Deep Purple – Fireball (1971)

You know you're old when not only are you looking at a 25th anniversary release of an album, but find that it was released in this format nearly 30 years ago.

While I never owned this album, Deep Purple were one of my earliest musical tastes, before the discovery of prog, Canterbury and punk, possibly the first thing I took notice of beyond the top 40 pop charts.

The title track, Fireball, was one of the first singles I ever bought, the last of the band's three top ten singles during 1970-71, and it's with the whoosh!, then frantic drum roll followed by Ian Gillan's distinctive vocals and the 100 mph accompaniment that the album kicks off.