Deep Purple’s Ian Gillan mourns the death of his wife
Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan is mourning his wife, Bron, who died recently aged 67.
Confirming the sad news, a post on Ian Gillan’s official Facebook page last night (27th November) featured a photograph of Ian and Bron on their wedding day in 1984.
A statement on the Bridport & Lyme Regis News website reveals that Bron “passed away peacefully on 19th November 2022, aged 67 years.”
It described her as “a dearly loved wife to Ian, mother to Grace, daughter to Sheila, sister to Julie and Jill, and a devoted grandma to Rowan.”
Ian and Bron lived together near Lyme Regis, Dorset and they also shared a home in Portugal.
The song ‘Keep it Warm’ on Black Sabbath’s only album with Ian Gillan, 1983’s ‘Born Again’, was dedicated to his then girlfriend Bron.
Eight years later in 1991, Ian penned the solo song ‘Don’t Hold Me Back’ after Bron underwent a heart operation.
Commenting on the ‘Toolbox’ track, Ian said in 2015: “It was about my wife and her heart operation, you know?
“She was in hospital at the time, and ‘we’re breaking into your open heart.’ It’s a pure love song, and I couldn’t have done that on a Deep Purple record at that time. I don’t think I’d have been able to impose my personal passion so much into a Deep Purple song.”
All of us at Planet Rock send our deepest condolences to Ian and his family.
Figures from the rock world we’ve sadly lost in 2022
Michael Lang
Michael Lang, the organiser and co-creator of Woodstock, died on 8th January 2022 aged 77. Lang passed away at Sloan Kettering hospital in New York City following a battle with a rare form of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Lang co-founded and organised Woodstock Music and Art Fair in Bethel, New York from 15th to 18th August 1969 – an event that became firmly entrenched into rock n’ roll folklore and boasted performances from The Who, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Joan Baez, Sly and the Family Stone, The Band and Jimi Hendrix to name but a few. Lang went on to organise the 25th anniversary event in 1994 and the ill-fated 30th anniversary celebration, Woodstock ’99. He also owned and ran the record label Just Sunshine Records, founded the Michael Lang Organization (MLO), and he managed and produced a diverse array of artists including Billy Joel, Joe Cocker and Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Burke Shelley
Budgie singer, bassist and songwriter Burke Shelley died aged 71 on 10th January 2022. He passed away at Heath Hospital in his hometown of Cardiff having suffered ill health for several years – he was battling Stickler syndrome and suffered an aortic aneurism on two occasions. Founded in the late 1960s, by 1971 with the release of their eponymous debut album, Budgie became one of the torchbearers of the hard rock and heavy metal scene and they influenced countless bands including Metallica who have released covers of ‘Crash Course in Brain Surgery’ and ‘Breadfan.’ Iron Maiden also covered ‘I Can’t See My Feelings’ and Van Halen performed ‘In For The Kill!’ during their live shows in their embryonic days. Burke Shelley was the longest serving member of Budgie and stayed with the band until their split in 1988, and for both their reunions between 1995 and 1996 and 1999 to 2010. He appeared on all 11 of their studio albums.
