Editing Deep Purple (section)

===Beginnings (1967–1968)===
In 1967, former [[The Searchers (band)|Searchers]] drummer [[Chris Curtis (musician)|Chris Curtis]] contacted London businessman [[Tony Edwards (manager)|Tony Edwards]], in the hope he would manage a new group he was putting together, to be called Roundabout. Curtis' vision was a "supergroup" where the band members would get on and off, like a musical roundabout. Impressed with the plan, Edwards agreed to finance the venture with his two business partners [[John Coletta]] and Ron Hire, who composed Hire-Edwards-Coletta Enterprises (HEC).<ref name="Thompson">{{cite book |last=Thompson |first=Dave |author-link=Dave Thompson (author)|year=2004 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LzzCw6xs9roC&pg=PA27 |title=Smoke on the Water: The Deep Purple Story |publisher=ECW Press |isbn=9781550226188 |access-date=18 January 2011}}</ref>

The first recruit to the band was classically trained [[Hammond organ]] player [[Jon Lord]], Curtis' flatmate, who had most notably played with [[the Artwoods]] (led by [[Art Wood]], brother of future [[Faces (band)|Faces]] and [[Rolling Stones]] guitarist [[Ronnie Wood]], and including [[Keef Hartley]]).<ref>Eder, Bruce. [http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p15491/biography The Artwoods] Allmusic. Retrieved 12 December 2011</ref> Lord was then performing in a backing band for the vocal group [[The Flower Pot Men (band)|The Flower Pot Men]], along with bassist [[Nick Simper]] and drummer [[Carlo Little]] (Simper had previously been in [[Johnny Kidd and the Pirates]], and survived the 1966 car crash that killed Kidd). Lord alerted the two that he had been recruited for the Roundabout project, after which Simper and Little suggested guitarist [[Ritchie Blackmore]], whom Lord had never met.<ref name="darker">{{cite web |url=http://www.nicksimper.com/nick_simper_interview_july83.htm |title=Nick Simper Interview from "Darker than Blue", July 1983 |access-date=15 January 2014 |last=Robinson |first=Simon |date=July 1983 |work=Darker than Blue |publisher=Nick Simper official website}}</ref> Simper had known Blackmore since the early 1960s when his first band, the Renegades, debuted around the same time as one of Blackmore's early bands, the Dominators.<ref>Thompson, Dave (2004). "Smoke on the Water: The Deep Purple Story" p.5. ECW Press</ref>

HEC persuaded Blackmore to travel in from [[Hamburg]] to audition for the new group. He was making a name for himself as a studio session guitarist, and had also been a member of [[The Outlaws (UK band)|the Outlaws]], [[Screaming Lord Sutch|Screaming Lord Sutch & the Savages]], and [[Neil Christian|Neil Christian & the Crusaders]], the latter band prompting Blackmore's move to Germany. Curtis' erratic behaviour and lifestyle, fuelled by his use of [[LSD]], caused him to display a sudden lack of interest in the project he had started, forcing HEC to dismiss him from Roundabout. However, HEC was now intrigued with the possibilities Lord and Blackmore brought and persuaded Blackmore to return from Hamburg a second time. Lord and Blackmore began the recruitment of additional members, retaining Tony Edwards as their manager.<ref name="Curtis">[[Dave Thompson (author)|Thompson, Dave]]. [http://www.allmusic.com/artist/chris-curtis-p67960/biography Chris Curtis Biography] AllMusic. Retrieved 12 December 2011</ref> Lord convinced Nick Simper to join on bass, but Blackmore insisted they leave Carlo Little behind in favour of drummer [[Bobby Woodman]].<ref name="darker"/> Woodman was the former drummer for [[Vince Taylor]]'s Play-Boys (for whom he had played under the name Bobbie Clarke). The band, still calling themselves Roundabout, started rehearsing and writing in [[Cadogan Gardens]] in South Kensington.

In March 1968, Lord, Blackmore, Simper and Woodman moved into Deeves Hall, a country house in [[South Mimms]], Hertfordshire.<ref>Dafydd Rees, Luke Crampton (1999). "Rock stars encyclopedia" p.279. DK Publishing.</ref><ref>Frame, Pete (2000). "[https://books.google.com/books?id=GHPVGbDS0KsC&pg=PT65 Pete Frame's Rocking Around Britain]" p.54. Music Sales Group, 2000</ref> The band would live, write and rehearse at the house; it was fully kitted out with the latest [[Marshall Amplification|Marshall amplification]]<ref name="Bloom"/> and, at Lord's request, a [[Hammond organ|Hammond C3]] organ.<ref name="Thompson"/> According to Simper, "dozens" of singers were auditioned (including [[Rod Stewart]] and Woodman's friend Dave Curtiss)<ref name="Thompson"/> until the group heard [[Rod Evans]] of club band the Maze, and thought his voice fitted their style well. Tagging along with Evans was his band's drummer [[Ian Paice]]. Blackmore had seen an 18-year-old Paice on tour with the Maze in Germany in 1966, and had been impressed by his drumming. The band hastily arranged an audition for Paice, given that Woodman was vocally unhappy with the direction of the band's music.<ref name="darker"/> Both Paice and Evans won their respective jobs, and the line-up was complete.<ref name="autogenerated1983">Welch, Chris. "The Story of Deep Purple", in ''Deep Purple: HM Photo Book'', copyright 1983, Omnibus Press.</ref>

During a brief tour of Denmark and Sweden in April, in which they were still billed as Roundabout, Blackmore suggested a new name: Deep Purple, after his grandmother's favourite song, "[[Deep Purple (song)|Deep Purple]]" by [[Peter DeRose]].<ref name="Curtis"/><ref name="Bloom">{{cite book |author=Jerry Bloom |year=2006 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FcKcrWE8aWgC&pg=PT163 |title=Black Knight: Ritchie Blackmore |publisher=Omnibus Press 2008 |isbn=9781846097577 |quote=Blackmore has stated; "It was a song my grandmother used to play on the piano."}}</ref> The group had resolved to choose a name after everyone had posted one on a board in rehearsal. Second to Deep Purple was "Concrete God", which the band thought was too harsh to take on,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=tOpB23GGxAIC&pg=PA53 Rock Formations: Categorical Answers to How Band Names Were Formed] p.53. Cidermill Books. Retrieved 29 April 2011</ref> while other names suggested included "Orpheus" and "Sugarlump".<ref>Tyler, Kieron [http://www.deep-purple.net/archive/68-76history/roundabout.htm On The Roundabout With Deep Purple] Retrieved 29 April 2011</ref>