Ian Paice an audition for Paice, with guitarist Ritchie Blackmore leading the charge. Stated Blackmore in interviews years later, "I had looked for Ian Paice for about a year after seeing him perform in Hamburg. He's an incredible drummer. And he was the motor of the band" Paice has remained a member of Deep Purple through every formation of the band, including up to the present day. During this time, Paice was also involved in doing sessions for producer Derek Lawrence. After Deep Purple split, Paice went on to form a new group, Paice Ashton Lord in 1976. The band, also comprising
Ian Paice Royal Albert Hall, performing alongside guitarist Brian May of Queen, bassist John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin, and vocalists Bruce Dickinson and Alice Cooper. Paice is married and has three children: James, Emmy and Calli. His wife, Jacky, is the twin sister of the departed Jon Lord's wife, Vicky. It had been rumoured (and even mentioned by former Gillan guitarist Bernie Torme in an interview) that Paice has only one lung. In reality, he is only missing a portion of the lower lobe in his left lung, due to contracting a case of pneumonia when he was 6 years old