Don't expect Glenn Hughes to jump at a chance to do a reunion tour with his former band Deep Purple. Not that the band needs to do a tour like that as the group is used to going through multiple lineup changes. Of the original members in 1968, only drummer Ian Paice remains.
Hughes joined the group in 1973 and stuck around for three years. After 1976, the band broke up until 1984. They had seemingly run out of ideas and the members wanted to explore other avenues. (After reforming in 1984, though, the band has since released 13 more studio albums.) Still, Hughes is an excellent bassist and likely the best one Deep Purple ever had.
He was invited to the band's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2016 as well as four other members. (The group was inducted by Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich, hence the reason Ulrich is in the header photo for this article.) This included Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, and Paice - these three have been with the band the longest. Hughes felt like an outcast even while being part of the group being inducted.
Glenn Hughes explains issues behind Deep Purple's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction
Why? Because Hughes simply was having one of the worst experiences of his life. Gillan, Glover, and Paice were having a bit too much fun, it appears. The interactions between them and Hughes were - at best - non-existent. At worst, filled with loathing.
In a recent interview with Guitar Interactive Magazine, Hughes talked about how awful of an experience the induction ceremony turned out to be. So much so that he said he wants nothing to do with Deep Purple ever again. (That has not stopped the band from creating a new album, though. =1 is due to be released in July.)
Hughes told Guitar Interactive, "I will never speak to any of them again, simply because they were rude," says Hughes. "Both Roger, Ian, and Gillan were rude to David (Coverdale) and I. Very, very hurtful. I didn't give a (expletive), actually, because I knew they were rude to begin with. I was the only sober man there. I don't care about those guys. Gillan was rude to me on stage, accepting the award. I went to congratulate him. He looked at me in the eyes like I didn't exist."
Maybe that is all part of just being a metal band. One might feel the need to not only pretend to lead the rock life; they must live it as well. That doesn't mean people don't have to be nice to one another, though.
Deep Purple was part of the "unholy trinity" of hard rock bands from England in the 1960s. The trio also included Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath as well. A couple of the members of Deep Purple have also served time with Sabbath, too.