Ian Gillan Purple. By 1969, after having released nine singles, none of which charted in the UK, and finding their style of music too restrictive for him, he decided to leave Episode Six. By spring 1969, Deep Purple had had a top 5 US hit with "Hush", but the band, particularly Ritchie Blackmore, Jon Lord and Ian Paice, decided their future lay in hard rock, rather than the psychedelic pop sound of the early band. In June 1969, Blackmore, Lord and Paice went to see Episode Six perform at a pub gig and subsequently offered Gillan the job as new lead singer,
David Coverdale Your Loving", which reached No. 13 on the British charts and No. 53 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100. "Ready an' Willing" was followed up by the even more successful "Come an' Get It" in 1981. During 1982 Coverdale took some time off to look after his sick daughter and decided to put Whitesnake on hold. When David Coverdale returned to music he reformed the band, which thereafter recorded the album "Saints & Sinners". In 1982, according to British heavy metal magazine "Kerrang!", Coverdale was considered for the vocalist position with Black Sabbath following the departure of Ronnie James Dio.