Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Originally formed as ...

Jon Lord John Douglas Lord (9 June 194116 July 2012) was an English orchestral and rock composer, pianist, and Hammond organ player known for his pioneering work in fusing rock with classical or baroque forms, especially with the British rock band Deep ...

Gary Moore Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz fus ...

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own entit ...

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

Wishbone Ash Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Their popular albums included ''Wishbone Ash'' (1970), ''Pilgrimage'' (1971), '' Argus'' (1972), ''Wishbone Four'' (1973), ''There's the Rub'' (1974), and '' ...

Colosseum II Colosseum II was a British progressive jazz-rock band formed in 1975 by former Colosseum drummer and bandleader Jon Hiseman, which featured guitarist Gary Moore. History Following the demise of his previous band, Tempest, Hiseman announced his ...

Michael Schenker Michael Schenker (born 10 January 1955) is a German guitarist. He played in the rock band UFO and leads the Michael Schenker Group. He was an early member of the hard rock band Scorpions, a band co-founded by his elder brother Rudolf Schenker. ...

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

Brian May Brian Harold May (born 19 July 1947) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and astrophysicist, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. May was a co-founder of Queen with lead singer Fredd ...

Living Loud Living Loud was a supergroup who included bass player and songwriter Bob Daisley, Uriah Heep drummer Lee Kerslake, guitarist Steve Morse of Deep Purple and Cold Chisel singer Jimmy Barnes. Deep Purple keyboards player Don Airey made a guest a ...

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musicals, ...

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...

Royal Northern College of Music The Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) is a conservatoire located in Manchester, England. It is one of four conservatoires associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music. In addition to being a centre of music education ...

Ryszard Bakst Ryszard Bakst (4 April 1926 – 25 March 1999) was a Polish pianist and distinguished piano teacher. Background Bakst was a descendant of the Russian artist Léon Bakst. His teachers were initially his mother and pianist Józef Turczyńsk ...

Cozy Powell Cozy Powell (born Colin Trevor Flooks; 29 December 1947 – 5 April 1998) was an English rock drummer who made his name with major rock bands and artists such as The Jeff Beck Group, Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Gary Moore, Robert Plant, ...

Jon Hiseman Philip John Albert "Jon" Hiseman (21 June 1944 – 12 June 2018) was an English drummer, recording engineer, record producer, and music publisher. He played with the Graham Bond Organisation, with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and later for ...

Colosseum II Colosseum II was a British progressive jazz-rock band formed in 1975 by former Colosseum drummer and bandleader Jon Hiseman, which featured guitarist Gary Moore. History Following the demise of his previous band, Tempest, Hiseman announced his ...

Gary Moore Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz fus ...

Mike Starrs Michael Starrs (born 10 November 1947 in EdinburghRockdetector.com
) is Scottish

John Mole. They made three albums and also formed the core band for

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musicals, ...

's album ''

Variations Variation or Variations may refer to: Science and mathematics * Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon * Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individuals ...

'', based on variations on a theme by Paganini. Don worked on several albums with solo artists and was a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

on the 1978

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

album ''

Never Say Die! ''Never Say Die!'' is the eighth studio album by English rock band Black Sabbath, released on 29 September 1978. It was the last studio album with the band's original lineup and the last studio album to feature original vocalist Ozzy Osbourne u ...

'' Soon after, he joined guitarist

Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English guitarist and songwriter. He was a founding member of Deep Purple in 1968, playing jam-style hard rock music that mixed guitar riffs and organ sounds. He is prolific in creating guitar ...

's band,

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

, and featured on Gary Moore's solo debut '' Back on the Streets''. With Rainbow he contributed to two hit albums, '' Down to Earth'' and ''

Difficult to Cure ''Difficult to Cure'' is the fifth studio album by the British hard rock band Rainbow, released in 1981. The album marked the further commercialization of the band's sound, with Ritchie Blackmore once describing at the time his appreciation of t ...

''.

