Soldier of Fortune (Deep Purple song)
| "Soldier of Fortune" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Deep Purple | |
| from the album Stormbringer | |
| Released | December 1974 |
| Recorded | August 1974 |
| Genre | Blues rock |
| Length | 3:13 |
| Label | EMI/Purple |
| Songwriter(s) | David Coverdale, Ritchie Blackmore |
"Soldier of Fortune" is a blues rock ballad written by Ritchie Blackmore and David Coverdale and originally released on Deep Purple's 1974 album Stormbringer. Although Deep Purple has never released the song as a single and it has never placed on the record charts, it has developed a cult following over the years and has been covered by many artists and bands.
Releases
"Soldier of Fortune" has been released on several albums since Stormbringer:
- Stormbringer (1974)
- Last Concert in Japan (1977)
- Fireworks (Italy-only compilation) (1985)
- This Time Around: Live in Tokyo (2001)
- The Platinum Collection (2005)
- Deepest Purple: The Very Best of Deep Purple 30th Anniversary Edition (2010)
Cover versions
- Whitesnake's version first appeared on the 1997 live album Starkers in Tokyo, then later on The Silver Anniversary Collection (2003), 30th Anniversary Collection (2008) and Made in Britain/World Record (Live) (2013), then in a studio version on their 2015 album The Purple Album, which was also released as a single.
- Opeth's version was first released as a bonus track on the Special Edition of their 2005 album Ghost Reveries, then as a single on 6 March 2007. Roadrunner Records lists Opeth's version among their 13 wildest covers, calling it a faithful cover and noting the band's guitarist/vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt's "unexpectedly soulful vocals".
- Black Majesty on the 2007 album Tomorrowland.
- Bosquito on the 2003 album Cocktail Molotov.
- Blackmore's Night on the 2002 album Past Times with Good Company.
- Gyula Vikidál in a Hungarian version on his 1985 solo album under the title Szerencse katonája.
- Jiří Schelinger in a Czech version in 1977 under the title Šípková Růženka ("Sleeping Beauty").