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Nino and April are a brother and a sister who each had fair solo careers. April had hits with "No No No Not That" (1950), "I'm in Love Again" (1951), and "Teach Me Tiger" (1959); Nino was a session saxophonist. They were teamed by Atlantic Records' owner Ahmet Ertegun.

Real names: Antonio and Carol Lo Tempio.

Ertegun wanted them to record "Paradise" - which they did - but in the 14 minutes of studio time remaining, they also cut this.

Nino was supposed to sing the second chorus by himself, but he "blanked out," so April fed it to him line by line as the tape was rolling. A friend listening to the recording thought that April's "narration" would make "Deep Purple" a #1 record... but not Nino, initially -- April took two months to convince him that the narration was OK. Ertegun didn't like "Deep Purple," either -- he mothballed it and released "Paradise" instead. "Paradise" sank without a trace.

Nino demanded that Ertegun release "Deep Purple" as a single or release them from their contract from Atlantic Records. Ertegun agreed to the single release, stating that if "Deep Purple" didn't become a hit, his and April's contract would be terminated.

When this was released, Nino was positioning himself to be signed by his old friend, Phil Spector.

Ertegun thought the B-side of this, "I've Been Carrying a Torch for You so Long That I Burned a Great Big Hole in My Heart," would be the hit.

Won the Grammy for Best Rock & Roll Recording of 1963.

In 1939, this was a #1 hit for Larry McClinton and His orchestra. It also went to #20 for Billy Ward and the Dominoes -- their last crossover Top 40 hit, and #14 for Donny and Marie Osmond in 1976.

Subsequent singles by Nino and April mined the big band era, with #11 "Whipering" (originally by Paul Whiteman in 1920) and #32 "Stardust" (originally by Isham Jones and his orchestra in 1931). (thanks, Brad Wind - Miami, FL, for all above)

The British pioneering heavy metal band Deep Purple took their name from this song as it was guitarist Ritchie Blackmore's grandmother's favorite tune. Bassist Nick Simper admitted to Mojo magazine: "We were slightly embarrassed about the name until we saw it in the charts."

Comments:

This song was #1 in the top 40 for weeks and weeks. I can not get enough of it. No surprise that the recording was impromptu. It captures a spirit. Nino is a good yodeler, and weaves his harmony above and below April's.
- Alan, Greene, RI

Nino and April also had a semi-hit in 1966 with "All Strung Out On You". A song that was later rerecorded by John Travolta.
- Bob, Southfield, MI

I grew up listening to the music of the 50's and 60's. When I first heard this song, I fell in love with the way it was recorded. I want to find this song on CD along with "Whispering" and "Tweedle Dee". I really like the way Nino and April's voices blended to give the song a special feel inside me as I listened. I hope someone will help me find their music in CD format.
- Patrick, Clayton, NC

I know I'm young to be posting about this song, but as a child my father got me into the oldies and this one I use to listen to a lot, and I really liked it.
- Sara, Traverse City, MI

What a fine song. Reading the recent obits for Amet Ertegun one would be led to believe that he never erred in his understanding of popular culture and taste in pop music. Silly Me! I prefer the up tempo renditions better that the Jazz Standard versions. But what I really want to know: Composed by ___?

Given how she sounds while speaking the lyrics to Nino, I wouldn't have minded April Stevens whispering in my ear back then... makes the song sound somewhat incestuous once you find out they're siblings. (chuckle)
- Jameson, Lexington, KY

This song was also recorded by Donny and Marie Osmond in the early 1970's.
- Keith Major, Bristol, England

Oddly enough, Richie Blackmore heard the song and whether he liked it or not was never told, but the title was inspirational to him. Hence his band's name... (as told by Roger on Westwood One's "Rockline" show, 1985)
- John, Greeneville, TN