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Ian Paice remembers Jon Lord, previews “Burn” from Celebrating Jon Lord
AllMusic recently conducted an interview with Ian Paice in which he recalls his first meeting with Jon and talks about the Celebrating Jon Lord event which has just been released on many formats.
AllMusic: Can you remember meeting Jon Lord for the first time?
Ian Paice: The first time I actually met Jon, I remembered it but there’s no way he would have. The band I was in at the time, we opened for Jon’s band, which was called the Artwoods, at the Marquee Club in London. Although they never really made it big internationally, in Europe and Britain they were quite well known, and so we knew all of them as a band. The first time I saw Jon, I remember this incredibly slim, tall, rock and roll guy in front of you, he just looked right, he was very impressive, and when he played, it was obvious that he was very, very good at what he did.
I enjoyed the night and thought no more about it other than you get to see really good people play as you get around the country, and then when the Deep Purple formation started and I walked into the room and saw Jon was on keyboards, it all came flooding back to me, remembering how good he was and what a possibility it was with musicians of that caliber, that whatever came out of this audition session could only be good for me. He was always very supportive, always very kind. I was pretty nervous going into this, and he took a few minutes to say, “Look, none of us know what’s going on, relax, have fun, and when you hear something, react to it, do something.” So the next half hour, which was my audition, basically, it just flew by, and we had a good time. I always remembered it, obviously.
you can read the entire interview here
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
Horrible singing by mr. Hughes!
September 30th, 2014 at 19:35Not sure who was on concerning that performance, really. Guitar mix muted, zero attack of the riff and lead parts. A mess if you ask me, but a lovely interview here, and I’m sure a valuable addition to any DP fans collection, regardless of my complete distaste for Glenn Hughes, especially as he exists today, because I do still like some Trapeze, mkIII, and Hughes/Thrall, and even a bit of the Sabbath/Iommi stuff. Post LA Blues Authority ’94, the less of him the better for my taste. And what is almost worse here tho, is Bruce’s foul mouth, and well Bruce’s presence for all that matter. He can still sing very well, but apparently the acting thing still needs a lot of work.
September 30th, 2014 at 22:20Been to the concert, Hughes was the best! Dickinson showed very weak performance, to put it mildly.
October 1st, 2014 at 00:54Dickinson Sucks
October 1st, 2014 at 02:05A marvellous piece of praise of Jon by Ian. At the time of reading the interview, I was listening to the original First Movement of the Concerto. Today can’t get any better.
October 1st, 2014 at 08:18This is great. This is a must have in my collection. Glenn Hughes bas lines/playing is great. His singing is still good. Would have been great to see David Coverdale participate here too. Anybody here who know why DC did not participate here?
October 2nd, 2014 at 00:06Dickinson sucks.. And can’t understand why his name appears in capital letters in the front of the “celebrating Jon Lord” album.. I think Wakeman deserves that honor for all his works And his efforts for keep Jon’s memory alive.. Another error from the management..
October 2nd, 2014 at 01:09Larry@ 2- I agree totally, Dickinson just couldn’t resist the gutter language & at a gig of this magnitude & class, disrespectful & disappointing indeed! I suppose some people just cannot escape their neanderthal past in some ways! I have commented before in regards to Hughes & his over the top vocals, so no need for me to repeat myself again! I actually thought to myself when reading the ‘guest’ list of appearances for this concert well before the gig, ‘what are those two doing there’? They couldn’t even get the vocals correct, Dickinson should have been singing the Coverdale lines & leave Hughes to his ‘own’ parts. But Glenn (me, myself & I ) Hughes would not have a bar of that, I would imagine! Regarding Hughes at this concert, has anyone else wondered as to why he wasn’t on stage for the encore of Hush? Was he not welcome perhaps? I have always pondered that non appearance, but was always glad he wasn’t there, as he would have screamed & wailed & hollered all over that gem of a song anyway! That should be my anti Hughes rave for this month, over & out! Cheers.
October 2nd, 2014 at 06:28Why was the guitar mix muted? Unless this is only a problem that exists with the preview videos?
October 2nd, 2014 at 13:45Video has never been available for me to view since it was posted…?!
