The Magician's Birthday

{{Music ratings

|rev1 = AllMusic

|rev1score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-magicians-birthday-mw0000653050 |title=Uriah Heep - The Magician's Birthday review |last=Guarisco |first=Donald A. |work=AllMusic |publisher=All Media Network |accessdate=18 November 2018 }}

| rev2 = Christgau's Record Guide

| rev2Score = B−{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|year=1981|title=Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies|publisher=Ticknor & Fields|isbn=089919026X|chapter=Consumer Guide '70s: U|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_chap.php?k=U&bk=70|access-date=March 17, 2019|via=robertchristgau.com}}

|rev3 = Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal

|rev3Score = 9/10{{cite book |last1 = Popoff |first1 = Martin |author-link1 = Martin Popoff |title = The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 1: The Seventies |publisher = Collector's Guide Publishing |date = October 2003 |location = Burlington, Ontario, Canada |isbn = 978-1894959025 |page=302}}

|rev4 = Record Collector

|rev4score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite magazine |title=Uriah Heep - The Magician's Birthday |magazine=Record Collector |date=December 2015 |last=Geesin |first=Joe |issue=448 |url=https://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/magicians-birthday |accessdate=18 November 2018 }}

}}

The Magician's Birthday received mixed reviews from contemporary critics. Mike Saunders, writing for Creem, called the album "a package full of dreck", finding the first side of the LP "listenable" despite poor production and side two downright "irritating".{{cite magazine |title=Uriah Heep: The Magician's Birthday (Mercury) |magazine=Creem |date=March 1973 |last=Saunders |first=Mike |authorlink=Mike Saunders (musician)|url=https://www.rocksbackpages.com/Library/Article/uriah-heep-the-magicians-birthday-mercury |accessdate=20 November 2018 |url-access=subscription }} Village Voice critic Robert Christgau described the songs on the album as "third-hand heavy metal fantasies (...) hooked to some clean, powerful arrangements, and a good melody or two."

Modern reviews are more positive. AllMusic reviewer remarked the album's prog elements and wrote that "The Magician's Birthday never quite hits the consistent heights of Look at Yourself or Demons and Wizards, but remains a solid listen for Uriah Heep fans". Joe Geesein of Record Collector praised the musicians and the good sound of the album's reissue, but wrote that most of the songs "don't stand up quite out so well" in comparison with opener "Sunrise" or the single "Spider Woman". Canadian journalist Martin Popoff called The Magician's Birthday "another colourful, mystical journey", although "somewhat disjointed, less accessible and in total much less metallic" than previous efforts, "culminating in the band's most harrowing, nightmarish epic of them all, the ten minute title track."

{{Track listing

| headline = Side one

| all_writing = Ken Hensley except where noted{{cite book|title=The Magician's Birthday LP jacket (US Edition)|date=1972|publisher=Mercury Records}}

| title1 = Sunrise

| length1 = 4:04

| title2 = Spider Woman

| writer2 = Mick Box, David Byron, Lee Kerslake, Gary Thain

| length2 = 2:25

| title3 = Blind Eye

| length3 = 3:33

| title4 = Echoes in the Dark

| length4 = 4:48

| title5 = Rain

| length5 = 4:00

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Side two

| title6 = Sweet Lorraine

| length6 = 4:13

| writer6 = Box, Byron, Thain

| title7 = Tales

| length7 = 4:09

| title8 = The Magician's Birthday

| writer8 = Box, Hensley, Kerslake

| length8 = 10:21

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = 1996 Remastered Edition bonus tracks

| title9 = Silver White Man

| writer9 = Byron

| length9 = 3:40

| title10 = Crystal Ball

| writer10 = Thain

| length10 = 4:08

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = 2003 Expanded Deluxe Edition bonus tracks

| title9 = Crystal Ball

| note9 = out-take and previously unreleased version

| writer9 = Thain

| length9 = 4:08

| title10 = Silver White Man

| note10 = out-take and previously unreleased vocal version

| writer10 = Byron

| length10 = 3:40

| title11 = Proud Words

| note11 = previously unreleased version

| length11 = 3:24

| title12 = Echoes in the Dark

| note12 = edited version - previously unreleased

| length12 = 4:23

| title13 = Rain

| note13 = edited version - previously unreleased

| length13 = 3:16

| title14 = Happy Birthday

| note14 = previously unreleased

| length14 = 4:44

| title15 = Sunrise

| note15 = single edit - previously unreleased

| length15 = 2:49

| title16 = Gary's Song

| note16 = out-take - previously unreleased

| writer16 = Thain

| length16 = 4:25

| title17 = Silver White Man

| note17 = instrumental out-take

| writer17 = Byron

| length17 = 3:43

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = 2017 Expanded Deluxe Edition disc 2 (all titles previously unreleased)

