--- product_id: 3681045 title: "Machine Head" price: "£29.65" currency: GBP in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/3681045-machine-head store_origin: GB region: Great Britain --- # Machine Head **Price:** £29.65 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Machine Head - **How much does it cost?** £29.65 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.co.uk](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/3681045-machine-head) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description The classic lineup of Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, and Ian Paice is a seminal example of full-on, amps-at-eleven, bang-your-head, blow-your-speakers rock. Includes some of the group's biggest hits such as "Smoke On The Water" and "Highway Star". Pressed on 180-gram vinyl. Original gatefold packaging with lyric sheet insert. Review: Machine Head 2-CD Set - MACHINE HEAD breathes the rarefied air of being among the best that classic rock has to offer any generation since Elvis. Besides standing the test of time, 98% of Deep Purple fans agree it's the finest album featuring Glover, Gillan, Paice, Lord & Blackmore. Even Glover, Gillan, Paice, Lord & Blackmore think it's their best. Considering where MACHINE HEAD was recorded and how little time Purple had to write and record it, it should've sounded awful and been rife with lackluster songwriting and half-baked musical ideas. The finished product sounded so good the only surprise was the band never again tried recording in a hallway in the Grand Hotel. In 1972 Glover, Gillan, Paice, Lord & Blackmore were the cutting edge of hard rock musicianship, revered as virtuosos in the Zeppelin weight class. I'll take the Pepsi challenge and put MACHINE HEAD up against any Led Zep album any day of the week. I won't say that about any other Deep Purple album except putting the unedited, unfixed MADE IN JAPAN up against the heavily-doctored THE SONG REMAINS THE SAME. The way Purple constructed the songs on this is brilliant. Hearing the ingenious way Lord and Blackmore comp behind one another while the other solos is a wonderful give-and-take between them AND when they really light it up and play the same lines at the same time they sound like one guy. Paice's hyper drumming propels the front line on, aided and abetted with Glover's frenetic but clever bass work. Gillan has to put a face on all this and does so with aplomb by singing often humorous and self-deprecating lyrics, i.e. the character delusional with loneliness asking an empty room "where have they hidden my throne." The vocalist seldom essays his patented shrieking in key here, until the last song 'Space Truckin' when he gives it his best, better than 'Child In Time' I'd hazard to say. The magic of MACHINE HEAD is the way the band performed the material. Purple's listeners are presented with five superb musicians playing in the most relaxed fashion, almost to the point of nonchalance; the band is a hot rod capable of cruising at 160 mph BUT they idle along at 90. An example would be comparing Purp's 'Highway Star' to Zep's 'Achilles Last Stand.' Both are ferocious rock songs: Zeppelin sounds like they're giving it all they've got, like it's the last chance they'll ever get to play; Purple burns just as hard but they've got rocket fuel to spare, like they're just getting warmed up. They could've ripped MACHINE HEAD's music to shreds but they didn't. What the listeners are left with is a feeling of understated majesty, a restrained power so casual it belies how smokin' every tune on the album is. The mix is ultra clean, you feel like you're standing in the middle of them in that cold hallway while they're laying down each track. I was particularly interested in Roger Glover's remixes. They're good, the highlight being the alternate guitar overdubs on three or four of the seven songs. But truth be told MACHINE HEAD is such a classic that I still prefer the remastered originals over Glover's remixes. Purple and Martin Birch chose the best takes forty years ago, but the remixes are a lot of fun to listen to. The inclusion of 'When A Blind Man Cries" recorded at the original sessions is a nice but unnecessary bonus; I can hear why Blackmore didn't like it and why it was only released as a B-side instead of on the album. It might even have spoiled the classic-ness of one of rock's brightest great moments. Review: A massive sound - This 1972 release by English heavy metal group Deep Purple is thunderous; a massive wall of progressive hard rock that overwhelms at times. Although I have not listened to this record in a long (long) time, the memories came back pretty quickly and it is every bit as good as I remember it being. Better even, because there no skips and pops with the CD format. For me, the Mk. II lineup defined the Deep Purple sound; the ensemble playing and group dynamic that they established on Machine Head is awesome. Roger Glover (love the tone he gets out of his Rickenbacker