October 4th, 2014 at 17:35I’m probably going to regret getting involved with this, but a few facts: everything was done in the mix to make it as good as it could possibly be given the elements involved and the complexity of it, and the fact that much of the show was of necessity under-rehearsed from a technical point of view. (The 1999 RAH was easier because we were able to get in the previous day, and that was a much less complex concert.) Anyone who listens to a version of “Burn” with two guitars, four keyboardists and a symphony orchestra expecting it to sound like the original is going to be disappointed. For me, it’s one of the highlights of the show and I think Jon would have loved that orchestra arrangement. (Bruce’s exuberant language was very much of the moment and seems to me totally harmless.) Concerning No.8 above, GH and BD decided in rehearsal to swap the parts, because this better suited their vocal ranges which are actually very similar. So the truth is that Glenn agreed to swap the parts because it suited Bruce better, which I realise doesn’t suit your view of him. And another thing: Glenn didn’t come on for Hush simply because we all forgot to ask him. It was a huge operation and impossible to think of everything. (Hush was only rehearsed 45 minutes before curtain up with the orchestra already off stage.) The history of Deep Purple is so fraught with politics I sometimes think people are determined to find meaning where there is none.
October 5th, 2014 at 08:25Paul @ 11- thanks for the information regarding the concert. I wasn’t looking for anything ‘different’ in why Hughes didn’t appear on stage for the encore. I even thought he may have been too emotional to appear, so my ‘not welcome’ comment was not to be taken seriously. It may have come across that I was looking for something or trying to start something, I don’t dwell on little things like that, I wrote it deliberately as to appear that I do. I should have better things to do with my time, than to ‘appear’ as a journalist looking for a story. I wasn’t being serious regarding why both Dickinson & Hughes were invited to that concert. I know they both knew Jon Lord & had worked with him over the years.
October 5th, 2014 at 21:04I know we shouldn’t ‘expect’ anything & take it as it happens on the day, so my comments regarding the vocal sections on Burn are simply down to how I would prefer to hear it! But everyone has their favourite or necessary way of doing things. They are both very good vocalists at times, depending on my expectations of what I would like to hear. Cheers.
Thanks Paul,
That’s really kind of you to take the time to respond and straighten a few things out.
Personally, I think it all looks and sounds great, except for the previously mentioned lack of guitar in the mix of one of the most famous guitar songs “Burn” It sounds very odd to me especially when the riff is played solo throughout the song…
Thanks again.
Jeff
October 6th, 2014 at 11:30Nice of the Mann (@11) himself to clarify details of the show, thank you for taking the time! I find myself more and more keeping my comments on this site to myself as there are more than a few here who seem to take offence to ones opinions more often than not. My likes are MINE and for someone who thinks they know whats good for me..F*%# off! For instance, I like ALL of DP’s guitar players..dead or alive… but Ritchie will always be the best/favorite to me and if you like Steve better, good for you.
October 6th, 2014 at 16:12I would have loved to see Steve on guitar during Burn. Him, Paice, Glover and Airey along with GH???? Quite a Purple rendition for sure. Plus Gillan instead of Dickenson? Man, wouldn’t that have been something? History in the making for sure. But, what went down was quite awesome to say the least. The GH/Dickenson combo was pretty damn good. Yes, Bruce might have come across a little too ‘Homee from da Hood’ for my taste, but his singing was quite good and worked well with GH. Don Airey’s performance was spot on. There truly is no reason to complain about this rendition of BURN unless you are just so inclined to exact copying. GH did a fantastic job without overdoing his screeching. Not sure where Bruce picked up the ‘Brutha’ attitude though. Looks rather silly especially at his age and ‘whiteness’. His singing on the other hand was fantastic. I still haven’t purchased this DVD but will definitely do so after seeing these snipets.
Ch-BeerZ
October 6th, 2014 at 21:02The Bruce/Glenn-part of the show to me was a high- and lowlight at the same time. They both sang good in places but their attitude was below the belt to say the least. Self-staging is not what an evening like this is all about, on the contrary, it is an opportunity to celebrate someone great by stepping back.
October 7th, 2014 at 22:01@15 if Gillan sings the Dickinson’s part in this redemption of Burn, he falls, dead of exhaustion, on the stage.
October 8th, 2014 at 10:21Could you see how difficult is for him to sing nowadays?
Even “Above And Beyond” required a tremendous effort for him to reach the notes.