1980s work

After leaving Rainbow in 1981, Airey joined with Ozzy Osbourne for a three-year stint where he helped with the albums ''

Bark at the Moon ''Bark at the Moon'' is the third solo studio album by British heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, originally released in December 1983. The album marks Ozzy's change to a synth infused pop-metal sound, with both its "sonic production, and in ...

'' and ''

Speak of the Devil "Speak of the devil" is the short form of the English-language idiom "Speak of the devil and he doth appear" (or its alternative form "speak of the devil and he shall appear"). The form "talk of the devil" is also in use in England. It is used ...

''. He also played on the Diary of a Madman Tour from 1981 to 1982 and appears on ''

Blizzard of Ozz ''Blizzard of Ozz'' is the debut solo studio album by English singer Ozzy Osbourne, released on 12 September 1980 in the UK and on 27 March 1981 in the US. The album was Osbourne's first release following his firing from Black Sabbath in 1979. ...

'' and was also the only witness to

Randy Rhoads Randall William Rhoads (December 6, 1956 – March 19, 1982) was an American guitarist. He was the co-founder and original guitarist of the heavy metal band Quiet Riot, and the guitarist and co-songwriter for Ozzy Osbourne's first two solo alb ...

's death. Airey joined Jethro Tull in 1987 for their tour in support of ''

Crest of a Knave ''Crest of a Knave'' is the sixteenth studio album by British rock band Jethro Tull, released in 1987. The album was recorded after a three-year hiatus caused by a throat infection of vocalist Ian Anderson, resulting in his changed singing styl ...

''. The same year also saw the release of

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own entit ...

's multi-platinum ''

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own entit ...

'', on which Airey played keyboards. Soon after he quit the band to record the solo album ''K2 – Tales of Triumph and Tragedy''. In it he plays with Gary Moore and Keith Airey – guitars, Cozy Powell – drums,

Laurence Cottle Laurence Cottle (born 16 December 1961) is a Welsh bass guitarist and composer. Career His solo recordings have been mostly in jazz and jazz fusion. He was a member of the fusion quartet The Fents and appeared on their second album, ''The Ot ...

– bass, Chris (Hamlet) Thompson, Colin Blunstone,

Mel Galley Melville John Galley (8 March 1948 – 1 July 2008) was an English guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for his work with Whitesnake, Trapeze, Finders Keepers and Phenomena. Galley was born in Cannock, Staffordshire, England. While a ...

, and Genki Hitomi – vocals.

1990s onwards

In 1990, Airey recorded keyboard parts for several songs on

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

's album ''

Painkiller An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It i ...

''. However, because Judas Priest wanted the album to have a heavier sound than their previous work, only one song on ''Painkiller'', "

A Touch of Evil "A Touch of Evil" is a song by the English heavy metal band Judas Priest, from their 1990 album ''Painkiller''. The record was released as the second single from the album via Columbia Records label. Overview It is the only song on the alb ...

", prominently features Airey. In a 2020 interview, Airey revealed that he also played most of the album's bass parts on a

Minimoog The Minimoog is an analog synthesizer first manufactured by Moog Music between 1970 and 1981. Designed as a more affordable, portable version of the modular Moog synthesizer, it was the first synthesizer sold in retail stores. It was first popul ...

, as Judas Priest bassist

Ian Hill Ian Frank Hill (born 20 January 1951) is an English musician, best known as the bassist and the sole continuous member for the heavy metal band Judas Priest. Biography Hill learned how to play the double bass from his father, a bass player ...

was unable to participate in recording sessions due to illness. In 1997 he arranged and played on "

Love Shine a Light "Love Shine a Light" is a song by British rock band Katrina and the Waves. It represented the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1997. It was released as a single on 28 April 1997 and was later included on the band's ninth studio a ...

