Many a tribute has already been written now that it was announced that Jon Lord had passed away last night (16th July).
The many successes he had with Deep Purple and the other bands and solo projects he completed during his life mean there was much to talk about.
But it's a simple fact that was he was one of the musicians who helped shape hard rock, progressive and heavy metal during the early 1970's. Along with Keith Emerson, Rick Wakeman he was one of a select group of musicians who developed the hammond organ as a integral part of the rock sound in that era. Unlike Emerson and Wakeman he didn't divert into the use of the Moog synth and stayed with the organ adding effects to the sound instead.
Lord really was the first to take the idea and put into practice the unheard of fusion between classical and rock when he wrote 'Concerto for Group and Orchestra' in 1969, it was a further master stroke to engage the help of conductor Malcolm Arnold "to protect him from the inevitable disdain of the older members of the orchestra". It was to Arnold's credit he welcomed the interaction with this new generation of musicians and took them seriously.
40 odd years later the result might sound less surprising or dramatic than it was at the time but remember nothing had been attempted like this before. In 2000 Metallica created a similar fusion of classical and rock with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and claimed it had been inspired by Deep Purple's "Concerto" album.
Jon Lords 'Concerto for Group and Orchestra' became the first commercial success for Deep Purple which then led to one of the most well known rock albums ever made "Deep Purple In Rock".
Here is a short extract from the concert containing the groups separate parts working with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
RIP Jon Lord. 9th June 1941 – 16th July 2012
