Deep Purple: Concerto For Group & Orchestra (1969)
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Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Prog Recommendations/Featured albums
Forum Description: Make or seek recommendations and discuss specific prog albums
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=123525
Printed Date: July 18 2025 at 11:55
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Topic: Deep Purple: Concerto For Group & Orchestra (1969)
Posted By: Mortte
Subject: Deep Purple: Concerto For Group & Orchestra (1969)
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 07:10
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I am at the moment listening this after some years pause. Although I donīt think this album is in my top50 all time albums, I have always liked this quite much! I have heard also Lordīs Gemini Suite & Windows, but didnīt like them as much as this. I like quite much Niceīs Five Bridges of the same year, but I think this is better. And really I think this is the most prog album of Purple! Also I think this is the last album that has something same as their interesting three first albums (feeling?). If I have understood right, this isnīt the highest rated album among the Purple-fans, really I donīt believe also classical music listeners will rate this high. Somehow I think this is also little bit forgotten these days, at least I think somebodies were thinking Metallica doing something first time with their boring S & M- project. What is your opinion about this album?
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Replies:
Posted By: Tom Ozric
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 07:23
| Very good effort of blending Rock with Orchestra. I have this on VHS, havent watched for decades, maybe its decayed by now....? Not enough of Gillan. Lords solo is awesome (as always). |
Posted By: ExittheLemming
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 07:39
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I prefer Five Bridges by the Nice but do enjoy sections of the Purple album. Kudos to conductor Malcolm Arnold for 'bullying' a committed performance out of the notoriously dismissive Royal Philharmonic Orchestra ------------- 
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Posted By: Easy Money
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 08:22
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I like the original recording where things are a bit rough and ragged and there is some antagonism between the rock and classical worlds. Later recordings that are more polished are not as appealing to me. These days, classical musicians are raised on rock and rock musicians go to high brow music schools.There is no longer a chance for the old cultural abrasion. ------------- Help the victims of the russian invasion: http://www.jazzmusicarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=28523&PID=130446&title=various-ways-you-can-help-ukraine#130446 |
Posted By: The Dark Elf
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 10:34
Gioachino Rossini made the perceptive comment, "Wagner has beautiful moments but bad quarters of an hour." I look at the Deep Purple album in much the same manner. Many of the orchestral passages are splendid (followed by inexplicable lengths of diddling around), and I really enjoy the sections where band and symphony interact; However, the extended leads by Blackmore are sloppy and are jarringly out of place. Strange as well that Ian Gillan was only allowed a couple minute vocal segment. Still, you have to admire Jon Lord's chutzpah, and as you said, Malcolm Arnold's influence was immeasurable in getting a cohesive and enthusiastic performance. ------------- ...a vigorous circular motion hitherto unknown to the people of this area, but destined to take the place of the mud shark in your mythology... |
ExittheLemming wrote:Posted By: Easy Money
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 12:02
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^ The Blackmore solo went much longer than it was supposed to, apparently Ritchie was angry because he thought the classical musicians were coping an attitude towards the rockers. ------------- Help the victims of the russian invasion: http://www.jazzmusicarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=28523&PID=130446&title=various-ways-you-can-help-ukraine#130446 |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 12:15
^ I'm watching the concert right now on my Jon Lord tribute thread. I noticed Deep Purple did get some funny looks from some members of the orchestra, which the cameras inevitably zoomed in on. 
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Posted By: Mortte
Date Posted: July 19 2020 at 21:57
| Thanx for the great posts here, glad to notice here is love for this album! Just watched there is 293 ratings in PA, so not the most listened album here as I already thought. |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: July 20 2020 at 00:44
Deep Purple's Concerto for Group & Orchestra in 1969 is a highly-rated four-star album for me, but the album that's without doubt a genuine five-star album is Jon Lord's Concerto for Group & Orchestra in 2012. 
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Posted By: ExittheLemming
Date Posted: July 20 2020 at 08:26
I would never dare to undermine your personal preferences Paul, but I think Easy Money makes a very perceptive point here i.e. in the context of the eventual happy marriage of Rawk and classical, there were several torrid extra marital affairs that scandalized the parents of the betrothed.
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: July 20 2020 at 08:54
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^ Yes, things have changed a lot since 1969 and we now have the happy marriage of Rock and Classical in the form of Symphonic Prog.
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Posted By: The Anders
Date Posted: July 20 2020 at 13:08
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Don't know entirely how to regard it to be honest. It's a daring idea of course, but not necessarily that well executed. Deep Purple for me is about In Rock, Fireball and Machine Head first and foremost. This is where they really hit something special. |
Posted By: dr prog
Date Posted: July 22 2020 at 16:51
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3 Pretty cool tunes. Purple are close to being a top 10 band of the late 60s to mid 70s period. Id pick them ahead of Yes, Genesis, Crimson and Floyd without a doubt from the 68-75 period ------------- All I like is prog related bands beginning late 60's/early 70's. Their music from 1968 - 83 has the composition and sound which will never be beaten. Perfect blend of jazz, classical, folk and rock. |
Posted By: Mortte
Date Posted: July 24 2020 at 23:51
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Posted By: moshkito
Date Posted: July 25 2020 at 01:49
Hi, I think it is a really good effort. Just find it sad that some folks insist that a bunch of rock folks can't do real music except the songs that fans seem to like too much! I've always wished for more of these by others as well, to find a way to stream line the number of folks trashing things, but the media helped kill anything that did not show the big sales, and the average DP fan, it seems, did not like the original album much and even the folks at the station in Santa Barbara, never EVER, toughed that album ... I wonder if they ever removed the cellophane! ------------- Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told! www.pedrosena.com |
Posted By: uduwudu
Date Posted: July 25 2020 at 04:16
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I've the DVD Audio and the film on DVD. Absolutely terrific album under culturally difficult circumstances. The Malcolm Arnold Symphony is a well performed slightly jazzy piece. The Purple rock numbers are also well done. Blackmore also jazz inflecting his Child solo. He improvises his Concerto solo. The Jon Lord commentary is quite droll. The camera is on Malcolm Arnold frantically trying to find the solo and it's end on the score. As good as this concerto is, the 1999 performance is sublime, 2 CD and DVD. The orchestra are into it, the band are just fantastic that is really what I think. This is the Purple that gets ignored by the heavy metal fans. As well as the Gemini Suite, Purple's own version. Great piece from Jon Lord but the story of the 1999 version is interesting. Lord had lost his original score. A Dutch fan transcribed the whole first movement from the video, watching the orchestra fingers. This story is in the book of the Concerto. Lord was so inspired he managed to reconstitute the whole thing and bring on one of the most sublime musical feasts in a long time and for a long time. Getting Ronnie Dio as a guest on the orchestral Smoke was inspired and the new orchestral versions of the then new ballads was and is outstanding. Wunderbar....
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