Uriah Heep: Former keyboard player Ken Hensley dies aged 75

BBC News ^ | Nov. 5, 2020 | BBC News

[Paul R.]

Former Uriah Heep keyboard player Ken Hensley has died at the age of 75.

Hensley wrote several of the London rock band's early tracks, including Easy Livin', Stealin', and Lady in Black - which he also sang on.

He died "peacefully" on Wednesday evening, following a short illness, his management confirmed.

Former bandmate, Mick Box said his music "will be in people's hearts forever".

[Paul R.]

Damn. Just... Damn. My favorite musician, not for great talent at playing or singing (although he was one of the best / most expressive on slide guitar), but for his often wonderful writing, sometimes in narratives drawing pictures and scenes so vividly they seemed real, even those about Tolkien style fantasies. Ken got in to a lot of the bad stuff the rock 'n roll scene can woo a person with, but eventually became a born again Christian and wrote some very good tunes in that vein, too. I got to meet and talk to him a bit, was privileged to do him a modest favor, and he remembered me for quite some time, to my amazement, sometimes asking about me or just saying "hi" through a 3rd person we both knew and worked with. I'd just sent him a "thank you for all the music" note about a month ago, thinking how he must be chafing at being so cooped up by COVID, when he so loved performing...

Ken's music (and I'll throw in a few of Russ Ballard's solo tunes) got me through some very difficult times.

God Bless you, Ken Hensley. Prayers for your family and friends (I'm 100% sure where Ken is now), and Rest in Peace and Joy.

[Paul R.]

It just doesn’t get much more beautiful than this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9OaMb-2VF0

[Paul R.]

Carry me on your wings, Lord
Carry me on your wings of love
Carry me on your wings, Lord
Carry me from here to there

Carry me on your wings, Lord
Carry me on your wings of peace
Carry me on your wings, Lord
Carry me from here to there

Carry me on your wings, Lord
Carry me on your wings of freedom
Carry me on your wings, Lord
Carry me from here to there

I opened up my heart today
And Jesus was inside
I thanked him for his presence there
And this was His reply

I am here, each and everyday
As you sleep and as you pray
I’ll protect you and I’ll love you
Just believe in me

I opened up my life today
And saw the highs and lows
And I prayed, my God forgive me
For the wrong roads that I chose

He said that’s all behind you now
Through your faith in my own son
So believe in all that you will do
Don’t repeat what you have done

For I’m with you each and every day
As you work and as you play
I’ll protect you and I’ll love you
Just believe in me

I opened up my eyes today
And Christ was all around
And I prayed, Oh Lord give me your song
And his voice came in a sound

I will give you words and melody
If you will give your life to me
And I heard this sweet reminder
Of his promise to me

I’ll protect you and I love you
Just believe in me

[BunnySlippers]

Thanks for posting

[Libloather]

[radu]

Justdamn. I hate to hear of this. I'm a huge Uriah Heep fan and have all their albums. Ken and David Byrom were a great writing team.

I met Ken briefly when he played in Raleigh years ago - - back during his bad boy days. I was so disappointed to meet a flaming jerk that night. You must have been lucky enough to meet him after he became a born again Christian and was a decent human being, not a sloppy drunk.

One song he wrote that he wrote that I've always loved is Lady In Black. It draws the pictures and scenes you mentioned and I love the haunting melody.

A heart-breaking loss.

[LibertyWoman]

What lovely comments.

[mylife]

Mega bummer.

[mylife]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRJiIuDCMI0

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Love Uriah Heep....

[mylife]

Jeezz, back to the days of 8 track tapes

[CrouchingTiger620]

Uriah Heep was my favorite band as a teenager. Was fortunate enough to see them on the 75 tour same as the Uriah Heep Live album, which is still a vintage live record. Up there with the Stones and the Boss in bands I was lucky to see. Amazingly talented with possibly greatest bassist ever, Gary Thain. But Ken was the backbone of the group. My memory of that concert was how can a guy smoke that many cigarettes and still bang the keys. RIP. The music will live. “He was a wizard of a thousand kings”

[Paul R.]

Well... I think I met Ken B4 he’d beat the substance abuse problems. It was right before Blackfoot’s “Vertical Smiles” album was released, but, he seemed fairly sober at the time, and even my friend who was with me commented on what a nice, down to earth guy Ken was. No “I’m a big rock star” pretentiousness at all.

Funny story:

Toward the end of our chance to talk to Ken (he was doing a promo appearance for, of all things, a grocery store opening up!) there was a group of maybe 20 bikers (Blackfoot fans) about 100 feet away, and THEY definitely had been drinking too much. The promo was winding down, then the loud voices got louder and some shoving and pushing began. Ken’s there in his striped pants (pretty easy to pick out the musician!) with just me and my friend at that point: He looks at us, clearly with some apprehension, and says “Oh, what do we do now?” My friend says “Uh, I think we just move this way a little.” So we edged away from the commotion, went around the side of the building, got in our cars and left. :-) I assume he drove back to the Belleville (IL) area, where I think he lived then.

So, I may have gotten a little lucky to not meet Ken “smashed” at that point of his orbit.

Alcohol can do really bad things to certain people: Gerry Bron in an interview talked with a sort of amazement and bewilderment at how alcohol & being a rock star turned David Byron from the nicest young man you’d ever want to meet into a complete “monster”, to quote Bron. Far worse than Ken, he says (while saying Ken in those days was “no angel”!)

At least Hensley finally beat the substance abuse. Too many people don’t.

Great interview here, from just a few weeks ago, where Ken talks about working (and not) with Byron, the band fleshing out his tunes, and a lot more:

https://www.eonmusic.co.uk/ken-hensley-uriah-heep-eonmusic-interview-october-2020.html

[Paul R.]

“Salisbury” is one of the greatest title tracks of all time. I know Ken has criticized it because of the limited recording tech at the time, but, my goodness! What a work! Yet with a bit of humor snuck in. Wah-wah wah-wah wah-wah….

[Paul R.]

Ken back with the band for a reunion concert (as much as could be had with 2 members dead!) The “tomorrow” harmony around 3:45 doesn’t quite work (shoulda’ had the ladies do it?) and they get going a bit too fast, but, GREAT slide guitar work by Hensley toward the end. Check out the singer’s reaction to it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se4YjAV4CZA

[plain talk]

Enjoyed his music back in the day. Didn’t know he had COVID. Thanks for posting.

[Cobraman_SC]

Went to a Uriah Heep concert in ‘75 I think it was, held in a medium size city in central Maine. The backup band was STYX! What a show! Ken was so drunk he fell off the stage at one point. I was a huge Heep fan and never heard of Styx but I turned into a bit more of a Styx fan after that show.

[stockpirate]

Wasn’t a big fan of this band but liked a lot of their music, RIP......

[Lurker]

Uriah Heep was the second band I saw live.

Just damn...

L

[bert]

I find this news to be humbling.