Jon
Lord,
British
rocker,
composer,
former
keyboardist
for
the
band
'Deep
Purple',
died
on
Monday,
July
16
at
the
London
Clinic.
He
was
71
years
old.
According
to
a
statement
released
on
Lord's
official
website,
the
England-born
musician
and
composer
suffered
a
severe
pulmonary
embolism
in
London
on
Monday
and
died
after
a
long
drawn
battle
with
pancreatic
cancer.
The
statement
also
said
that
Jon
Lord
died
"surrounded
by
his
loving
family".
Jon
Lord,
who
co-wrote
few
of
Deep
Purple's
all
time
popular
tunes,
including
'Smoke
on
the
Water',
went
on
to
have
a
very
successful
career
after
he
split
from
the
band
in
the
year
2002.
Jon
Lord
was
born
in
Leicester
on
9
June
1941
to
his
parents
Miriam
(1912-1995,
née
Hudson)
and
Reg.
He
began
studying
classical
piano
since
the
age
of
five,
and
those
influences
are
a
recurring
trademark
in
his
work.
The
music
composer
is
survived
by
his
two
daughters
(Amy
with
second
wife
Vickie
and
Sara
with
his
first
wife
Judith
Feldman).