Uriah Heep — Salisbury (December 1970/1990)
≡★≡ British rockers with a revolving–door lineup and an eclectic sound that grandly draws on prog, metal, acid rock, and pastoral folk. 
Location: London, England
Album release:
≡ December 1970 (US)
≡ February 1971 (UK)
Recorded: October–November, 1970 at Lansdowne Studios, London
Record Label:
≡ Vertigo (UK) (original release)
≡ Bronze (UK) (reissue)
≡ Mercury (USA)
Duration: 38:10
Tracks:
01. High Priestess 3:44
02. The Park 5:46
03. Time To Live 4:05
04. Lady In Black 4:47
05. Simon The Bullet Freak 3:28
06. Salisbury 16:20
≡ All Songs Copyright Dick James Music, Inc. (BMI)
Written by:
≡ Hensley 1, 2, 4, 5
≡ Box, Byron, Hensley 3, 6
Personnel:
≡ David Byron — lead vocals (Except "Lady in Black" & "High Priestess" — Ken Hensley Lead Vocals)
≡ Ken Hensley — Slide & Acoustic Guitars, Organ, Piano, Harpsichord, Vibraphone, Vocals
≡ Mick Box — Lead & Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
≡ Paul Newton — Bass Guitar, Vocals
≡ Keith Baker — Drums
Additional personnel:
≡ John Fiddy — Brass and Woodwind Arrangement on "Salisbury"
Production:
≡ Produced By Gerry Bron
≡ Recorded, Engineered & Mixed By Peter Gallen
≡ Mastered By Tom Coyne
CHARTS
1971
≡ Finland #1
≡ Australia #22
≡ Germany #31
≡ U.S.A. (Billboard) #103
AllMusic Review by Donald A. Guarisco; Score: ★★½
≡ 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. Highlights on the song–oriented side include "Bird of Prey," a soaring rocker that blends furious, power chord–fuelled verses with spacy, keyboard–drenched instrumental breaks, and "Lady in Black," a stylishly arranged tune that builds from a folk–styled acoustic tune into a throbbing rocker full of ghostly harmonies and crunching guitar riffs. The big surprise on this side is "The Park," a ballad–style song built on a light blend of acoustic guitars and ethereal keyboards. It has a gentle, appealingly psychedelic feel that is topped off by David Byron's falsetto vocal and some soaring harmonies from Byron and Ken Hensley. However, Salisbury is undone by its title track, the 16–minute track that dominates the album's entire second side: it feels more like a lengthy jam session instead of a prog epic with distinctive and carefully crafted sections. Another problem is that the overly busy brass and woodwind arrangements that have been grafted onto it intrude on the group's sound instead of fleshing it out. All in all, Salisbury is too unfocused for the casual listener but offers enough solid songs for the Uriah Heep completist. Collector's note: The American version of this album had different cover art (the tank on the British edition was replaced by a gruesome image of man tearing out of his own skin) and replaced "Bird of Prey" with a bluesy B–side entitled "Simon the Bullet Freak."
Description:
≡ Salisbury is the second album released by British rock band Uriah Heep. The album features forays into both jazz–fusion on "The Park", and progressive rock on the band's first large–scale composition, the 16–minute title track featuring a 24–piece orchestra. It also includes the largely acoustic ballad "Lady In Black."
≡ The connection of the artwork to the title is readily explained. Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, is an Army training–area. On the front of the album sleeve is a British Chieftain tank. The original LP release was a gatefold–sleeve. Inside is a b/w picture of a British tank of the First World War, over which were printed Hensley's comments on each track. Later reissues would be in a single sleeve. The American release featured a different sleeve image, as did the original Canadian pressings. Future Canadian pressings used the UK artwork. Website: http://www.uriah-heep.com/
CREDITS:
★ Keith Baker Drums
★ Mick Box Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Vocals
★ Gerry Bron Producer
★ David Byron Composer, Vocals
★ Tom Coyne Mastering
★ John Fiddy Arranger, Brass Arrangement, Woodwind Arrangement
★ Peter Gallen Engineer, Mixing Engineer
★ Ken Hensley Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Harpsichord, Keyboards, Liner Notes, Organ, Piano, Slide Guitar, Vibraphone, Vocals, Vocals (Background)
★ Ashley Howe Tape Operator
★ Paul Newton Bass, Composer, Guitar (Bass), Vocals
★ Desmond Strobel Art Direction
≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★
≡★≡ British rockers with a revolving–door lineup and an eclectic sound that grandly draws on prog, metal, acid rock, and pastoral folk.
