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Uriah Heep: Head First

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Mercury Records
Released: 1983.05.01
Time:
 37:21
Category: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal
Producer(s): Ashley Howe
Rating:
Media type: CD
Web address: www.uriah-heep.com
Appears with:
Purchase date: 2012
Price in €: 1,00





 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] The Other Side of Midnight (Box/Daisley/Goalby/Kerslake/Sinclair) - 3.55
[2] Stay on Top (Jackson) - 3.35
[3] Lonely Nights (Adams/Vallance) - 4.07
[4] Sweet Talk (Box/Daisley/Goalby/Sinclair/Kerslake/Sinclair) - 3.51
[5] Love is Blind (Zito) - 3.38
[6] Roll-Overture (Box/Daisley/Goalby/Sinclair) - 2.18
[7] Red Lights (Box/Daisley/Goalby/Sinclair) - 2.57
[8] Rollin' the Rock (Box/Daisley/Goalby/Sinclair) - 5.31
[9] Straight Through the Heart (Box/Daisley/Goalby/Sinclair/Kerslake) - 3.39
[10] Weekend Warriors (Box/Daisley/Goalby/Sinclair/Kerslake)  - 3.50

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Mick Box - Guitars, Vocals
Bob Daisley - Bass
Peter Goalby - Vocals
Lee Kerslake - Drums, Percussion, Vocals
John Sinclair - Keyboards, Synthesizer, Vocals
Frank Ricotti - Percussion on [6]

Ashley Howe - Engineer, Producer
Nick Rogers - Engineer, Mixing
Keith Richard Nixon - Engineer
Robert M. Corich - Coordination, Remastering, Research
Mike Brown - Remastering
Lorraine Bromley - Project Coordinator
Mick Carpenter - Project Coordinator
Fin Costello - Photography
Albert de Gouveia - Reissue Design
Peter Goodfellow - Illustrations
Martin Poole - Art Direction, Cover Photo

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


Recorded in January-March 1983, at The Manor Studio, Oxfordshire, England, and The Roundhouse, London



After rising from the ashes with 1982's impressive Abominog, Uriah Heep continued to pursue a similar combination of heavy metal firepower and AOR sleekness on Head First. This album lacks the consistently strong tunes and unified feel of its predecessor, but it still offers enough highlights to make it worth a listen. Head First does best when it concentrates on songs that evenly balance power chords and pop hooks: "The Other Side of Midnight" cleverly balances a boisterous pop-tinged melody built on a pulsating bassline with plenty of powerful guitar riffing while "Weekend Warriors" layers its shout-along chorus over a slick rock backing that fuses programmed synthesizer lines with high-flying guitar work and relentless double-time drumming from the ever-reliable Lee Kerslake. However, Head First occasionally loses the plot when it strays from this balancing act: "Love Is Blind" works too hard to ape AOR conventions and comes off sounding faceless as a result, while "Roll-Overture" is an ornate prog instrumental that doesn't really fit in with the rest of the album due to its lack of hooks and guitar riffs. The album also runs into problems in the lyrical department due to its overt AOR-styled reliance on the travails of love as its main subject matter (see "Sweet Talk" and "Love Is Blind"). Despite these occasional shortcomings, Head First manages to work, thanks to its consistent high level of energy. Even at its poppiest, the album throbs with guitar-fuelled energy: for a good example look no further than the band's cover of Bryan Adams' "Lonely Nights," where the poppish quality of the melody is boosted into the hard rock stratosphere by a lengthy succession of guitar riffs and a relentless backbeat. In the end, Head First's adherence to AOR stylings may turn off some hard rock fans but there is enough energetic, well-crafted music here to please anyone who liked Abominog.

Donald A. Guarisco - All Music Guide



"Head First" was Uriah Heep's 15th studio album and it was released in May 1983. This is the 2nd album album that featured the critically acclaimed line-up: Peter Goalby; Mick Box; Bob Daisley; John Sinclair; Lee Kerslake. The band one more chance to get back on top. "Abominog" was highly successful, charting in many countries, and it was praised by the critical press. The band's style had been recaptured and recovered, and it seemed like there was no way back now. With "Abominog", the traditional fans finally had something to cheer for, and the constant failure of the band's previous albums seemed to had been forgotten. "Head First" was produced by Ashley Howe and he tried to rebuild the style and the success that was found in "Abominog". This album, then, is the natural successor to "Abominog". So it would have just as good as the band's previous album. Or even better, actually. Well, it's not.

