DEMONS AND WIZARDS

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Magical

I must admit to finding it somewhat difficult to write dispassionately about this album, since for the last 30+ years it has been my all time favourite. I do remember however when I first heard it, the one minor criticism I had at the time was that, when compared to the previous "Look at yourself", there were too few instrumental breaks. That misgiving soon vanished however, and ever since it has taken pride of place in my collection.

This was the first album recorded by the "classic" line up, with Lee Kerslake (drums), and Gary Thain (bass), completing the quintet. Ken Hensley was now fully installed as the main composer with the band, and had just entered his "fantasy" phase. These were the final pieces which would see the band creating it's finest works.

The album is supremely melodic, and much less "'eavy" than previous albums. The opening track, "The wizard" is an acoustic number, which finds David Byron in his best vocal form. "Easy Livin'" is wonderful three minute burst of driving rock, with everything turned up to 11. The Hammond organ and lead guitar combine with a great bass line from Thain, to provide the basis for this brief masterpiece. "Circle of hands" is similar in structure to "July Morning" from the previous album, with a repeating instrumental conclusion.

The closing two part track "Paradise/The spell", is awesome. It is two separate pieces, which happen to combine well together. "Paradise" is a soft acoustic number, on which Byron and Hensley alternate the vocals on the repeating choruses. "The spell" was in many ways a predecessor for Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". It has a complex structure with a multitude of vocal styles, and time changes a plenty. The centre point is a choral backed slide guitar solo by Hensley, which on its own would have made an excellent single in the "Sylvia" (Focus) vein. It sends shivers up my spine every time I hear it.

Had the other tracks appeared on any other album, I would have been listing them individually with glowing praise. I'm sure you get the message though, this album is the pinnacle, a work of pure genius.

In another moment of inspiration, Roger Dean was asked to design the excellent cover, which looks so much better on the gatefold sleeve of an LP.

The recently released deluxe remaster has 5 bonus tracks including an extended version of "Why". An edited version of this track was released as a single B side, but other than that, this absolute gem was for many years generally unavailable.

Hey hey hey . am I in the right space?? Where am I? URIAH HEEP! Is it a prog band? .. Uhm .. uhm .. ahem ahem . their SALISBURY album is definitely a prog rock music and it's wonderful. But "Demon's and Wizards" is a prog album????? Give me a break, guys!! C'mon .!

Well, I don't care really. The fact is that I love this band. Be it a rock or pop group but I like their music. But I never dare to say that this band is a prog band except SALISBURY album. And to me, this one album does not justify to conclude this band as a prog band. LUCIFER's FRIEND is much prog compared to URIAH HEEP. I think. I may be wrong. What is prog, anyway???

Let's stop the discussion on music boundary and talk straight about this album. Definitely this album is a masterpiece (wheter it is prog or not) musically. Even, this album represents my first introduction to rock music in my "right-placed" childhood, altogether with "Fools" (DEEP PURPLE), "I can See Him In The Morning" (GRAND FUNK RAILROAD) , "Hobo" (LUCIFER'S FRIEND) and "Space Shanty" (KHAN). My childhood days were filled by the music of that band in my school spirit. I was more excited listening to rock music than going to school, really. "Demons and Wizards" blew my mind, the whole album!

The acoustic guitar part of "The Wizard" had colored my childhood really. As I kept repeating my cassette of this album in 1972, my mom (then 45) also loved this band. "He was the wizard of a thousand kings ." wow! What a nice voice! I enjoy this album track by track and never miss any track. Their music is simple but able to create an intense musical nuances. The voice of David Byron is really good. "Traveler in Time" is an energetic song. It'll cheer up your day. "Easy Livin'" is also an upbeat rock music with great organ punch along the track. Hey, if you listen to this track, observe how the bass guitar is played. It's amazing Gary Thain man! (You should also listen to KEEF HARTLEY BAND's "Half Breed" as well). This song has been covered by many bands recently, includes ex ROYAL HUNT's singer DC COOPER. "Somewhere along the lonely road / I had tried to find you / Day after day on that windy road / I had walked behind you".

All other tracks are equally excellent tracks. I also like "Circle of Hands" which has a touchy organ intro followed by nice lyric "Circle of hands/ cold spirits plan / Searching my land for an enemy / Came across love's sweet cost / And in the face of beauty / Evil was lost". Really good. Well, I don't want to dwell into more details as it consumes your time reading it. JUST BUY THIS CD. You would hardly regret on your decision. Don't let your mind associate this band with PINK FLOYD, YES, ELP, or KING CRIMSON. Almost all tracks are straight forward hard rock music with great vocal, unique guitar sound, excellent bass, punchy organ sound. Mick Box guitar playing style and Byron's singing style that make this band unique. I give FIVE STAR is not of the prog (or non-prog) nature of their music. But this album is a masterpiece for rock music.

What do you think? - Gatot Widayanto, Indonesia.

At last the circle closed and Uriah Heep presented an album with their classical (and best) lineup. I won't talk about the operatic voice of David Byron, the complex Mick Box and the amazing keyboards skills of Ken Hensley who does magic with his powerful B3 Hammond Organ because I mentioned them in a previous review, so let's go with the newbies.

Lee Kerslake is far from having a perfect drumming style, but with that power he needs nothing more, specially when working the rhythm section with a bassist that has enough class and style for ten guys and that's the case of Gary Thain, one of the best bass players in Rock history (I'm not talking only about prog' but about all rock), Gary did in a couple of years what other musicians don't achieve in a life time, his early death was a total waste of talent.

After the brilliant "Look at Yourself" it was a hard task for the band to do something even close in quality, but with the help of the new members the band's level rise very much and even though the previous album is my sentimental favorite, must accept Uriah Heep's sound evolved very much in "Demons and Wizards".

"The Wizard" is a soft start for a very strong album; a power ballad that begins with a beautiful acoustic guitar and it's followed by sober vocals with complex chorus. Even though it's soft and calm, the track shows enough strength, the keyboards support the track in a delightful way.

"Traveller in Time" has a more progressive approach, starts aggressive and violent, but suddenly softens when the high vocals by David make their entrance, the song keeps changing rhythm and timing during the 3:26 minutes it lasts, Mick Box's Wah-Wah guitar is unbelievable

"Easy Living" is the first typical Uriah Heep frantic song the beautiful vocals and chorus blend with the aggressive keyboard and guitars, the sound of bells give a special and mystical touch to a very short track that I always wished would have lasted at least 10 minutes, simply perfect.

"Poets Justice" has one of the best vocal and drums intro I ever heard by prog/metal band, the bass by Gary Thain is absolutely unique instead of only providing support for rhythm section, Gary goes a step beyond and plays a special part of the lead melody. This is what makes the difference between an excellent bass player and a virtuoso.

