Deep Purple was one of the founders of what we now know as heavy metal and the English band had more than just an impact on the overarching musical nature of the style. During 1969 on September 14, the band released its Concerto for Group and Orchestra, which featured Purple playing a number of its own tracks—such as "Wring That Neck" and "Child in Time"—before performing an entire rock 'n' roll concerto composed by keyboardist Jon Lord, featuring original lyrics as well. All the more impressive was the incorporation of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in the performance.
It somewhat summarized what heavy metal was, not in music but in attitude. All of the costumes, all of the hair products, all of the huge guitar solos...go big or go home. Sometimes that meant playing with a whole dang orchestra, even if your lyrics about women and booze don't make sense with it.
Many a heavy metal or hard rock band has followed in Purple's footsteps. Check out a few examples below:
The Wall - Live in Berlin by Roger Waters (1990)
Waters, one of the key songwriters behind Pink Floyd, is not exactly a heavy metal performer. That said, the band's The Wall is as close as Floyd got to being heavy metal, and Lord knows metal mavens still appreciate "Another Brick in The Wall." He did play this '90 concert (with the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra) at a fairly metal location however: The no-man's land between East and West Berlin. Of course, the Berlin Wall had fallen a few months earlier so it was fair game at the time. Rumors of Waters taking his "The Wall" live show to the Korean DMZ are totally made up...by us...but we're just saying. It'd be pretty awesome.
S&M by Metallica (1999)
Metallica is about as heavy as it gets without entering realms where your dad won't listen to it anymore. However, if you take critic Tom Moon's word for it, the thrash kings also have a compositional style reminiscent of Richard Wagner. San Francisco Symphony conductor Michael Kamen had already worked with Waters and he reached out to the hometown band to see if they'd be interested. The project was a rousing success, giving fans new takes on classics such as "Master of Puppets" plus stunning new works like "No Leaf Clover."
Moment of Glory by Scorpions (2000)
Thrash was what most critics remember from the metal '80s but there's no denying that some of the otherwise vanilla hair metal scene also hailed heavily from the heavy metal genre. Few bands (perhaps Motley Crue) demonstrated this like Scorpions, known for "Rock You Like A Hurricane" (and it doesn't need to be known for anything else, thank-you-very-much). Scorpions recorded this in its homeland with the Berlin Philharmonic. Kamen was supposed to handle the arrangements...until he got a call from Metallica. Scorpions definitely win the "most metal" album cover however: A dinosaur wearing flashy jewelry. (Note: Scorpions also guest appeared with Waters for his aforementioned project)
KISS Symphony: Alive IV by KISS (2003)
Most of these performances can also be found on separate DVD releases that aren't necessary for your enjoyment of them. KISS Symphony is the exception but—mind-blowingly—otherwise constant profit-mongering bassist Gene Simmons didn't think to release this live show on DVD. Nonetheless, find the video. The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra doesn't just show up for a paycheck...some members go all out, wearing the band's iconic face paint while performing. Beautiful.
One With Everything: Styx and The Contemporary Youth Orchestra by Styx (2006)
Styx is normally the last band that we'd suggest checking out a symphonic performance of but the band is doing it for the kids on this album so we won't complain. This show, recorded in Cleveland with the Contemporary Youth Orchestra from the same city, features covers of The Beatles ("I Am The Walrus") but not "Come Sail Away." You know what...never mind. Skip it.
Dethklok Plays with The London Philharmonic by Dethklok (2006)
This album never actually reached shelves due to tragic circumstances but some bootleg video has gotten online. The backstory is that metal heads Dethklok were trying to catch tax breaks by performing a huge charity show with the London Philharmonic. They still managed to cheap out and buy the worst Soviet-made laser light machine ever, which resulted in the entire orchestra being slice in half. Watch the video below but this is definitely too gruesome for work.
