SALISBURY

Uriah Heep's second album is undoubtedly their most progressive and a huge step forward from their debut. The first side starts with an excellent rocker with trademark Byron vocals (how Dream Theater could have done with him!). The Park is more subtle and jazzy, with some unusually understated guitar but Time to Live is fine but not really up to the standard of the rest. Lady in Black is their best song - driven by massed acoustic guitars, with great vocals and a memorable set of lyrics. High Priestess is back to good solid hard rock before the main event (and is much better than Simon the Bullet Freak which was its replacement on the version of the album I had in Canada).

Salisbury is the only really extended piece Heep did, accompanied by an orchestral wind/brass section. There are excellent solos by Hensley and Box, driving rhythms (despite not yet having acquired the classic Kerslake/Thain rhythm section, Baker and Newton do a good job) and nice changes of pace and mood. Byrons vocals are exceptional. A genuinely interesting piece of prog.

Overall, this is a very, very good album; probably Heep's best by a small margin, though the three that followed all come close. The original cover artwork is also very poignant, given what happens on Salisbury Plain.

A seemingly underrated band on this site, Heep deserve more attention than they get. This album is a great example of why.