Tag: uriah heep (Page 1 of 2)

Uriah Heep are a great band and one that I have loved since my teen years, and after all they have been through I am amazed they are still around. Of course, the only member still around from the glory days is Sir Michael Of Box, but we are going back to ’77 for this one. This was also the first album without original vocalist Dave Byron, who (at the time) was godlike to me as his voice was just a thing of beauty. John Lawton, his replacement on this album, puts in a sterling job as the band tried to keep the old sound musically to not rock the fanbase too much.

This album is very reliant on Ken Hensley  for songwriting as all but one were penned by him. Strangely enough, the one he didn’t have a hand is the one I like the most: Who Needs Me. Written by Lee Kerslake, it’s a good old Heep rockin’ romp with plenty of melody and harmony, and Mr. Box giving it the beans. The other track that floats my boat is The Hanging Tree which is John Lawton’s finest moment on this record with quite a commercial sounding track, which is essentially a boogie wrapped up in Hensley’s synth.

All hail the Heep and long may they ride.

7.5/10 from The Grooveman.

Another band that I still love from my schoolboy days. Nothing can compare to when I first heard the voice of Dave Byron opening up the album with The Wizard. This album was recorded in ’72 and still sounds fresh to me. The Heep were huge around this time and sold out everywhere. Just before COVID, I saw them in a small bar near where I live. How the mighty have fallen!

Lots of live favourites and Heep classics are enclosed in these grooves: Traveller In Time, Easy Livin’, Circle Of Hands, and the monumental Paradise/ The Spell. That huge Hammond sound of Ken Hensley combined with Mick Box’s raw guitar used to blow me away, and this is pure nostalgia for me. I have to go with Easy Livin’ as my favourite, I just love singing along to the earworm hook and chorus.

Mick Box is still playing with the band and has been there for way over 50 years. Happy days!

9/10 from The Grooveman.

It may seem hard to believe now, but Uriah Heep along with Deep Purple and Black Sabbath were one of the biggest hard rock acts around in the 70’s, selling out everywhere they went. To put things into perspective somewhat, just before COVID they played a local bar near where I live. I was a huge fan of 70’s Heep and it’s safe to say that after the passing of Dave Byron things were never the same. Don’t get me wrong, they have made some great albums since (Abominog), but that spark was missing.

Recorded throughout the UK in ’73 in support of the Magician’s Birthday album, the band sound amazing. Dave Byron’s vocals were so good, he had a great range. On Traveller In Time, which was one of the heavier songs, Byron actually reminds me of Bruce Dickinson. There are so many huge songs on this album: July Morning, Gypsy, and the showpiece Magician’s Birthday where Mick Box and Ken Hensley show their talents. Easy Livin’ was actually released as a single, it has a very catchy hook and chorus – I guess someone at the record company was paying attention. A great live album from a band in their prime.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

I feel old listening to this album as I remember buying it the week of its release in ’75. Most people think of 70’s Heep as this big big rock/Prog crossover band – especially after the release of Demons And Wizards, and The Magicians Birthday with those fantasy Roger Dean covers and the big extended songs. In reality, through most of the 70’s the band wrote melodic hard rock albums with emphasis on vocal melodies and big harmonies.

This album is somewhere in between, as songs like Beautiful Dream and A Year Or A Day have that old Heep vibe with Prog very much in evidence. The title track shows the great vocal qualities in the band, with Dave Byron showing what an amazing range he was, while the rest of the band back him with killer harmonies. The band almost reach country/blues territory with Why Did You Go and shows how eclectic this album is. A solid album but not their best.

8/10 from The Grooveman.