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Jon Lord

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Jon Lord was an English keyboardist and composer. He was born in 1941 in Leicester and had classical piano lessons from the age of five. Bach remained a fixed point of reference throughout his life, but as a teenager he also fell under the spell of American jazz and blues organists such as Jimmy Smith, who played a Hammond through a Leslie speaker. In London he played in clubs and sessions and in bands such as The Artwoods. In 1968 he founded Deep Purple together with Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Paice, Nick Simper and Rod Evans.

Music and breakthrough

In the first years of Deep Purple, Lord found his own sound. He ignored synthesizers. He ran his Hammond organ through Marshall amplifiers, so that it sounded as loud and aggressive as Blackmore's guitar. This gave a heavy, distorted organ sound that provided the band with a rhythmic foundation. According to Ian Gillan, Lord also devised the organ motif of Child in Time. He also continued to bring rock and classical music together. The album Concerto for Group and Orchestra, for band and symphony orchestra, gave Deep Purple their first chart entry in Britain in early 1970. Later came works of his own such as Gemini Suite (1971), Sarabande (1976) and the Durham Concerto (2007).

Influence

Lord also played in Whitesnake and in Paice Ashton Lord. He stayed with Deep Purple until 2002, and between 1968 and 1976 he and Paice were the only permanent members. His hard organ playing was essential to the band's heavy sound and helped shape early heavy metal. He died in 2012. In 2016 he was inducted, with Deep Purple, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Child in Time by Deep Purple. Notice the organ at the start and how, later in the song, it sounds just as loud and raw as Blackmore's guitar.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

See also

Categories: Artists