WHITESNAKE mainman David Coverdale spoke to Billboard.com about his decision to “re-imagine” classic songs from his time as the lead singer for DEEP PURPLE‘s Mark 3 and Mark 4 studio albums on WHITESNAKE‘s forthcoming “The Purple Album” set, to be released in Europe on May 15 and in North America on May 19 via Frontiers Music SRL.

“Everyone did their homework, and every performance is done respectfully in honor of [DEEP PURPLE‘s] musicians,” Coverdale said. “Though I focused on the twin-guitar attack of WHITESNAKE, we had a guest keyboard player because a huge part of the DEEP PURPLE sound was Jon Lord playing that amazing Hammond organ.”

He continued: “There were respectful nods to the original musicians throughout the album, and it has come out delightfully. It’s a tribute to Jon Lord, Ian Paice and Ritchie Blackmore, who gave me my break in the first place. I’d never even made a record when I joined DEEP PURPLE, and my first record went double gold, which was early platinum. They didn’t even have platinum records back in those days!”

Coverdale added: “When we were working on it, each one of my musicians said these songs sounded as if they were written yesterday, and none of them were born when I first recorded them! It’s a testament to the songs that they stand up. We’ve Whitesnaked them up and given them a fresh coat of paint, but it’s still the same House of Purple.”

“The Purple Album” features David Coverdale on vocals, Reb Beach and Joel Hoekstra on guitars, Michael Devin on bass and Tommy Aldridge on drums.

A video for the first single, “Stormbringer”, can be seen below.

“The Purple Album” track listing:

01. Burn
02. You Fool No One (interpolating Itchy Fingers)
03. Love Child
04. Sail Away
05. The Gypsy
06. Lady Double Dealer
07. Mistreated
08. Holy Man
09. Might Just Take Your Life
10. You Keep On Moving
11. Soldier Of Fortune
12. Lay Down Stay Down
13. Stormbringer

Deluxe edition bonus tracks:

14. Lady Luck
15. Comin’ Home

DVD content:

* “Lady Double Dealer” – Music Video
* “Sail Away” – Mix Music Video
* “Stormbringer” – Music Video
* “Soldier Of Fortune” – Music Video
* “The Purple Album” Behind The Scenes
* “The Purple Album” EPK

whitesnakepurplealbum2015

Fonte: Blabbermouth.net