"Circle of Hands" starts with Ken's Hammond B3 at it's maximum and with a splendid percussion support by Lee Kerslake, who is extremely precise. David Byron's voice sounds strangely calmed and low toned (for him) proving he was a complete vocalist and not only a singer limited to extremely high ranges. Mick Box also plays a special role with his guitar chords.

"Rainbow Demon" is a darker track that always frightened me a bit, the mysterious keyboards added to the almost percussive chorus and David's unique voice; create an obscure sound that situates the listener in a dungeon atmosphere.

Won't talk too much about "All my Life" because it's the only disappointing track of the album, 2:46 minutes of a promising introduction that never fully develops.

Paradise and The Spell are two different tracks that are united in what I like to see as a 12.42 minutes epic, because they fit together perfectly. The first section (or track for the purists) is Paradise, a soft acoustic ballad well balanced by an excellent percussion where Byron and Hensley take turns on the lead vocals as if they were in a dialogue, while this track is fading you can listen the first notes of "The Spell", one of the first things that can be noticed after the vocal based introduction is a very pleasant piano section not common in Uriah Heep followed by Mick's guitar and very complex vocal combinations that are way ahead of the time the album was released. Again the extremely beautiful piano can be heard but this time is progressively joined by David vocals and the rest of the band as to prepare for the fast ending, the perfect closer for an almost perfect album.

Of course the album will not be complete without the excellent art cover by Roger Dean, which I had the luck to find in a garage sell as a big poster version already framed and protected with a glass, that has a special place in my bedroom.

Uriah Heep presents at this point their definitive lineup at their peak but "Look At Yourself" still remains being my all-time Heep favorite release.

"Demons and Wizards" is a true gem that every music lover must own.

Demonically bad Prog, but Wizard Hard Rock!

The dilemma; Do I choose the two star option, meaning for collectors/fans only, or the three star, meaning Good, but non-essential.

The truth is that neither are accurate since, as we are contemplating progressive rock here, this album is not a good progressive rock album, neither is it for collectors of prog.

Before I upset the Uriah Heep fans, of which, understandably, there are many, it must be noted that beyond the Roger Dean cover, Demons and Wizards references in the odd track, and the imaginative vocal "choirs", there is no prog here - but there is superb classic rock!

The Wizard starts with a simple 3-chord acoustic intro on a D-tuned guitar, and does nothing more than repeat the chord progression with a fuzzed guitar and organ until the chorus, a Zeppelin-esque riff around 2 chords. There's a nice breakbeat, which, together with the Heep "choir" is the only distinction between this and vanilla rock a la Status Quo.

Traveller in Time begins with another Zeppelin riff, which is quite a jolt after the previous track, removing any notion that we might be listening to a concept album of any kind as the cover would suggest. The bridge passage provides a nice oasis of contrast - but then we hear some bluff presented as a guitar/keyboard solo - I only hope this is tongue in cheek! The overall effect is nice, but falls over when subjected to any analysis.

Easy Living is a pop/rock song. Great, driving, hard - probably the best track on the album, but a pop/rock song. I love it - especially those walkie bass-lines and bells (no whistles though!!).

Poet's Justice, well, does poetry no justice at all. If ever there was a weakness on this album, it's the lyrics. Again, when taken in Spinal Tap mode, no harm done - but for anyone used to the pyrotechnica of Gabriel, Fish or Hammill, this is not for you! Basic chord progressions are used with another good breakbeat and walkie bass lines - and that wonderful organ texture which is a constant throughout these songs. The twin guitar soloing is fairly pointless, leads to sections of bluff and lacks drama and the track as a whole seems to meander despite the decorations. Hit skip.

Circle of Hands; now we're starting to enter prog territory - it's over 5 minutes! Simple organ intro leads to an interestingly broken break beat and sustained chords which are nicely atmospheric - until we are subjected to those lyrics. "Sky full of eyes, minds full of lies..." "We must prepare the way or pretty soon we'll pay" "Today is only yesterday's tomorrow". Ugh!. A guitar solo covers some new ground rather than exploring the old - wise decision really, except that there is little dynamic. We are treated to another one of these later, and I start feeling like a thug kicking a spaniel. I really shouldn't be analysing any of this - there's no substance, and certainly no prog.

However, take the prog hat off, and suddenly I'm listening to the original Spinal Tap! All I need now is an 18 inch model of Stonehenge and a few dwarves. Wonderful rock with imaginative "orchestrations" - although by today's standards not particularly heavy!

ENJOY - but don't make the same mistake as me and go taking it seriously! If you like this, you'll like Deep Purple even better ;0)

Easily one of the most over-rated albums of all time. The first of the widely acclaimed classic line-up with the fifth drummer( in four albums ) Kerslake and Thain filling in for Newton on bass. Regarding this subject , I am one of those that liked better Newton better than Thain especially on the backing vocals as he helped Byron better than his replacement did : I find some chorus line on this album really irksome On the plus side the drummer problem is soved as he will stay for a while as well as Thain , but his drugs problem will get him kicked out and then the bassist will become the revolving position in the late 70's . Until 79 , the line-up will stay relatively stable but t will be a disaster in the Black Sabbath way in the 80's.

On the whole , this album is not quite that good (apart from the Dean cover ) and if you take away highligfht Easy Livin' and Rainbow Demon , this is a very average album full of hints towards their very close sounding foes Deep Purple. On the other side , with the remaster comes in a real gem : the long version of Why. Easily surpasses anything on the original album.

Lighter in style than look At Yourself but still a worthy Heep album for any collection. The sleeve by Roger Dean also contributes to the final package as some vinyl did from an artists perspective.Uriah heep were still at that stage where attrition of band members had not reared it's ugly head. The album in the main has some solid material on most notably, Traveller In Time, Circle Of hands and the closer The Spell. Hensley penned songs come across strongest here. 1972 was a good year for UH fans and this is a worthy addition to any Heep fan.

" He was the wizard of a thousand kings And a chance to meet him one night wondering He told me tales and he drank my wine Me and my magic man kinda feelin`fine........"

Introduced with these wonderful lyrics wiith an acoustic guitar accopianment sets the rhe stage for this phenomenal prog album. Keyboardist Ken Hensley is in his finest hours on the Hammond Organ. Although the band took many subsequent musical directions as a result of personel changes as did many prog bands did in the 70`s this is a true prog classic with immaginative lyrics, a Roger Dean cover and great keyboard/ guitar interaction. If you do not have this one you don`t have a complete and comprehenshive prog library.Essenstial.

At this point in their career Uriah Heep had gone relatively unnoticed and unappreciated by the music buying masses, and they were unfairly criticized by the so called critics. This album became their stepping stone to rock and roll immortality. Demons And Wizards showed the world just what they were capable of and then some. They found the right mixture of progressive rock to hang on to their core audience and just enough mainstream sound to have a hit single to put them over the top to get them the exposure to a new audience that they so desperately needed. This album offered an awesome combination that proved unequivocally that they were here to stay, and it allowed them to dig in their heels to become on of the best rock bands in the world. They already were one of the best; it just took this album for more people to notice.

