Paice Ashton Lord

Paice Ashton Lord was a British rhythm and blues, funk-soul, rock band founded in 1977, after the break-up of the British band Deep Purple in 1976. Ian Paice and Jon Lord, Deep Purple's drummer and keyboardist, joined Tony Ashton, a British keyboardist and singer, for this project; the band was completed with Bernie Marsden on guitar and Paul Martinez on bass.

Career

Lord had joined Ashton previously to record the album First of the Big Bands in 1974. There was a BBC Radio Live in Concert recording of this event that year. Ashton also collaborated on Lord's Gemini Suite project in 1971, in which he sang lead vocals on one song. He took part in more of Lord's solo works and also in some of Deep Purple bassist Roger Glover's solo projects.

The band released their first album Malice in Wonderland in 1977. Despite some critical appreciation, the album was not a great success. A second album was planned but never released.

"Lifespan" is a video made of the band recording the album in the studio. In the video the band members explain the inspirations behind and meanings of some of the songs. A live DVD was released in 2006.

Malice in Wonderland was re-released on CD in 2001 by Purple Records, with an additional thirty minutes of songs intended for the unreleased second album.

After Ashton broke his leg falling off a stage, the group was wound up. Lord, Marsden and later Paice enlisted in David Coverdale's Whitesnake. Martinez joined Stan Webb's Chicken Shack for a short time, before joining John Otway for one album, and going on to play with Robert Plant. Later on, Paice played in Gary Moore's band before he and Lord joined the re-formed Deep Purple in 1984, where Paice remains to this day. Ashton died of cancer on 28 May 2001, as did Lord on 16 July 2012.

Discography

• 1977 Malice in Wonderland

Reissue 1995 (Repertoire Records), incl. three previously unreleased live tracks

Reissue 2001 (Purple Records), incl. eight previously unreleased studio recordings

• 1992 BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert / Live 1977

Recorded live on 10 March 1977 at the Golders Green Hippodrome, London, one song missing

Reissue 2012 (Hummingbird), remastered edition released as Live 1977, including previously missing song

• 2007 Paice Ashton Lord Live (DVD)

Recorded live on 10 March 1977 at the Golders Green Hippodrome, London, full recording

Various

• 2009 Endangered Species (2CD+DCD)

Tony Ashton and friends, featuring Jon Lord, Ian Paice and Bernie Marsden, recorded live at Abbey Road 2000. The album includes four songs by Paice Ashton Lord