DEEP PURPLE's ROGER GLOVER: 'I Don't Like Fame'

In a recent interview with Spain's Made In Metal, bassist Roger Glover of the legendary British hard rockers DEEP PURPLE said that he leads a "very private" life away from the group. "The hoopla of being in a big band and touring has to be balanced, if you like, by family life," the 78-year-old musician explained. "And the family have a hard enough time 'cause I have to go away for such long periods of time, and they have to exist here without me, which is not easy. I have a wife and two children — young children now. It's necessary for me not to be known as famous. I don't like fame.

"People say to me, young musicians, 'Hey, how do you get famous?' It's the wrong question," Roger noted. "What you really need to ask is, how do you be happy? People who wanna be famous, I don't know why, because it's an imposition. It takes away your life. And so I'm very happy to keep my life as private as possible."

DEEP PURPLE's new album, "=1", is due on July 19 via earMUSIC. The LP marks DEEP PURPLE's first material with new guitarist Simon McBride, who stepped in two years ago following Steve Morse's departure.

With three consecutive No. 1 albums in their back pocket and a resurgent new energy powering them forward, this is DEEP PURPLE at their pinnacle. "Now WHAT?!" (2013),"inFinite" (2017) and "Whoosh!" (2020) have sold over one million copies worldwide, making DEEP PURPLE one of the most successful rock bands currently active. The latest studio album, "Whoosh!", reached No. 1 on the album charts in seven countries and charted in the top 10 in another 12.

There simply aren't enough superlatives to properly acknowledge the contribution DEEP PURPLE has made to rock music. Having sold more than 100 million albums and filled global arenas for decades, there's little wonder that the respected British radio station Planet Rock named the group the "Fifth Most Influential Band Ever". The band were also presented the Legend Award at the 2008 World Music Awards and were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2016. DEEP PURPLE truly are "rock royalty".

With a body of work spanning seven decades, DEEP PURPLE has helped pioneer and define the hard rock genre while progressively moving into new areas, both keeping their sound fresh and attracting new fans to the legions who have remained loyal since the band's inception. The celebrated MKII line up of Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Ian Paice, Jon Lord and Ritchie Blackmore were responsible for creating many of the defining rock albums of the early 1970s, including "Made In Japan", universally accepted as one of the most important and influential live albums of all time.

Known as one of the hardest working bands ever, DEEP PURPLE has continued to release No. 1 albums and tour globally since forming in 1968, with little rest. In 2007 (almost 40 years after being formed),the band performed 40 dates in France to an award-winning audience, and they continue to spend much of their year on the road selling out arenas across the globe.

DEEP PURPLE's recent studio album "Whoosh!" (2020) followed their worldwide chart-topping albums "inFinite" (2017) and "Now WHAT?!" (2013). 2024 sees the release of their brand-new album "=1". On all albums, DEEP PURPLE joined forces with producer Bob Ezrin, who has worked with the likes of KISS, PINK FLOYD, Lou Reed and Alice Cooper.

Photo credit: Jim Rakete (courtesy of The Outside Organisation