"The Wizard" starts things off with a nice rhythmic acoustic guitar that works its way up to full-fledged rocker complete with swirling organ, pumping rhythm section, and big fat power chords on lead guitar. UH sounded metal, gothic, and progressive all in one fell swoop on this track. It was an exciting blood pumping start, and the energy would be maintained steadily throughout the recording session. "Easy Livin" was the first big hit single that raised some eyebrows and turned some heads. UH was on their way. "Circle Of Hands" and "Paradise/The Spell" are both prog-rock classics given a new sound that's fresh and full of vibrancy. This is an extraordinary remaster by Castle and Sanctuary Records that to date has no equal. It's such a nice tribute to the band and befitting their crowning achievement. I think there were many more albums before this one that deserved as much attention, although it's hard to argue just how important this release was to the group's place in history and their continuing popularity. I listened very closely several times to this and I don't remember it sounding so good. I had the vinyl version back in the seventies and enjoyed it; this goes beyond anything I could have hoped for. No doubt this has to fall into the top 100 rock and roll albums of all time.

Uriah Heep has been around since 1969 and have had some thirty musicians over the years playing under the banner of Uriah Heep. They have recorded some twenty albums in the intervening thirty-four years of which the first four were extremely good, the following two were very good but the quality of the next two mediocre, at which point I stopped buying their albums. If any of their newer albums are good I do not know, though I suspect not.

Heep was a very prolific band at first, having released five albums from 1970 through 1972. This was when Heep was at their peak. After one more decent release in 1973, when Heep got their first top twenty hit, "Stealin" they seem to have hit a brick wall. Whether musically the public's tastes changed or Heep had a creative block, they never again reached the peaks they had achieved in the early seventies.

Of course they had plenty of material from those first five years and continued to tour in one form or another, mostly on the strength of the material their first six albums, including the fourth and most Heep fans favorite, Demons and Wizards.

Demons and Wizards

Demons and wizards is the album that secured Uriah Heep's reputation as a master of gothic-influenced heavy metal. From short, sharp rock songs to lengthy, musically dense epics. With Demons and Wizards, Uriah Heep appears to run the gamut, seemingly covering all the bases with style and power, from soft rock to hard rock to progressive rock, while embarking on a voyage into fantasy and mythology.

The lead off tune "The Wizard": sets the stage by starting as a simple acoustic tune, building into a melodic rocker that surges forth on a wall of sound built from thick guitar riffs, churchy organ, and operatic vocal harmonies, often giving chills along the way. "The Wizard" is a gentle semi-acoustic ballad that recounts a night-time meeting with "a wizard of a thousand kings... he told me tales and he drank my wine." It is only as the song progresses that we realize that the wizard is within us all, the wise "voices in our hearts" that so few people listen to, but which whisper the secrets of happiness and freedom regardless. This may be the most popular of all UH's music. It's just too bad it's not longer than three minutes.

Other highlights include "Traveller in Time," a fantasy-themed rocker built on thick wah- wah guitar riffs, UH's very first top forty single, "Easy Livin" peaking at #39 in July 1972, a punchy hard driving number that left fans breathless on their tours and "Circle of Hands," a noble sounding power ballad with a gospel-meets-heavy Hammond meets heavy metal feel to it, a six and a half minute masterpiece.

Some think However, the top highlight of the album is the closing medley of "Paradise" and "The Spell", the first part of the medley starts in an atmospheric, melancholy, acoustic mode and slowly adds layers of organ and electric guitar until it becomes a forceful slow-tempo rocker, eventually segueing into part two, a punchy, organ-led rocker that includes an instrumental midsection where choral-style harmonies fortify an exquisite, Floydian style guitar solo from Mick Box.

CONCLUSION

Demons and Wizards works well both as a showcase for Uriah Heep's instrumental prowess and a a primary display of their songwriting skills in a variety of rock styles. Demons and Wizards is considered by many fans to be their finest work and is definitely worth a spin for anyone with an interest in 1970s heavy metal with prog influences.

Although it was an immensely popular album among HEEP/Heads, Demons and Wizards is not, in my opinion, a particularly great album. It is, an average to good album with several average songs but happening to contain three of HEEP's all time best songs (some would say four or five with Easy Livin and Paradise)

Even so, the presence of three to five of Uriah Heep's best songs makes it a must have for HEEP fans or even Quasi-Heep fans.

This seems to be the most appreciated URIAH HEEP album, but for me "Salisbury" and "Magician's Birthday" left the impressions of being a bit better albums. The A-side of the LP is wonderful, solemn "Circle of Hands" being the highlight here for me, but somehow the B-side sounded bit more duller to my ears. Maybe I should give that side another spin some day. I have this album as a vinyl so I haven't heard the bonus tracks, which might be interesting to hear. As an anecdote I recall Roger Dean mentioned in some his books that the original painting of this album cover was destroyed in a fire.

Ah ...Uriah Heep: the first Progressive Rock Band I ever knew about. Or ARE they Progressive Rock? With the knowledge that this topic has been debated before- I won't go into detail. All I can say is that some of their songs are prog and some aren't. They vary. However they are definitely classic 70s rock and a great inspiration in general.

The Wizard: This is a calming acoustic ballad. The way it's formatted is generic but it's a good simple singalong rock-song. Not really prog. "..And help the people to feel free again." There is definitely an overtone of hippy-ish optimism in some of Uriah Heep's songs. And during the chorus we hear, for the first time in the album, the lovely David Byron's ability to sound like a GIRL! You can't deny the 'we've-just-been- castrated' "Ah"s that this band like to put in many of their pieces...singing together in harmony. (When I first heard 'Bird of Prey' I had a habit of referring to it as the Castration Song...probably much to my Uriah Heep-crazy boyfriend's annoyance but I couldn't care less- listen to it and you'll see what I mean!) Just one note about David Byron: to me, he is the lord and master of all things beautiful in the male singing-voice. His blue-blood accent adds clarity- as does the way he sings long resonating notes with good vibrato. From low notes to the highest falsetto- this man stretched the masculine voice to its' full extent. In all honesty- I much prefer David Byron-era UH in comparison with their later music.

Traveller in Time: Smashing beginning! I enjoy the range of techniques they use (eg: a wah-wah pedal from Mick Box's guitar.) According to the lyrics- this is a very optimistic album indeed. Creative drumming from Lee Kerslake. There's a phrase that pops up in many of this band's songs: "I'm a man..." Stating the obvious about ones' gender...is this hyper-masculinity, homoeroticism or a battle again'st an identity crisis? I'll leave you to come up with your own hypothersis on that one. I love the guitar as it plays towards the end...but Byron's whining towards the end sounds horribly like Axle from Guns n' Roses! One of his rare 'lesser' moments.

