Salisbury

The second Uriah Heep album titled Salisbury provided a nice bridge into what the band was searching for and what the sound would eventually evolve into. Once again a new drummer sits in for one album as Keith Baker joins the band for a short ride. Ken Hensley made major contributions to this LP which stands out on the writing credits, further questioning the credits listed on the first album. Hensley also sang lead vocals on two tracks as well; Lady In Black and High Priestess but no explanation has ever been given' for the reason.

The title track Salisbury featured a 24 piece orchestra with arrangement by John Fiddy. The progressive sound and direction of the style stood out on 16 minute masterpiece. Mick Box once joked that at the point in the song where he cuts on his wah wah pedal you can hear 22 orchestra members throw their headphones on the floor, thus admitting being too loud for the mix. Bird of Prey is the first track on side one but is a different mix of the same song which was released on the first album in the US. The Park, a midlevel epic eerie classic has long since been a favorite among the fan base. Lady In Black however is the track most remembered from the release, a big hit single several different times in Germany it has remained in the set list for over 40 years.

The naming of the album has been the source of many stories, some of them conflicting. Ken Hensley has said that the album title came from the band's anti-war phase. The plains of Salisbury were the site of army training grounds and the tank crushing a flower on the album cover was photographed at Salisbury. Although this explanation seems plausible, another band member stated that Salisbury was dedicated to the fans who helped Heep out of a jam. It seems the story involved a bouncer named Tiny who wouldn't let the band get their equipment after a gig. After the police intervened, Heep were given five minutes to move their equipment and some fans helped the roadies get the job done. According to the story, this gig took place in the town of Salisbury on July 11, 1970. One version of this story involves Mick Box having a scuffle with Tiny because they disagreed over whether the kids' conduct at the gig was acceptable. In this version, the band had to break in to the venue to get their equipment back. Still another version of this story had the kids at the gig with black noses from sniffing shoe polish.

The album itself was released with a different cover and track listing in the US. It's believed Mercury Records rejected the original cover due to the ongoing Vietnam war the US was involved in and they felt it would be taken the wrong way. Salisbury failed to chart in the UK but made the US charts for nine weeks and peeked at # 103. A small yet significant showing that the band was gaining acceptance.

Recorded October/November 1970
Lansdowne Studios, London
Initial release February 1971

(mouseover for alternate cover view)

Original Album Credits:

David Byron: Lead Vocals
Ken Hensley: Organ, Piano, Slide & Acoustic Guitars,
Harpshicord, Vibes and Vocals
Mick Box: Lead Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
Paul Newton: Bass Guitar, Vocals
Keith Baker: Drums

Brass and woodwind on "Salisbury" arranged by John Fiddy

Produced By: Gerry Bron (Hit Records Productions, LTD)
Recording & Mixing Engineer: Peter Gallen
Tape Operators: Ashley Howe & Les Cunningham
Sleeve Design: Bloomsbury Group
EMI Music Publishing Ltd.
©1971 Bronze Records Ltd.

Track Listing: (sample audio files marked in yellow)

Side A:
1. Bird Of Prey (Box / Byron / Hensley / Newton) 4:05
2. The Park (Hensley) 5:38
3. Time To Live (Box / Byron / Hensley) 4:02
4. Lady In Black (Hensley) 4:33

Side B:
1. High Priestess (Hensley) 3:39
2. Salisbury (Box / Byron / Hensley) 16:02

(US version featured High Priestess as track 1 on side A
and Simon The Bullet Freak as track 1 on Side B)

1996 Remaster Bonus Tracks:
Simon The Bullet Freak
High Priestess (single edit)

2003 Re-remaster Bonus Tracks:
Simon The Bullet Freak (US album version)
Here Am I (unreleased version)
Lady In Black (unreleased version)
High Priestess (single edit)
Salisbury (single edit)
The Park (edit)
Time To Live (edit)

Single Releases:

US Salisbury Promo Ad 1971

Bird Of Prey / Thailand	Bird Of Prey / Thailand EP	Lady In Black / France
Lady In Black / Germany [version one]	Lady In Black / Germany [version two]	Lady In Black / Italy [version one]
Lady In Black / Italy [version two]	Lady In Black / Spain	Lady In Black / Turkey
The Park / Thailand	The Park / Thailand EP	The Park / Thailand [single]