Uriah heep demons and wizards6/16/2023 But it’s a catchy, high-energy song that took us to the world stage and could easily be put under the banner of early metal. ‘Easy Livin’’ has quite a unique shuffle played by Lee over the years, I’ve heard it played by other bands and always the shuffle beat is wrong. “Writing fantasy lyrics really made a massive impact, and a lot of bands since have picked up that particular baton and carried it on further. “Yes indeed, and it certainly caught everyone’s imagination, lyrically, for sure,” he said. Now, though, Box acknowledges that Demons and Wizards was distinct hard rock/heavy metal with progressive-rock musical traits, and it directly influenced the emergence and development of those styles. As the album title suggests, fantasy and mystical elements permeated the music, though Hensley, who eventually became the band’s main songwriter, said in the original liner notes that the album was simply a collection of songs. Having already endured personnel changes, the lineup of guitarist Mick Box, vocalist David Byron (1947-’85), keyboardist Ken Hensley (1945-2020), bassists Gary Thain (1948-’75) and Mark Clarke, and drummer Lee Kerslake (1947-2020) perfected the Uriah Heep sound. It hit #23 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart in the U.S., and the powerhouse single “Easy Livin’” shockingly cracked the Billboard Top 40 at #39. Uriah Heep’s definitive 1972 album, Demons and Wizards, was their fourth. While snobbish “tastemaker” critics despised bands making music in either genre, one band consciously combined them. Hard rock/heavy metal and progressive rock were burgeoning genres in the early ’70s, and music fans by the millions eagerly snapped up albums in both styles. Mick Box onstage in ’71 with his famed Black Beauty.
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