bass) and drummer Ian Paice burn on this album and Ritchie Blackmore proves himself a virtuoso on the electric guitar. I am a huge fan of Jon Lord's Hammond organ playing - he runs it through a fuzz box (I think) which gives his organ a simply ferocious sound - the classical flourishes are also nice. Last but certainly not least, is lead singer (screamer) Ian Gillan. This guy has one of the most powerful voices in rock (then and now); a voice that occupies a space somewhere between Peter Hammill and Arthur Brown. Although Highway Star and (especially) Smoke on the Water suffered from overplaying on the radio, the album still sounds fresh today - the sound on Machine Head is not dated in the least. Many of the tracks are built around (awesome) riffs - the guys vary the riffs though, so they do not simply lapse into an endless ostinato over which solos are layered. There is a somewhat improvisational feel to certain of the tracks - this would be explored further on the live album Made in Japan (1972). My favorite tracks include Pictures of Home and the bluesy track Lazy - this is a great tune to jam to. This remastered album is great and features liner notes by Roger Glover, a few extra tracks (singles), and various remixes of the album (one by Roger in 1997). The 1997 remix sounds like a "live in the studio" recording - the remix of Lazy is excellent. There are also quadrophonic mixes of a few tunes. I have to admit that I am a stick in the mud when it comes to these things and really have no interest in the extra tracks (I have the vinyl album burned into my mind). However, they should prove of interest to fans. The sound quality of the original remastered album is outstanding. All in all, this is a fantastic album of hard rock that boasts the definitive Deep Purple sound. Highly recommended along with the blistering In Rock (1970), the more experimental Fireball (1971), and one of the landmark live rock albums Made in Japan (1972). ## Images ![Machine Head - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61lMtFc-7jL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Machine Head 2-CD Set *by S***N on October 23, 2012* MACHINE HEAD breathes the rarefied air of being among the best that classic rock has to offer any generation since Elvis. Besides standing the test of time, 98% of Deep Purple fans agree it's the finest album featuring Glover, Gillan, Paice, Lord & Blackmore. Even Glover, Gillan, Paice, Lord & Blackmore think it's their best. Considering where MACHINE HEAD was recorded and how little time Purple had to write and record it, it should've sounded awful and been rife with lackluster songwriting and half-baked musical ideas. The finished product sounded so good the only surprise was the band never again tried recording in a hallway in the Grand Hotel. In 1972 Glover, Gillan, Paice, Lord & Blackmore were the cutting edge of hard rock musicianship, revered as virtuosos in the Zeppelin weight class. I'll take the Pepsi challenge and put MACHINE HEAD up against any Led Zep album any day of the week. I won't say that about any other Deep Purple album except putting the unedited, unfixed MADE IN JAPAN up against the heavily-doctored THE SONG REMAINS THE SAME. The way Purple constructed the songs on this is brilliant. Hearing the ingenious way Lord and Blackmore comp behind one another while the other solos is a wonderful give-and-take between them AND when they really light it up and play the same lines at the same time they sound like one guy. Paice's hyper drumming propels the front line on, aided and abetted with Glover's frenetic but clever bass work. Gillan has to put a face on all this and does so with aplomb by singing often humorous and self-deprecating lyrics, i.e. the character delusional with loneliness asking an empty room "where have they hidden my throne." The vocalist seldom essays his patented shrieking in key here, until the last song 'Space Truckin' when he gives it his best, better than 'Child In Time' I'd hazard to say. The magic of MACHINE HEAD is the way the band performed the material. Purple's listeners are presented with five superb musicians playing in the most relaxed fashion, almost to the point of nonchalance; the band is a hot rod capable of cruising at 160 mph BUT they idle along at 90. An example would be comparing Purp's 'Highway Star' to Zep's 'Achilles Last Stand.' Both are ferocious rock songs: Zeppelin sounds like they're giving it all they've got, like it's the last chance they'll ever get to play; Purple burns just as hard but they've got rocket fuel to spare, like they're just getting warmed up. They could've ripped MACHINE HEAD's music to shreds but they didn't. What the listeners are left with is a feeling of understated majesty, a restrained power so casual it belies how smokin' every tune on the album is. The mix is ultra clean, you feel like you're standing in the middle of them in that cold hallway while they're laying down each track. I was particularly interested in Roger Glover's remixes. They're good, the highlight being the alternate guitar overdubs on three or four of the seven songs. But truth be told MACHINE HEAD is such a classic that I still prefer the remastered originals over Glover's remixes. Purple and Martin Birch chose the best takes forty years ago, but the remixes are a lot of fun to listen to. The inclusion of 'When A Blind Man Cries" recorded at the original sessions is a nice but unnecessary bonus; I can hear why Blackmore didn't like it and why it was only released as a B-side instead of on the album. It might even have spoiled the classic-ness of one of rock's brightest great moments. