North American Tour Reports 

June 15th - West Chicago, Illinios

Synergy !

All Pictures by: Mark Ecclestone

What a great night of Heep! I have been a fan since 1970, when I first heard “Gypsy” on radio station WMMS in Cleveland, Ohio, and have stuck with the lads ever since! I saw them in 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, and 1976 (Byron), 1977 (twice) and 1978 (Lawton) and 1985 (Goalby), however this was my first opportunity to see the “new” classic line-up. By now, you have read several reviews of this concert and know the setlist, so I’d like to offer my highly sundry observations of the evening;

 

1)      Dave Owen is a great guy and the best person to talk to if you are a rabid Heep fan. We had a very spirited trivia contest going until Dave nailed me with “What was the catalogue number of “In Love” B/W “What About the Music””? Needless to say…Dave had the answer.

2)      I bought “Acoustically Driven” from Dave and it has quickly become my favorite Heep product of the past 20 years! Great performances of songs, some of which I have never heard ever performed live before, supported by chorus, strings, a slide guitarist and Ian Anderson! A MUST HAVE!

3)      The crowd was an interesting mix of hardcore fans (Hello Lannis), fans from the 70’s who “heard Heep was in town” and some new people that had come on board in just the last few years. All left impressed and the fact that the Chicago crowd grew from around 500 at Synergy to around 2000 at Brookfield shows that they SPREAD THE WORD!

4)      “Most improved” award must go to Trevor Bolder. I had seen him several times before (Bowie in 1972 (twice) and 1973 and 4 times with Heep) and always found him solid, but this time he was FANTASTIC. Very fast, very melodic, and very inspired! I found myself focusing on his playing many times during the evening.

5)      Finally, Bernie is really a great singer! He doesn’t spend a lot of time on audience rapport, but really pours his heart into all of the material, both old and new. One of the issues that I had with other post-Byron singers was that they sang their current material with emotion, but occasionally gave the Byron-era material perfunctory treatment. Not Bernie.

6)      It’s been said many times before, but Heep are great guys, a pleasure to talk to and appear genuinely thankful for the support of their fans.

 

So that’s about it. Hope that you enjoy my pictures and hope it isn’t another 16 years before I see Heep again!

 

Mark Ecclestone

Chicago, IL USA   

 

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Early on a June morning,we began our "RETURN TO FANTASY" .My girlfriend Brigitte and I ,along with a dear friend Tom,set out from St. Louis to Chicago.It looked like "RAIN" but nothing was stopping us from this much anticipated date in history.We truly felt we were "TRAVELERS IN TIME".

We stopped for breakfast at a nearby Cracker Barrel and upon looking at the menu noticed a dish called a "Sunrise Sampler".We new at this point we were in store for something spcecial.During breakfast we discussed our game plan as well as the fact that there were two opening acts,we asked ourselves a "QUESTION""WHY".

After four hours of HEEP classics we arrived at the venue.The club was very nice,a perfect setting ,very intimate.We looked for a perfect spot to watch the show and decided nowhere better than one foot from the stage!After settling that issue we went downstairs to the bar and
restaurant to chat with fellow Heepsters.

It was only 3pm and the clubwasn't going to open the doors until 9pm.At this point there were onlyabout a dozen or so in the place.After ordering a few beers I look up and spotted Mik,it took a second to register but I called him over to meet my friends.Mik was very cordial and invited us to have a drink after the show! Mik walked away and much to our surprise Bernie walked
through .He came to our table and I wished him happy birthday.Bernie was a totally cool guy .He told us "TALES" as we drank our wine-me and my magic man just feelin fine!Bernie promised us at least an hour and a half show and bid his farewell until after the show.

After years of anticipation suddenly at "THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNITE""I HEAR VOICES"HEEP is on stage.Sure enough we found ourselves directly in front of Mik,about five feet from this magnificent band.The sound was excellent and the band flawless.The set list was the same as previous reviews with the exception of the surprise song of the night "The
Wizard".The crowd was excellent as we sang song after song with the band.

The band was having a blast and looked very pleased.Words cannot describe what HEEP does on stage,the camaraderie and magic among these musicians is truly unbelievable.WOW WHAT A SHOW!!!--As promised we met Mik and the rest of the band about thirty minutes after the gig.What a great bunch of guys,real down to earth and genuine.The band spent at
least an hour and a half answering everyone's questions,signing autographs,taking photos,and listening to their fans.Of course we had to have some photos taken with the band."ALL MY LIFE", I wanted a Mik Box guitar pick,mission accomplished ,I wish "EVERYTHING IN LIFE" was that easy.

