10 Rock Singers Who Fronted Two Great Bands

While David Coverdale would go on to be best known for Whitesnake, let's not forget where he got his big break: as lead singer for Deep Purple.

When Ian Gillian left the Deep Purple in 1973 after creative differences with Ritchie Blackmore, the group quickly went on the search for a new singer. Enter Coverdale. With Deep Purple, he would release three albums: Burn and Stormbringer, both of which were certified Gold, and later, after Blackmore departed, Come Taste the Band.

When the latter failed to be a commercial success, Coverdale attempted to resign from the group, only to be told there was no group to resign from. Still, a couple of gold records are nothing to turn up your nose at, and the run in Deep Purple made Coverdale a name in the business. In the late 70s, he would form Whitesnake, who would have massive hits with songs like Here I Go Again and Is This Love.

Though Whitesnake's glory years were the 80s, and the band struggled later on, disbanding and reforming during the 90s when hair metal was gradually killed off, there's no question Coverdale was a solid frontman for both acts.