Easy Livin': I don't see what's so fantastic about this 'hit'- it's more for the generation who lived their youth in the 70s maybe. Ken Hensley on the organ and Kerslake on the drums are thumping like a train all the way through this track. Again- a large amount of falsetto to the ding-dong of a bell at the bridge. Yes- I am indeed at liberty to use the term 'bridge' for this track...this song is definitely not prog.

Poet's Justice: I, personally, love this one. You tend to love a song that you can relate to the lyrics of. All sing with their characteristic "Ah"s like a choir at the start- melody always going UP in the verse. This is a gorgeous lovesong: "The half of me is all of her, I'd be much happier if I were whole." Very sexy distorted electric-guitar work in this too. Sure the format of this song prooves that it's not prog- but it's still a damn good song!

Circle of Hands: This is a rather boring song. It's not completely bad- it just doesn't do anything for me. The reason why is a sub-conscious one. But David Byron is the highlight of this song- if anything needs to be largely applauded in it. The organ chords remain solemn and everything else is a constant recurring beat. Things get better after the bridge- one again there's a head-banging guitar solo. Squeaky guitar effects and tinkling piano at the end - the whole track was leading up to this bit!

Rainbow Demon: The beginning of this reminds me of Ritchie Blackmore's 'Rainbow' album. This is a very hard track to get into because the melodies have been heard before. David Byron is still the main attraction. The bass also plays a good part in this organ-dominated song. That's Gary Thain for you- a fantastic musician while he still lived. He was also a kiwi- something for me to actually be proud of my country for!

All my Life: An extremely SHORT song for all the happy-and-horny blokes out there to relate/sing to. "I wanna make-love and it's gotta be you!" Cute. Gotta love the guitar work the whole way through: it may be repetitive but it's the way Mick Box, Henley and Thain work together on this one riff that really makes it as good as it gets. This song has a fast-paced verse but a slow choir-like chorus. Again Byron sounds like he's just been kicked in the nuts. Close to the end he improvises and sings as if he's being slapped constantly in the face. The man basks in his own torture!

Paradise/ The Spell: Quintessential UH- this song is, most sincerely, the masterpiece of the album. It's also definitely Progressive Rock for you!-due to the length of the song and the changes in tempo and melody throughout it. Firstly we hear a gentle and romantic acoustic ballad. Soft, husky singing goes in beautiful contrast with Byron's strong and clear voice. In contrast with the last song- the theme of this song is that his girlfriend has just dumped him. I love the changes in feeling seen in this song: from 'How could you do this to me darling?' to 'f*ck you- I'll manage without you'. (My ex is still going through this changing-of-emotions phase... poor guy.) This song captures the essence of human emotions quite vividly by using this technique. The changes build-up, firstly, at "What's the use, you turned me loose and left me here to die." One hears a repeating melody but the drumming, organ and guitar build up to a 'chant'. As this fades-out- a happier song drifts in over it. It's a cute dancing-style piano and organ. Apparantly "Darkness" (is Byron's) "tool". *giggle* Could Uriah Heep have been early 'goths'? The 'Darkness' imagery is also used in 'The Magician's Birthday'..see- this is pure evidence that 'The Darkness' were indeed inspired by Uriah Heep! (Hawkins really does love to take the piss out of 70s falsetto, doesn't he.) The sad melody comes back again abruptly as the piano plays a solemn chordal progression and the guitar takes over- emphasizing the feeling of a VERY depressed man as it improvises. The piano highlights this even more and as it changes to a major key- it's enough to make me cry: "The morning sun will warm away what you have done and leave you cold." From then on the piano takes the lead above all the other instruments- till the transition back to the happy, dancing organ chords that we heard before and the falsetto-sung melody. The end is a bit too happy for my liking- it takes away the authenticity and sincerity of the song. (Or maybe that's just me being a tad too 'feminine'.) It ends on a major key that it rises to as Byron sings: "...everyday that I'll be watching YOU!"

In conclusion: Uriah Heep are fun to listen to- their music conveys the type of rock n' roll you still get nowadays sung by hot, talented, lazy, shaggable men of a questionable sexuality..not that I think they were hot back then. In fact they all looked like poodles to me.....ANYWAY- on the other hand, some of their songs can be so easy- listening that they don't really capture me as something to care about if they weren't on a Prog-Rock site. But....They have their moments. They DEFINITELY had their moments!

I was 11 when this album came out in 1972. At age 15 I did a music presentation on Uriah Heep to my high school class. Someone else did Queen, another pupil did Be Bop Deluxe and I think Cockney Rebel were also put forward for our classmates perusal. I'm sure I was the only Heep fan at my high school so my peers were in for a treat. I chose 4 tracks in the time allocated to me and 2 of them came from this album, 'The Wizard' and 'Easy Livin'. Both tracks came in at roughly 3 minutes each and represented different aspects of the band. The two of them featured the excellent vocals of David Byron, however the first was more acoustically driven (powerful nonetheless) and the latter was pure ROCK - a classic, timeless slab of pure adrenalin-injected R-O-C-K. Heep were always the uncool, less fashionable brethern of Deep Purple, and it'so unfair that they never reached the heights of Blackmore and his legions. 'Rainbow Demon' is a more menacing track than the two I chose all those years ago - it has a hypnotic quality about it, and features excellent guitar from Mick Box. Mick was a hero of mine when I was young. His solo from the title track of the album 'Magician's Birthday' is probably my favourite heavy rock guitar solo. I feel he, like the band, never got the recognition he truly deserved. The albums second track, 'Traveller in Time' is a great track, it has superb organ on it, as do many of the tracks on here (especially Easy Livin'). Ken Hensley was a superb keyboard player, easily on a par with Jon Lord, and he also played guitar and percussion. Many years later Hensley would join Blackfoot, and he was a multi-talented addition to them, but Heep was his true home and along with Box and Byron he was responsible for many Heep classics. This album is a good place for the Heep novice to check out. I haven't discussed all the tracks found here - go on that journey for yourself with the knowledge that you won't be disappointed. I'm thrilled to say that I haven't discussed whether or not Heep are prog. Lets just say that I'm glad they are in here, and that YOU, my classmates of today, are in for a treat.

It is almost inexplicable why Uriah Heep never achieved major success in the Americas. The band, and particularly this album, had all the prerequisites for the New World market: highly melodic songs, intricate arrangements, but most importantly – the ability to flat-out rock, led by the gravity-defying vocals of the late David Byron. In fact, it was mostly the stoners that could be found with a Uriah Heep 8-track in their car in America back in the 70s though, or at least that was the case in my part of the country.

