a nice... I do chuckle from time to time at the characterisations.
For 'One Eye to Morocco', why did you consciously avoid using a rock rhythm section?
Well, it would've been ridiculous. If I wanted to record a rock album, I don't think I would've actually cut one. At the moment, I'm very fulfilled with Deep Purple in terms of all the rock I can digest, and with all the challenges of every show being different every night. Every show is different to such an extent, it's scary up upon that stage. I'm adequately fulfilled in that direction. There came a time when everything changed, I think.
I used to listen to a lot of blues, a lot of rhythm and blues, a lot of Tamla and Motown, a lot of soul music, a lot of rock and roll, and a lot of jazz in my formative years. I grew up with music: my granddad was an opera singer, and my uncle was a jazz pianist. I was a boy soprano in the church choir when I was a kid, so I understood and appreciated a lot of music during my formative years. Following that, everything became categorised, and eventually mutated into a genre called heavy rock, and later on heavy metal. It became a generational affair, whether it be heavy metal, grunge, or whatever. Much of this material became dominated by rhythm sections, and by histrionic guitar solos. It was more about the impact, and the thrusting nature of that power, and all that type of thing. That's brilliant, and I have no problem with that at all. I've been in that situation myself so many times, but there are so many blind alleys you can venture into as far as that's concerned, and there are only so many solos you can record for the sake of it.
I really wanted the music to be supported in a different way, so I avoided using a rock rhythm section. I wanted Ringo Starr on drums so to speak, and wanted the mood to be captured not always by a guitar, but maybe by a flugelhorn, or an alto sax, or something like that. I wasn't particularly concerned one jot about what you might call the genre.
So you like Ringo Starr's drumming style?
Were you taking me literally (laughs)?
In saying that then, did you wish for 'One Eye to Morocco''s drumming to be in Starr's vein?
No, no (laughs). I was trying to explain that I didn't want any drum turns.
Did any gigs you attended as a teenager leave a huge impression upon you?
Absolutely - I just spoke about this with a friend of mine the other day. Yeah, the Rolling Stones. Early, early Stones gigs. Chuck Berry recorded a track called "Come On" in 1961, and the Stones covered it in 1963. "Come On" became their first hit record, and I saw them perform the track live a couple of weeks beforehand at a concert in Hayes, West Middlesex. They just stood on a corner stage, and the place was just jammed. Roughly eighty to ninety people must've been in the room. People didn't demonstrate with their arms, or cheer loudly. In those days, the audience was a lot cooler, but the atmosphere was electric. I remember seeing Charlie (Watts, drums), who looks no different today. Bill (Wyman), meanwhile, held his bass guitar in a perpendicular position, and I thought that was due to the fact that he had no room upon the stage. The great thing about (Mick) Jagger was the impact: with his snake hips and all that type of thing, he looked very visual. Another great thing about Jagger was the man's harmonica playing, which was absolutely fantastic - in those days, everyone was particularly into harmonica. So yeah, that's one. I could give you a hundred others.
Although you could discuss a hundred others, are there one or two other impressionable gigs which you particularly remember?
(Laughs) Yeah. In my life, the most important gig for me was my first ever show as part of Deep Purple, and that occurred in London's Speakeasy Club in August 1969. Roughly forty people were in the audience, or maybe sixty if you count Keith Moon. It was amazing though. I looked at Roger and said "Boy, this is what I've dreamt of mate. This is the kind of group you can work for years, years and years to try and be in". Another moment I remember occurred at the end of a long day in Dublin as part of Black Sabbath. Twisted Sister and Motörhead also figured amongst the bill, and it was one of those classic moments. Motörhead's lineup featured Brian Robertson (ex-Thin Lizzy) on guitar, who bounced around in his Y-fronts, and looked extremely incongruous against Lemmy (Kilmister, vocals) and Philthy (Phil Taylor, drummer). We waited to go onto the stage, and Motörhead were in the dressing room at the time. Brian hopped over, and said "Hey man, we didn't do our new single". Lemmy responded "Well I did it second", and Philthy subsequently replied "Well I did it fifth". That was just a beautiful, absolutely classic moment.
"I knew I didn't want 'One Eye to Morocco' to be a rock album."
That was the greatest show of my life, yeah. The first one was incredible, for sure.
Are there any other past concerts which even approach your first concert as Deep Purple's vocalist?
No. The first is always the greatest, isn't it? Absolutely. Generally, the first of anything is usually the greatest. The experience is utterly thrilling, and you don't forget a single moment. It's just awesome, absolutely awesome. You could've performed in front of a quarter of a million people, and said "Wow, that's great", or you could've conducted a tour of the Soviet Union before the Berlin Wall came down. I played in football stadiums with my own group for three days. The villages came out with their entire livestock, and didn't know what the hell we were, or where we'd come from. It was an event though, like a circus coming to town. I played three nights at the Olympic Hall in Moscow, and was the first Western artist ever to perform there. I travelled through Chechnya and Georgia across the Caucasus to Makhachkala in Dagestan on the Caspian Sea. Those experiences were stunning, too. The first time in any country, and the first of anything really, comes to mind as being the time you tend to remember. Then again though, every night onstage is a new experience as well. At lunch time every day on a concert day, I get butterflies in my stomach. Having said all that though, the greatest gig of my entire life happened in August 1969.
Could you discuss 'One Eye to Morocco''s lyrical content?
