Review of Royal Albert Hall Concert 25:9:99
So, there I was, struck down with flu just in time for the big day. Dragging my aching body, running nose and equally unwell fiance down to the Albert Hall was an unpleasant task, but one I knew would be worthwhile.
After being shown to our seats by a very friendly member of the Albert Hall staff we found ourselves in the arena, eight rows back, easy spitting distance of the stage if it were a Pistols concert. Some people obviously thought it was a Pistols concert but we'll come to that later.
So we sat and waited for about 20 minutes for the first act. This turned out to be the orchestra itself, who played a couple of numbers I didn't recognise (ah, what a philistine I must be!) but they were pleasant enough tunes and a good way of warming the orchestra up.
Then the man himself arrived! Jon Lord came on stage and played two numbers from his album "Pictured Within", the first was the title track and the second I didn't recognise (sorry I haven't bought the album yet). I found them a little too bland (the odd interesting chord progression though) but my fiance liked them.
The next guest came as a complete surprise to me; it was Ronnie Jame Dio!
The crowd really turned on to this and he got a very warm reception. The first song he sang was one one of his solo songs (I think! I'm not very up on Dio's material after he left Rainbow). The second song really rocked and fortunately even I recognised this one, Butterfly Ball.
Next up was Ian Gillan, dressed in a groovy little gold jacket. He sang one of his solo songs, then a blues number called "That's Why God's Signing the Blues". These were both sung very well and Gillan was obviously enjoying himself. The crowd really got behind him too and the overall atmosphere of the concert was friendly and good natured.
After Gillan came Steve Morse and his band. They played a couple of their own numbers, which I unfortunately don't know. The first number was very technical and from a guitarists point of view very interesting, but I think it might have been a little inaccessable to those not into actually playing guitar. The second number was much more rocky and had some nice violin work from a guest violinist.
To round off the first half Ian Paice was introduced with his "Impromptu Jazz Quartet". This consisted of Jon Lord on the organ, Roger Glover on bass and a brass backing band. They played a song which I thought I would never get to hear them play live, "Wring that Neck"! They played in such a energetic and at the same time subtle way it was as close to seeing them in their late sixties/early seventies glory as I've ever seen.
The second half began with the concerto itself. The first movement sounded incredible. From the record of the original concert I would say it was played far better by both the orchestra and the group than the original performance. Some minor changes had been made to the arrangement I think and these seemed to make the piece flow much better than before.
In the pause before the second half came the low point of the whole evening. Some braindead morons started shouting things along the lines of "Play F*****g Highway Star" and "F*****g rock and roll". They kept this up to such a degree that the second movement couldn't start properly. It may have surprised these people to know that we hadn't paid £25 to listening to their inane yells. As these people obviously have no talent this is the only way they could secure themselves a place in history. However the place they have secured is being know as "Those twats at that Deep Purple concert". I find it hard to believe these people paid to be present at something they didn't want to listen to and also that they could be so selfish as to spoil the only chance we're likely to get to see such a performance.
Jon Lord appealed for quiet, an appeal which was only partially heeded. He was obviously upset by the behaviour of these people; I just hope he realises it was only half a dozen people, at most, out of the whole of the crowd at the Albert Hall. Almost all the people there were true Deep Purple fans and were there to listening to their music. When Jon asked for the trouble makers to be quiet he was greeted by loud applause from the audience.
The second movent finally began. Gillan sang superbly and the overall quality was maintained despite the earlier disturbance. I saw some of the culprits being lead out by Albert Hall staff during this movement (which was quite satisfying).
This movement and the third movement are my favourites and it is difficult for me to pick one over the other. The third movement is a perfect ending though, energetic, leaving you wanting more. That was exactly how I, and I'm sure, the rest of the audience felt when the final notes died away. Certainly if the couple on my right were anything to go by then the audience were dying to hear more.
Deep Purple then went on to play some of their other songs. They started with Ted the Mechanic followed with Watching the Sky and Sometime I feel Like Screaming. Then, with an orchestral introduction (yes really!) they played one of my favourites, Pictures of Home!
The evening closed with all special guests on stage for Smoke on the Water. It was a great end for the evening, and it turned out to really be the end. The crowd clapped and chanted for a good ten, twenty minutes but Deep Purple would not re-appear. Eventually Ian Gillan came back on stage to confirm that that was definately it. He said jokingly that Jon was in the toilet throwing up with nerves.
I only hope that one of the reasons for the absence of encores was not the behaviour of that small minority earlier on in the performance.
So, in summary, a great experience marred by a few stupid people. I hope that Purple play again in London, and I want to be there!
[ reviews | the highway star ]