| Song |
"Wring That Neck" is the second song on The Book of Taliesyn. In the United States, the song was retitled to "Hard Road". The song is completely instrumental.
About[]
The song is credited to guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, organist Jon Lord, drummer Ian Paice, and bassist Nick Simper. The title was changed to "Hard Road" in the United States due to the belief that "Wring That Neck" was a reference to strangling a human instead of fretting the neck of a guitar.
Live[]
"Wring That Neck" was an early live staple for the band, first debuting in the Fall of 1968 and being played consistently throughout 1969 and 1970. Live performances of the song were extended greatly through jams and solos by Ritchie Blackmore and Jon Lord, with some performances being over half an hour long. After the end of the "Deep Purple in Rock" tour in the summer of 1971, "Wring That Neck" would be played at the final show of the US Fireball tour, in which Ian Gillan fell ill and was unable to perform. This was the song's only performance on the Fireball Tour, and the last time it would be performed for nearly 30 years. The song would return to the setlist in 2000 when the group was touring the anniversary of Concerto for Group and Orchestra in a shortened arrangement featuring horn players. These performances were more similar to the studio version in length. In 2008, the song would be performed live again, segueing into "The Well-Dressed Guitar". The most recent full performances of this song would be in late 2015, where it was played three times, and in 2022 brief snippets of the song were played prior to Hush (song).
Lyrics[]
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