What inspired the song “Smoke on the Water” by Deep Purple?
Every human being can play the riff from “Smoke on the Water” on guitar. I don’t care if actually know how to play the guitar, have ever even seen a guitar or if you’re a baby — yes, you can go it. If I just type it out you’ll know exactly what it is: duh-duh-duuuh, duh-duh-duh-duhhh, duh-duh-duhh, duhh-duhh.
Maybe it’s because it connects with some deep part of our humanity on an unconscious level. Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore has said that he based it on Symphony No. 5 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Classical music meets classic rock, I guess.
I think it’s also because, according to Deep Purple and the mythos surrounding the song, it was written in a moment of inspiration. What inspired “Smoke on the Water” and that iconic riff to be written?
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The answer is: A fire at a Frank Zappa concert. The band was attending a Frank Zappa concert nearby where they had been recording, when a deranged fan approached the stage and shot off a flare gun. The flare caused the heating system to explode, setting the stage and instruments on fire and causing a panic. Luckily, no one died. The scene served as a moment of musical inspiration.If you listen closely to the lyrics, you’ll hear a direct reference: “Frank Zappa & the Mothers were at the best place around / But some stupid with a flare gun burned the place to the ground.”Source
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