Ask Steve

How do you approach playing the classic Deep Purple songs? Do you imitate the original guitar part or do you make it your own?

To me, I play the songs as a fan and also as a new guitarist.  In the body of the song, if the live sound is very similar to the original recording, then I would play the parts as closely as I can remember to the way Ritchie did it.  But in reality, I often change the parts to help the soundman with dynamics.  For instance, during a keyboard solo, I would play a muted part, or more abbreviated part than the guitar on the record, in order to save the soundman from having to turn me down in the live mix.  During solos, I take a lot more freedom, as Ritchie himself would often do.

Is it true that you were kicked out of high school for refusing to cut your hair? What happened?

Yes, actually I got kicked out about every 2 weeks starting in 8th grade because my hair was touching my ears. It was a small town in Georgia in the 1960's and they didn't take to the rock and roll look at all.  At age 16, I walked away for the last time, vowing that I wouldn't cut my hair any more.  I worked odd jobs to pay for my tuition at a private school until I could start some college courses and transfer to college in a big city.

Do you still get a chance to fly planes as often as you would like?

Of course not..........I would be up all day, every day if I could.  Everything looks better from up above, and you really have freedom up there.  I think that there is no time to think about problems when you're flying, especially doing some specific type of flying like aerobatics or soaring (sailplane).

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