Deep Purple
In concert with
The London Symphony Orchestra
Featuring the 30th anniversary performance of
The Concerto For Group And Orchestra by Jon Lord
Conducted by
Paul Mann
The Royal Albert Hall, London
25th & 26th September 1999
How do I describe one of my best weekends ever? Well, this is a try from
my side and I hope you will enjoy it. The weekend
started with me and my friend Olle, flying to London (from Sweden) on the afternoon of the
25th. After arriving in London,
we went straight to our hotel were I met Rasmus, Mikael and Nigel. After "checking
in" Olle and I went to
Royal Albert Hall were we arrived around 7pm. There I met Hein, Kevin, Stephen, Svante and
Tapio.
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Olle and I went into the arena which was amazing on it's own. This was the very first time I was inside of Royal Albert Hall. We went to our seats which turned out to be very good. Around 7.30pm The London Symphony Orchestra came in to the arena and started with Four Scottish Dances, Op.59 conducted by Paul Mann. |
What a feeling, to just sit there in Royal Albert Hall and listen to The London Symphony Orchestra. The atmosphere was just great. Then it was time for Jon Lord to enter the hall. He got a huge standing ovation. In came also Miller Anderson to sing the beautiful title song from Jon Lord's latest release, Pictures Within. . |
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His album is one of the most beautiful pieces I ever heard and listen to it live here in Royal Albert Hall with The London Symphony Orchestra can't be described in words. Next up was also a song from Pictured Within. Wait A While with Sam Brown on vocal. Another beautiful piece. |
| Then came Roger Glover, Steve Morse and Ian Paice together with Ronnie James Dio in to the hall. I think everybody in the hall was standing up to give them a huge ovation. It was time for 2 solo pieces from Roger Glover's Butterfly Ball. |
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First out was Sitting In A Dream which really show what a great singer Ronnie is. Since I first heard this song, in early 80's I have wanted to hear him sing this song live. I never thought it would happen, but this evening, it came true. It was like sitting in a dream. |
Next song was Love Is All which Ronnie sang as well, like he do on the Butterfly Ball album. I was amazed. What a start of the evening. The concert continue with Ian Gillan entering the hall together with Steve Morris on guitar. They did a swinging version of Via Miami from Gillan & Glover's album Accidently On Purpose. |
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The second song Ian Gillan did this evening was That's Why God Is Singing The Blues. A song which is written by Dave Corbett and was released on Ian Gillan's latest solo album, Dreamcatcher. |
Ian Gillan left the stage and in came Dave LaRue on bass and Van Romaine on drums, both from Steve Morse Band. They were joined by Graham Preskett on violin. Together they did two excellent numbers, Night Meets Light and Take It Off The Top. The band was very tight and once again, Steve Morse shows why he is one of the best guitarist ever. |
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Steve Morse Band left the stage and it was time for Ian Paice to do a jazzy version of Wring That Neck featuring The Kick Horns. What a great drummer he is, they should have done a much longer version. |
After Wring That Neck it was time for the band and the orchestra to take a break. I went out of the hall and talked to some friends. I met Gary, his wife, Margaret and Matz. After a while Deep Purple and London Symphony Orchestra came back to perform Concerto For Group And Orchestra. |
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What a feeling, to hear Concerto live, after 30 year. It was even better then the original. Hearing Ian sing was truly great. After Concerto it was time for some Deep Purple songs with London Symphony Orchestra. They played Ted The Mechanic, Watching The Sky, Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming and Pictures Of Home. The London Symphony Orchestra gave the songs a new dimension. |
| Now the end was close and everybody who have been playing went to the stage. Everybody in the hall was standing up. It was time for the finale of the evening, Smoke On The Water. They could gone on forever. Everybody in Royal Albert Hall was standing up and singing. What a nice end of one unforgettable evening. |
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After the concert I went outside there I met Angie, Birgitte, Daniel,
Doug, Glenn, Jim, Julie, Karin, Leif, Line, Marianne, Mash, Nick, Pär,
Rich, Stathis, Tero and Wolf. So many people in the same time. Later on a few of us went
to a bar for a few beers before it was time for
the bed. The next day, after some breakfast it was time for the Deep Purple Convention at
The Imperial College, next to Royal Albert Hall.
It was very nice there, it was possible to buy a lot of rare Deep Purple stuff (magazine,
CD's, Lp's etc). It was also possible to
explore Internet (different Deep Purple and related site's) and watch some very
interesting Deep Purple videos on a big screen.
DPAS Deep Purple Convention
I also met Bruce, David, Dennis, Drew, Michael, Pierre and Simon there.
Later in the afternoon, Ian Gillan came to the convention,
when I was away on dinner. But we bump in to each other when I was on the way back to the
convention. After the convention it
was time to go to Royal Albert Hall for another magical evening. Outside Royal Albert Hall
I met Brendan and I also met Ian Paice
and Roger Glover when they was on the way in. 7.30pm I was siting on the third row from
the stage. The atmosphere was incredible.
The concert was even better than the night before and this show was also recorded for a
Video and DVD release in January 2000.
It will also be released on CD. The show was otherwise exactly the same as the day before.
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After the show me and some friends ending this great weekend on a bar,
before I had to catch the early morning flight at 7.15am.
I would like to thank Deep Purple and everybody who was involved in this event. It was an
amazing event which I will never forget.
I would also like to thank all nice people I met during this weekend, the people I have
mention above and everybody else I met but
forgot the name on.
Take care and see ya soon
Benny Holmstrom