Too bad, because this is a band with a fascinating (and at times morbid) history, and widely rumored to be much of the inspiration for the Spinal Tap movies of the 80s. For my money Demons and Wizards is their best studio album. There is an impressive range of styles demonstrated here, from progressive to metal to pseudo-classical to art rock fantasy music, to 60s throwback. With a few minor exceptions, the production is also top-notch – there are a couple of feedback glitches in Circle of Hands that are a tad distracting, but that’s about it.

Byron’s voice on “The Wizard” pretty much set the bar for all art and metal rock male vocalists that followed in my opinion. His sense of both melody and timbre are almost breathtaking. The music itself isn’t very complex, with just some strumming guitar, mildly whining keyboards, and basic drums. Byron’s vocals are clearly the difference making this song work. The wizard would of course become a recurring character for the band, and this song became an instant signature sound.

“Traveller in Time” is also not a particularly complex tune, but the keyboards give it a much richer feel than what the rhythm section is able to do. This is a song that sounds dated now, but was very much in the vein of the Byrds, and even a little bit of early Aerosmith. The sound off this song was copied a lot by many bands in the later 70s.

“Easy Livin’” is the most energetic and most recognizable song in the Heep catalog. The Hammond organ, simple percussion, and driving bass-drum rhythm are still infectious today. This is a three minute blast of energy that should have propelled them to permanent stardom. Interestingly, this was by far their biggest hit in America, but not in Europe. The style is much closer to blues-based hard rock or even metal than it is to a progressive sound.

“Poet’s Justice” is another slightly bluesy song, particularly with Byron’s vocals. This is typical blue-collar rock from the early 70s, distinguished largely by the fantasy theme and a couple of interesting tempos changeups.

“Circle of Hands” is one of the more ambitious tracks on the album. From the opening somber Hammond chords, to the mystic one-liners (“skies full of eyes, minds full of lies”, “cold spirits plan, searching the land for an enemy”), this has the feel of a tale of an epic journey. It isn’t really, more of a kind of Blues Image or Joe Cocker hippy tune, but the extended play and heavy organ give it a bit more substance than similar music that was en vogue at the time.

“Rainbow Demon” is another heavy, moody song, and this one is complete with mystic lyrics telling the tale of the rainbow warrior. This one is all heavy organ and bass, with some somber vocals that would have made Ronnie James Dio proud.

The short “All My Life” is pure blues guitar with very little organ, and is a song that was almost definitely intended for live performances. This is a love-you-at-least-for-tonight song of unbridled lust, with some vocal gyrations by Byron and a freakish but harmonic all-male vocal backing that makes this kind of a fun song to listen to.

“Paradise” isn’t really paradise at all, more like a sad, gloomy breakup ballad. This is a partially acoustic number, with Byron wrapping his voice in a gentle echo that gives this a more tender feel, but also serves to make it sound quite dated now. This is a nice song, but not really typical Heep fare.

I’m not sure what the band was trying to achieve with “The Spell”, a seven and a half minute tirade about some scheming witch who is apparently plotting destruction –

“Seems I made it just in time to use my reason and my rhyme to save us from the evils of your mind;

I will cast the spell, be sure I'll cast it well. I will light a fire kindled with desire - I'll fill you with fear, so you know I'm here –

and I won't be treated like a fool”.

Apparently whoever pissed off Byron in ‘paradise’ is still after him. This isn’t really a progressive type of song either, but the extended piano tracks, spacey vocals, and complex drums makes it feel like a profound statement, which is good enough, I suppose. The honky-tonk piano ending is a bit odd though.

Demons and Wizards is a solid offering from the band, and one of their most recognizable albums. They get an extra nod for the excellent Roger Dean album cover as well. These guys will never go down in history as one of the progressive rock giants of their era, but this is a highly melodic album, easy to listen to, and a great example of the blend of art rock and blues from the early 70s. Four stars is the right way to rate it.

peace

Apart from their "Uriah Heep Live January 1973" album, I think that this is their most important album, because at last they had a very good line-up with new members drummer Lee Kerslake and bassist Gary Thain. This line-up was the most popular and with this line-up they were at their peak, IMO. Also this album has one of their best songs, "Circle of Hands", maybe the most important song among their Fans everywhere. This album also has other important songs from URIAH HEEP: "Easy Livin`" (with great bass playing by Gary Thain), "Traveller in Time", "The Wizard" (composed and recorded with bassist Mark Clarke, who stayed in the band for a few months before Thain joined the band) and "The Spell". Their next studio album, "The Magician`s Birthday" , also was very important, but I prefer this album.

"Demons and Wizards" is my favourite Uriah Heep item: being an enthusiastic prog- head myself, I find myself quite appealed by the special dose of prog textures and ornaments that Hensley, Box and co. managed to instill into their melodic hard rock. This band has always leaned closer to the line of work of Deep Purple than to your average symphonic prog band from the UK by then. Yet, unlike their more virtuoso Purple neighbours, this band wasn't afraid to explore their hard rock essence and develop various artistic strategies in order to enrich the basic melodic ideas of the compositions. This album incarnates this tendency in its ultimate expression within the band's long discography. The entry of the golden rhythm section of Kerslake and Thain couldn't have been more timely: their well-oiled compenetration was obviously an asset for the band's maturity, patently achieved in this album. The acoustic ballad 'The Wizard' kicks off the album with full splendor: this number bears an amazing strength despite its predominantly acoustic basis and slow tempo, and the choral arrangements really help to keep things majestic. 'Traveler in Time' also bears a distinct melodic approach, which I wish had been developed further: I feel that it might as well be more expanded, lasted a bit longer and equal the vibrant colorfulness of another melodic rocker, 'Poet's Justice'. Now, this one is properly developed, including a well-ordained sequence of lead vocal lines and choral companions, solid organ playing, effective guitar leads and an inventive rhythm section work. 'Traveler' stays just very good as it is, but 'Poet's' manages to go to more places under a similiar frame. 'Easy Livin'' is a beautiful simple rocker with a captivating hook: this time the organ is a vibrant accomplice for the blues-rock rhythm section, including the occasional Baroque-like adornments. The most frivolous number in the album is 'All My Life', which mostly serves as a jolly relief among the most ambitious pieces. These are tracks 5, 6 and 8-9. 'Circle of Hands' is one of the most emotionally charged Hensley compositions ever. Singer Byron captures Hensley's meditative mood and makes it his own in a moving manner. Going for a more sinister mood, albeit moderate, is 'Rainbow Demon', which sounds to me like DP through a Genesis filter. Finally, the epic duet of 'Paradise' and 'The Spell' closes down the album with due bombast. 'Paradise' starts as a blatantly reflective acoustic ballad that softly incorporates somber organ textures while approaching the end. This feels accurate for the fade-out, which is when the fade-in brings the rockier 'The Spell'. This one includes an amazing eerie interlude lead by the slide guitar solo and a chorale (rather influenced by PF's suite 'Atom Heart Mother'), introduced and followed by beautiful piano chords. The reprise of the initial rocking motif ends things in an energetic way. Simply put, this albums shows Uriah Heep at their best.

