Around four months after announcing he was temporarily leaving Deep Purple, guitarist Steve Morse confirmed his permanent departure from the band. The American musician has been part of the lineup since 1994, having recorded eight studio albums and touring extensively with the legendary British group.
The reason for the removal remains the same: the health issue of Janine, Steve’s wife, who has been diagnosed with an unspecified stage 4 cancer the most aggressive, in a condition that has already spread to other organs.
The post was held by Simon McBride in Purple’s current commitments. All indications are that it will definitely be performed as suggested by Morse himself, but the communiqués released by the band do not confirm this unequivocally.
In a note, Deep Purple explains:
“Deep Purple announces that Steve Morse is retiring from the band after being their guitarist for over a quarter of a century.
Steve’s personal circumstances made it impossible for him to commit to the band’s schedule for 2022 and beyond. A few months ago Steve openly shared with the band’s fans the sad fact that his wife Janine is battling cancer and in his own words, “I just need to be with her”.
[…]
Steve will be greatly missed by the band, crew, manager, record company and everyone who has had the pleasure of working with him over the years.
Steve has always been very grateful for the support and love from Deep Purple fans around the world.”
Morse, in turn, emphasized:
“Last fall (spring in the southern hemisphere) I suddenly left the Purple songwriting session in Germany because my wife had a real medical crisis. Almost a year later, we are learning to accept aggressive stage 4 cancer and lifelong chemotherapy.
We both miss going to shows but I just couldn’t commit to long or distant tours as things can change quickly at home. I suggested getting a backup guitarist in hopes we could see the miracle cure for cancer we’ve all heard about. Over time I could see where things are going after 28 years in the band.
I already did my last show with Purple in Florida on the Rock Legends Cruise. I want to thank the fans who have been so supportive of our live work and have made each show a thunderous and emotional experience. I will miss everyone in the band and crew but being Janine’s helper and supporter has made a real difference in so many ways.
As Janine gets used to her limitations she can do a lot of things on her own so we’ll try to do some shorter tours with friends to hopefully get us both out of the house!
I know Simon is already keen, but now I’m handing over the keys to the safe that holds the secret of how the intro to Ritchie Blackmore’s “Smoke on the Water” was recorded. I guess you have to turn the key to the right because I never opened it.”
Singer Ian Gillan commented:
“It’s usually difficult to find the right words in circumstances like this, but not in the case of Steve Morse; i know what i mean
He came from a different background to the rest of Deep Purple and yet somehow his musical genius was compatible and played an important part in the new direction the group took when he joined us in 1996 and made his first album with us, and then , spanning over a quarter of a century, enjoys the longest tenure of any DP guitarist and contributes to the longest and most unchanged lineup, which began when Don Airey replaced Jon Lord who retired in 2002 to date.
I first became aware of Steve through the Dixie Dregs, particularly the track ‘Take It off the Top’ which was the theme song for Tommy Vance’s BBC rock show and was a huge hit. Little did I know then that one day I would be lucky enough to be on stage with Steve and enjoy his skills.
He is a very kind man, full of ideas and the patience to see them develop. He said, “You’ll never know until you try”. We sure had fun discussing this approach, but most of all with his good humor and he always did his best.
Steve has a legacy with Deep Purple that will never be forgotten and that smile will be missed. It would be wrong to comment on his personal circumstances, suffice it to say that he is in a bad situation right now but is dealing with it bravely and to the best of his ability; we all admire your dedication; He was a strong family man all his life.
It all came at a terrible time for everyone, including the other Deep Purple musicians. After two years offtheroad due to quarantines everywhere we had to get back to what we do which is play live all over the world and make music like we always have since 1968. As we get older, we realize that we are much closer to the end, and that unleashes an urgency that refuses to be tamed. From Steve’s point of view, I can only imagine that there is no possible “cool” way to move on with a new guy, but it’s either that or get rid of it, because the lack of momentum gradually became something more significant; it looked final.
The best way to describe this is to use Steve’s own words; When I sent him a love letter a few weeks ago, he replied that it was weird being home while we were out, but “reality kicks in”… and that’s exactly what happened.
I can only leave love and respect and positive vibes in the memories of good times together.”
Drummer Ian Paice explained:
“From the moment Steve joined Purple it was obvious that he could open up new musical possibilities for us. Like most great creative musicians, he has the ability to come up with musical ideas that no one else has thought of.
I think the easiest way to put it is that he’s always “thinking outside the box”. Many of us can’t!
We have found that he is also an incredibly nice man who puts up with our lack of knowledge of US sports teams and stars and our ongoing conversation about British “soccer” (“soccer” to our US friends!). But there is an important truth here: “Family comes first.”
Steve is sticking to this truth with his wife Janine’s health situation. We will miss him.”
Bassist Roger Glover said:
“In the early 80’s, when I was touring Germany with Rainbow, I heard ‘Go for Baroque’ by the Dixie Dregs on the car radio. I was hooked and immediately bought the Unsung Heroes album. So I bought Steve’s first solo album. What a guitarist. I never dreamed that twelve years later we would be in a band together.
Deep Purple was at a turning point in the mid’90s and needed to catch up. Steve was an inspired choice and brought to us his talent and limitless imagination demonstrated through my favorite album Purpendicular and allowed the band to embark on an incredible journey for the next twentyeight years… He’s a teacher, he inspired us , me too in particular with your energy, encouragement and wisdom and your contribution and legacy to this band is indescribable. We will miss him, but our friendship will remain.
Unfortunately, life has intervened and various challenges are ahead of us. Janine needs him now and my best wishes and thoughts go out to her.”
Keyboardist Don Airey concluded:
“Thank you Steve for being such a bright light to me both musically and personally over the last (20!!) years
I can only wish you and Janine the best for the future, in the new direction that life has taken for you. I know it would take a lot more to wipe out your talent and music so I hope to see you along the way. Health!”
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