I cannot imagine a 2015 tour or a New album on this conditions. IMHO
Errol Arias @17,
My first question to you is…. Have you seen a Deep Purple concert lately?
I just saw Purple play Live in Biloxi on August 29th. Gillan sang really well throughout the 1 hour and 45 minute show. I’m pretty sure he could belt out what needed to be done at this show for a couple of tunes besides what he did with Purple. My point was that it would have been quite an awesome moment with the above line-up that I mentioned. If you are going to split hairs as to how perfect they would sound, you need to steer towards a more computerized band that can reproduce their same sound over and over again so that your limited ability of musical variance won’t be confused due to improvisation or flexibility from a creative standpoint. Gillan has found his low register again. About time too. Listen to ‘Place in the Line’ from ‘WDYTWA’. Don’t know why he doesn’t use that more. Works for so many songs and is perfect for relaxing yet stretching the vocal cords. Go low, then high. Go high then low. Really does flex the cords instead of over using a particular range. I was in a cover band for around 10 years and we did songs from all types of bands with all types of vocal ranges. I was the lead singer and learned how to go high and low pretty well. The more we played, the better I got. Staying in one particular range (your comfort zone) for too long, limits your overall range over time and tends to burn memory into your vocal cords. You would be surprised how far your voice can stretch over time when you exercise going low and high. That is what has given Gillan his new found overall quality performances over the past couple of years. He isn’t holding himself to the constant repetitive levels of high end whaling songs anymore. The band has finally found a balance of songs that kick ass and give the singer some variety of range so that his voice isn’t taxed to the point of being blown out. Hats off to them for that and it definitely makes the next album and tour something to look forward to. They sound better today than they did 10 years ago. Gillan is singing better today than he did 10 years ago. That is why they are so energized and ready to do another album. The formula is working and they are giving us what we want because of it. New albums and new tours. PURFECT!!!!
So, back to your point about Gillan’s inability to handle the Dickenson part of Burn…. as Dickenson did, Gillan would have done it his way and it would have been magic and historical, just as his performance was with Purple at the same show.
Ch-BeerZ
October 9th, 2014 at 01:55The big difference in the two vocalists is simple really! Dickinson has a powerful voice like Coverdale, so he has no problem nailing the vocal, maintaining the melody also. Hughes is a totally different singer, more high end, so he struggles in a way to nail it, he is almost shouting at times, & the melody drops off if you know what I mean! I don’t have any problem with the music at all, it sounds good. Dickinson singing the second verse proves what I am saying! Hughes singing his natural original parts of Burn, is good as usual & suits his vocal range & melody.
October 9th, 2014 at 06:36Not watching these clips for 6 months has maintained my stance on these minor issues! Really like the Above & Beyond clip, very well done, also didn’t mind Lazy in a way & I always enjoyed the Hush encore! Everyone up there enjoying themselves, well almost everyone! Cheers.
I love all the deep purple politics. who would ever follow a boring “we all friends band”. talking of politics thats one huge U TURN by McGregor@12
October 9th, 2014 at 13:35Anybody any idea as to why Sam Brown didn’t perform at this gig?
October 9th, 2014 at 22:07Unfortunately, Sam lost her singing voice in 2007. Otherwise, I am sure she would have done a stunning “Wait a while”.
She could have joined in on the ukulele though.
http://www.brain-damage.co.uk/other-related-interviews/pink-floyd-backing-vocalist-sam-brown-q-a.html
October 10th, 2014 at 05:11@ 20 – which U TURN is that????????? certain parts of my original comment were written deliberately to sensationalize. Here is an example, I have ‘always’ pondered Hughes non appearance’! Yeah ‘always’, thought of it once back in April, then again last week revisiting the live clips! But was ‘always’ glad he wasn’t there! Not really, he should have been up there with everyone else I thought, but he wasn’t, so I clicked into pretend journo mode & tried to create a sensation from nothing, but at the same time I did wonder why he wasn’t there, but there could be a number of reasons & Paul stated one! Same as my ‘what are those two doing there’? No one could take that seriously surely, but then again. Hughes wouldn’t have had time to ‘scream & wail & holler’ all over Hush, but his bass playing & support vocal would have fitted in no doubt! As I said, my anti Hughes rave for the month! Not really, just being silly! I still stand by my serious comments in regards to Dickinson’s gutter language & some of the vocals being not to my liking, see @ 19! Not a bad U Turn eh? Cheers.
