Remembering and enjoying the best songs of the "old guys" Uriah Heep
Uriah Heep - group, which successfully balanced rock, heavy metal, and progressive rock genresIt's no wonder that it's one of the most successful Rock bands of the '70s years! In all, Heep released 24 studio albums, 20 live records, and over forty compilations! In doing so, 12 of the band's albums hit the UK Albums Chartand one of the most famous is Demons and Wizards - Got to line 23 Billboard 200 in 1972 year! By the end of the decade, Uriah Heep were already a resounding international success! And their iconic single "Lady in Black" was a big hit in Germany... Actually, such a huge catalog of songs makes it very difficult to compile a list of the best of them... But we dared to do it, and this is what we got! Below you will find the top popular and most successful hits from the "old-timers" Uriah Heep! Enjoy listening, we're starting...
"Sunrise" (1972)
Powerful opening track from the fifth album The Magician's Birthdayeventually "Sunrise." has become a constant component of almost every tour or concert album Uriah Heep! The song also perfectly illustrates the band's uncanny ability to balance the straightforwardness of hard rock with the dynamic variety of progressive rock...
Written by Ken Hensley and performed by the magnificent David Byron, almost unanimously "Sunrise." is considered a great Uriah Heep classic!
"Look at Yourself" (1971)
Title track from the third album Uriah Heep, "Look at Yourself" Written and sung by the same Ken Hensley, it was the band's first single in Great Britain!
Why is it "Look at Yourself." performed Hensleyrather than Byron? The thing is that during the recording David Byron's vocalist had problems with his throat... However - during the live Heep performances he was the one who sang it (at least before he was fired...).
"Bird of Prey" (1970)
One of the most dramatic songs in the repertoire Uriah Heep and early heavy metal in general, "Bird of Prey" became the band's biggest hit...
"Sweet Lorraine" (1972)
"Sweet Lorraine." - this is the romanticized title of the second single from the band's fifth studio album! The composition won the hearts of fans and critics with its distinctive, oscillating melody and synthesizer solo Moogwhich was played Ken Hensley…
One of the band's most famous songs, which won great popularity during live concerts Uriah Heep…
"Gypsy" (1970)
The famous "Gypsy" by Uriah Heep was clear proof that first impressions do matter... This opening track from Heep's 1970 debut remains a perennial fan favorite! The song "Gypsy" carries with it an extremely frightening and violent power...
This is a timeless statement from Uriah Heep about their greatest strengths, which they will develop over the coming years and decades...
"Return to Fantasy (1975)
"Return to Fantasy" - it's probably Heep's best single of the middle 1970's years! It is thanks to him the band's album of the same name broke into the top 10 of the UK! By the way: this is the highest chart position in the band's career to date...
As for the vocalist Uriah Heep, David ByronIf you are a member of the band, then at the time of the recording he was already addicted to alcohol, which soon led to his expulsion from the band and, a few years later, tragically took his life... However, that's another story altogether.
"The Easy Road" (1974)
A haunting and thoughtful ballad written by the keyboardist Ken Hensley for their seventh album Wonderworld:
This track showcases all the wonderful range of the voice David Byron…
"Salisbury" (1971)
Another great track from Uriah Heep from their eponymous second studio album...
"Easy Livin'" (1972)
It's probably one of the best known and most beloved songs Uriah Heep…
With a beautiful soaring chorus and enhanced by the band's multi-voice harmonies, the anthem "Easy Livin'." - is not just "another meaningful passage" from Demons And Wizards 1972 year. This track is still their big hit decades later...
"The Wizard" (1972)
"The Wizard 1972 of the year is noteworthy in that it is the band's first single to which a video was made! In concept, it's a gentle, semi-acoustic ballad whose lyrics tell the story of a man who wanders until he meets "The Wizard of a Thousand Kings..."
Amazingly, even half a century later, this mystical tale of a wizard dapper "in a golden cloak" remains a staple of the concert program Uriah Heep! This is also the only composition recorded by the band with the bassist Mark Clark…
"Lady in Black" (1971)
The cherry on the cake is the composition about "The Lady in Black." is a great addition to the band's second studio album! The slightly dark lyrics tell the story of a man wandering through the war-torn darkness: at one point he meets a goddess-like essence that comforts him... In the opinion of both fans and critics, this is the most poetic work Hensley.
Inspiration struck Hensley when he saw the mysterious woman pedestrian on a windy morning in the north of England... But the interesting thing about the whole story is that at first his bandmates were not impressed when they first heard "Lady in Black". Actually - it's not uncommon in rock music, which has seen many similar stories!
"Stealin'" (1973)
It is safe to say that this is Hensley in his best narrative yet! This track is from the album Sweet Freedom 1973 of the year would have been a much bigger hit for Heep had it not been for the line "I screwed the rancher's daughter," which got it banned...
"July Morning" (1971)
By turns fragile, beautiful, uplifting, incisive, and bombastic, in unedited original form, this ten-minute epic from the third album Look At Yourself covered almost as many ups and downs as Heep themselves! It really is something special...