Demons and Wizards is the album where Uriah Heep goes more toward progressive rock than heavy metal and the songs are not so heavy influenced, though they still are heavy influenced. There is a song divided in two parts and that has almost 13 minutes, continuing the tradition of a long song and even the cover which was made by Roger Dean.

The first song is the beautiful ballad The Wizard with great acoustic guitar riff, excellent keyboard effects and great singing. Traveller in Time comes attached to The Wizard and shows a great guitar riff and falsetto vocals in part of the song. This song is harder as it is the next, the famous Easy Livin', with stunning guitar and organ riff.

Then comes the beautiful Poet's Justice, with good vocals, guitar and keyboards and the next is the fantastic Circle of Hands, with dreamy Hammond Organ work, great singing and beautiful double-guitar solo. This is one of the most beautiful Uriah Heep songs.

Then comes the hard Rainbow Demon with one of the best Hammond Organ tones I've ever heard, with haunty sounds and great vocal interpretation. All my life is a short song piano driven, very upbeat and then comes the stunning Paradise/The Spell, being the first acoustic oriented with good lyrics and vocal arrangement and the second starts with great piano and good singing, being an interpretation of the characters mentioned in the lyrics and then one of the most beautiful slide guitar solos I've ever heard acompained by great piano work, with lots of variations and so on.

The album is as good as all the Uriah Heep albums from the same age and with more prog than hard. It is a good start for non-UH fans.

For the very time in four records, the opener of this one is not at the same level of the Heep's good habits. "The Wizzard" is just an acoustic average track : it would have fit better on "Salisbury". If I would have been involved in the management, no doubt that I should have selected "Traveller in Time" to do the job. It would have been a lot better. For those of you who are too young to have known this period (the early seventies), you must know that when we entered a record shop to buy a disc, there was one pick-up controlled by the owner to play the music we were going to buy. Most of the time we got 30 sec. of the first tune to make up our minds. So in this case ...

I like very much "Traveller In Time". Not too violent, catchy melody and some nice (but short) intrumental breaks at the end. A kaleidoscope of a typical Uriah Heep song, actually. Thus, very good...

Then, we get "Easy Livin" (the track, of course...). This song was my entry one to the Heep's catalogue. How many times did I hear it on the radio in those glorious days ? I can't tell ! It is an extraordinary song. Incredible rythm : the Heep really at his best : fabulous backing band, great Byron of course (as usual should I say), Hensley pumping his organ like a ... demon. One of my top five fave from the band. IMO, this studio version has never been equalled in live performance. The definite highlight (maybe an extended version with some guitar and organ breaks would have been even greater...).

Next song "Poet's Justice" is fully in-line with the mood of the album : rocking (but not too hard), nice melody but not a lot of instrumentals.A good track.

With the next song, we enter again in the legendary tracks of the Heep : "Circle of Hands" will be another live favorite. Full of Byron's emotion (great back vocals as well), impressive bass and great Box's solo. It ends up in a bombastic vocal and guitar combination : brilliant. The second highlight of course and a great way to close side one of this good album.

"Rainbow Demon" is another good hard rock song like. A bit scary and mysterious. Somewhat heavier (thanks to the great Hensley) than the other tracks so far. It is on par with the previous numbers (except the opener). "All My Life" a short hard tune which is deeply inspired by "I'm Coming On" from Ten Year After (on the album "Watt" in 1970). The excercise of playing both songs one after the other will reveal this with no ambiguity. The Heep keeps on with the good work...

The last track "Paradise / The Spell" could have been a mini-suite (still over twelve minutes though !). Each part being rather different. While the first one (just over five minutes) is an acoustic ballad (similar to the opening number), part two is a rather complex number. An absolute jewel of inspired vocals, wonderful guitar breaks, Mick sounding very passionate. This guitar part is very emotional (arghhh). The vocal harmonies of the last part are absouletely magical. The song ends like it has started : like a good old rock'n'roll song. I would have expected a more bombastic finale though. It ends up a bit abruptedly and I'm really lacking some "grandeur" to close this album. "The Spell" is the third highlight.

IMO, both parts are not at all compatible and the transition between one another is quite awful. I consider this really as two separate tracks.

This album is not as hard-rock oriented as "Look At Yourself" (I agree it was difficult to reach the violence contained in this album) : the Heep offers here a somewhat more harmonious effort and a softer approach to hard-rock music. This tendency will be even more investigated in their next effort. Hensley keys while always present are not so dominent as in their previous release which is my favourite one from Heep. More backing than leading on this one. Still, it is a must have for all Heep's fans (as most of their previous works actually).

This album keeps on with the tradition of their very good albums so far. Four stars.

"Although the titles would suggest it, there is no magic in it - it's just a collection of our songs we had a good time recording". Humble words by Ken Hensley, the keyboardist & main composer of Uriah Heep. Magic or not, this album made Heep big globally. I first listened and partly taped it some 16 years ago, never been very deeply into this band. Now I'm having a 2003 edition on my hands, and all the praises of how everything came together perfectly with this "definitive desert island classic rock album" make me a bit bored. I agree with Sean Trane on the fact that it's quite overrated - though more so by 'classic rock' enthusiasts than by progheads; here in PA it's not even the highest rated Heep. And that pretty much summarizes what's the music about. Masculine and havin'-a-good-time hard rock with a recognizable own sound, not TOO arty to suite for a large audience. Is there anyone who has never heard at least 'Easy Livin'?

Of course I'm not saying that the fast-rolling hit with the famous organ riff gives a right picture about the whole album. There are variety to the songs and the production is really succesful; why argue, this IS a Classic Rock Album par excellence. I really enjoy the relaxed opener 'The Wizard'. And the final pair of songs 'Paradise/The Spell' have very great moments. But in between there frankly could be a bit less organ and a bit more progressivity in the compositions to keep me in spell. On the other hand, considering that hard rock is not my field in general, it must be noted that every minute of this album is completely listenable to me.

Since I saw no descriptions of bonus tracks on previous reviews I try to give some. 'Why' was originally a single's B-side and here is a 10-minute version of that very good Heep song. It's not any prog epic and yet not even a minute too long! 'Rainbow Demon' single cut: the album song in a slightly shorter form. 'Proud Words on a Dusty Shelf' (Mick Box called it 'Brown Turds on a Rusty Elf') wouldn't have much improved the original album, but it ended up being a title track of Ken Hensley's solo work. 'Home Again To You' and 'Green Eye': the text refers to the latter as "a heavy little Hammond number" and I don't have anything to say about either of them. Let's say the bonuses are in a middle class of bonus materials, certainly not any embarassing half-baked demo stuff as on many YES albums for example, neither any hidden gems, except maybe 'Why' comes close. Naturally the 20-page leaflet does its best to justify the words "expanded de-luxe edition". Even Roger Dean has his say about the cover art - which is among my favourites.

