Former URIAH HEEP legend Ken Hensley is featured in a new interview with Classic Rock Revisited founder Jeb Wright discussing his new band, KEN HENSLEY & LIVE FIRE, and their new album, Faster. An excerpt is available below:

Jeb: Ken Hensley & Live Fire is a great band. I did not see this release coming.

Ken: "I had to go all the way to Norway to find that band. I live in Spain, and I have learned that the farther north you go, the more people rock. I was really glad to get the opportunity to make this record with these guys."

Jeb: You have played with these guys for a while.

Ken: "We started playing live about five years ago. We haven’t done a lot of shows but I always promised them that, one day, we would go into the studio and make a classic rock record. In the meantime, I had started writing a totally different album that was a totally indulgent, singer/songwriter album. It was totally non-commercial and impossible to market. My manager and I flew up to Germany to play the band some songs and they hated it. I ended up signing a deal with Edel in Hamburg. I gave them the CD and the said, 'We love you and we want to push you back into the marketplace, but we need a rock record from you in order to do that.' I pulled some songs out of my book and wrote some new ones and they gave me a budget – not a big one but it was a budget. Here I was, 65 years old and heading into the studio with my band to make a record. I had the time of my life. Everything really fell into place."

What sold the project in the first place were the songs. Max Edel said all along, 'This has nothing to do with your history, or your age. It just has to do with the songs. I am only hoping that this album makes enough impact that I can move on to the next one."

Jeb: This is a true album. It is a collection of songs that really fit together. It’s not a concept album by any means, but each song works well together.

Ken: "Blood On The Highway was a concept album that worked very well. It was conceived that way, and put together that way. With the new album, I went back to the way that I used to do it. I would write the songs and take them to rehearsal and play the songs for the guys. I would ask the guys for their creative input and they would take ownership of the album. Because they felt like they were part of it – they are part of it, financially, as well as spiritually – and that makes a difference. It was really a throwback to the way we used to make records in the 1970’s. We combined that with the incredible technology of today and it was very fun, warts and all. I feel like it worked."

Go to this location for the complete interview.