URIAH HEEP Plays First Concert Without Founding Guitarist MICK BOX
Written by megarock on January 24, 2026
British progressive rock legends URIAH HEEP kicked off the January/February 2026 Scandinavian leg of their farewell tour Thursday night (January 22) at Tempere-Talo in Tampere, Finland. Joining singer Bernie Shaw, keyboardist Phil Lanzon, drummer Russell Gilbrook and bassist Dave Rimmer on stage at the gig was Sam Wood, who is the guitarist of the THIN LIZZY spinoff outfit BLACK STAR RIDERS, and WAYWARD SONS, the band led by former LITTLE ANGELS frontman Toby Jepson. Wood is filling in for URIAH HEEP‘s founding guitarist Mick Box, who is forced to miss some dates on the band’s current tour after falling ill. The news was announced in a statement posted on URIAH HEEP‘s social media accounts from Box‘s bandmates.
Fan-filmed video of the Tampere concert can be seen below.
In September 2024, URIAH HEEP announced its plans to embark on a farewell tour, dubbed “The Magician’s Farewell”, beginning with a seven-show U.K. run in February 2025.