" by Katrina and the Waves, conducting the accompanying orchestra at the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

. The song won the contest. In 1999 he joined Manchester-based melodic hard rock band Ten where he played keyboards on the album ''

Babylon ''Bābili(m)'' * sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 * arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel'' * syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel'' * grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn'' * he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel'' * peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru'' * elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...

'', which was released in 2000. He also toured with the band in support of the new album. Airey played keyboards on the song "Darkness Be My Friend" by

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

vocalist

Bruce Dickinson Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958) is an English singer who has been the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden from 1981 to 1993 and 1999–present. He is known for his wide-ranging operatic vocal style and energetic stage ...

, released on the 2002 reissue of Dickinson's debut solo album ''

Tattooed Millionaire ''Tattooed Millionaire'' is the first solo album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1990. The album project began when Dickinson was asked to record a song for '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child'', and so wrote " ...

''. Airey also played keyboards on

At Vance At Vance is a neoclassical/power metal band formed in Germany. They were formed by vocalist Oliver Hartmann (ex-Centers) and guitarist Olaf Lenk (ex-Velvet Viper) in 1998. Biography With the combined credentials of vocalist Oliver Hartmann a ...

's mastermind Olaf Lenk's first solo album ''Sunset Cruise''. In 2006 Airey featured on

Gary Moore Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz fus ...

's release '' Old New Ballads Blues'' contributing to all tracks. In 2008 Airey released his second solo album, ''A Light in the Sky'' and recently it has been announced that another solo album from Airey is set to premiere in 2011. In early 2014 Airey joined hard rock band Hollywood Monsters where he played keyboards (Hammond B3 organ) on the track "Move On" on the album "Big Trouble" which was released in 2014 on Mausoleum Records. The album features Steph Honde on vocals and guitars,

Vinny Appice Vincent Samson Appice (born September 13, 1957) is an American rock drummer best known for his work with the bands Dio, Black Sabbath, and Heaven & Hell. Of Italian descent, he is the younger brother of drummer Carmine Appice. Career Appice ...

on drums,

Tim Bogert John Voorhis "Tim" Bogert III (August 27, 1944 – January 13, 2021) was an American multi-instrumentalist, musician. He graduated in 1963 from Ridgefield Memorial High School in his hometown of Ridgefield, New Jersey. As a bass guitarist an ...

on bass and

Paul Di'Anno Paul Andrews (born 17 May 1958), better known by his stage name Paul Di'Anno, is a British/Brazilian heavy metal singer who was the lead vocalist for Iron Maiden from 1978 to 1981. In his post-Maiden career, Di'Anno has issued numerous albu ...

on lead vocals on the bonus track. On 18 January 2017, Airey was inducted into the Hall of Heavy Metal History.

Deep Purple

Airey joined

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Originally formed as ...

in 2001 to fill in for an injured

Jon Lord John Douglas Lord (9 June 194116 July 2012) was an English orchestral and rock composer, pianist, and Hammond organ player known for his pioneering work in fusing rock with classical or baroque forms, especially with the British rock band Deep ...

, who subsequently retired from the band. Airey joined the band as a full-time keyboardist in March 2002. He has recorded six studio albums with the band, ''

Bananas A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...

,'' ''

Rapture of the Deep ''Rapture of the Deep'' is the 18th studio album by English hard rock band Deep Purple, released in October 2005. It is the fourth studio album from Deep Purple since Steve Morse joined the band in 1994 and the second to feature veteran keyboar ...

,'' ''

Now What?! ''Now What?!'' is the 19th studio album by English rock band Deep Purple. It was released on 26 April 2013 and produced by Bob Ezrin. A dedicated official web site was also created by the band to post updates about the album. It was the band's ...

'', ''

Infinite Infinite may refer to: Mathematics * Infinite set, a set that is not a finite set *Infinity, an abstract concept describing something without any limit Music *Infinite (group), a South Korean boy band *''Infinite'' (EP), debut EP of American m ...

