Most famous for including bassist
Roger Glover and singer
Ian Gillan before they joined
Deep Purple,
Episode Six managed to release no less than nine British singles between 1966 and 1969 without coming close to a hit record or establishing a solid identity. Also prominently featuring organist/singer
Sheila Carter-Dimmock, the group's 1966-1967 singles were rather light pop/rock harmony numbers, with an occasional ballad and a bit of a soul influence. Light years removed from
Deep Purple,
Episode Six was nothing if not eclectic in their choice of material, trying their hands at numbers by
the Hollies,
the Beatles,
the Tokens, and
Charles Aznavour, as well as a British hot-rod tune (written by
Glover). While their repertoire lacked focus, their singles were actually pleasant and their fine cover of
Tim Rose's "Morning Dew" would have been a deserving hit.
In 1967, they began to fuse pop and psychedelia with reasonably impressive results, especially the single "I Can See Through You" (written by
Glover), one of the finest British psychedelic obscurities. Their final two singles showed the band going in a much more progressive direction and anticipating some of the most indulgent art rock of the '70s with "Mozart Versus the Rest," which assaulted one of the composer's most famous riffs with manic electric guitars.
Episode Six folded in 1969, after
Gillan and
Glover had joined
Deep Purple.
–
Richie Unterberger, Rovi