I can't really, no. Most of the lyrics tend to be quite enigmatic. First of all, the tracks were all written with the sound of the words in mind. Meaning comes afterwards, so I try to paint pictures with words, which is the reason why some lyrics are quite fluid. One track, namely "Girl Goes To Show", is my favourite song upon 'One Eye to Morocco'. Most importantly, the track has a somewhat wonderful bass line. The bass line has a reggae kind of feel, which takes me to the sunshine. In fact, it's quite dark and brutal (laughs). "Girl Goes To Show" concerns being backstage at a gig, but the tale is told in a somewhat different way. Sorry, this damn cold - it's nearly gone.
"Change My Ways" was actually presented to Deep Purple roughly ten years ago, and it's the only time I've ever done so. I remember Steve Morse (Deep Purple guitarist) leaving the room with a chuckle, and saying "Ian, are you seriously expecting Deep Purple to record a track that only has one chord?". Yeah, sure. Why not? (Maurice) Ravel did it with Boléro (1928). I know he was joking, and I am as well to a certain extent. "Change My Ways" was quite an important track though, as it was written at a time when I matured. I realised that I had to look at lyrics in a different way, and had to get away from the fast car, loose women type of syndrome. If you have something to say, such lyrics are still interesting, though as a habit, it becomes a bit of a cliché. The track has observations about how we're shifting from the Cold War, to global warming, and how I'm changing my ways, or have to, and how music has changed its ways. Ironically however, the music hadn't since it was all written in one chord. The dynamics and textures were created by volume, breaks, grooves and things of that nature. At the end of course, "Change My Ways" features a dramatic shift over the last bar and a half which was stolen directly from Ravel.
Will any music videos be filmed in support of 'One Eye to Morocco'?
I don't know. Like anything else, if there's demand for me to film a music video for 'One Eye to Morocco', then I'll sure as hell film one. I'm not so keen on people listening to music with their eyes, but it's quite popular nowadays, I guess.
Will you tour in support of 'One Eye to Morocco'?
No. At the moment, I don't have any plans. If I had any plans, those plans wouldn't be for a tour as such. Given the fact there's been quite considerable interest, I'm thinking about something, but am resisting the urge for the moment. Initially, I'd like to feel whether there was a demand for it. Secondly, I'm very busy with Deep Purple anyway. If I could find an insane choreographer, I'd like to put together a big band production which features ten, twelve, fifteen - however many it takes to gain the nuances required for this kind of music.
Other things from over the years could be included as part of the program, and I could vent with a spleen. I'd place the musicians in shadows and things of that nature, as they're only interesting for awhile. The production would then feature some whirling dervishes, flamenco dancers, avante garde, jazz and ballet. I don't mean a huge song and dance production, but something more subtle which has a little flourish here, and a little flourish there. It'd be something to watch, whereas if it was a different kind of production, you'd be watching a guitar solo for example. That might be interesting to watch. In this case though, these little flourishes just add visual embellishment to the show. If I can find a promoter who's daft enough to book and promote the show, and a choreographer, then I might even put the show together one day. It would have to be staged in a theatre though, as I wouldn't want to take the show on the road so to speak. It'd possibly be staged so many nights in one theatre, and subsequently so many nights in another theatre.
How do you keep your vocal chords in shape, and make sure those chords are at their greatest for live performances?
I just tried to get through this damn cold. Over the last several weeks in South America, it's been difficult work as I've been choking to death (laughs). With other members though, it's just the same. Recently, Ian Paice had some problems with kidney stones, and had an operation. He played drums with tubes, and all types of things. For a week or two, he bled down there, but didn't make a fuss. Steve Morse came along with his wrist broken after a motorcycle accident. Just before the first show, he cut the cast off, and holding up all his fingers, said "Well, this one's working, and this one's working, and my thumb's working. We'll just tape up these two, and keep the solo short" (laughs). They're a good crowd of guys, and they support you. Keeping your voice in shape is really not a problem though, as it's part of your physical being. It's not something I think about, to be honest.
Are older tracks more difficult to perform?
Only one track I don't perform anymore, and that's "Child In Time". I haven't performed that track for roughly seventeen years, but performing that used to put me in the hospital anyway, even when I was a kid (laughs). It was more of an olympic event than a song. No, there's no problem with the normal range at all. It's still working fine. Tracks which require me to go up to a higher range we perform, such as "Space Truckin'", "Highway Star" and so on. We perform those tracks every night.
Could you provide an update regarding Deep Purple's plans for the next several months?
Well, we have shows booked up until January 2010.. I'm just home for a day or two to do some laundry. We'll be performing little one nighters in Brussels, Berlin and Dubai, and then we'll perform dates in Japan, Russia, and a batch of European concerts. We have shows booked in South Africa and North America, as well as a UK tour in November. We'll then tour France over Christmas and January, and on it goes.
Are there plans to record Deep Purple's nineteenth studio album?
There are no plans, no. It's like everything, I guess. We don't make plans - it'll just happen.
Do you have a message for fans of Deep Purple, and fans of your solo material?
Yeah. Enjoy (laughs). Stay in touch. Go to gillan.com, and catch up - the site features all the latest news.
Ok, thanks for the interview Ian. It's much appreciated.
Take it easy.
Interview by Robert Gray
Ultimate-Guitar.Com © 2009
/ my profile 
Anyway, great interview again.. Keep up the good work.. and great to know that he's still going great guns even at this age.. 
