Ian Paice 1966 Paice joined The MI5, which soon changed its name to The Maze. Primarily a club band, The Maze produced a number of singles, recorded mainly in Italy and France. The Maze featured vocalist Rod Evans, who alongside Paice was to form the original line-up of Deep Purple in March 1968. Evans had responded to an ad for a lead singer published by Deep Purple management, and showed up for his audition with Ian Paice in tow. Given that Deep Purple's first choice for a drummer, Bobby Woodman, had expressed dislike for the band's musical direction, the group hastily arranged
Ian and the Zodiacs Zodiacs. The group came together following an audition at a local venue called Savoy Hall. In the spring of 1960, Ian Edwards departed from his band, The Deltones, and joined The Zodiacs. From that point on, the band became known as Ian and the Zodiacs, and shifted their style from jazz to rock and roll. Following several personnel changes, the lineup for the group included Edwards as lead vocalist, Pete Wallace on lead guitar, Geoff Bethell on piano, Charlie Flynn (stage name: Wellington Wade) on bass guitar, and Cliff Roberts on drums. The band played top venues in the area,