'', ''

Whoosh! ''Whoosh!'' is the twenty-first studio album by English rock band Deep Purple, released on 7 August 2020. Although he appeared on their next album '' Turning to Crime'', this is the last studio album of original material to feature longtime gu ...

'' and ''

Turning to Crime ''Turning to Crime'' is the twenty-second studio album by British rock band Deep Purple, released on 26 November 2021. It is composed entirely of covers, and is the last Deep Purple album to feature guitarist Steve Morse before he left the band ...

''. Interviewed by Jeb Wright, for Classic Rock Revisited, about the album ''Now What?!'', he said "Well, it's Deep Purple and there is a Hammond there. There is only one way to go, really. Over the years, I have really worked on my sound, it didn't just happen overnight. The first two, or three, years I was with the band, I was using Jon's C3 and it was pretty knackered. I had it refurbished. It's been put in mothballs now... I much prefer Hammond A-100's, that's my choice."

Instruments and gear

Airey has employed many instruments and effect processors to aid him in the creation of his music and is well known for the use of his Hammond A100. In an interview with Keyboard Magazine Don Airey explained that he preferred the Hammond A-100 over other organs (including the Hammond B-3) for their "purer tone" in live settings. He also uses Leslie 122 speakers and a

Hughes and Kettner Hughes & Kettner is a German manufacturer of instrument amplifiers, cabinets and effects boxes. History The company was founded in Neunkirchen in 1984 by two brothers, Hans and Lothar Stamer, and moved to St. Wendel three years later. It is c ...

Puretone amplifier. For piano sounds, Airey uses a Kurzweil PC3K8 and also uses a MOOG Voyager. He also uses several rack and pedal based units such as a Roland Fantom. Airey is also an endorsing artist for several effects companies including Neunaber Audio and

TC Electronic TC Electronic (sometimes stylized as t.c. electronic) is a Danish audio equipment company that designs and imports guitar effects, bass amplification, computer audio interfaces, audio plug-in software, live sound equalisers, studio and post-pr ...

and currently uses a Neunaber Seraphim Shimmer as well as a TC Hall of Fame Reverb and a TC Flashback Delay.

Personal life

Airey lives with his wife, Doris, and their three children in South West

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

. In 1992, Airey's son suffered from a serious illness, causing him to slow down his musical activity until 1995. Airey is an ardent

Sunderland A.F.C. Sunderland Association Football Club (, ) is an English professional football club based in the city of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear. Formed in 1879, Sunderland play in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club has won six t ...

fan. He has a brother,

Keith Airey Keith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Keith (given name), includes a list of people and fictional characters * Keith (surname) * Keith (singer), American singer James Keefer (born 1949) * Baron Keith, a line of Scottish barons ...

, who played guitar for Nik Kershaw during the mid 1980s and the reformed version of

The Zombies The Zombies are an English rock band formed in the early 1960s in St Albans and led by keyboardist and vocalist Rod Argent and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group had a British and American hit in 1964 with "She's Not There". In the US, two fu ...

from 2001 to 2010 and is currently lead guitarist for the London stage show '' Mamma Mia!''. His other brother, Paul Airey, played piano for SlowBone and Rollups and currently works with Robbie Gladwell. He is currently writing a book about his experiences in the music business.

Discography

Solo

As band member

As session member

Guest appearances

* 1976 –

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth Jr. (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Su ...

– ''Kid's Stuff'' * 1978 – Jim Rafferty – ''Don't Talk Back'' * 1979 –

Bernie Marsden Bernard John Marsden (born 7 May 1951) is an English rock and blues guitarist. He is primarily known for his work with Whitesnake, having written or co-written with David Coverdale many of the group's hit songs, such as "Fool for Your Loving", ...

– ''And About Time Too'' * 1985 – Alaska – ''The Pack'' * 1985 –

Phenomena A phenomenon ( : phenomena) is an observable event. The term came into its modern philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be directly observed. Kant was heavily influenced by Gottfried W ...

