I'm surprised that this CD wasn't rated before. This CD seems to be the best choise for those people who would like to know, how did Hard Rock style appear and what was played in 1968-75. For such persons it should be interesting to listen to Uriah Heep and Led Zeppelin from the same period too. At the same time this CD is one of the best illustrations of Deep Purple progression covering all their milestones before the 1st split. It is not very long as e.g. 4 CD's set Shades (1968-1998), which is more interesting for collectors, and much more varicoloured than e.g. Deepest Purple or When We Rock... and other 1 CD compilations. Anthology is a perfect variant for those, who love Deep Purple but would like to limit their CD collection by several items. If it was 1-3 dollars cheaper, it could be 5 stars rated.

This is a great anthology of music from the first era of Deep Purple which lasted from 1968 until 1975 when guitarist Ritchie Blackmore left to form Rainbow with Ronnie James Dio. It features 2 CDs with 150 minutes of great music. EMI certainly gives you a lot of music for your money. It was originally released in 1991, so is somewhat old at this point, but I think it is still a good choice for people looking for a good sampling of Deep Purple's music from this era. Note that it does not provide any songs from the band's second and third eras when the band reunited in various combinations starting in 1984.

While it is true that some great songs are missing, the liner notes by Deep Purple authority Simon Robinson make it clear that EMI's goal was to provide a balanced cross section of the band's first era. So, you won't hear "Kentucky Woman" from Book of Taliesyn, but you do get "Shield" and "Wring that Neck". The latter is an outstanding instrumental which you'll never hear on the radio. You also don't get "Space Truckin'" from Machine Head, but anyone who likes Deep Purple at all really needs to buy Machine Head even if they don't buy any of their other studio albums. I think EMI did the right thing by not giving too much weight to Machine Head and providing 2-3 songs from later albums even if they are weaker.

The 24 page booklet is excellent, featuring a history of the band in this era with lots of pictures and album covers.

As a teenager in the 1970's I devoured everything Purple. My first LP purchases were

"Who Do We Think We Are " & "Slade Alive "( a whole other story ) & I lived on a steady diet

of crashing power chords,soaring vocals & lead guitar all served up with a powerhouse rythmn

section & just enough of a classical hint in the keyboards to make it cool. "Machine Head "

had the anthems (Smoke On The Water,Highway Star) the earlier "In Rock" had "Speed King"

& the wonderful "Child In Time " & "Made In Japan " proved to me that live albums can be a

whole lot more exciting than their studio counterparts.Like many I suffered through the

various line up changes hoping that the Deep Purple sound would not change. It did & ,at

first, I was unsure if I liked the result. Fast forward to today & "Burn" ( with the

Mark 3 lineup ) has become one of my favourites as a smattering of blues & soul entered

the Purple mix. All of these albums are represented on this collection plus a healthy mix

from the Mark 1 & Mark 4 lineups as well.Deep Purple have always been so much more

than "Smoke On The Water" or "Black Night ". You will find ample evidence of this & so

much more on this Anthology. Buy it & play it loud !

yes this deep purple ANTHOLOGY is much better than those beatles anthology series.

I said better why? cause PURPLE rocks more than stones or beatles , you know? check out the whole set what DP is still playin on stage until today! the set like hush, you keep on movin, woman from tokyo, smooth dancer, sail away, getting tighter, burn, highway star are absolutely masterpiece. Because both of studio and live versions can be heard perfectly in a giant amp stereo. and deep purple presents their music in your sleeping room!

this anthology version will absolutely not boring you all.....but the beatles anthology series are totally bored and indane.

Love ya DP!