Saturday, January 9, 2016

Original Deep Purple Bassist Nick Simper on His Rock Hall Snub


Over the multiple decades that Deep Purple have been eligible, they have until this year always gotten snubbed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for entry into their ranks for candidates who quite frankly were far less deserving of the honor. However, despite the fact that Deep Purple finally got in this year, certain members from the band's many line-ups are not to be inducted.

One member in particular is original Deep Purple bass player Nick Simper. Simper played on the band's first three albums. However, he seems to be taking it quite well. In an interview with Classic Rock Magazine, Simper says:

The first I knew about the Hall of Fame induction was when I read about it and fans were complaining that I wasn’t being inducted. Maybe I am being naïve, but I always thought that if a band gets into the Hall of Fame then all members, past and present, are part of it. Obviously not.

Yes, it is a little strange that I am only only one from Marks I, II and III being left out, but I shan’t lose any sleep over this. It’s not as if I need to be given this award to know what we did in Deep Purple made an impact. And I’m sure it wasn’t a decision that came from the band.”

Simper says he has remained on good terms with many of the members of the band over the years, being particularly close to original keyboardist Jon Lord up until his death back in 2012 and also sending and receiving a good word from drummer Ian Paice from time to time.

Quite frankly I agree that Simper got the shaft. If you at any point were a member of a band that gets inducted into the Rock Hall, you should be included in that induction. It's kind of a slap in the face otherwise. Then again, the RRHOF always has been about politics and a bunch of stuffy old men who wouldn't know the true meaning of rock n' roll if it jumped up and punched them in the face. Honestly, it should NOT have taken this long for Deep Purple to get in. They are one of the most important bands in the development in hard rock and heavy metal. Without them there would be no Metallica, no Iron Maiden, no Queen, etc. Oh well. At least Simper knows what kind of contribution he made and I guess that's all that matters.

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