Don't get me wrong. This album is actually pleasant to listen to. There are no unapologetically bad tracks, but only few tracks can be considered good. The band remained faithful to its roots, styles and ambitions and the musicians show some energy and motivation. Peter Goalby continued to display his great voice, Mick Box and Bob Daisley were very consistent throughout the album and there was a real connection between the members of the band. However, the final product is somewhat disappointing, for a simple reason: the first three songs of the album are very good and solid, but from then on the songs don't have the powerful energy and dynamic they needed to be considered good. "Head First" just lacks in consistency, that's all...

- {As I have already mentioned} - The first three songs of the album are great and they're very consistent. The album's opener, "The Other Side Of Midnight", is perhaps the best song of them all. There is an amazing relationship between the musicians, especially between Mick Box and Bob Daisley, as they have a great connection throughout the song. Goalby's powerful voice is perfect for the song, especially in the magnificent chorus. Once again, Mick Box shows up with an excellent solo, and he proves to be truly inspired. "The Other Side Of Midnight" just has a special groove. "Stay On Top" follows the opener's groove. It's very funky and catchy, and there is one more catchy chorus. Bob Daisley proves to be a great bassist, because he plays with style, rhythm and passion. While the first two songs are very stepped up, "Lonely Nights" calms the pace of the album for a moment. It is very "poppy", but it's easy to listen to, and, once more, the musicians seem very inspired. Sadly, throughout the album, the situation's different...

Oddly enough, there are great musical moments throughout the entire album. But, if you rule out the first three songs, there aren't any more great songs. "Sweet Talk" is one of those songs. The introduction is very disappointing, because the organ riffs are weird. When the guitar kicks in, the song gets slightly better, but then the chorus is somewhat silly and sobering. "Sweet Talk" doesn't make us happy or even thrilled, it's boring and it gets annoying and tiresome. "Red Lights" also has the same problems. The production seems to be unfocused and rushed. Initially, the song is very powerful and catchy, but the chorus is embarrassingly messy and the song gets very repetitive, because they keep shouting "red lights" over and over again... "Rollin' The Rock" has a slow start, and after a while the song gets boring. The chorus changes the pace of the song, but it doesn't have anything to do with the rest of the song. Besides, it's incredibly overplayed. Most of the songs have good musical moments, and the band is apparently motivated and focused, but they just aren't that captivating or thrilling.

Overall, "Head First", the band's 15th studio album, is somewhat inconsistent. The members of the band were very relaxed and laid-back and they were ready to solidify their roots, but they failed to make an album that strongly convinced the ones that still wanted to see the band. However, this is an album that had to be made. Otherwise, the band would just release another crappy, disco-influenced album. The mistakes of the past had certainly been erased, and they were slowly recapturing their style. The album pleased the fans because of that same factor. The band was old, but they had a renewed strength.

Reviewby Daniel - July 7th, 201
Copyright 2005-2014 Sputnikmusic.com



Head First was the 15th studio album from British progressive rock band Uriah Heep. It was released in 1983, on Gerry Bron's UK label Bronze Records.

The album was recorded by the line-up responsible for the previous year's Abominog, but this time with a greater proportion of the songs written by the band members. Bob Daisley left the group shortly after the album's recording to rejoin Ozzy Osbourne; on the Head First tour former Heep bassist Trevor Bolder rejoined the band, effectively replacing his replacement, and remained with the band until his death in 2013.

Though Head First was deemed to be a worthy successor to Abominog by critics such as Geoff Barton, it suffered from a lack of promotion as Bronze went into liquidation the month after its release.

Video footage of the tour, from a show in New Zealand, was heavily featured on the longform video Easy Livin': A History Of Uriah Heep. In Japan only, this was also released on laserdisc.

Wikipedia.org
 

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