Michael Frederick Box (born 9 June 1947) is an English musician who is the lead guitarist of rock group

Uriah Heep Uriah Heep may refer to: * Uriah Heep (character), a character in the Charles Dickens novel ''David Copperfield'' *Uriah Heep (band), a British rock band active since 1969 *''Uriah Heep Live ''Uriah Heep Live'' is a double live album by Britis ...

, having previously been a member of The Stalkers and Spice, both with original Uriah Heep vocalist David Byron.Larkin, Colin (2002) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of 70s Music'', Virgin Books, , p. 468 He is the only member from the band's founding in 1969 who is still active with the group, and – following the 2020 deaths of

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 ...

and Ken Hensley – is also the last surviving member of the group's classic line-up. Uriah heep 01041977 33 300

Biography

Early influences

In 2018 Mick Box said he was influenced by

Les Paul Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009), known as Les Paul, was an American jazz guitarist, jazz, country guitarist, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid body ...

and Mary Ford, Django Reinhardt,

Wes Montgomery John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for an unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a dist ...

, Tal Farlow and Barney Kessel. He attributes some of these influences to his first guitar instructor because he was the second guitarist for Django Reinhardt, as well as coming from a jazz background. When he started performing with

, other new bands included

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped de ...

, Deep Purple, and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are c ...

Spice

Before establishing Uriah Heep Box's band was called

Spice A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices a ...

. The band performed from 1968 to 1969 with David Byron and Nigel Pegrum Box said they chose that name because they didn't want to get categorised into a narrow genre. "There's lots of spices, and that was our train of thought with the name of the band" said Box in a 2021 interview. After Ken Hensley joined the members of Spice, they became Uriah Heep.

Recent activities

Mick Box blamed the COVID-19 pandemic for preventing a 50th Anniversary Celebration, but was planning on a 52 year Celebration. He said he felt strange being in quarantine, because he was accustomed to being "on the road," and interacting with fans at concerts. He has used the time to compose songs and he produced some videos for the Lockdown Diaries. Box has used his talent to promote the Nightingale Cancer Support Centre.

Discography

With David Byron

*'' Take No Prisoners'' – 1975

With Uriah Heep

*'' ...Very 'Eavy ...Very 'Umble'' – 1970 *'' Salisbury'' – 1971 *'' Look at Yourself'' – 1971 *'' Demons & Wizards'' – 1972 *'' The Magician's Birthday'' – 1972 *'' Live '73'' – 1973 *'' Sweet Freedom'' – 1973 *'' Wonderworld'' – 1974 *'' Return to Fantasy'' – 1975 *'' High and Mighty'' – 1976 *''

Firefly The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...

''...1977 *'' Innocent Victim''...1977 *'' Fallen Angel'' – 1978 *'' Conquest'' – 1980 *'' Abominog'' – 1982 *'' Head First'' – 1983 *''

Equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can al ...

'' – 1985 *'' Raging Silence'' – 1989 *'' Different World'' – 1991 *'' Sea of Light'' – 1995 *''

Sonic Origami ''Sonic Origami'' is the 20th studio album by British rock band Uriah Heep and was released in September 1998. The opening track, "Between Two Worlds", is dedicated to David Byron and Gary Thain, both members of Uriah Heep who died at a you ...

'' – 1998 *'' Wake the Sleeper'' – 2008 *'' Celebration – Forty Years of Rock'' – 2009 *'' Into the Wild'' – 2011 *'' Outsider'' – 2014 *'' Living the Dream'' – 2018

With Iris

*'' Lady in Black'' – 2002

With Spearfish

*''Back for the Future''

References

External links

The Official Website of Mick Box
Uriah Heep (band) members 1947 births Living people English rock guitarists English heavy metal guitarists Lead guitarists People from Walthamstow Musicians from London {{UK-guitarist-stub