October 10th, 2014 at 05:46It was a good evening without actually being great ! Bruce Dickinson was embarrassing ambling about the stage and couldn’t even sing in key, and Glenn Hughes screeching and wailing did little to impress either . Nothing from In Rock either from Purple which if celebrating Jon Lord you would have thought would surely feature ! Paul Weller put in the best performance . Tickets were very expensive too, I perhaps just wanted it to be better than it actually was … I wanted Ritchie to turn up also but I guess that was really was asking too much … Thanks Jon Lord though for everything
October 10th, 2014 at 20:04@ Tracy, 18:
I appreciate that you stick up for Ian and his performance. Nobody argues about him being an awesome singer or musician for that matter. This is out of question. But I think you overlook something that is very important: When you write your own songs you can move around and change your singing lines all you want as long as they still sound good. It will be authentic because the voice of a singer is unique. Thus it is a difficult task to sing somebody else’s songs and do them justice. Sometimes it works out because it feels comfortable and sometimes it doesn’t at all. Ian would have had a very hard time to perform “Burn” (if he considered doing it), not only because it requires a lot of strength and endurance but also it is a different style of singing. Not even Bruce came close to what David did in the 70ies. It is a very difficult song to sing and even if a singer is capable of hitting all the notes it won’t necessarily sound good. Could you imagine Glenn singing “Child In Time”?
October 12th, 2014 at 22:32Glenn has been oversinging and overplaying ever since he joined DP in 1973! That is just him and you have to take it with a pinch of salt, he just goes into overdrive when he hits a stage. I was there that night and his (and Mr Dickinson’s) rendition of Burn – going into Beavis & Butthead mode here – kicked serious butt, no two ways about it, it RAWKED! ; – ) And it was great that it did, otherwise the (lovely) evening might have been a bit too gentle and well-behaved.
Plus: Had Jon Lord been there to play with them, I’m sure he would have given a wry smile or two about the fact how Glenn is still Glenn and how he reenacts (even sans drugs) the California Jam on even the puniest stages (not that the RAH is a puny stage, but I have seen him oversing and overplay in the smallest of clubs too).
So don’t knock ole Glenn. He’s always been an overenthusiastic puppy who can barely contain himself, but that is part of his charm. And the man still has an awesome set of pipes where other singers of his generation have to (wisely) settle for lower registers, be it Halford, Gillan, McCafferty or Coverdale.
October 13th, 2014 at 15:41Tracy : ” If you are going to split hairs as to how perfect they would sound, you need to steer towards a more computerized band that can reproduce their same sound over and over again so that your limited ability of musical variance won’t be confused due to improvisation or flexibility from a creative standpoint”
Totally uncalled for, Tracy.
October 13th, 2014 at 17:33It was good of Paul Mann to put across his views concerning the night. However, I still can not understand that when mixing the tracks why he didn’t push up the volume of the guitar as this is so integral to ‘Burn’. The guitar was heard on the night so the recording should capture that, just as Steve Morse’s guitar could be heard and likewise so could Paul Weller’s (although the guitars playing behind Paul Weller are again low in the mix compared to the night itself).
October 14th, 2014 at 16:12Priest @27;
Since you read my entry @18 and decided to dissect it and respond in defense of Errol Arias @17, did you happen to read his entry and notice it was a response to my prior entry @ 15? Did you notice that my entry @18 was SPOT ON? If you are going to start playing referee again, you need to pay attention to THE WHOLE BIT of Dialogue. Yes, that snippet you pulled from my total remark looks offensive on its own or out of context, but as it was used and for what it was meant for…… PERFECT. Judging by the lack of response from Errol Arias, I’d say he figured it out.
Tommy H. @ 25;
I think you misinterpret my point. I wasn’t stating Gillan could sing the Coverdale parts like Coverdale. I don’t want him to. I was just stating that if he was to sing that part, it would have been quite cool to see and hear. His way. His style. Would it sound like the Burn we all know and love? NO! That would be the beauty of it for CHRIST SAKE. You can hear that anytime. Just push play. Just like the Dickenson version sounded different. He did a great job and it sounded like Dickenson. DIFFERENT. His Bro-ness is unnecessary but the song was sang and played really well.