| title1 = Echoes in the Dark

| note1 = alternate version

| length1 = 3:13

| title2 = Sweet Lorraine

| note2 = alternate version

| length2 = 4:56

| title3 = Blind Eye

| note3 = alternate version

| length3 = 5:08

| title4 = Tales

| note4 = alternate version

| length4 = 4:02

| title5 = Silver White Man

| note5 = alternate version

| length5 = 4:08

| title6 = Sunrise

| note6 = alternate version

| length6 = 4:25

| title7 = Crystal Ball

| note7 = alternate version

| length7 = 4:09

| title8 = Spider Woman

| note8 = alternate version

| length8 = 2:38

| title9 = The Magician's Birthday

| note9 = alternate version

| length9 = 10:50

| title10 = Rain

| note10 = alternate version

| length10 = 4:40

| title11 = Silver White Man

| note11 = instrumental alternate version

| length11 = 3:43

| title12 = Happy Birthday

| note12 = alternate version

| length12 = 4:42

| title13 = Sunrise

| note13 = alternate single version

| length13 = 3:36

| title14 = Sweet Lorraine

| note14 = alternate single version

| length14 = 3:38

| title15 = Gary's Song - Crystal Ball

| note15 = alternate version

| length15 = 4:23

}}

Credits adapted from album liner notes

;Uriah Heep

• David Byron – lead vocals
• Mick Box – guitars
• Ken Hensley – keyboards, guitars, Moog synthesizer, backing vocals
• Lee Kerslake – drums, percussion, backing vocals
• Gary Thain – bass guitar

;Additional musician

• Brian Cole – pedal steel guitar on "Tales"

;Production

• Gerry Bron – producer
• Peter Gallen – engineer
• Ashley Howe – assistant engineer
• Gilbert Kong – mastering
• Mike Brown and Robert Corich – remastering (1996 and 2003 reissues)

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class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" |+Weekly chart performance for The Magician's Birthday ! scope="col"| Chart (1972–1973) ! scope="col"| Peak position
scope="row"| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report){{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, N.S.W.|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6}} | align="center"| 6
{{Album chart|Canada|22|chartid=4277|artist=Uriah Heep|album=The Magician's Birthday|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}
scope="row"|Danish Albums (Hitlisten{{cite web |url=http://danskehitlister.dk/?song_id=6413 |title=The Magician's Birthday - Uriah Heep |accessdate=19 November 2018|publisher=Danske Hitlister.dk}} |align="center"|5
scope="row"| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts){{cite book|last=Pennanen|first=Timo|title=Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972|edition=1st|publisher=Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava|location=Helsinki|year=2006|isbn=978-951-1-21053-5 | page= 166 | language= fi}} | align="center"| 1
{{Album chart|Germany4|7|id=11111|artist=Uriah Heep|album=The Magician's Birthday|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 April 2018}}
scope="row"|Japanese Albums (Oricon){{cite book|title=Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005|publisher=Oricon Entertainment|location=Roppongi, Tokyo|year=2006|isbn=4-87131-077-9|language=ja}} | align="center"| 43
{{Album chart|Norway|5|artist=Uriah Heep|album=The Magician's Birthday|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}
{{Album chart|UK2|28|date=19721126|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}
{{Album chart|Billboard200|31|artist=Uriah Heep|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}

class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
Chart (2017) ! Peak position
{{Album chart|UKIndependent|38|date=20170407|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}
{{Album chart|UKRock|24|date=20170407|rowheader=true|accessdate=November 8, 2023}}

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class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+Year-end chart performance for The Magician's Birthday ! scope="col" | Chart (1973) ! scope="col" | Position
scope="row" | German Albums (Offizielle Top 100){{cite web|url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-1973|title=Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts|date=1973|publisher=GfK Entertainment Charts|language=de|access-date=2 April 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210523114401/https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-1973|archive-date=23 May 2021}} | 20

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{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications and sales for The Magician's Birthday}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Sweden|nocert=true|certref={{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Cash-Box-IDX/70s/1973/Cash-Box-1973-03-31-OCR-Page-0051.pdf|title=Uriah Heep are very popular in the continent|magazine=CashBox|date=March 31, 1973|page=51}}|salesamount=10,000|salesref=}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United Kingdom|award=Gold|certref={{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-Cash-Box-IDX/70s/1974/CB-1974-07-06-II-OCR-Page-0178.pdf|access-date=20 December 2020|title=great britain's million sellers, 1972-73|magazine=Cash Box|date=July 6, 1974|page=8, Part II}}|relyear=1982}}

{{Certification Table Entry |region=United States |artist=Uriah Heep |title=The Magician's Birthday|award=Gold|type=album |relyear=1972}}

{{Certification Table Bottom |nosales=true}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Uriah Heep}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Magician's Birthday, The}}

Category:1972 albums

Category:Uriah Heep (band) albums

Category:Albums with cover art by Roger Dean (artist)

Category:Albums produced by Gerry Bron

Category:Bronze Records albums

Category:Mercury Records albums