Uriah Heep at the Gramercy Theatre

Mick Box

In 1967, 19-year-old guitarist Mick Box formed a band called Hogwash in Brentwood, England. When the singer left, some of the band members formed a new group called Spice, which in 1969 became Uriah Heep, named after the character in Charles Dickins' novel David Copperfield. The band sold over 40 million albums worldwide with over 4 million sales in the U.S., but the band's audience declined by the 1980s. After many personnel changes, Uriah Heep currently consists of Box, lead vocalist Bernie Shaw, keyboardist Phil Lanzon, bassist Davey Rimmer and drummer Russell Gilbrook. Uriah Heep's 26th studio album, Living the Dream, is expected to be released in the fall of 2018.

For most of Uriah Heep's career in the United States, the band was frequently a support act for a major headliner. Some 50 years after it all began, Uriah Heep headlined at the Gramercy Theatre with a set comprised mostly of its best-known songs from 1970 to 1973. While only Mick Box has remained in the band from that golden period, the rest of the band did well not to directly copy the older arrangements. The musicians jammed in the spirit of the originals while giving the songs their familiar, epic crescendos. Combining hard rock and progressive rock, the songs blended soaring vocals, fantasy lyrics, searing lead guitar runs and massive organ rolls. Some of the songs lasted 10 to 15 minutes. Bands rarely create this kind of music anymore, so welcome to the ingenuity and experimentation of the1970s.

Visit Uriah Heep at www.uriah-heep.com.

Setlist:

1. Gypsy
2. Look at Yourself
3. Shadows of Grief
4. Stealin'
5. The Law
6. Sunrise
7. The Magician's Birthday
8. The Wizard
9. One Minute
10. Between Two Worlds
11. July Morning
12. Lady in Black

Encore:

1. Easy Livin'