In 1974 Jon Lord surfaced on not one, not two but three albums. All  were world's apart from one another. Deep Purple's BURN was bluesy  hard rock, and marked the debut of the band's new line-up. WINDOWS was  a classical rock piece, recorded live in Germany with a full orchestra  and rock musicians. Making up the trio was FIRST OF THE BIG BANDS, a  laid back project which emerged from three years of sessions by Jon  Lord and old mate Tony Ashton.

FIRST OF THE BIG BANDS is now properly reissued for the first time on  CD in the UK.

The album was begun as far back as the autumn of 1971 at Apple  Studios. Ashton and Lord fancied trying a single, a song called We're  Gonna Make It. They had such fun that it was decided to plan a whole  album. Further sessions took place in 1972 and 1973, with Ashton and  Lord wanting to create the feel of a big band in the studio. Rather  than do overdubs, they had up to 15 musicians working together at any  one time, often with two drummers.

Despite both musicians having plenty of other commitments (Lord with  Deep Purple, Ashton with the final Ashton, Gardner & Dyke album and  then a hectic tour with Family), the album was largely finished by  1973 but delayed until 1974 to avoid confusing the market during the  line-up changes in Deep Purple.

Musically the album cleverly mixes elements of rock, swing and big  band, and is fascinating as a forerunner to the much admired Paice  Ashton Lord album which followed three years later, in that it uses  big brass sections and mixes both Hammond and piano from the two main  protagonists.

When the album finally emerged ("We wanted to call it 'Last Of The Big  Bands, but felt that was tempting fate!"), it was decided not to  credit any of the session musicians to avoid any possible contractural  problems. Despite this, we now know that it featured Roy Dyke, Terry  Cox, Gerry Conway on drums, with Caleb Quaye, Mick Grabham, Mick  Liber, Jim Sullivan on guitar. Also named are Peter Frampton, Ron  Wood, B.J. Cole, Howie Casey, Dave Caswell and Cozy Powell. Ian Paice  appears on one track.

For this reissue, the CD has been mastered from the original quarter  inch production tape. Bonus material has been sourced from the 2"  masters. A non-album track Sloeback has also been restored to the  album as well as a longer version of Downside Upside Down. Jon Lord is an increasingly respected writer, composer and musician.  While his reputation was built on the success of Deep Purple, for the  past decade his solo albums have been popping up on Radio 3 and  Classic FM, as he continues to work in both the rock and classical  arenas. He has a number of shows booked for this year, ranging from a  rerun of the famous Concerto For Group & Orchestra on one hand, to an  r'n'b showcase with his old mates at a blues festival in Germany. Sleeve notes are by the noted Deep Purple expert Simon Robinson, and  the package also includes the original album artwork restored. Initial  copies are in a limited edition digi-pak format.

[Photo from the only live show done to promote the gig, courtesy  Martin Cook]

The CD can be ordered from the dpas online store.

purple records catalogue