Uriah Heep on Farewell Tour: The Magician’s Farewell
With Black Sabbath and Jethro Tull retired, Deep Purple, Yes, and Uriah Heep remain as the great British pillars of progressive hard rock. Since their debut album Very 'Eavy, Very 'Umble (1970), Uriah Heep have been among the pioneers shaping heavy rock alongside Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin.
During the 1970s, the band broke through with classics such as Demons and Wizards, The Magician’s Birthday, and Sweet Freedom. These albums went gold in the US and established Heep as one of the decade’s most hard-touring rock bands. They became famous for their vocal harmonies – so distinctive they were dubbed “The Beach Boys of Heavy Metal” – and for their blend of Hammond organ and Mick Box’s signature wah-wah guitar.
Despite frequent line-up changes, the band’s success endured. After a downturn in the late 1970s, they made a strong comeback with Abominog in 1982, which put Heep back on the American charts during the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. In 1987, they made history as the first Western rock band to play in Moscow – performing before 180,000 people.
Since then, Uriah Heep have been a global touring act, enjoying particular success in Germany, Scandinavia, Japan, Eastern Europe, and Russia. They have released 25 studio albums and sold over 40 million records, of which 36 million were outside the US – a clear sign of their international impact.
The band’s most stable era began in the late 1980s when keyboardist Phil Lanzon and vocalist Bernie Shaw joined. Together with founding guitarist Mick Box, they formed the core of Uriah Heep for more than three decades. During this period, they not only delivered powerful live shows but also continued to produce relevant new material, including Wake the Sleeper, Into the Wild, Outsider, and Living the Dream (2018).
Now, over 50 years since their beginning, Uriah Heep embark on their grand farewell tour. After inspiring generations of rock bands – from Queen to Ozzy Osbourne – they are finally saying goodbye to their fans. The tour marks both the end of an era that began in 1969 and a celebration of a band that achieved the impossible: staying vital, creative, and touring for five decades.
With classics like “Easy Livin’”, “July Morning”, and “Gypsy” on the setlist, the farewell tour is the last chance to experience Uriah Heep – one of the most influential names in hard rock history.
In Norway, they can be seen for the last time at Oslo Concert Hall, Stavanger Concert Hall, Grieghallen in Bergen, and Olavshallen in Trondheim.
Organiser:
FKP Scorpio Norge AS