THE CLASSIC URIAH HEEP ALBUM!

Where all the pieces of the puzzle fit perfectly! DEMONS AND WIZARDS is considered the definitive URIAH HEEP album by many, including myself. Also this is the beginning of the ''classic'' line-up with the arrival of LEE KERSLAKE on drums and the late GARY THAIN on bass. My guess it was named the ''classic'' line-up because the 2 new members arrived at the time the popularity was starting to peak up at this time as i think NEWTON and CLARKE did also a great job on LOOK AT YOURSELF. So we can say it was perfect timing for mrs KERSLAKE and THAIN to join.

First thing you notice of course is the superb sleeve artwork designed by no less Mr ROGER DEAN of YES fame. One of the most beautiful covers ever made in my opinion. Does it mean URIAH HEEP is going back to progworld?? not exactly! The sound of course is definitely less brutal than on LOOK AT YOURSELF! there is more refinement, more subdued sounds, more and more great vocal harmonies, but most important an absolutely first class songwriting.

KEN HENSLEY is (almost) completely in charge of the music writings and it shows; the guitar of MICK BOX is taking a back seat, not too many ferocious solos, he is mostly playing harmonious notes getting along with the flow of the song. Of course, the hammond is everywhere like a wall of sound, but at least it is not overwhelming the rest of the band (not yet)

What do we have here? mostly mid-tempo songs, some even acoustic like the opener ''The wizard'' and gentle rockers like ''Traveller in time'' ''all my life''or the big hit, the wonderful ''Easy Livin''.

There is also a 12mn epic in 2 parts/ ''Paradise/the spell'' which is the highlight of the album with a great build-up and of course, magnificent, gorgeous, powerful vocals of mr BYRON followed by one of the most wonderful guitar solo i have ever heard.No,No nothing technical or flashy , just an emotional beautiful solo to give you goosebumps all over your body , even 35 years later!

I wouldn't be complete if i didn't mention also the power of beautiful songs like ''Rainbow Demon'' and especially the gorgeous ''CIrcle of hands''. Thanks, Ken Hensley to have come up with songs like that, thanks, David Byron to sing them so well.

An absolute masterpiece: URIAH HEEP at its peak

5 STARS only as i can't give more 5 STARS

A magical album in every way, a true masterpiece of prog, one of the best Uriah Heep albums, and one of the best of the '70. To me is the second best after Look at yourself. I will not describe every track but The wizard and Circle of hands are the best here, the rest are also good, on the other hand, 2 members arrived, Lee Kerslake on drums and the bassist Gary Thain, and this line up remains like on this album for next 2 and a half years till Wonderworld inclusive. What to add, just listen and feel the magic of Demons & Wizards, for sure a masterpice, to me a classic of music in general, 5 stars. Recommended.

Wizards at work

Masters of the heavy and humble, Uriah Heep return after their masterpieces Salisbury and Look At Yourself with this superb offering. Heavy on the guitar and voice, this is a piece of prog best described as heavy. Though it may go through changes in pace and mood it certainly is an album best described as upbeat and as many others have noted, magical. David Byron's voice mixes well with the acoustic and electric guitars with his shrill shrieks and otherwise high-pitched singing as he belts out the fantasy flavored lyrics that power the music. Propelled often by rocking and memorable riffs, other times by pressing or floating keys the music gives off quite a catchy feel. This is rock and roll taken to a heavier side with an extremely large dose of progressive leaning.

It's very easy to see where this band would inspire later and heavier acts to pick up their axes and get out there to travel time, the music is invigorating with a heavy victorious feel thanks to the winding riffs and upbeat feel mentioned before. This is not an album to listen to if you're looking for something dark and evil, because this is an album that while heavy, is certainly for the people who like a story over top of their guitar solos. Organ and keyboards also lend heavily to the mood of the album during the more dark moments of the album which really help to add that progressive feel to the album.

In terms of music there's a nice variety to the tracks. Tracks like the hard rocking keyboard and very distorted guitar driven Easy Livin' inspires head banging (despite it's laid back name) while others such as the opening The Wizard and the later Circle Of Hands are a bit more directed towards the soft acoustic. The tracks segue incredibly well as the band seems to have an ear for placement since there's never a time where the momentum slows down, even during the more mellow tracks.

The final two tracks on the album are the ones that dominate. Paradise/The Spell can be taken as one song as suggested by the cd version of the album which combines the tracks into one. Like most prog behemoth tracks, this one encapsulates the entire album in one song. Starting with a slow acoustic bit the song makes good use of the vocals until the song picks up coming into The Spell segment of the song when the guitars start to get heavier and then the keys come in to wipe out the dark feeling and replace it with that upbeat tempo that we've been used to on the album thus far. Vocals reach a new high (pitch wise) and the organs just keep driving the track. Very well done.

A very good track from a band which any heavy prog fan should check out. Heck, anyone who likes a heavy and upbeat album with a fantasy feel will just be delighted with this release. Highly recommended, this is certainly a great release which, if the band's style appeals to you, you'll be sure to listen to at some point. 4 stars! Excellent addition to your collection.

Quite a landmark album, and very important for prog music (radical progheads will cringe at this). The fantasy themes are here for the first time and UH was the first major band to use this kind of subject that I can remember. It´d influence many other artists in the future, both in prog and heavy metal. And, as a band, they reached their peak here and on The Magician´s Birthday.

With the addition of Gary Thain on bass and Lee Kerslake on drums, the group finally found the right line up and the perfect overall sound. What was promising in the past was now fully delivered. The chemistry was perfect and I must say that Thain is one of the most underrated bassist is rock history. The guy was simply amazing, with a style that reminds of Paul McCartney (fluid, melodic, filling all the gaps, amazing!). Ken Hensley has always pointed how important he was to form the classic UH sound and often cited him as the best musician the band ever had. Too bad th guy wa also very shy and addicted to heroin. But that´s another story.

Teh music is also amazing and influential over the years. There are no weak tunes and the sound is quite unique. Personally I found Circle Of hands, Easy Livin´and the Wizard the most remarkable songs, but everything fits very well, with the fantastic Roger Dean cover to wrap up the perfect album.

Like Bob wrote, it´s not easy to write about this album without passion. It was one of the most important rock albums in history and if the band never really got the recognition they deserve it was not their fault. This is a truly prog album, in the deep (and subtle) meaning of the concept. And although I still think The magician´s Birthday is better, this is a classic, a masterpiece. And a must have in any prog music collection. Five stars.

After the progressive Salisbury and the more straightforward hard rock of Look At Yourself, Uriah Heep came up with this one. The material is pretty strong here and the Roger Dean artwork (though looking a bit unfinished) contributes to giving this album a conceptual feel. The presence of acoustic numbers like The Wizard and Paradise completes the sound that Uriah Heep has become most remembered for.

