Funky Junction were an Irish rock band formed in 1972 specifically to record a single album of songs made famous by British band

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...

, which was released as ''Funky Junction Play a Tribute to Deep Purple'' in January 1973. Among the band's lineup were all three members of the early 1970s incarnation of

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including blues, soul music, psychedelic rock and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or some ...

Background

The project was brought about by a German businessman named Leo Muller, who contacted Irish group

to record the album.Stuart Bailie, "The Ballad of the Thin Man", Boxtree, 1996 Muller was an alias used by Dave Miller, a record producer and proprietor of several budget music companies. The group members were not enthusiastic, as they were trying to forge their own style and identity, but they needed the money.Alan Byrne, "Thin Lizzy: Soldiers of Fortune", Firefly, 2004 Thin Lizzy's vocalist,

Phil Lynott Philip Parris Lynott (, ; 20 August 1949 – 4 January 1986) was an Irish singer, bassist, and songwriter. His most commercially successful group was Thin Lizzy, of which he was a founding member, the principal songwriter, lead vocalist and ba ...

, decided that he was unable to sing like Deep Purple vocalist

Ian Gillan Ian Gillan (born 19 August 1945) is a British singer who is best known as the lead singer and lyricist for the rock band Deep Purple. He is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice. Initially influenced by Elvis Presley, Gillan ...

, so restricted himself to playing

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

and singing backing vocals. The band brought in Benny White, singer with the Dublin group Elmer Fudd, because they generally performed Deep Purple covers during gigs. Thin Lizzy drummer Brian Downey referred to White as "really an Ian Gillan clone".Mark Putterford, "Philip Lynott: The Rocker", Castle, 1994 Thin Lizzy did not have a keyboard player in their lineup, so Elmer Fudd's keyboardist Dave "Mojo" Lennox, later in

Blodwyn Pig Blodwyn Pig was a British blues rock musical ensemble, band, founded in 1968 by guitarist–vocalist–songwriter Mick Abrahams. Career Abrahams left Jethro Tull (band), Jethro Tull after their debut album, ''This Was'', was released, due to a ...

, was also asked to participate. Thin Lizzy guitarist

Eric Bell Eric Robin Bell (born 3 September 1947 in Belfast, Northern Ireland) is a Northern Irish rock and blues musician, best known as a founding member and the original guitarist of the rock group Thin Lizzy from 1969 to 1973. After his time in Thin ...

stated that White and Lennox were each paid "around £60" to travel to

De Lane Lea Studios Warner Bros. De Lane Lea Studios is a recording studio, based in Dean Street, Soho, London. Although the studios have mainly been used for dubbing feature films and television programmes, major artists such as the Animals, the Beatles, Soft M ...

in London to record the album.

Recording

The makeshift band rehearsed for "two or three hours", according to Downey, before recording the whole album in one day. Nine tracks were recorded, with five being Deep Purple covers. Three others were loosely improvised instrumentals; "Dan" – a version of "

Londonderry Air The "Londonderry Air" is an Irish air that originated in County Londonderry. It is popular among the North American Irish diaspora and is well known throughout the world. The tune is played as the victory sporting anthem of Northern Ireland at ...

" or "

Danny Boy "Danny Boy" is a ballad, written by English songwriter Frederic Weatherly in 1913, and set to the traditional Irish melody of "Londonderry Air". History In 1910, in Bath, Somerset, the English lawyer and lyricist Frederic Weatherly initial ...

" by Bell in a

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

style; "Rising Sun" – a cover of "

The House of the Rising Sun "The House of the Rising Sun" is a traditional folk song, sometimes called "Rising Sun Blues". It tells of a person's life gone wrong in the city of New Orleans. Many versions also urge a sibling or parents and children to avoid the same fate. ...

" made popular by

The Animals The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...

