It's always been said that Jon Lord, the long-time Deep Purple keyboardist, always wanted a studio recording of his famed Concerto For Group and Orchestra. I guess that he only recently made this an outspoken wish as he did get to record Concerto For Group and Orchestra and out it out on CD - but it was, sadly the last record he ever made.

On July 16, 2012, Jon Lord passed away in London at 71 years old.

Bringing together some wonderful friends and musicians for the project, he culled everyone together at the Abbey Road Studios in England. And together with such names as Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson, Joe Bonamassa and Steve Morse, they set to work - together with his trusted partner, director Paul Mann - on the 2012 version of this legendary concert.

Now out on CD, it is simply breathtaking to behold. Indeed, in an overall kind of manner, this is a very good, very tight rendition of the Concerto. The overall sound is good and none more so than in the incredible sweep of the First Movement. With a fantastic sound it has to be said that Lord's version is quite close to the original, though the Solo spots have obviously been greatly modified.