Perfect Strangers (Deep Purple song)

"Perfect Strangers"
Single by Deep Purple
from the album Perfect Strangers
B-side	"Son of Alerik"
Released	18 January 1985 [1]
Recorded	July–August 1984
Genre	Hard rock
Length	5:23
Label	Polydor (UK)
Songwriters	Ritchie Blackmore Ian Gillan Roger Glover
Producers	Roger Glover Deep Purple
Deep Purple singles chronology
"Knocking at Your Back Door" (1984) "Perfect Strangers" (1985) "Knocking at Your Back Door/Perfect Strangers" (1985)
Music video
"Perfect Strangers" on YouTube

"Perfect Strangers" is a song by the British rock band Deep Purple. It is the title track of their 1984 comeback album Perfect Strangers . It was also released as the first single from the album in the UK.

It is one of the few Deep Purple compositions not to feature a guitar solo. Nevertheless, founding band member and guitarist Ritchie Blackmore has called it his favorite Deep Purple song. The lyrics are inspired by the Elric books by Michael Moorcock.

As a single, it spent 3 weeks in the UK Singles charts from 26th January to 9th February, 1985 peaking at No. 48 ^[2] , a modest performance as compared to the album as a whole which had peaked at No. 5 of the UK Album charts throughout November and December the previous year. ^[3]

Covers

• Dimmu Borgir on their album Abrahadabra as a bonus track.
• Progressive metal band Dream Theater on their EP A Change of Seasons . Dream Theater also performed it live on a BBC Radio show with Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson singing the lead vocals. The band also performed it under the pseudonym Nightmare Cinema at interludes during their concerts when they would switch instruments. ^[4]
• Hard rock vocalist Jørn Lande on his solo album Unlocking the Past .
• Finnish duo Timo Kotipelto and Jani Liimatainen during live performances and on their studio album Blackoustic .
• American doom metal band Yob covered Perfect Strangers as a standalone single.
• 1980s glam metal band Vixen (band) performed the song as an interpolation between their song Rock Me included in their live album Live Fire (2018), a recording of their live performance in Chicago in 2017.

Personnel

• Ritchie Blackmore – guitars
• Ian Gillan – vocals
• Roger Glover – bass
• Jon Lord – organ
• Ian Paice – drums

References

1. "Music Week" (PDF). Worldradiohistory.com. p. 12.
2. "DEEP PURPLE". Official Charts. 15 August 1970. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
3. "PERFECT STRANGERS". Official Charts. 10 November 1984. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
4. "Mike Portnoy.com The Official Website". 12 June 2018. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2022.