Review of Uriah Heep The Ultimate Anthology

Introduction

Alright - I admit it! I spent the first few minutes watching this DVD sniggering like Beavis and Butthead at this collection of long haired, spandex wearing, moustachioed aging rockers in action. Then came the lyrics (generally about witches, demons and wizards wielding mighty swords) and my derisive sniggers broke in to peels of full blown laughter. Some of the lyrics were so totally toe curling that the uppers on my shoes sprung open, splaying tacks into the ceiling of my living room. But that`s just plain cruel …

Uriah Heep have been around for nearly three hundred and fifty years. Well, since the early seventies anyway. I bought one of their albums in 1975 (`Return to Fantasy`) at the encouragement of a friend, but it was a dud. Apparently I should have bought `Demons and Wizards` along with everyone else but the local record store didn`t have it. So I ignored this band for the remainder of the seventies, all of the eighties, all of the nineties, and would have continued to have done so throughout the new millennium had this DVD not arrived on my doorstep.

This DVD (called `Uriah Heep: The Ultimate Anthology`) features no footage from the 1970`s (the groups heyday) or the 1980`s. It`s almost exclusively from two or three notable performances from the last ten years or so. Mick Box, despite looking like an extra from Spinal Tap, turns in some fair performances on lead guitar and is clearly pivotal to the bands continued hardcore (dedicated but small) following.The opening of `July Morning` is a case in point where he offers up a blistering but economical solo. Trevor Bolder (yes - astonishingly he of Spiders of Mars fame) joined Heep on bass in the late 1970`s and obviously felt comfortable enough to stick around for the long haul. He offers a solid and consistent backbone to the Heep extravaganza throughout and even offers up a bass solo that is also pure Spinal Tap.For the audience of dedicated Heep Fans (`Heeps`?) highlights appear to be `The Wizard` and `Sweet Freedom`, but it`s on `Only the Young` that we get a real indication of what the band is capable of live. Half-way through the DVD we get a taste of the Heeps unplugged with `Question` and `Tales`, and these strip the songs down to the bare bones. It`s here that you can hear every word sung with crystal clarity, and without a trace of irony and …whoa! There goes my shoe uppers again…

The set ends here with what the inner sleeve notes describe as a `surprise hit in 1977` called `Lady in Black` and I can see what they mean. It must have been one helluva surprise because this rendition is truly awful.

The band appear to be full of enthusiasm, energy and vitality. They are also proficient musicians to a man. They seem to have a dedicated following of fans who know and sing every word to every song at every gig. This DVD will serve them well. For anyone else, let`s face it …life is short, these songs are long… and there are far better and more innovative musical avenues to explore than these.

Video

Visuals are generally perfectly acceptable. Filmed at a variety of small live venues, it`s pretty standard stuff but reasonably shot on video.

Audio

Audio here is surprisingly good. I guess it`s a testament to the band that they put such effort into their live sound, and these recordings are a fair mix off the desk, but with some of the live atmosphere mixed in too; clearly by someone who knows what they`re doing. For fans of the band I daresay this will represent a real treat. There`s also a choice between DTS (with a bigger, more lively sound) or perfectly serviceable Dolby Digital.

Features

Chapter selection is fine but there are no additional extras on the DVD which maybe a disappointment to Heep fans. The packaging includes an outer card sleeve, as well as a double-sided inner sleeve with transparent amray and a little bit more information about the various tracks.

Conclusion

Uriah Heep have been singing about Witches, Demons and Swords for over thirty years. They seem to have retained a loyal and dedicated following and this disc is for them. For the unconverted I suspect that there is little here to thrill. All shot within the last decade, these aging rockers are prepared to tread the boards in spandex, died blonde mullets ahoy, in a post-Spinal Tap world without any sense of irony. Not for everyone!