Ian Gillan acknowledged that DEEP PURPLE never actually planned to retire, even though they labeled their 2017 tour “The Long Goodbye.”
In a recent interview with SiriusXM‘s Eddie Trunk, the singer shared the reasoning behind the tour’s name.
“That was a joke, actually, because it was the promoters,” Gillian said. “And someone said, ‘We’ve gotta sell some more tickets.’ And it’s the good old standby, the farewell tour. So I said, ‘OK, we’ll call it ‘goodbye’ tour, but let’s call it ‘the long goodbye’, and let’s make the emphasis on the word ‘long’,’ so it’s kind of an enigmatic phrase.”
The singer’s recent explanation contrasts with what he said six years ago when he mentioned that DEEP PURPLE named their tour “The Long Goodbye” because they were contemplating retirement. Adding to the speculation, guitarist Steve Morse commented at the time, “For me, personally, it’s a farewell tour.” Morse eventually left the band in 2022.
In his discussion with Trunk, Gillan emphasized that DEEP PURPLE has no plans to slow down anytime soon.
DEEP PURPLE released their twenty-third studio album, =1, on 19 July 2024 by earMUSIC/Edel AG. It is their first album with guitarist Simon McBride, who replaced Steve Morse in 2022.
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.