Early Life 1967-1969
From mid-60's to early 70's David Byron did session work for a company called Avenue Recordings singing lead and backing vocals (occasionally along with Mick Box on guitar and Paul Newton on bass). These were cover versions of Top 20 hits and were released on EP's & LP's.
His first venture into professional music was with a Epping-based semi-pro band called The Stalkers who also featured guitarist Mick Box. Byron and Box worked well together and teamed up to form the band Spice which also featured Paul Newton on bass and Alex Napier on drums. The band gigged extensively locally under the management of Paul Newton's father and they secured a recording deal with United Artists who issued the bands one and only single "What About The Music/In Love" (UP 2246), copies of which now fetch around $50 to $100 on the collectors market.
He was the lead vocalist for Spice (1967 – 1969). Although Spice regularly played venues like the Marquee it wasn't until they met up with manager Gerry Bron that things began to happen. Deciding that the Spice sound would require keyboards; they recruited keyboardist/guitarist/singer/songwriter Ken Hensley, who was Paul Newton's bandmate in The Gods. The band rehearsed and played diligently and during this time Bron redubbed the band Uriah Heep from the Charles Dickens classic David Copperfield. Shortly afterward the band's career really took off, first in Germany, Britain and finally the States. In 1971 David also appeared on two LP's by John Schroeder.
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