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A massive sound *by J***K on June 4, 2012* This 1972 release by English heavy metal group Deep Purple is thunderous; a massive wall of progressive hard rock that overwhelms at times. Although I have not listened to this record in a long (long) time, the memories came back pretty quickly and it is every bit as good as I remember it being. Better even, because there no skips and pops with the CD format. For me, the Mk. II lineup defined the Deep Purple sound; the ensemble playing and group dynamic that they established on Machine Head is awesome. Roger Glover (love the tone he gets out of his Rickenbacker bass) and drummer Ian Paice burn on this album and Ritchie Blackmore proves himself a virtuoso on the electric guitar. I am a huge fan of Jon Lord's Hammond organ playing - he runs it through a fuzz box (I think) which gives his organ a simply ferocious sound - the classical flourishes are also nice. Last but certainly not least, is lead singer (screamer) Ian Gillan. This guy has one of the most powerful voices in rock (then and now); a voice that occupies a space somewhere between Peter Hammill and Arthur Brown. Although Highway Star and (especially) Smoke on the Water suffered from overplaying on the radio, the album still sounds fresh today - the sound on Machine Head is not dated in the least. Many of the tracks are built around (awesome) riffs - the guys vary the riffs though, so they do not simply lapse into an endless ostinato over which solos are layered. There is a somewhat improvisational feel to certain of the tracks - this would be explored further on the live album Made in Japan (1972). My favorite tracks include Pictures of Home and the bluesy track Lazy - this is a great tune to jam to. This remastered album is great and features liner notes by Roger Glover, a few extra tracks (singles), and various remixes of the album (one by Roger in 1997). The 1997 remix sounds like a "live in the studio" recording - the remix of Lazy is excellent. There are also quadrophonic mixes of a few tunes. I have to admit that I am a stick in the mud when it comes to these things and really have no interest in the extra tracks (I have the vinyl album burned into my mind). However, they should prove of interest to fans. The sound quality of the original remastered album is outstanding. All in all, this is a fantastic album of hard rock that boasts the definitive Deep Purple sound. Highly recommended along with the blistering In Rock (1970), the more experimental Fireball (1971), and one of the landmark live rock albums Made in Japan (1972). ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Fantastic Reissue of classic album! Wonderful Kevin Gray pressing. *by S***Y on February 17, 2025* A few small ticks and pops, but nothing obtrusive. Soundstage is nice and wide, with great dynamics, which you would expect from a Kevin Gray mastered vinyl. I used to have an original (probably late 70's reissue) that I played to death in my youth. Somewhere along it's journey, I loaned it to a friend and never had it returned. I never replaced the vinyl as I at one point purchased the CD, then the Roger Glover remix double CD, which were my primary listeners. Spinning this now, it takes me back to my youth. Actually, this one probably sounds better from a quiet vinyl standpoint. As others have noted, this could probably use a touch of treble if you have a warm system. The noise floor is pretty deep, so it can take some volume (as any DP should!). The low end and the drums/cymbals sound perfect in the mix. And that organ solo on the intro to Lazy sounds so thick, you just have to turn it up! Ritchie's guitar slices through like the proverbial fiery sword through butter. Now off to the Ultrasonic to see if I can't rid myself of those few minor ticks. Oh, and the packaging could be better...a little seam tear on the inner sleeve, as the LP was just in it's shrink thrown in a much too large box, not the usual quality I expect from the Zon. ## Frequently Bought Together - Machine Head - Led Zeppelin IV - Paranoid 2016 --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/3681045-machine-head](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/3681045-machine-head) --- *Product available on Desertcart Great Britain* *Store origin: GB* *Last updated: 2026-05-02*