Album release:
≡ December 1970 (US)
≡ February 1971 (UK)
Recorded: October–November, 1970 at Lansdowne Studios, London
Record Label:
≡ Vertigo (UK) (original release)
≡ Bronze (UK) (reissue)
≡ Mercury (USA)
Duration: 38:10
Tracks:
01. High Priestess 3:44
02. The Park 5:46
03. Time To Live 4:05
04. Lady In Black 4:47
05. Simon The Bullet Freak 3:28
06. Salisbury 16:20
≡ All Songs Copyright Dick James Music, Inc. (BMI)
Written by:
≡ Hensley 1, 2, 4, 5
≡ Box, Byron, Hensley 3, 6
Personnel:
≡ David Byron — lead vocals (Except "Lady in Black" & "High Priestess" — Ken Hensley Lead Vocals)
≡ Ken Hensley — Slide & Acoustic Guitars, Organ, Piano, Harpsichord, Vibraphone, Vocals
≡ Mick Box — Lead & Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
≡ Paul Newton — Bass Guitar, Vocals
≡ Keith Baker — Drums
Additional personnel:
≡ John Fiddy — Brass and Woodwind Arrangement on "Salisbury"
Production:
≡ Produced By Gerry Bron
≡ Recorded, Engineered & Mixed By Peter Gallen
≡ Mastered By Tom Coyne
CHARTS
1971
≡ Finland #1
≡ Australia #22
≡ Germany #31
≡ U.S.A. (Billboard) #103
≡ 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. Highlights on the song–oriented side include "Bird of Prey," a soaring rocker that blends furious, power chord–fuelled verses with spacy, keyboard–drenched instrumental breaks, and "Lady in Black," a stylishly arranged tune that builds from a folk–styled acoustic tune into a throbbing rocker full of ghostly harmonies and crunching guitar riffs. The big surprise on this side is "The Park," a ballad–style song built on a light blend of acoustic guitars and ethereal keyboards. It has a gentle, appealingly psychedelic feel that is topped off by David Byron's falsetto vocal and some soaring harmonies from Byron and Ken Hensley. However, Salisbury is undone by its title track, the 16–minute track that dominates the album's entire second side: it feels more like a lengthy jam session instead of a prog epic with distinctive and carefully crafted sections. Another problem is that the overly busy brass and woodwind arrangements that have been grafted onto it intrude on the group's sound instead of fleshing it out. All in all, Salisbury is too unfocused for the casual listener but offers enough solid songs for the Uriah Heep completist. Collector's note: The American version of this album had different cover art (the tank on the British edition was replaced by a gruesome image of man tearing out of his own skin) and replaced "Bird of Prey" with a bluesy B–side entitled "Simon the Bullet Freak."
Description:
≡ Salisbury is the second album released by British rock band Uriah Heep. The album features forays into both jazz–fusion on "The Park", and progressive rock on the band's first large–scale composition, the 16–minute title track featuring a 24–piece orchestra. It also includes the largely acoustic ballad "Lady In Black."
≡ The connection of the artwork to the title is readily explained. Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, is an Army training–area. On the front of the album sleeve is a British Chieftain tank. The original LP release was a gatefold–sleeve. Inside is a b/w picture of a British tank of the First World War, over which were printed Hensley's comments on each track. Later reissues would be in a single sleeve. The American release featured a different sleeve image, as did the original Canadian pressings. Future Canadian pressings used the UK artwork. Website: http://www.uriah-heep.com/
CREDITS:
★ Keith Baker Drums
★ Mick Box Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Vocals
★ Gerry Bron Producer
★ David Byron Composer, Vocals
★ Tom Coyne Mastering
★ John Fiddy Arranger, Brass Arrangement, Woodwind Arrangement
★ Peter Gallen Engineer, Mixing Engineer
★ Ken Hensley Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Harpsichord, Keyboards, Liner Notes, Organ, Piano, Slide Guitar, Vibraphone, Vocals, Vocals (Background)
★ Ashley Howe Tape Operator
★ Paul Newton Bass, Composer, Guitar (Bass), Vocals
★ Desmond Strobel Art Direction
≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★≡≡★