– ''Phenomena'' * 1985 –

Gary Moore Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz fus ...

&

Phil Lynott Philip Parris Lynott (, ; 20 August 1949 – 4 January 1986) was an Irish singer, bassist, and songwriter. His most commercially successful group was Thin Lizzy, of which he was a founding member, the principal songwriter, lead vocalist and ba ...

– " Out in the Fields" * 1986 –

Zeno Zeno ( grc, Ζήνων) may refer to: People * Zeno (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Philosophers * Zeno of Elea (), philosopher, follower of Parmenides, known for his paradoxes * Zeno of Citium (333 – 264 BC), ...

– ''Zeno'' * 1987 – Wild Strawberries – ''Wild Strawberries'' * 1987 –

Helix A helix () is a shape like a corkscrew or spiral staircase. It is a type of smooth space curve with tangent lines at a constant angle to a fixed axis. Helices are important in biology, as the DNA molecule is formed as two intertwined helices, ...

– ''

Wild in the Streets ''Wild in the Streets'' is a 1968 American comedy-drama film directed by Barry Shear and starring Christopher Jones, Hal Holbrook, and Shelley Winters. Based on the short story "The Day It All Happened, Baby!" by Robert Thom, it was distribu ...

'' * 1988 – Fastway – ''Bad Bad Girls'' * 1988 – Jethro Tull – ''

20 Years of Jethro Tull ''20 Years of Jethro Tull'' is a 1988 boxed set which spans the first twenty years of Jethro Tull. It was issued as five LPs: ''Radio Archives'', ''Rare Tracks'', ''Flawed Gems'', ''Other Sides of Tull'', and ''The Essential Tull''. It was s ...

'' * 1989 – Crossbones – ''Crossbones'' * 1990 – Perfect Crime – ''Blond on Blonde'' * 1990 – Jagged Edge – ''You Don't Love Me'' * 1990 –

Bruce Dickinson Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958) is an English singer who has been the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden from 1981 to 1993 and 1999–present. He is known for his wide-ranging operatic vocal style and energetic stage ...

– ''

Tattooed Millionaire ''Tattooed Millionaire'' is the first solo album by Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson, released in 1990. The album project began when Dickinson was asked to record a song for '' A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child'', and so wrote " ...

'' * 1990 – Forcefield – ''IV – Let the Wild Run Free'' * 1990 –

Tigertailz Tigertailz are a Welsh glam metal band from Cardiff. Their 1990 album '' Bezerk'' made the Top 40 on the UK Albums Chart and contained the hit singles "Love Bomb Baby" and "Heaven". The band reformed in 2005. History Formation and early year ...

– '' Bezerk'' * 1992 –

Anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short ...

– ''Domestic Booty'' * 1992 – Kaizoku – ''Kaizoku'' * 1993 –

Brian May Brian Harold May (born 19 July 1947) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and astrophysicist, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. May was a co-founder of Queen with lead singer Fredd ...

– ''

Back to the Light ''Back to the Light'' is the debut solo studio album of Queen guitarist's Brian May, released on 28 September 1992 by Parlophone Records in the UK, and on 2 February 1993 by Hollywood Records in the US and Canada. May's second solo release fo ...

'' * 1994 –

Graham Bonnet Graham Bonnet (born 23 December 1947) is an English rock singer. He has recorded and performed as a solo artist and as a member of several hard rock and heavy metal bands including Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Alcatrazz, and Impellitteri.Pr ...

– ''Here Comes the Night'' * 1994 – The Kick – ''Tough Trip Thru Paradise'' * 1994 – Katrina and the Waves – ''Turnaround'' * 1998 –

Colin Blunstone Colin Edward Michael Blunstone (born 24 June 1945) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. In a career spanning more than 60 years, Blunstone came to prominence in the mid-1960s as the lead singer of the English rock band the Zombies, whi ...