If anyone is thinking about catching HEEP on their North American Tour don't think GO!I promise you a concert you will never forget.For those who would like to see the show but can't,the next best thing is the new DVD entitled "The Legend Continues" is the next best
thing."Austically Driven" is also new and available on DVD.It contains many great classics and gives you a different aspect of the band.The true talant of HEEP is even more evident on this "must get CD or DVD.As we left Chicago and headed back to St. Louis we had "TEARS IN OUR
EYES".

All we wanted to do was 

"CELEBRATE"."YOU CAN'T KEEP A GOOD BAND DOWN",LONG LIVE URIAH HEEP!!!!!

BILL,BRIGITTE,AND TOM---TRUE HEEPSTERS FROM ST. LOUIS

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I FINALLY got to see my favorite band at Synergy and man what a show!!!

Before the show my wife and I met many great Heep fans in the downstairs bar and bumped into several during the show. The opening band, Raw Materials, were strictly amateur time and just did luke warm covers of trendy rock tunes. The lead singer looked like he should have been at a prom, NOT opening for Uriah Heep!

The Boyz, on the other hand were very enthusiastic and energetic and are first rate showmen. Their set was way better than I had thought it would be and their drummer was the most manic I've heard since Philthy Phil Taylor of Motorhead! 

On to Heep and what can I say, it was simply the best concert I've ever seen! My wife and I stood front row right in front of the great Mick Box and were blown away! The guy just exudes positive energy and was all smiles and showmanship all set long. Just as they started "Betwwen Two Worlds", I yelled out David Byron and Gary Thain's names and Mick looked right at me, pointed and smiled!! What a moment. After the regular set he came forward and with several groping hands reaching out he sought out my hand and pressed his guitar pick into my palm and smiled--

I guess it was his way of saying thanks for remembering his fallen mates. After the encores he gave that pick to my wife which was too much!!! After the show we shook hands with everyone else and my wife surprised Lee by giving him a kiss on the cheek. Song highlights for me were "Love In Silence", "Sunrise", "Universal Wheels", "Between Two Worlds" and everything else actually! After the show I couldn't hear and my voice was shot after singing along with every song--I wouldn' t have had it any other way. 

On to Brookfest next month!!!!

Mike Shannon

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First of all I would like to say that I was blown away by the show Fridaynight and it's been 17 years since I saw them live. The band was fantasticand even stayed around till the wee hours of the morning talking to usoutside by their bus. They signed autographs and even took pictures with us.

Mick Box is the nicest man to talk to, just like the review in "The LegendContinues" DVD says. Can't wait until July 21st when they will be back inthe area and we will be bringing many more people with us. Mick and I stoodaround for quite awhile talking about our kids and the fact that both of oursons are in bands. What a great bunch of guys! My opinion of this concertis that they sound better than ever and anyone who is an old fan or a new fanof Uriah Heep should not miss this tour.

PS: To Mick - ease up on kissing my wife next time (just kiddin - she loved it)

Mike Rees

Dolton, IL

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Hi All - Didn't have much advance notice that Heep was coming. When I found out, I couldn't believe it.  Synergy is not too far from me. I had been downstairs before, but not in the main club. It's a pretty nice room. Met many new friends while waiting for the show
to begin and during the warm-up acts.

The Boyzz played before Heep and they were pretty good - a regular at Synergy told me they would normally be considered a headliner there. The first band of the
night played covers and I think everyone would have rather had more time for available to TB & UH. Heep was awesome. Everyone was on and the sound was great. I had never seen Bernie in concert and was very much impressed. The band also seemed to have a lot of fun; there was a lot of laughter and smiles all around the room. The song selection was real nice too. 

I stayed after the show for a while and met the group by their bus. They were very friendly and signed the UH Journal which just arrived in the mail two days earlier (I was ready to bring the earlier one anyway!) 

Trevor made a comment about his amp going out. I was right there when it happened (I didn't do nothin'!) and it didn't take long to get him back online. His playing is so perfect I know these things must be a bother to him (it's also not like getting zapped the way Gary Thain did way back when).

All in all, the evening was fantastic. We are planning to get a group together for their return to
Brookfield later this summer. Hope to see everyone there!

Marty Kerlin

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Hi folks !

First off i would like to say i was always a little critical of Bernie shaw, not his stage persona but his voice, not that i ever thought it was bad, but whether it fit!

 Well that has all changed now. He was simply incredible, he has altered his voice in a way that now fits the band (in my opinion) and when the band opened up with "Return to Fantasy" this was going to be something special, "Sunrise" a great choice to bring back to the set, the band was tight as ever and all the harmonies were dead on and, they sure looked like they were having fun !

I have seen bernie shaw before live and, this night his voice seemed strongest out of all the other times i had seen him. "Love in Silence" was another standout too, all in all great show, one of the finest rock bands to see live, see them. (now if we can only keep Trevor's amps from blowing).

Craig Anderson