Uriah Heep: He Was The Wizard

CD 1 = 27.27 5 outtakes from "Very Eavy Very Umble".CD 2 = 38.15 5 outtakes from "Salisbury".CD 3 = 28.34 5 outtakes from "Look At Yourself".All above 15 tracks from the DVD "Gold From Tne Byron Era" the 2004 release from Classic Rock Productions.CD 4 = 72.19 From the CD" King Biscuit Flower Hour live in San Diego 1974" but missing the 5.42 minute Drum Solo track ( very strange).CD 5 = 62.14 From the "Live At Shepperton 74" cd without the 4 outtakes tracks ( I went along to the 3 hour recording at Shepperton via the fan club) , but with 20 minutes and 45 seconds from a USA TV show recorded in New York City back in 1973 (listed as Fillmore East but that venue closed down in 1971)CD 6 = 61.04 Another USA TV recording (24 minutes) this time from 1975, and the last 37 minutes is from the Pink Pop Festival in Holland Recorded on the 7th June 1976 (3 days later I went along to my last ever David Bryron gig with Uriah Heep at Ipswich) The vocal is down in the mix and July Morning is just over 4 minutes long.Good value at just £14.99p but a little hit and miss in sound quality.

Incredible value. If you're a fan of the Byron era there is very little wrong here. I would disagree with some posts, the sound quality is just great. The live discs are enjoyable and not at all boot leg quality. I have a 72 Munster bootleg which is shocking compared to this release!The first three discs are my favourite, they contain all 15 tracks from Gold from the Byron era minus the surround sound mix. This is by no means a bad thing, mixes are very good with slightly differing versions of these tracks to the classic albums. David's voice is as the title of the cd suggests, mesmerising. Highlight tracks, 'Here am I' a version of which is also on the Landsdowne CD, is just beautiful. On 'Time to live' he sounds very like Ian Gillan, not a bad thing. 'Dreammare' is very rocky, Mick's guitar work right on par with David.'Come away Melinda' still takes my breath away, on the vinyl version it's puts two Davids right into your living room, one on each side of the central guitar. Brilliant. Why is David Byron underrated? These songs are easily as good as any track from Machine Head.I only wish there was more.If you can find more pennies, the limited edition vinyl versions of the out take discs sound terrific. Lovely imagery with that warm bassy sound that only vinyl can do. It will take you back to your mis spent childhood playing 'albums' on your Dad's music centre with him shouting at you to be careful not to scratch that real wood veneer.

Love uriah heep,from buying their first album,david byron one of rocks greatest ever front men,This collection though called He was the Wizard,which he was ,no version of the the song The Wizard on any of the 6 discs,surely there must have been at least one version that could have been found,first three discs ,different versions of the best Heep songs most brilliant, each to their own,last three different live versions, disc 6 ,to me is the worst one of the 6, sounds if it was recorded cheaply on a cheap hand held tape deck ,circa 1970s,some people will like disc 6, to me it's ok but better recordings maybe should have been used ,but that's cherry picking, give it a try overall i would give the 6 discs 9/10

Value for money or what £12.99Here we have a 6 cd set of various Uriah Heep Out take and live concertsOk they may not be the best of quality at times but as I’ve often said better than a blank tapeIf you are a Heep fan then this is a must reallyI know some will give it the thumbs down but to get a glimpse back on times gone by with David Bryon is wonderfulAll in all for £12.99 what’s stopping you buy it

It is a good to very good 6 cd set. Early albums make up the firs cd's. The live cd's are good, some recordings are acceptable and some are good, but the live tracks never reach the high level as Live January 1973! For the price it should be welcome to every Heep fan. Normally I give these kind of sets 3 stars, but as a Heep fan I give this set 4 stars!

I was privileged to see this band on their "Look At Yourself" tour and always thought them more of a live band than a studio band. Having said that they have recorded some stunning albums but they were always at their best on stage and was saddened when David Byron died. This is a great tribute to him and the band of this period.

Great compilation of Heep stuff from the early days of this great band. Others write about it in much more detail so I ain't goin' to - just realize that 12.99 is a real steal for 51 tracks by the Heep. What more can ya say unless ya wanna moan a tad about the sound quality, which I ain't gonna do - it's okay with me mates, But then I am very 'umble.A real no brainer, go 'n buy it.

Lots of padding but some real gems. Unfortunately much content was when DB was past his best. Saw him so many times. Absolutely unique. Glad I have added this to my extensive DB/UH collection.