Uriah Heep still going strong

Press, 26 April 1984, Page 8

Uriah Heep still going strong

By

TONY GREEN

After the release of “Very ’eavy Very ’umble,” the first album from the touring English heavy metal band of Uriah Heep, a rock critic for “Rolling Stone” magazine made the now-famous quote, “If this group ever makes it, I’ll have to commit suicide!”

Fourteen years of successful touring and 30 million LPs sold show the band has “made it,” but the sole remaining original member, Mick Box, in spite

of being sorely tempted, says he will not demand satisfaction from the unfortunate writer.

Their New Zealand tour, which began last evening in Dunedin, is the last leg of a tour which has lasted eight months, and taken Uriah Heep to places as diverse as Hungary, Indonesia, Israel, and Greece.

The band has undergone numerous personnel changes since its inception in 1969, but the present line-up of Box (guitar), Peter Goalby (lead vocals), John Sinclair

(keyboards), Trevor Bolder (bass), and Lee Kerslake (drums), has been together for 2% years, and, according to Box, is the best yet. Early critics accused Heep of being an inferior version of Led Zeppelin, but the vocal histrionics of Robert Plant contrasted sharply with the tight harmonies found on Heep albums, according to Box. “We’ve got five guys in the band and all of them can sing — we’re the Beach Boys of heavy metal,” said Box in typically modest

fashion. In spite of the gruelling touring schedule, the band was in good spirits, on arrival in New Zealand on Tuesday. “We play six gigs in six days, and we like it that way. We all get really bored when we’re not playing,” said Box, whose short stature and friendly nature were at odds with the surly “rocker” image of the others in the band.

Uriah Heep will play at the Christchurch Town Hall this evening and Box said

fans could expect a mixture of early hits such as “Stealin’ ” and “Easy Livin’,” and songs from their new LP, “Head First.” Although the band has been together for 15 years, Box rejects the possibility of Uriah Heep becoming a middle-aged parody of their former selves.

“The changes in the band over the years have been good for us, creatively speaking, and as long as the energy is still there, I think we’ll be round for a while yet,” he said.