...Very 'Eavy ...Very 'Umble signed to that label. The album shows the band trying out various genres a mix of heavy metal and progressive rock rather than the hard rock that they would become known for on later albums. Tracks 3 and 8 were recorded as Spice songs prior to the band's renaming as Uriah Heep, and featured session player Colin Wood on keyboards. When Ken Hensley joined Spice in late 1969, the tracks were not re-recorded. The album was generally panned by the mainstream critical press upon its release, although it has since been acknowledged as an early classic of the heavy metal
Heavy metal lyrics extolling the merits of early 1950s rock and roll. Weinstein states that in these metal songs, the words "rock" or "rock and roll" refer specifically to heavy metal and its important role. Examples include AC/DC's "Rocker"; Judas Priest’s "Rock Hard, Ride Free"; Sammy Hagar’s "Rock ‘n’ Roll Weekend"; Twisted Sister’s "I Believe in Rock ‘n’ Roll"; Motorhead’s "Rock ‘n’ Roll"; and Ozzy’s "You Can’t Kill Rock and Roll". Some songs are self-referential to the genre. Many of these songs directly praise heavy metal (or simply "metal") and celebrate its importance. Examples include Sammy Hagar's "Heavy Metal"; Judas Priest's "Metal Meltdown";