Oct 2, 2014

RhoDeo 1439 Goldy Rhox 180

Hello, today the 180th post of GoldyRhox, classic pop rock in the darklight are an English rock band formed in London in 1969 and are regarded as one of the seminal hard rock acts of the early 1970s. The band's origins go back to 1967 when 19-year-old guitarist Mick Box formed a Brentwood band called The Stalkers, which began playing in local clubs and pubs. When the band's singer left, drummer Roger Penlington suggested his cousin David Garrick (who knew the band) as a replacement. Box and Garrick instantly formed a songwriting partnership and, having higher musical aspirations than their colleagues, decided to give up their day jobs and go professional. They set up a new band called Spice; it was then that David Garrick changed his second name to Byron. Drummer Alex Napier (born 1947 in Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland) joined, having answered a music paper ad and bassist Paul Newton of The Gods completed the line-up. The four-piece found themselves booked into the Lansdowne Studios in London, still under the name of Spice. Then the name was changed to that of the well-known character from David Copperfield, Uriah Heep (for, according to biographer Kirk Blows, "Dickens' name being everywhere around Christmas '69 due to it being the hundredth anniversary of his death").

The band's progressive/art rock/heavy metal fusion's distinctive features have always included a massive keyboard sound, strong vocal harmonies and (in the early years) David Byron's quasi-operatic vocals. Twelve of the band's albums have made it to the UK Albums Chart (Return to Fantasy reached No. 7 in 1975) while of the fifteen Billboard 200 the band's albums "today's mystery album" was the most successful (#23, 1972). In the late 1970s the band had massive success in Germany, where the "Lady in Black" single was a big hit. Along with Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, today's band had become one of the top bands in the early 1970s - one of "The Big 4" of hard rock.

The band's audience declined by the 1980s, to the point where they became essentially a cult band in the United Kingdom and United States. However, the band maintains a significant following and performs at arena-sized venues in the Balkans, Germany, Japan, Russia and Scandinavia. They have sold over 40 million albums worldwide with over 4 million sales in the U.S

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Most of the albums i 'll post made many millions for the music industry and a lot of what i intend to post still gets repackaged and remastered decades later, squeezing the last drop of profit out of bands that for the most part have ceased to exist long ago, although sometimes they get lured out of the mothballs to do a big bucks gig or tour. Now i'm not as naive to post this kinda music for all to see and have deleted, these will be a black box posts, i'm sorry for those on limited bandwidth but for most of you a gamble will get you a quality rip don't like it, deleting is just 2 clicks...That said i will try to accommodate somewhat and produce some cryptic info on the artist and or album.

Today's mystery album is the fourth album released by British rock mystery band. The album helped the band break to fame and also gave the band its face. It has become a major success worldwide by selling 3 million copies. The original vinyl release was a gatefold sleeve, the front of which was designed by Roger Dean and contains a hidden erotic image of male and female genitalia. The inner of the gatefold had pictures of the band and notes by Ken Hensley, whilst the LP itself was housed in a liner on which were printed the lyrics.

New Zealander Gary Thain, at the time a member of Keef Hartley Band, joined the band 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. Also, the addition of Lee Kerslake (a former bandmate of Hensley's in "The Gods" and "Toe Fat") on drums solidified the rhythm section into a world class powerhouse.
Thus the 'classic' Uriah Heep was formed and, "everything just clicked into place".

The songs "The Wizard" and "Easy Livin'" were released as singles in the United Kingdom and North America, as well as many other markets. "Easy Livin'" entered the US Top 40 at No. 39, making it Heep's first and only American hit. "Easy Livin'" was also a mega hit in the Netherlands and Germany, countries which were becoming a strong market for the band.

This is the album that solidified the band's reputation as a master of gothic-inflected heavy metal. From short, sharp rock songs to lengthy, musically dense epics, today's mystery album finds the group covering all the bases with style and power. The album is today regarded by many fans and critics alike as their best album, often ranked against the preceding Look at Yourself. Here today 2004 remaster with 5 bonus trax...


Goldy Rhox 180   (flac 451mb)

Goldy Rhox 180    (ogg 159mb)


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