Uriah Heep remains one of the longest-playingrock bands in history. It appeared in the late 1960s, when The Beatles still rattled on. The founder and the only permanent member of the team is guitarist Mick Box. Uriah Heep's discography includes 24 studio albums, the latest of which was released in 2014. And this is not taking into account singles, live releases, etc.
It all started with the fact that twomusician. It was David Byron and Mick Boxing. The first of them became a vocalist, the second - a guitarist. At first the band was called Spice. Young guys gave successful concerts, after which they were noticed by producer Jerry Bron.
The manager immediately proposed a promising formationcontract with the label. In addition, he advised them to change the sign. The name was changed to Uriah Heep. So the character of one of the novels of Dickens was called. Then, in 1969, all Britain celebrated its centenary.
After some castling in the groupreleased her debut album "Very 'eavy ... Very' umble" in 1970. The sound of this album was largely innovative. The band played not only on guitars. The compositions contained keyboards, organ and mellotron. And even so, all the early musicians' work influenced both hard rock and heavy metal. If at first critics and journalists scolded the record, then decades later it was put on the same shelf with the cult plates from Deep Purple and Black Sabbath.
The second album of the band called "Salisbury"was in the shop windows in 1971. The sound has shifted even more towards acoustics, folk and art-rock. There was a lot of symphonic influence. Songs like Bird of Prey and Lady in Black became immortal hits of the band. They are performed at concerts today. The title track was recorded with the participation of 34 academic musicians playing symphonic instruments. The length of the composition was 16 minutes.
The popularity of the release allowed the band to ride withtour of the United States, where they were waited by the huge support of overseas fans. The next album "Look at Yourself" repeated the success of its predecessor. The single July Morning became a hit on the European music market. In particular, the record sold well in Germany, where the group had a dedicated fan community. Already in the following years, with a glance at the past 70th critics noted that the whole album was a unique combination of the emerging heavy metal and prog-rock. In addition, vocalist Byron created his own recognizable style of singing, which later influenced many artists, including Rob Halford.
The subsequent recordings of "Demon and Wizards" and "TheMagician's Birthday "(1972) differed in that in their concept there was a theme of a fantasy. The stories about wizards and mysticism were warmly received by the public. Releases awaited commercial success. In particular, the group went on a huge tour in Japan, where she recorded a live album. Discography Uriah Heep began to contain and such records.
The subsequent discography of Uriah Heep was not sosuccessful albums, criticized the albums, and sales declined. In addition, the group lost the schedule of speeches. At first, in 1975, bassist Gary Thane was hit by an electric shock and was unable to play. The planned concerts were canceled. A few months later the musician was found dead at home. Medical examination showed that the cause of death was an overdose of drugs.
He was replaced by an experienced John Welton, whoparticipated in the records of King Crimson and Roxy Music. According to Boxing, this gave the team a second wind. The new bass player was not only an excellent performer, but also a creative generator of ideas.
The band again released a successful record.It was "Return to Fantasy". However, immediately the problems of another plan began. The collective was shaken by conflicts. Vocalist Byron started alcoholism, which is why he was fired. Behind him went to Asia bassist Welton, and a little later - keyboardist Hensley, who stood at the origins of the team. At the time when it happened, in 1980, the discography of Uriah Heep already included 13 studio albums.
On the basis of constant setbacks and conflicts, MickBoxing started a depression. At some point he was the only musician from the original line-up, who had to fulfill his obligations to the label that released the band's recordings.
In 1982 he managed to survive this crisis.He recruited new musicians and released with them the album "Abominog", which is marked as the most mature in the entire work of the group. The new drummer Lee Kersleick and bassist Bob Daisley just left Ozzy Osbourne on the eve and were able to bring a great influence of heavy metal into the record. The heavier and more modern sounding did not leave the audience indifferent. Later the band continued to successfully touring, periodically releasing studio recordings, though not with such intensity, as in the 70s. A lot of labels collaborated with Uriah Heep. Discography, photos and many other fruits of an eventful career are of interest to the public today.
Uriah Heep's latest discography began in 2008year, when after almost 10 years of lull, boxing with the team released an album. Today the concerts of the band successfully combine both classic hits and new compositions.
In 2014, the last album released today"Outsider", which was released by the band Uriah Heep. Discography and the biography of the collective - all this is filled with dramatic events and unexpected turns. Nevertheless, musicians in the seventh decade continue to please their performances of dedicated fans.
