Label: Teichicu Records Co. Ltd. (Japan), TECP-18012
Style: Hard Rock, Hard Pop
Country: London, England
Time: 37:27
Format: Flac Tracks 16/44,1 kHz
Size: 244 Mb
Charts: UK #18, AUS #19, CAN #5, GER #12, AUT #9, NOR #2, SWE #13, US #33, FIN #2, JPN #45. UK: Silver; US: Gold.
You might think they've settled down a bit after giant success of their million seller double live vinyl. No way! Band was heading for another studio release. This time Uriah Heep moved into France for tax purposes. New album called "Sweet Freedom" sounded heavier with colors of and intense shakin' rock'n' roll in songs like Dreamer and R&B oriented Stealin'. "The Magician Birthday" was a pure dreamland, I mean a record where you could fully switch off your conciseness, while entering into world of your dreams. "Sweet Freedom" also contains strong dreamy moments but at the same vein offers more earthly and punchier shapes of rock... and roll than it's predecessor. It strikes very intense right from the start with Dreamer, where David is accompanied with some astonishing guitar lead hooks by Mick with his usual enthusiastic squealing wah wah guitar language. Band did complain a lot over recording conditions in new studio, but with "Sweet Freedom" as band's sixth studio album, Uriah Heep produced the heaviest sound so far.
With passionate band's all time classic Stealin' Urah Heep proved again that composing of smashing hits was always among their strongest trademarks. After short mid tempo rollin' jam One Day, Uriah Heep takes the listener with title track into world of dreams, surely a first atmospheric highlight on a record. Massive chunky Hensley's Hammond dashing and fantastic tender approach of soulful David sourounded with angelic back vocal choir are fantastic counter points which in same vein draw expressive contrasts inside songs and establish many spine-tingling climaxes.
What follows next is fantastic continuing of this high ambinet with If I Had A Time. Well this song was actually written by Hensley back in 1971 and here on this very special re-release it is included among few bonuses as a version performed by Ken on grand piano and lead vocals with a little help from his friends Simon Kirke (Free/ Bad Company) and Paul Kossoff (Free/Back Street Crawler). I was in seventh heaven as a huge Free fan when I found this version included here on this reissue. Funnily enough, but at same time as I bought renewed version of "Sweet Freedom", I also did The Spencer Davies Group re-release of their forth album "Living In A Back Street" where SDG bonus We Can Give It A Try with special guest Gary Thain playing bass guitar is included. A track recorded back in 1974, so in times of Gary's splitting with Uriah Heep.
(full version: firegoat.com/eng/?id=5&d=211)
01. Dreamer (03:43)
02. Stealin' (04:53)
03. One Day (02:47)
04. Sweet Freedom (06:34)
05. If I Had The Time (05:41)
06. Seven Stars (03:51)
07. Circus (02:45)
08. Pilgrim (07:09)
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