I saw them in Evansville, Indiana back then. The Heep opened for 3 Dog Night! Stupid promoter.
Uriah Heep got 3 standing O’s and the audience wanted more! 3 Dog Night came on to a chorus of boo’s and it continued for 2 songs when 3 Dog Night told the crowd to F-off and walked off the stage. Stupid promoter.
Uriah Heep had quite a night that evening. I bet they still remember it as a band.
Yeah, that sort of thing happened to them on more than one occasion. Sometimes Heep simply blew away the crowd who was there mainly for the headliner, and then the main act couldn’t match them! They were that good, at their best, before the drugs, booze, and constant touring wore ‘em down. (David Byron, especially.) By the time I saw them in concert, with Blue Oyster Cult opening for Heep, B.O.C. was the better band live. But even then, Heep would kick out a darn good tune now and then. “Free Me” was a big hit in Europe.
After Mick Box reconstituted the band in 1981-2 they put the live show back together (it helps to have a lead singer who’s not become a hopeless alcoholic) and supplemented the loss of Hensley’s writing by doing some excellent covers here and there (”Prisoner”, “On the Rebound”, etc.) along with some pretty good stuff of their own (”Rollin’ the Rock”). Since then the writing has remained “variable”, with an occasional pleasant surprise, but I’ll say this for ‘em, they are hanging in there.
Rollin’ the Rock seems appropriate, what with Easter coming up:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBpcPK54hiw