Jon Lord – Celebrating Jon Lord: The Composer and The Rock Legend.jpg)
Eagle Rock Entertainment
Rating: A
Eagle Rock Entertainment has released the Jon Lord Tribute concert filmed earlier this year at the Royal Albert Hall. It was a true celebration of the musical life of perhaps the most important man to ever sit down behind a keyboard of any kind in a rock and roll setting.
The evening was the brainchild of drummer Ian Paice’’s wife Jacky, who also puts on the yearly concert ‘The Sunflower Jam’ every year, an event that raises money for cancer awareness. There’s not a better way to celebrate the life of Jon Lord than to gather some of his closest friends, with his biggest fans and to raise money to help defeat the disease that took him away.
Reviewed here are two separate CDs, one titled Jon Lord: The Composer and a rock CD titled Jon Lord: The Rock Legend. Both were recorded as different moments of the show, and both can be purchased as a box set. The box set also includes a DVD and a Blu-ray of the performance as well .
The first CD, The Composer, focuses on Lord’’s classical career. The event features selections from his solo efforts and is conducted by Paul Mann. Everyone involved, band, orchestra and special guests give a spirited and emotional performance. They perform the complicated music with the same passion and reverence as the music’’s iconic composer. Rick Wakeman, perhaps the only man to rival Lord as the quintessential rock keyboard player of all time, gives his ‘all’ as well. Wakeman had never met Jon in person, but was a huge fan of his work.
The double disc Rock set, “The Rock Legend” will be of more interest to readers of Classic Rock Revisited. This is a trip down Jon Lord’s rock and roll career, going back to when he was in a band before Deep Purple. “”Take What I Want”” sung by Paul Weller shows the funky side of Lord. Fear not, however, as the rock side comes across loud and clear in the tunes “”Soldier of Fortune,”” ““Burn,” ““Lazy”,” ““When a Blind Man Cries,”” ““Perfect Strangers,”” ““Black Night”” and ““Hush.”” And just look at some of his famous friends that came along for the ride! They include Deep Purple, Bruce Dickinson, Glenn Hughes, Miller Anderson, Rick Wakeman, Micky Moody, Bernie Marsden, Neil Murray, Steve Balsamo, Phil Campbell, Jeremy Irons and more.
Most importantly, all proceeds go to The Sunflower Jam.
This is a wonderful way to remember the great Jon Lord, celebrate his contributions to many styles of music, and provide some assistance to those afflicted with cancer.
Buy this one today.
The Composer (first set – 1CD)
Fantasia from Sarabande
Durham Awakes from Durham Concerto
All Those Years Ago (with Steve Balsamo and Micky Moody and Anna Phoebe)
Pictured Within (with Miller Anderson)
Sarabande from Sarabande (with Rick Wakeman)
One From The Meadow (with Margo Buchanan)
Bourrée from Sarabande
Afterwards (with Jeremy Irons and Paul Mann)
The Rock Legend (second set – 2CD)
CD1
Things Get Better (feat. Paul Weller)
Take What I Want (feat. Paul Weller and Micky Moody)
Silas and Jerome (feat. Phil Campbell from The Temperance Movement, Ian Paice and Bernie Marsden)
I’m Gonna Stop Drinking (feat. Phil Campbell from The Temperance Movement, Ian Paice and Bernie Marsden)
Soldier of Fortune (feat. Steve Balsamo, Sandi Thom and Micky Moody)
You Keep On Moving (feat. Glenn Hughes, Bruce Dickinson, Ian Paice, Don Airey and Micky Moody)
Burn (feat. Glenn Hughes, Bruce Dickinson, Ian Paice, Don Airey and Rick Wakeman)
This Time Around (feat. Glenn Hughes)
CD2 Deep Purple celebrating Jon Lord
Uncommon Man
Above And Beyond
Lazy
When A Blind Man Cries
Perfect Strangers
Black Night
Hush (feat. Bruce Dickinson, Rick Wakeman, Phil Campbell, Bernie Marsden and Micky Moody)
By Jeb Wright
