British Hard Rock band, 1970-present. Uriah Heep's trademark combination of David Byron's theatrical lead vocals, Ken Hensley's fantasy-oriented lyrics and swirling Hammond organ, Mick Box's wah-wah guitar, Gary Thain and Lee Kerslake's powerhouse rhythm section, and five-part harmony backing vocals brought their "classic" lineup considerable success in the early 1970s; although never a superstar-level band in the US, they retain a significant following to this
day worldwide, especially in
Germany,
Russia, The Netherlands, and Japan. The current (1985-present) lineup (Mick Box, Lee Kerslake, Trevor Bolder, Bernie Shaw and
Phil Lanzon) maintain an active touring schedule, and released several albums during the 1990s, the most recent being 1998's "
Sonic Origami"; a new studio effort has been promised for some
time.
Essential Albums: Salisbury (1971), Look At Yourself (1971), Demons And Wizards (1972), The Magician's
Birthday (1972), Sweet Freedom (1973), Firefly (1977), Sea Of
Light (1995),
Sonic Origami (1998), Acoustically Driven (2000)
