Uriah Heep

In 2008, the venerable British hard rock band Uriah Heep released Wake the Sleeper, their first new studio album in ten years. It is not unusual, of course, for a band to play several songs from a new album in concerts around the time of release. Two years later, however, Uriah Heep are heard on this concert recording playing seven of the selections from Wake the Sleeper out of 15 songs in the show. Lead singer Bernie Shaw acknowledges that the set list is "a mixture of the old and the new," after announcing, "We've got 40 years of Uriah Heep music." So they do, even if they don't actually play songs from across the 40 years.

After scoring back-to-back album hits with Demons and Wizards and The Magician's Birthday, Uriah Heep had suddenly become a major attraction in the world of rock & roll. They capitalized on their newfound popularity with extensive touring and, since they lacked the time in their schedule to knock out a new studio album, their label decided they should release a live album to fill the gap. The result was Live: January 1973, the definitive live recording of the classic Uriah Heep lineup and a good indication of what made the group so popular among heavy metal fans during their heyday. The set list represents all the highlights of their albums up to the point, and everything is delivered with maximum energy before an enthusiastic Birmingham, England, crowd.

After two albums that downplayed their penchant for gothic sounds and mystical lyrics, Uriah Heep brought these elements back to the fore on 1975's Return to Fantasy. The resulting album retains the musical experimentation that marked Sweet Freedom and Wonderworld, but has an overall harder-rocking feel that makes it more consistent than either one of those albums…

his is the album that solidified Uriah Heep's reputation as a master of gothic-inflected heavy metal. From short, sharp rock songs to lengthy, musically dense epics, Demons and Wizards finds Uriah Heep covering all the bases with style and power…

After losing founding vocalist David Byron in 1976, many hard rock fans thought Uriah Heep had reached the end of the line. However, the group bounced back in 1977 with Firefly, an album that pursued a stripped-down sound harking back to the group's early-'70s successes…

Different World is the 18th album by British rock group Uriah Heep. It was the second studio album to feature this line-up. Bass guitarist Trevor Bolder produced the album and has said that, although it was an experience, he found it tricky wearing the hats of both band member/musician and producer…

After reaching an international level of success with Demons and Wizards, Uriah Heep continued to build their fan base by knocking out another album of prog-like metal before the year's end. The end result, The Magician's Birthday, is not as consistent or cohesive as Demons and Wizards but still offers plenty of highlights. It starts dramatically with "Sunrise," a spooky power ballad that alternates quiet organ-led verses with an emotional chorus and guitar-fuelled instrumental breaks topped off by David Byron's operatic wail…

On their second album, Uriah Heep jettisons the experiments that weighed down Very 'Eavy Very 'Umble and works toward perfecting their blend of heavy metal power and prog rock complexity. Salisbury tips the band's style in the prog direction, containing one side of songs and one side dominated by a lengthy and ornate epic-length composition…

Wonderworld continues in the vein of Sweet Freedom, trying to bring Uriah Heep's appeal to a wider level while still retaining the grandiose trademark elements (the organ-guitar attack, David Byron's operatic shriek) that got them noticed…