Rod Evans

Rod Evans
promo photo, during 1968-1969
Background information
Birth name	Roderic Evans
Born	(1947-01-19) 19 January 1947
Origin	Eton, Buckinghamshire, England
Genres	Psychedelic rock, progressive rock, hard rock
Occupation(s)	Singer, model, physician
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1959–1973, 1980
Associated acts	Deep Purple, Captain Beyond, The Maze, The Horizons, Bogus Deep Purple

Roderic Evans (born 19 January 1947) is an English former singer. In the late 1960s he began his professional career in The Maze, formerly MI5, after which he was a member of the original Deep Purple line-up who produced three studio albums with a more progressive and pop driven sound. After recording a solo single, he was a member of the original Captain Beyond line-up, who produced two studio albums. After a legal struggle with Deep Purple in 1980, Evans turned reclusive and disappeared from public life.

Early career

Evans was born in Eton, Buckinghamshire.^[1][2] He played together with drummer Ian Paice, in The Maze, formerly MI5. He was also in a band called The Horizons in the mid 1960s. Reports state that Evans also worked as a male model around this time. He was tall and had good posture.

Evans and Paice were original members of Deep Purple when they formed in Hertfordshire in 1968.^[3] The most recognised song recorded with Evans singing is "Hush", which reached No. 4 on the US Billboard charts in October 1968. After recording three studio albums, he was dismissed in 1969.^[3] His departure from the band was in part due to Evans' desire to move to the United States.^[4]

Captain Beyond

In 1971, Rod recorded a solo single for Capitol,^[5] titled "Hard To Be Without You" (b/w "You Can't Love A Child Like A Woman"), then went on to form Captain Beyond, along with former Johnny Winter drummer Bobby Caldwell, former Iron Butterfly bassist Lee Dorman and guitarist Larry "Rhino" Reinhardt, who also was part of the last incarnation of Iron Butterfly. This band proved to be influential, but sales never reflected their musical achievements. Lack of commercial success ended the group after three albums.

Evans left Captain Beyond and the music business after their first two albums. He then became a director of respiratory therapy at a western American hospital until 1980.^[6]

Deep Purple controversy and lawsuit

In 1980, Evans was approached by a management company which specialised in questionably-reformed bands with well-known names, and he began to tour under the Deep Purple name accompanied by unknown session musicians. The line up was Rod Evans (vocals), Tony Flynn (guitar), Tom de Rivera (bass), Geoff Emery (keyboards), and Dick Jurgens III (drums), son of famous big band leader Dick Henrey Jurgens.^[7]

After several shows ended in near riots,^[8] Evans was sued by the management of the genuine Deep Purple and they were awarded damages of US$672,000 (US$1,933,221 in 2016 dollars^[9]). As a result of the lawsuit, Evans no longer receives royalties from the band's first three albums.

Later life

He has not appeared publicly since the court case and his current whereabouts are of considerable interest to fans of early Deep Purple.^[8] In 2015, Ian Paice said: "If anyone knows where Rod is or even if he is still on the planet, that would be good news. We haven't had contact with him since the late 1970s. Nobody seems to know where the hell he is, or even if he is still alive. Not a clue."^[10]

In a 2015 interview, Captain Beyond drummer Bobby Caldwell mentioned that he was in touch with Evans and that Evans has been working as a respiratory therapist.^[11]

On 8 April 2016, Evans was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Deep Purple; however, he did not attend the ceremony.^[12]

Discography

Solo

• It's Hard To Be Without You / You Can't Love A Child Like A Woman (1971), Promo only

with Deep Purple

Studio Albums

• Shades of Deep Purple (1968), US#24
• The Book of Taliesyn (1968), US#54
• Deep Purple (1969), US#162

Live albums

• Inglewood – Live in California (2002)
• BBC Sessions 1968–1970 (2011)

Compilations

• Purple Passages (1972), US#57
• Mark I & II (1973)
• When We Rock, We Rock, and When We Roll, We Roll (1978)
• The Anthology (1985), UK#50
• The Deep Purple Singles A's and B's (1993)
• Smoke on the Water: The Best Of (1994)
• 30: Very Best of Deep Purple (1998), UK#39, UK:Silver
• Shades 1968–1998 (1999)
• The Very Best of Deep Purple (2000), UK: Gold
• Listen, Learn, Read On (2002)
• The Early Years (2004)
• The Platinum Collection (2005), UK#39
• Deepest Purple: The Very Best of Deep Purple 30th Anniversary Edition (2010)

Singles

• Hush (1968), US#4
• Kentucky Woman (1968), US#38
• River Deep – Mountain High (1969), US#53
• Emmaretta (1969), US#128

DVDs

• History, Hits & Highlights '68–'76 (2009)

with Captain Beyond

Studio albums

• Captain Beyond (1972)
• Sufficiently Breathless (1973), US#90

Live Albums

• Live In Texas October 6, 1973 (2013)
• Live Anthology Official Bootleg (2013)

References

External links

• The Highway Star – Information from a Deep Purple fansite.