Still, this is far from the masterpiece it is sometimes claimed to be. The production is far from perfect with the sound coming of as muddy at times. The vocals are very problematic; David Byron cannot comfortably reach the high notes he aspires to and some passages are quite painful to these ears. The lyrics are often rather childish and naïve, as are some of the arrangements. But the lyrical simplicity actually contributes something to the charm of the album. Indeed, this album might even be partly responsible for the association of hard rock with fantasy-themes like wizards, rainbows and demons.

The strongest aspect of the album is its apparent consistency. Only All My Life stands out as really weak and this song also features David Byron's unbearable out-of-tune- screams. But this low point is better hidden on this album then the worst songs on many other Uriah Heep albums.

The high point of the whole album for me is the extended slide-guitar solo on The Spell; Uriah Heep almost never came closer to Symphonic Prog than they did here. This is hardly Steve Howe, but it has something of his style.

Demons And Wizards could have been a great album with better production and more effort in the vocal department. Still it is something of an unpolished gem, though a much unpolished gem.

Demons and Wizards is the first album from the classic Uriah Heep's line-up; and it is obvious the best period in Uriah Heep's history with Demons and Wizards and The Magician's Birthday being the best albums by the band. What about Demons and Wizards??? This is really fascinating album with clear sound and irreproachable songwriting in every little song on the release! I must mark the variety in the musicianship on the album. Each instrument make that we need of. The bass works are incredible here. Gary Thain bring in new fresh sound to the band. All other guys are in top form, too! After the mixed sound from the first album and the harder sound from the second and the third albums, here we can hear the beginning of the psychedelic sound in Uriah Heep's history. All songs = magic!

Even considering the final extended track, there is very little progressive about this album. For the most part, it consists of straightforward rock and roll, with by and large outrageously simple chord progressions, uninteresting melodies, and precious few instrumental moments to speak of aside from a usually well-performed guitar solo. I have come to terms with the fact that I really do not like the lead singer much at all; David Byron's high-pitched squealing is very much present on this album, and it just sounds terrible no matter how many times I try to appreciate it, and much of the falsetto vocals sound amateurish and unpleasant. There are a few very good moments to the album, but not many, and nothing terribly magical.

"The Wizard" A combination of straightforward acoustic rock with strange vocal effects on the tail ends of the stanzas begins the album.

"Traveller in Time" Like quite a bit of the music on this album, this song sounds like Three Dog Night if they had become a hard rock outfit. It ventures between falsetto and belted vocals. At times, the wah effect on the guitar sounds really out of place.

"Easy Livin'" The organ and overdriven electric guitar build a heavy wall of sound over the steady bass and competent drumming. For once, the high-pitched vocals are not annoying, and actually serve the music well.

"Poet's Justice" For the most part, this song is very strong, with pummeled drums and crunchy guitar. The vocal harmonies are some of the strongest on the album. Some heavily panned dual lead guitar works over the sturdy beat, interspersed by some of the best organ work on the album.

"Circle of Hands" More pleasantly gritty organ follows on this track. The vocals are generally restrained and pleasant, and the guitar does not disappoint. The bass guitar stands out a bit, with little fills thrown in here and there. The final segment of the song, while repetitive, is decent enough and for some reason reminds me of ELO a little bit.

"Rainbow Demon" Here is one with (again) more satisfying organ, but rather than being another a song loaded with driving drums and raging electric guitar, this has a sinisterly somber feel. The guitar solo growls along, Mick Box heavy-handed on his whammy bar.

"All My Life" The music picks back up with a fast and original guitar riff, but the music becomes typical classic rock fare. The screeching and imitation tremolo at the end is insanely ridiculous and destroys whatever credibility this song may have had with me.

"Paradise / The Spell" This track begins with a pleasant acoustic guitar and equally pleasant vocals and backing instrumentation, but is a fairly repetitive song. At the same time it fades out, the second, jauntier section fades in, which sounds absolutely horrific. It has some bad falsetto singing and really weak lyrics ("I will cast the spell; be sure I cast it well"). The guitar over the choir and the subsequent piano-led section that follows are two of those very good moments I mentioned earlier, though.

Well i have to agree with febus, this is "The classic URIAH HEEP album".I've never been a big fan of this band but this is the album i keep around so i can spin it once in a while.Ken Hensley states: "Somebody left a space between our last American tour and our European trip and we used literally every second to put "Demons And Wizards" together".He goes on to tell how much fun they had doing this.This formula seemed to work perfectly for URIAH HEEP as this album would turn out to be their most popular. "The Wizard" opens with acoustic guitar before vocals then a fuller sound arrive.Fantastic sound when it kicks in. "Traveller In Time" hits the ground running then settles quickly.These contrasts continue.Some nice instrumental work after 2 1/2 minutes to end it. "Easy Livin" for some reason makes me think of the name Bob.Hmmm. Anyway this is the shortest track on here but it's full of energy and organ. "Poet's Justice" opens with some excellent drumming before settling with vocals.I like the bass and organ as well.Guitar 2 1/2 minutes takes the spotlight. "Circle Of Hands" opens with some great sounding organ.The drums and bass then kick in followed by vocals after a minute.Love the powerful undercurrent that comes and goes.Piano late. "Rainbow Demon" is dark with organ as reserved vocals come in.It picks up 1 1/2 minutes in as the chorus arrives.Some nasty organ here and some good guitar before 3 1/2 minutes. "All My Life" is another short and catchy tune like "Easy Livin" but the vocals are much more passionate at times. "Paradise/The Spell" opens with strummed guitar with drums and bass.Reserved vocals before a minute.It's darker 3 1/2 minutes in,great sound here.A change after 5 minutes as it turns uptempo with piano.Guitar and vocal melodies 7 1/2 minutes in.Vocals are back 9 1/2 minutes in then it turns uptempo with piano again 11 1/2 minutes in to end it. 4 stars for this their best album.

Demons and Wizards is the fourth full-length studio album by UK progressive hard rock act Uriah Heep. The album turned out to be the band´s break-through in the US and it is to date their best-selling album in the US.

The music is semi-progressive organ and guitar driven hard rock. Great vocals and vocal harmonies grace the album throughout. as with both Salisbury (1971) and Look at Yourself the album features both hard rocking tracks and more semi-progressive ones too. The short rocker Easy Livin' became quite a big hit and it´s easy to see why IMO. What a powerful rocker. The album is pretty varied though and all compositions are strong. I also grealy appreciate the heavy Rainbow demon. An example of the progressive sides of the band´s sound can be found in the last couple of minutes of Circle Of Hands. As usual the strong and skillful vocals by David Byron impress me greatly. What a set of pipes on that man.

Demons and Wizards is another greatly enjoyable album by Uriah Heep and a 4 star rating is deserved.