; and the original composition "Palamatoon". The last track on the album was "

Corina Corina is a female given name of ancient Greek origin, derived from κόρη (''korē'') meaning "girl, maiden".Stereo Gold Award Stereo Gold Award was a budget label record label owned by producer Dave Miller. It released many budget and exploito type recordings during the 1970s. It was one of the last of Muller's major business ventures. Background The label was a U.K. b ...

label, and on the Sonic Records label in Germany. For the German release, the band's name was changed to "The Rock Machine" with the album title being changed to "The Rock Machine Play the Best of Deep Purple".Thin Lizzy Guide - discography
/ref> In its original edition, the album was available at

Woolworths Woolworth, Woolworth's, or Woolworths may refer to: Businesses * F. W. Woolworth Company, the original US-based chain of "five and dime" (5¢ and 10¢) stores * Woolworths Group (United Kingdom), former operator of the Woolworths chain of shops ...

for 50p. Thin Lizzy were paid £1000 for the recording but their name was entirely omitted from the album, and a photo of a different band was featured on the cover, namely

Hard Stuff Hard Stuff were an English hard rock group which included John Du Cann and Paul Hammond, formerly of Atomic Rooster. Also in the line-up were vocalist Harry 'Al' Shaw, formerly of Curiosity Shoppe and latterly Export, and John Gustafson, fo ...

, who were signed to Deep Purple's own label.

''Especially for You...''

Another album was released by Muller in 1973 using the Funky Junction name, titled ''Especially for You...'', credited to

Gladys Knight & the Pips Gladys Knight & the Pips were an American R&B, soul and funk family music group from Atlanta, Georgia, that remained active on the music charts and performing circuit for over three decades starting from the early 1950s. Starting out as simpl ...

featuring Funky Junction, also on the Stereo Gold Award label. However, Gladys Knight & the Pips did not perform on the record, and the two tracks credited to Funky Junction, "Talking Trash" and "Road's End", were recorded by an entirely different band and did not involve Lynott, Bell, Downey, White or Lennox.

''Funky Junction Play a Tribute to Deep Purple''

Album track listing

Fireball Fireball may refer to: Science * Fireball (meteor), a brighter-than-usual meteor * Ball lightning, an atmospheric electrical phenomenon * ''Bassia scoparia'', a plant species Arts and entertainment Films * ''The Fireball'', a 1950 film starring ...

" (

Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guitar ...

Roger Glover Roger David Glover (born 30 November 1945) is a Welsh bassist, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the member of the hard rock bands Deep Purple and Rainbow. As a member of Deep Purple, Glover was inducted into the Rock and Ro ...

Jon Lord John Douglas Lord (9 June 194116 July 2012) was an English orchestral and rock composer, pianist, and Hammond organ player known for his pioneering work in fusing rock with classical or baroque forms, especially with the British rock band Deep ...

Ian Paice Ian Anderson Paice (born 29 June 1948) is an English musician, best known as the drummer and last remaining original member of the rock band Deep Purple. He is often cited as one of the greatest drummers of all-time. He remains the only member ...

) #"

Dan Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa **Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Ivoir ...

" (Leo Muller) #"

Black Night "Black Night" is a song by British hard rock band Deep Purple, first released as a single in June 1970 and later included on the 25th Anniversary version of their 1970 album, ''Deep Purple in Rock''. It became a hit following its release, pe ...

" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord, Paice) #"Palamatoon" (Muller) #"

Strange Kind of Woman "Strange Kind of Woman" is a song by British rock band Deep Purple that was originally released as a follow-up single after "Black Night" in early 1971. The song also became a hit, peaking at No. 8 on the UK chart and Germany, and No. 1 in De ...

" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord, Paice) #"

Hush Hush may refer to: Film and television * ''Hush'' (1921 film), starring Clara Kimball Young * ''Hush'' (1998 film), starring Gwyneth Paltrow * ''Hush!'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film directed by Ryosuke Hashiguchi * ''Hush'' (2005 film), starring ...

" (

Joe South Joe South (born Joseph Alfred Souter; February 28, 1940 – September 5, 2012) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Best known for his songwriting, South won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 1970 for " Ga ...

) #" Rising Sun" (Muller) #"

Speed King ''Deep Purple in Rock'' is the fourth studio album by Deep Purple, released on 5 June 1970. It was the first studio album recorded by the Mark II line-up of Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Jon Lord and Ian Paice. Work on ''In Rock ...

" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord, Paice) #"

Corina Corina is a female given name of ancient Greek origin, derived from κόρη (''korē'') meaning "girl, maiden".

Personnel

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

–

* Brian Downey –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

*Benny White –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

*Dave Lennox –

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control Irish hard rock musical groups Musical groups established in 1972 Tribute bands