Charlie who?

Question: what inspired Deep Purple to write the song “Smoke on the Water”? See below for answer. Hint: nothing to do with Charlie.

This title picture is Freddy Mercury, of course.
Montreux is the Swiss riviera and has been home to famous and rich. It is known, too, for the Montreux Jazz Festival.

My favourite of those famous people is Charlie Chaplin who lived here for many years. Born in poverty in London, Chaplin was remarkable in being able to find humour in the sad and tragic of the human condition. And, for me as a youngster, his movies were a special place. I have on a wall at home a sketch of Chaplin and the boy from the movie “The Kid”. See above.
Vevey is home to Chaplin’s World - it is worth coming to Switzerland for. I was there as it opened (actually before, but don’t tell) so was alone in the theatre as the 10 minute intro movie started. After the movie, I was instructed, as I did lot think to do it myself, to walk through the movie screen and thus entered the world of the movies I loved as a kid. It was remarkable and I have not the words for the experience. Sadly, I had a bus to catch and a mountain to climb, otherwise would have spent the day there.

French as a language? I had learned how to ask for a beer. After some time now, my proficiency is such that I can now ask for a “large” beer. Sometime I remember to say “thank you” - in French.

The walk? Well it was a very warm day and a rather pleasant promenade along the lake incorporating a lovely swim therein. I first checked that others were in the water and that I would not dissolve in acid or sewage. It was gorgeous, clean and pleasantly warm (an indication of how hot it has been here and for how long). Pretty much like any other tourist-infested beach, except it had the Alps backdrop.

For the music trivia tragics: British rockers Deep Purple recorded an album in Montreux in 1971 and commemorated a fire that broke out during a Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention gig at the Montreux casino. The pall of smoke cast over Lake Geneva inspired Deep Purple to pen their heavy-chorded classic Smoke on the Water.Read more