Demons and Wizards (Uriah Heep album)
| Demons and Wizards | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Uriah Heep | ||||
| Released | 19 May 1972 | |||
| Recorded | March–April 1972 | |||
| Studio | Lansdowne Studios, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 39:40 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | Gerry Bron | |||
| Uriah Heep chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Demons and Wizards | ||||
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Demons and Wizards is the fourth studio album by British rock band Uriah Heep, released May 19, 1972 by Bronze Records in the UK and Mercury Records in the US. The album was a success and has sold 3 million copies worldwide.
Production
The original vinyl release was a gatefold sleeve, the front of which was designed by Roger Dean. The inner sleeve had pictures of the band and notes by Ken Hensley, while the liner featured printed lyrics.
The songs "The Wizard" and "Easy Livin'" were released as singles in the UK and North America as well as many other markets. "Easy Livin'" entered the US Top 40 reaching No. 39, making it Heep's first and only American Top 40 hit.[1] "Easy Livin'" was also a mega-hit in the Netherlands and Germany, countries which were becoming strong markets for the band. It reached a disappointing No. 75 in Australia.[2]
New Zealander Gary Thain, at the time a member of Keef Hartley Band, joined Uriah Heep as a permanent member halfway through another American tour. "Gary just had a style about him, it was incredible because every bass player in the world that I've ever known has always loved his style, with those melodic bass lines," Box commented later. Another addition, of drummer Lee Kerslake (a former bandmate of Hensley's in the Gods and Toe Fat), solidified the rhythm section. Thus the "classic" Uriah Heep lineup was formed and, according to biographer K. Blows, "everything just clicked into place".
The result of Heep's newfound chemistry was the Demons and Wizards album, which in June 1972, reached No. 20 in the UK and No. 23 in the US. In Finland, the album hit No. 1 in May and remained on top of the charts for 14 weeks. While the album title and Dean's cover art both suggested medieval fantasy, Hensley's notes declared the album to be "just a collection of our songs that we had a good time recording".
Hensley recalled: "The band was really focused at that time. We all wanted the same thing, were all willing to make the same sacrifices to achieve it and we were all very committed. It was the first album to feature that lineup and there was a magic in that combination of people that created so much energy and enthusiasm".
Two singles were released from the album: "The Wizard" and "Easy Livin'". The latter, a defiant rocker, according to Blows, was "tailor-made for Byron's extrovert showmanship" and peaked at No. 39 in the Billboard Hot 100.
Demons and Wizards was remastered and reissued by Castle Communications in 1996 with three bonus tracks, and again in 2003 in an expanded deluxe edition. In 2017, Sanctuary Records released a two-disc deluxe edition.
Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
Rolling Stone, which printed an infamously negative review of the band's debut album, ran a positive assessment of Demons and Wizards. Mike Saunders said: "These guys are good. The first side of Demons and Wizards is simply odds-on the finest high energy workout of the year, tying nose and nose with the Blue Öyster Cult...they may have started out as a thoroughly dispensable neo-Cream & Blooze outfit, but at this point Uriah Heep are shaping up into one hell of a first-rate modern rock band". According to AllMusic, the album "solidified Uriah Heep's reputation as a master of gothic-inflected heavy metal".[4]
The album also served as partial inspiration for Hansi Kürsch and Jon Schaffer's side project Demons and Wizards.[5]
Track listing
All tracks written by Ken Hensley except where noted.
| Side 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 1. | "The Wizard" | Mark Clarke, Ken Hensley | 2:59 |
| 2. | "Traveller in Time" | Mick Box, David Byron, Lee Kerslake | 3:25 |
| 3. | "Easy Livin'" | 2:37 | |
| 4. | "Poet's Justice" | Box, Hensley, Kerslake | 4:15 |
| 5. | "Circle of Hands" | 6:25 | |
| Side 2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 6. | "Rainbow Demon" | 4:25 | |
| 7. | "All My Life" | Box, Byron, Kerslake | 2:44 |
| 8. | "Paradise" | 5:10 | |
| 9. | "The Spell" ((on some CD editions, "Paradise" and "The Spell" were combined into one track)) | 7:32 | |
| 1996 remastered edition | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 10. | "Why (Single Version)" (original B-side version) | Newton, Box, Byron, Hensley | 4:53 |
| 11. | "Why (Extended Version)" (long version recorded during Demons and Wizards sessions in early 1972) | 7:39 | |
| 12. | "Home Again to You" (demo recorded during Demons and Wizards sessions) | 5:28 | |
| 2003 expanded deluxe edition | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 10. | "Why (Extended Version)" | 10:34 |
| 11. | "Rainbow Demon (Single Edit)" | 3:36 |
| 12. | "Proud Words on a Dusty Shelf (Outtake)" | 2:52 |
| 13. | "Home Again to You (Demo)" | 5:36 |
| 14. | "Green Eye (Demo)" | 3:46 |
| 2017 two-disc expanded deluxe edition (All tracks on Disc 2 previously unreleased) | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "Easy Livin' (Alternate Version)" | 2:39 |
| 2. | "Rainbow Demon (Alternate Version)" | 6:13 |
| 3. | "Traveller In Time (Alternate Version)" | 3:48 |
| 4. | "Paradise (Alternate Version)" | 5:26 |
| 5. | "The Spell (Alternate Version)" | 8:11 |
| 6. | "All My Life (Alternate Version)" | 3:11 |
| 7. | "Home Again To You (Alternate Version)" | 4:53 |
| 8. | "Why (Alternate Version)" | 13:46 |
| 9. | "The Wizard (Alternate Version)" | 3:06 |
| 10. | "Poet's Justice (Alternate Version)" | 4:43 |
| 11. | "Circle Of Hands (Alternate Version)" | 8:08 |
| 12. | "Green Eye (Alternate Version)" | 4:08 |
| 13. | "Why (Alternate Single Edit)" | 4:45 |
Personnel
- David Byron – lead (2-7, 10-14) and co-lead (1, 8, 9) vocals
- Mick Box – lead guitar
- Ken Hensley – keyboards, backing and co-lead (8, 9) vocals, guitars, percussion
- Gary Thain – bass (2-9, 12-14)
- Mark Clarke – bass (1, 10, 11), co-lead vocals (1)
- Lee Kerslake – drums, backing vocals, percussion
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/Sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[6] | Gold | 500,000^ |
| Worldwide sales: | 3,000,000 | |
|
^shipments figures based on certification alone | ||
Chart performance
| Country (1972) | Denmark | 7[7] |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 14 | |
| Italy | 12 | |
| The Netherlands | 5 | |
| Finland | 1 | |
| United States | 23 | |
| United Kingdom | 20 |
References
- ↑ "Uriah Heep". Billboard.
- ↑ Uriah Heep – Demons And Wizards (1972) – Classic Rock Forum
- ↑ "AllMusic review".
- ↑ Donald A. Guarisco. "Uriah Heep Demons and Wizards". AllMusic.
- ↑ https://www.allmusic.com/album/demons-and-wizards-mw0000054289
- ↑ "American album certifications – Uriah Heep – Demons and Wizards". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.
- ↑ http://danskehitlister.dk/?song_id=6412