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When
The Stalkers eventually split up, Box and Garrick formed
"Spice", with Paul Newton on bass and Alex Napier on drums.
The group worked out of London and mixed the standards of the day with
original hard rock/jazz numbers. About this time, Garrick started to use
the name "David Byron" and the band recorded a one-shot single
called "What About The Music" for United Artists Records. The
quartet gradually climbed their way up in the local scene under the
guidance of Paul Newton's father, but by late 1969, it was time to take
a giant step upwards. The
man to provide that step was Gerry Bron, a management/production
magnate, who upon being contacted, went down to see the band at the
Blues Loft in High Wycombe and was sufficiently impressed to sign the
four to his Hit Record Productions Ltd (who had a deal with Philips
Records), for the purposes of recording. The band soon found themselves
booked into Lansdowne Studios in London, still under the name of Spice
and still as a four piece unit. The
next couple of months brought about several significant changes; firstly
a change of name. Gerry Bron suggested "Uriah Heep", based on
the 'orrible little character from Charles Dickens' novel, "David
Copperfield"; then the introduction of keyboards to the band. The
group had actually recorded half of the first album when Ken Hensley,
who had played keyboards with Paul Newton in a band called "The
Gods", was brought in. Hensley's talents lay not just in producing
innovative keyboard and mellotron sounds, he could write as well, though
his contribution to the first album was limited.
A
new bassist named Mark Clarke, replaced Paul Newton, but lasted just
three months before Gary Thain took over. The stability of the new
line-up enabled the band to enter their most successful period during
the early 70s when the fantastical, eccentric nature of their lyrics was
supported by a grandiose musical approach. The quintet recorded five
albums, beginning with "Demons And Wizards", their first to
enter the U.S. charts. The musical and lyrical themes continued on
"The Magician's Birthday", the double set "Uriah Heep
Live", "Sweet Freedom" and "Wonderworld". Thain
was kicked out of the band in February 1975 after becoming too
unreliable, due to a drug habit. There had been a brooding row the
previous September when the bass player suffered a near-fatal electric
shock at a concert in Dallas and said he had not been shown enough
regard for his injuries. He died of a heroin overdose in December of
'75. John
Wetton, formerly of King Crimson was expected to provide the impetus
needed when he took over the bass guitar in March, however, many
observers considered that he had taken a retrogressive step in joining a
band that was
Internal
arguments were tearing Uriah Heep apart by early 1976, and the band
nearly folded completely. Hensley briefly walked out during a tour of
the USA and in a subsequent power-struggle, David Byron was forced out
of the group and would go on to release a series of solo albums before
he passed away in 1985. Hensley had already embarked upon a short,
parallel solo career, releasing two albums in 1973 and 1975. John
Lawton, previously the singer with Lucifer's Friend, debuted on the
album "Firefly", along with new bass player Trevor Bolder,
formerly of David Bowie's band. The
singer's position underwent further changes during the late 70s and
early 80s as the band found themselves playing to a cult following that
was quickly dwindling. Former Lone Star singer John Sloman performed on
"Conquest", which also featured new drummer Chris Slade.
Hensley subsequently left the band, leaving Mick Box as the only
original member. A
brief hiatus resulted and a new Uriah Heep that included Box, Chris
Slade, John Sinclair (keyboards), Bob Daisley (bass) and Peter Goalby
(vocals) was formed. Daisley quit in 1983 following the release of
"Head First", and was replaced by the returning Trevor Bolder.
Bronze
Records collapsed in 1984 and the band signed with Portrait Records in
the USA. Their earlier extensive touring allowed them to continue
appearing at reasonably sized venues, especially across America, and in
1987 they had the distinction of becoming the first western heavy metal
act to perform in Moscow. Inevitably,
there were more personnel changes with the new additions of Bernie Shaw
(vocals) and Phil Lanzon (keyboards) for the studio albums "Raging
Silence" and "Different World". Despite seeming out of
time with all other developments in hard rock, the quintet's 1995
recording, "Sea Of Light" offered another slice of Uriah
Heep's trademark melodic rock. Their European tour of the same year saw
them reunite with former vocalist John Lawton as a temporary measure,
with Bernie Shaw suffering from a throat problem. In 1998, they released
"Sonic Origami",
Which
contained some of the band's best work since their earliest days. As
the new millennium dawned, the band continued to tour, mostly in Europe,
where they still have a large fan base. ALBUMS 1970 Very 'eavy... Very 'umble 1971 Salisbury 1971 Look at Yourself 1972 Demons and Wizards 1972 The Magician's Birthday 1973 Sweet Freedom 1974 Wonderworld 1975 Return to Fantasy 1976 High and Mighty 1977 Firefly 1977 Innocent Victim 1978 Fallen Angel 1980 Conquest 1982 Abominog 1983 Head First 1985 Equator 1989 Raging Silence 1991 Different World 1995 Sea of Light 1998 Sonic Origami 2008 Wake the Sleeper SINGLES1971 "Look at Yourself" 1972 "The Wizard" "Easy Livin'" "Sweet Lorraine" 1973 "Blind Eye" "Stealin'" 1974 "Something or Nothing" 1975 "Prima Donna" 1976 "One Way or Another" 1977 "Wise Man" "Free Me" 1978 "Come Back to Me" 1980 "Carry On" "Love Stealer" 1981 "Think it Over" 1982 "That's the Way That It Is" 1983 "Lonely Nights" "Stay on Top" 1985 "Rockarama" "Poor Little Rich Girl" 1989 "Easy Livin' (live)" "Lady in Black" "Hold Your Head Up" "Blood Red Roses" 1995 "Dream On" 1997 "Gypsy" 2001 "Come Away Melinda" "Lady in Black"
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