''Conquest'' is the thirteenth studio album by English

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band Uriah Heep, released in 1980. It was released worldwide by

Bronze Records Bronze Records was an independent English record label founded in 1971 by record producer Gerry Bron on Oxford Street in London, eventually relocating to Chalk Farm. History Bron had been producing Uriah Heep for Vertigo Records, and he set up ...

; however, the album was never released in North America, where it was difficult to find even as an import. 1979-80 was a period of change for Heep, with

John Sloman John Anthony David Sloman (born 26 April 1957) is best known as the lead vocalist for Welsh band Lone Star during 1977/78 and classic rockers Uriah Heep from 1979 to 1981. Biography Sloman's first band of note was local Cardiff act Trapp ...

taking over lead vocal duties,

Lee Kerslake Lee Gary Kerslake (16 April 1947– 19 September 2020) was an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer and backing vocalist for the rock band Uriah Heep and for his work with Ozzy Osbourne in the early 1980s. Biography Early life a ...

bowing out from behind the drumstool, and main songwriter

Ken Hensley Kenneth William David Hensley (24 August 1945 – 4 November 2020) was an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, best known for his work with Uriah Heep during the 1970s. He wrote or co-wrote the majority of Uriah ...

ultimately leaving the band. Taken together with the commercial rock sound of the album, this is the most contentious era of Uriah Heep's history, with many fans believing ''Conquest'' is the group's worst record. Despite this era being regarded in hindsight as something of a disaster by Hensley as well as

Mick Box Michael Frederick Box (born 9 June 1947) is an English musician who is the lead guitarist of rock group Uriah Heep, having previously been a member of The Stalkers and Spice, both with original Uriah Heep vocalist David Byron.Larkin, Colin (20 ...

, the album did receive some positive reviews at the time, namely a five-star rating from ''

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper between 1954 and 1991 for pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after the ''NME'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK album chart was published in ''Re ...

'' and three-and-a-half stars from

Geoff Barton Geoff Barton (born July 1955) is a British journalist who founded the heavy metal magazine ''Kerrang!'' and was an editor of ''Sounds'' music magazine. He joined ''Sounds'' at the age of 19 after completing a journalism course at the London Col ...

in ''

Sounds In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

''. It also sold well enough to crack the Top 40 of the UK album charts, whereas all three of the band's previous records with John Lawton had failed to chart in the UK at all. The original UK release came in a single, matte LP sleeve, stickered with 'Special 10th Anniversary Price £3.99', with the liner being heavy-stock card, complete with lyrics. It credits Trevor Bolder with vocals on "It Ain't Easy" but it is, in fact, Sloman. The cover photograph, taken by Martin Poole, is based on the famous image of the raising of the second flag at Iwo Jima. "Think It Over" was released as a picture sleeve single to promote the new line-up and tour of late 1980 and features

Gregg Dechert Gregg Dechert (born May 11, 1952, in Listowel, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian keyboardist and guitarist. He was the keyboardist for Uriah Heep between July 1980 and March 1981, replacing Ken Hensley. He also performed keyboards and vocals with Da ...

on keyboards. Originally "Been Hurt" was written for a fourth John Lawton-fronted album. This song was shelved after Lawton's departure. The original version with Lawton on vocals has been released on the remastered version of the ''

Fallen Angel In the Abrahamic religions, fallen angels are angels who were expelled from heaven. The literal term "fallen angel" never appears in any Abrahamic religious texts, but is used to describe angels cast out of heaven"Mehdi Azaiez, Gabriel Said R ...

'' album. When ''Conquest'' was re-issued again as a Deluxe Edition in 2004 the bonus tracks remained much the same, but "My Joanna Needs Tuning" was dropped; added in its stead was a version of "Feelings" that had previously only ever appeared on a Bronze Records promotional VHS tape.

Track listings

Personnel

;Uriah Heep *

– guitars *

– obx, vocoder, organ, piano, guitars, backing vocals *

Trevor Bolder Trevor Bolder (9 June 1950 – 21 May 2013) was an English rock musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his long association with Uriah Heep and his tenure with the Spiders from Mars, the backing band for David Bowie, a ...

– bass guitar, backing vocals *

– lead vocals, backing vocals, piano, percussion *

Chris Slade Chris Slade (born Christopher Slade Rees; 30 October 1946) is a Welsh musician, best known for playing for the Australian rock band AC/DC. He drummed for the band from 1989 to 1994, performing on their 1990 album '' The Razors Edge'' along with ...

– staccato drums, percussion ;Additional musicians *

Gerry Bron Gerald Lincoln "Gerry" Bron (1 March 1933 – 18 June 2012) was an English record producer and band manager. Early life and education Bron was born in Hendon, Middlesex, into a Jewish family, the elder brother of actress Eleanor Bron. Their fath ...

– timpani on "Out on the Streets" *

– keyboards on "Love Stealer," "Think It Over," and "My Joanna Needs Tuning (Inside Out)" ;Production * John Gallen – producer, engineer * Julian Cooper, Darren Burn, David Kemp, Nick Rogers – assistant engineers * Martin Poole – sleeve design, photography * Karl Bosley, Lindy Curry – sleeve design * Gerry Bron – executive producer

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conquest (Uriah Heep Album) 1980 albums Uriah Heep (band) albums Albums produced by Gerry Bron Bronze Records albums