Uriah Heep
Look At Yourself

Since tomorrow will be one year since I joined DeBaser, I would like to inaugurate the next 360 days on this site with a great album; from an equally great band: Uriah Heep! I must say that I have only recently started diving into this exuberant band; but enough to know the albums they produced from '70 to '73, and therefore be able to talk about their third work, dated 1971: "Look At Yourself".

Before delving into the maze of this wonderful album, let's take a step back:

In 1970, the Heep entered the studio to record "Very 'Eavy… Very 'Umble", their already mature debut; with a sound already well-established between Hard Rock and Progressive. The manager had already long suggested to the four guys to add a keyboard player to the lineup; and that's how Ken Hensley joined the Heep (he only participated as a performer in the aforementioned debut). With him, the circle of light that would characterize the band until '77 was closed; namely Mick Box, David Byron, and Hensley. The following year came "Salisbury"; a work (especially for the title track) very interesting and dizzying, which leaves room for Prog arrangements and sounds. From this second Heep chapter, you could already notice Ken Hensley's capabilities as a songwriter (not to mention a talented keyboardist and decent guitarist/singer). By the end of '71; the ambassadors of new Rock produced what I consider to be their masterpiece, the aforementioned "Look At Yourself"; and also the album that is motivating me to write this review.

The lineup remains the same as the previous two albums (with the exception of the drummer; a real curse within the Heep lineup, who changed four in just one year!): David Byron on vocals, Mick Box on guitars, Ken Hensley on the black and white keys (sometimes vocals and guitars), Paul Newton on bass, and Ian Clarke (formerly of Cressida; a "here today, gone tomorrow" band of early English Progressive) on drums.

Curious and ingenious the artwork of the cover (here next to the American edition, which as the only difference from the European one has a white background and a different shape of the mirror), which faithfully adheres to the title of the album; and which indeed portrays a mirror with which you can look at yourself (not by chance the album is titled "Look At Yourself", which translated into English means "Look at Yourself").

It begins with the title track; and the wheel starts turning, already at a high speed that will increase more and more throughout the seven tracks that make up the album. Hensley's keyboard gallop that introduces this adrenaline-inducing Hard Rock emphasizes the free and clean singing that he himself sings; which then becomes a central part of everything while the keyboard still wraps us with its precise and confident riff. The "polyphony" of the vocals is goosebump-inducing; overlapped on Hensley's main voice. Yet another keyboard escape (by now I think you've noticed and learned that this first track has the keyboard as its guiding line), with the electric guitar following it in unison; and back to the initial verse. A decent instrumental interlude follows, dominated by guitar and keyboard. Now the percussion comes to the forefront (as so far the drums have kept a rhythm always well-marked and firm), marked by the usual keyboard, and which frantically lead us to the end of the track. "I Wanna Be Free", with its ghostly sweetness, softens the harshness of the previous track. I believe Byron and Hensley are singing; the former an octave higher, the latter an octave lower, all seasoned with an airy and relaxing keyboard accompaniment. Immediately after, everything repeats with a powerful electric guitar accompaniment. Precise and powerful the high notes in the ending by Byron and Hensley.
"July Morning" is a classic of classics for Heep and all music in general. What doesn't it have, this 10:33 composition? The initial Hammond keyboard melody alone is worth the whole piece, not to mention the lyrics, which speak of a man looking for love on a July morning; and after trying over a thousand faces, he hasn't managed to be understood. Almost the entire track is carried by the melody sung by Byron; harmonized by the ever-present keyboard of Hensley. But it is in the finale that something amazing happens that condenses everything developed in the previous minutes; a phraseology of guitar and Hammond keyboard. This mesmerizing, yet emotional phrase to me seems like a piece of Classical music; if you listen very carefully, you can also find it on a record by a not very famous American Prog band: Fireballet (the album is titled "Night On Bald Mountain", and it's nothing more than a modern version of Mussorgsky's work of the same name). Anyway, anyone who knows something is kindly requested to say so.

"Tears In My Eyes"; may at times remind one of Led Zeppelin's "Physical Graffiti", with its distorted electric guitar. A very enveloping and emotionally loaded track; notable the clarity and security of Ian Clarke on drums. Stunning Byron's high notes in the middle, sprinkled with acoustic guitar arpeggios and various electric distortions when the high notes in falsetto eventually fit into them; remarkable also when the piece seems finished but surprising guitar strums start instead, finally returning to the initial verse. "Shadows Of Grief"; in my opinion, another monument of the entire album. Right from the surreal introduction of the keyboard and "ghost" voices that repeat the same notes, a keyboard/guitar riff that maintains throughout the track's duration (8:39). Amazing the duet between keyboard and electric guitar around 2 minutes into the track, which leads to an improvisation among all the instruments with very few equals in Rock music. After the majestic rise of the falsetto choruses, we return to the epic initial riff. "What Should Be Done" is of a seductive sensual charge never heard before; with its slow flow and those seductive piano cadences. To me, an orgasmic piece! "Love Machine"; the last track of the album, is another beautiful Hard Rock.

"Look At Yourself" is a wheel that spins very quickly; enough to leave us dazed and confused when we come down, and moreover, it is the album that takes the characteristics of both first two records and blends them together, creating a sound between Hard Rock, passing through a thin Psychedelic line and finally reaching picturesque splashes of Prog. Often this album has been compared, or rather; set in opposition to "In Rock" by Deep Purple (a huge inspirational source for Heep it must be said), but trust me it isn't so! These are two different dimensions; parallel yes… but with different characteristics.

A recent CD reissue of "Look At Yourself" includes 7 Bonus Tracks; among them: "What's Within My Heart" a melodic and acoustic Out-Take; truly moving and light. "Why" a long and repetitive piece, but tireless; which we'll find again always as a bonus on a reissue of "Demons And Wizards" (the following album) and rearranged with the new lineup. And lastly, it includes single, extended, and Live At BBC versions of some tracks from the original album.