“Child in Time” – Song by Deep Purple from the album Deep Purple in Rock
Released June 1970
Recorded 4 December 1969 at IBC Studios, London
Label Harvest (UK) / Warner Bros. (US)
Songwriters Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Jon Lordm Ian Paice
Producer Deep Purple
Taken from their fourth album Deep Purple In Rock, the band performs ‘Child In Time’ live on the British TV show “Doing Their Thing”.
Running 10:15, “Child In Time” is a protest song about the futility of the Cold War. The lyrics were written by lead singer Ian Gillan.
Ian Gillan said in an interview in 2002: “There are two sides to that song – the musical side and the lyrical side. On the musical side, there used to be this song ‘Bombay Calling’ by a band called It’s A Beautiful Day. It was fresh and original, when Jon was one day playing it on his keyboard. It sounded good, and we thought we’d play around with it, change it a bit and do something new keeping that as a base. But then, I had never heard the original ‘Bombay Calling.’ So we created this song using the Cold War as the theme, and wrote the lines ‘Sweet child in time, you’ll see the line.’ That’s how the lyrical side came in. Then, Jon had the keyboard parts ready and Ritchie had the guitar parts ready. The song basically reflected the mood of the moment, and that’s why it became so popular.” (Thanks to the Deep Purple Appreciation Society)
The song is notable for showcasing singer Ian Gillan’s full vocal range and the instrumental jam section between guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and organist Jon Lord.
