Conquest (Uriah Heep album)

1980 studio album by Uriah Heep

Conquest

Studio album by

Uriah Heep

Released| February 1980
Recorded| 1979
Studio| Roundhouse (London)
Genre|

* Hard rock[1]
* AOR[2]

Length| 42:58
Label| Bronze
Producer| Uriah Heep, John Gallen, Gerry Bron
Uriah Heep chronology
| Fallen Angel
(1978)  | Conquest
(1980)  | Abominog
(1982)

|
|

Singles from  Conquest

1. "Carry On"
Released: 25 January 1980 (UK) [3]
2. "Feelings"
Released: March 1980 (Ger.) [4]
3. "Love Stealer"
Released: 20 June 1980 (UK) [5]
4. "Think It Over"
Released: 16 January 1981 (UK) [6]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [7]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal| 1/10[8]
Record Mirror| [9]
Uncut| [10]

Conquest is the thirteenth studio album by English rock band Uriah Heep, released in 1980. It was released worldwide by Bronze Records; however, the album was never released in North America, where it was difficult to find even as an import.[8]

1979–80 was a period of change for Heep, with John Sloman taking over lead vocal duties, drummer Lee Kerslake quitting, and main songwriter Ken Hensley ultimately leaving the band. Taken together with the commercial rock sound of the album,[11] this is the most contentious era of Uriah Heep's history, with many fans believing Conquest is the group's worst record.[12] Despite this era being regarded in hindsight as something of a disaster by Hensley as well as Mick Box,[12] the album did receive some positive reviews at the time, namely a five-star rating from Record Mirror and three-and-a-half stars from Geoff Barton in Sounds.[12] 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 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 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

[edit]

Side oneNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "No Return"| Trevor Bolder, Mick Box, Ken Hensley| 6:07
2.| "Imagination"| Hensley| 5:49
3.| "Feelings"| Hensley| 5:26
4.| "Fools"| Bolder| 5:03

Side twoNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

5.| "Carry On"| Hensley| 3:57
6.| "Won't Have to Wait Too Long"| Bolder, Box, Hensley| 4:54
7.| "Out on the Street"| Hensley| 5:57
8.| "It Ain't Easy"| Bolder| 5:45

1997 remastered edition bonus tracksNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

9.| "Been Hurt" (B-side to "Carry On")| Hensley| 3:56
10.| "Love Stealer" (single A-side)| Philip Wainman, Richard Myhill| 3:28
11.| "Think It Over" (single A-side)| John Sloman, Bolder| 3:33
12.| "My Joanna Needs Tuning (Inside Out)" (B-side to "Think It Over")| Bolder, Box, Gregg Dechert, Slade, Sloman| 3:02
13.| "Lying" (previously unreleased outtake)| Bolder, Hensley, Slade, Sloman| 4:23
Total length:| 61:20

2004 Expanded Deluxe Edition bonus tracksNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

9.| "Love Stealer" (single A-side)| Philip Wainman, Richard Myhill| 3:28
10.| "Been Hurt" (B-side to "Carry On")| Hensley| 3:56
11.| "Think It Over" (single A-side)| John Sloman, Bolder| 3:33
12.| "Lying" (previously unreleased outtake)| Bolder, Hensley, Slade, Sloman| 4:23
13.| "Feelings" (single edit)| Hensley| 2:40
Total length:| 60:58

## Personnel

[edit]

Uriah Heep

* Mick Box – guitars
* Ken Hensley – OB-X, vocoder, organ, piano, guitars, backing vocals
* Trevor Bolder – bass guitar, backing vocals
* John Sloman – lead vocals, piano, percussion
* Chris Slade – drums, percussion
* Gregg Dechert – keyboards on "Think It Over" and "My Joanna Needs Tuning (Inside Out)"

Additional musician

* Gerry Bron – timpani on "Out on the Streets"

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

[edit]

Chart (1980)  | Peak
position

|

German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[13] | 33
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[14] | 11
UK Albums (OCC)[15] | 37

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Review | URIAH HEEP - Conquest" (in German).
2. ^ Matthew Kelly (28 July 2022). "1001 Albums You Must Die Before You Hear – Uriah Heep's Conquest". Witchdoctor. Retrieved 28 February 2023. "And why are these songs so long? Looking at the lengths, which regularly threaten six minutes, you'd expect epic prog rockers. But no, they're simple straightforward AOR that do their verse and chorus a few times and just keep going."
3. ^ "Uriah Heep singles".
4. ^ "Uriah Heep singles".
5. ^ "Uriah Heep singles".
6. ^ "Uriah Heep singles".
7. ^ Thompson, Dave. "Uriah Heep – Conquest review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
8. ^ a b Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. pp. 378–379\. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
9. ^ Smith, Robin (1 March 1980). "Uriah Heep: Conquest". Record Mirror. p. 16.
10. ^ Knighton, Steve (December 1997). "Uriah Heep: Live at Shepperton / Conquest / Abominog / Head First". Uncut. No. 7\. p. 94.
11. ^ Monger, James Christopher. "Uriah Heep Biography". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
12. ^ a b c Conquest (CD Booklet). Uriah Heep. UK: Sanctuary Records. 2004. SMRCD112.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
13. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Uriah Heep – Conquest" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
14. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Uriah Heep – Conquest". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
15. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2023.

* v
* t
* e

Uriah Heep

* Mick Box
* Phil Lanzon
* Bernie Shaw
* Russell Gilbrook
* Dave Rimmer

* Ken Hensley
* David Byron
* Paul Newton
* Alex Napier
* Nigel Olsson
* Keith Baker
* Ian Clarke
* Lee Kerslake
* Mark Clarke
* Gary Thain
* John Wetton
* Trevor Bolder
* John Lawton
* Chris Slade
* John Sloman
* Gregg Dechert
* John Sinclair
* Peter Goalby
* Bob Daisley
* Steff Fontaine

Studio albums|

* ...Very 'Eavy ...Very 'Umble
* Salisbury
* Look at Yourself
* Demons and Wizards
* The Magician's Birthday
* Sweet Freedom
* Wonderworld
* Return to Fantasy
* High and Mighty
* Firefly
* Innocent Victim
* Fallen Angel
* Conquest
* Abominog
* Head First
* Equator
* Raging Silence
* Different World
* Sea of Light
* Sonic Origami
* Wake the Sleeper
* Into the Wild
* Outsider
* Living the Dream
* Chaos & Colour

Live albums|

* Uriah Heep Live
* Live in Europe 1979
* Live at Shepperton '74
* Acoustically Driven
* Live in Armenia

Compilations|

* The Best of Uriah Heep
* The Lansdowne Tapes
* The Ultimate Collection
* Easy Livin': Singles A's & B's
* Loud, Proud & Heavy: The Best of Uriah Heep
* Celebration – Forty Years of Rock
* Totally Driven

Singles|

* "Gypsy"
* "Lady in Black"
* "Look at Yourself"
* "The Wizard"
* "Easy Livin'"
* "Sweet Lorraine"
* "Blind Eye"
* "July Morning"
* "Stealin'"
* "Something or Nothing"
* "Prima Donna"
* "Return to Fantasy"
* "One Way or Another"
* "Wise Man"
* "Sympathy"

Other songs|

* "Bird of Prey"
* "Sunrise"

Related articles|

* Discography
* Members
* The Gods
* Spice
* Toe Fat
* Colin Wood

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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