Prakat Posted July 17, 2012 Posted July 17, 2012 Jon Lord, the keyboardist of the pioneering British hard-rock band Deep Purple, died on Monday in London. He was 71. The cause was a pulmonary embolism, said his manager, Bruce Payne. Mr. Lord announced last year that he had cancer. In songs from the late 1960s and early ?0s like Smoke on the Water, Hush and the epic Child in Time, Deep Purple laid much of the groundwork for heavy metal, drawing a blunter and fiercer sound out of the blues-based riffs common in the British invasionÃÔ first wave. Mr. Lord's Hammond B-3 organ with its signal routed through a Marshall amplifier to give it a distorted tang was key to Deep PurpleÃÔ style. It locked into formation with Ritchie Blackmore's guitar, Roger Glover's bass and Ian Paice's drums, forging catchy lines like the four-note motif of Smoke on the Water that helped the band sell tens of millions of albums around the world. But Mr. Lord did more than pound out chords. His fast, wandering solos reflected a lifelong interest in lyrical classical music, and in the bandÃÔ early years he composed several large-scale pieces for the group, including Ťoncerto for Group and Orchestra, which was recorded with the Royal Philharmonic in London in 1969. Born in Leicester, England, on June 9, 1941, Mr. Lord studied classical piano from a young age and became a fan of piano rockers like Jerry Lee Lewis as well as jazz organists like Jimmy Smith. After moving to London in 1959, he played in various jazz, blues and pop groups throughout the 1960s, until in 1968 the first incarnation of Deep Purple was formed in Hertford. After its first singer, Rod Evans, left in 1969, the group recruited Ian Gillan, who had sung in Å«esus Christ Superstar and had the vocal prowess to match the band. In the early 1970s the group released a string of hit albums, including Å¥eep Purple in Rock, Å®achine Head and the live Å®ade in Japan. Mr. Lord remained in the group despite numerous personnel changes until it finally disbanded in 1976. He then formed Paice, Ashton and Lord, a short-lived group with Deep PurpleÃÔ drummer and the singer Tony Ashton, and joined an early version of the band Whitesnake. Deep Purple reunited in 1984, and Mr. Lord stayed until 2002; since then he has continued his composing career and collaborated with musicians including Anni-Frid Lyngstad of Abba. He is survived by his wife, Vicky, and two daughters, Amy Cherrington and Sara Lord. His first marriage to Judith Feldman ended in divorce. In a recent interview, Mr. Lord demonstrated how he tailored the organÃÔ sound for Deep Purple. Å*ovely a sound as it was, it wasnÃÕ quite giving me what I wanted, he said. Ū could hear another sound in my head something harder, something more throaty. źou tap straight in and put it through a straight speaker, he added, ÅÂnd you get a beast. Enjoy the mastery that made Deep Purple a legendary band along with Blackmore and Gillan. [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arpZ3fCwDEw]Deep Purple - Smoke On The Water (From "Live At Montreux 2006" DVD) - YouTube[/ame]
coffee_rules Posted July 17, 2012 Posted July 17, 2012 RIP. Was a huge fan of Deep Purple in college days. Went to their reunion concert in the 90s as well. Huge letdown..but still very fond memories of the band.
EnterTheVoid Posted July 18, 2012 Posted July 18, 2012 The smoke on water riff was the first riff I learned to play on the electric guitar.
zombiePotato Posted July 18, 2012 Posted July 18, 2012 The smoke on water riff was the first riff I learned to play on the electric guitar. +1 could not catch them live ever, never will! :((
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