– ''The Light'' * 1998 – The Cage – ''The Cage'' * 1998 – Olaf Lenk – ''Sunset Cruise'' * 1998 – Eddie Hardin – ''Wind in the Willows (live)'' * 1999 – Millennium – ''Millennium'' * 2000 –

Micky Moody Michael Joseph "Micky" Moody (born 30 August 1950) is an English guitarist, and a former member of the rock bands Juicy Lucy and Whitesnake. He was also a founder-member of Snafu. Together with his former Whitesnake colleague Bernie Marsden ...

– ''I Eat Them for Breakfast'' * 2000 –

Silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

– ''Silver'' * 2000 – Olaf Lenk's F.O.O.D. – ''Fun Stuff'' * 2001 – Silver – ''Dream Machines'' * 2001 – Rolf Munkes' Empire – ''Hypnotica'' * 2002 –

Metalium Metalium was a power metal band from Hamburg, Germany, founded in 1999 and disbanded in 2011. Their style of music was that of the traditional power metal sound which was pioneered by bands such as Helloween and Blind Guardian. History The band ...

– '' Hero Nation – Chapter Three'' * 2002 –

Bernie Marsden Bernard John Marsden (born 7 May 1951) is an English rock and blues guitarist. He is primarily known for his work with Whitesnake, having written or co-written with David Coverdale many of the group's hit songs, such as "Fool for Your Loving", ...

– ''Big Boy Blue'' * 2002 – Rolf Munkes' Empire – ''Trading Souls'' * 2003 – Silver – ''Intruder'' * 2005 –

Kimberley Rew Kimberley Charles Rew (born 3 December 1951) is an English rock singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best known as a member of Katrina and the Waves from 1981 to 1999 and of Robyn Hitchcock's Soft Boys from 1978 to 1981. Two of his better-kno ...

– ''Essex Hideaway'' * 2006 –

Gwyn Ashton Gwyn Ashton (born 1960, Wales) is a Welsh–Australian blues/rock guitarist and singer-songwriter. Biography The Welsh-born and singer-songwriter/guitarist Gwyn Ashton migrated to Adelaide, South Australia in the 1960s, picked up a guitar at ...

– ''Prohibition'' * 2009 – Carl Sentance – ''Mind Doctor'' * 2011 –

Wishbone Ash Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Their popular albums included ''Wishbone Ash'' (1970), ''Pilgrimage'' (1971), '' Argus'' (1972), ''Wishbone Four'' (1973), ''There's the Rub'' (1974), and '' ...

– '' Elegant Stealth'' * 2012 – Persian Risk – ''Once a King'' * 2012 – Various artists – ''Help! For Japan'' * 2013 – Schubert – ''In Rock'' * 2014 - Hollywood Monsters - ''Big Trouble'' * 2014 - AraPacis - ''A Disturbing Awakening'' * 2021 -

Metalium Metalium was a power metal band from Hamburg, Germany, founded in 1999 and disbanded in 2011. Their style of music was that of the traditional power metal sound which was pioneered by bands such as Helloween and Blind Guardian. History The band ...

- ''Never Surrender''

References

External links

*
Don Airey Interview
NAMM Oral History Library (2014) {{DEFAULTSORT:Airey, Don 1948 births Living people People educated at Bede Grammar School for Boys People from Sunderland Musicians from Tyne and Wear English rock keyboardists English heavy metal keyboardists Deep Purple members Eurovision Song Contest conductors The Ozzy Osbourne Band members Rainbow (rock band) members The Gary Moore Band members Anthem (band) members Alumni of the University of Nottingham Strawbs members Michael Schenker Group members Colosseum (band) members 21st-century conductors (music) Living Loud members Quatermass (band) members Ten (band) members The Company of Snakes members Empire (German band) members Fastway (band) members Blues rock musicians

Early life

Career

1970s work

1980s work

1990s onwards

Deep Purple

Instruments and gear

Personal life

Discography

Solo

As band member

As session member

Guest appearances

References

Further reading

External links