Ch-BeerZ
October 15th, 2014 at 02:48I was finally able to watch this and I am impressed! Glenn sings like it’s Cal Jam all over again and his Bass sounds great! I especially like the tone during the key solos! I could have done without the MF ‘ers from Bruce to start it off but, it is a rock song and it can be put down to over exhuberence. Shame the guitar was mixed down but the arpeggiated section of the solo sounds just like Ritchie’s studio version so thats great! Nice to see Paice play a track we will NEVER hear at a DP show ever again. Good to see a sense of urgency in his playing which this song requires. Pretty much the same tempo as Hwy Star which we get at every show nowdays. Must get the box set!
October 15th, 2014 at 16:39I should just say that I didn’t mix the album, nor was I given mixes to listen to after the initial stages. If I had heard it while there was still time to alter anything, I would have agreed that the guitar is too low on “Burn”. But now, it will have to be what it is. Given the scale of this enterprise, it’s pretty amazing that there isn’t more to argue with about it. On my Facebook page the other day, I wrote something which I will also share here, in response to some the comments I’ve been reading.
Although it’s the classical fraternity that has traditionally – and often with some justification – been considered inflexible and culturally exclusive, there seem to be a lot of rock fans who regard, say, the original recording of “Burn” as something only to be touched with surgical gloves, inviolably stuck in 1974. This seems to me an irony that would not have been lost on Jon, and shows that there’s still work to do on both sides if the barriers are truly to come down.”
October 16th, 2014 at 09:52@ #29, Tracy:
No, no, I got you alright. What I was saying, is, that different often isn’t as good or better. Different could be really bad sometimes. This has nothing to do with stubbornness, it’s my valuation, knowing what kind of singer Ian is. You may have a different opinion about that, so be it ;-).
October 16th, 2014 at 13:15@ #31, Paul:
In my opinion Purple wrote quite a few songs that really benefit when played with an orchestra (especially Perfect Strangers). And then there’re songs which just need the crisp sound produced by the group and everthing else – no matter how good – is just too much. That’s because they live on their simplicity, rawness, space, breathing – whatever, you name it. Therefore I don’t see the point of adding an orchestra to a song like “Burn” in the first place – even if the arrangement was as good as the one played at the RAH. I felt it was just completely overblown. But I always found it to be much worse to play “Smoke On The Water” with orchestra – yes, you get that big fancy sound but the main idea of the song which is simplicity and rawness gets lost. The riff sounded best between 1972-73 because Jon had the Marshall amps; add Ritchie’s guitar and Roger’s bass – a brilliant and unique sound which has never been matched again (even by the guys themselves).
October 16th, 2014 at 22:32thanks Tommy – I guess it’s just a matter of taste. For example, we originally had an orchestration done on “Silas and Jerome” but we dropped it because it was felt to be unnecessary. Of course the orchestra wasn’t used on “Black Night” or “Lazy” for the same reason. I wouldn’t want anyone to think I’m partisan on the orchestra’s behalf – I love those original ‘raw’ recordings as much as anyone!
October 17th, 2014 at 09:57Tommy H @ 33 – I can relate to what you are saying, but this gig is a one off, ‘special’ concert, so I think the orchestra can go for it, big time! It isn’t a rock concert per se! I enjoy the difference & the added spice to the ‘rock’ songs by the orchestra! Purple, Yes & The Moody Blues work well with orchestras! This Jon Lord concert is a fine effort by all involved & a damn hard gig to pull off me thinks! I think Burn sounds fine musically, the vocals just needed ‘sorting’ in a small way as I have commented previously, but that is how it was on the night. Each to their own, we all have our likes & dislikes! Cheers.
October 17th, 2014 at 12:22@ #34, Paul:
I totally agree with you – if the musicianship reaches a certain level, every criticism is just about taste. I want you to know that everybody did a very fine job, especially you and the orchestra. Thanks a lot – Jon, who I’m sure somehow is still with us, has every reason to be proud!
Cheers
October 17th, 2014 at 20:39Sigh! You people wear me out with nonsense.
October 18th, 2014 at 23:15Be glad we still have the greatest band in the world to kick around! The
Ian didn’t sing because he didn’t want to!
December 7th, 2019 at 01:23