Black Sabbath

Editor's Review:

It's been a long haul for the original members of Black Sabbath. Drugs, drugs and more drugs inundated the band that pioneered the "heavy metal" sound which droves of bands tried to replicate. Interpersonal disputes, crazy women and more drugs finally broke up the band's original incarnation in late '79. Bitter words from Ozzy and the remaining members—drummer Bill Ward, guitarist Tony Iommi, and bassist Geezer Butler—were all slung back and forth as Black Sabbath moved on with Ronnie James Dio on vocals. Osbourne, deeply hurt, recruited guitarist Randy Rhodes and set out on his own. The rest is history.

These days, all grudges have been aside, and all four original members are back to attempt to take the world by storm, again. The good news is, they seem to have succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. Returning home to Birmingham, England on December 4 and 5, 1997, for their first concert in almost 20 years, the place was a complete mad house; those two nights are captured on this two-CD compilation.

Some of the song selections are obvious—"War Pigs," "Iron Man" and "Sweet Leaf"—but for me, the not-so-obvious choices are what will really rock you. Tunes like "Spiral Architect," the gritty, "Dirty Women," or the tale of the world told in two pieces, "Orchid / Lord Of This World," recall brutally honest interpretations of our reality, and rock solidly. Of special note are two new studio tracks written by Iommi and Osbourne, marking their first collaboration in decades and hinting at a future studio album.

-Bret Lueder


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Record Label Epic Released October 1998

Tracks Disc: 1 1. War Pigs 2. Behind The Wall Of Sleep 3. N. I. B. 4. Fairies Wear Boots 5. Electric Funeral 6. Sweet Leaf 7. Spiral Architect 8. Into The Void 9. Snowblind Disc: 2 1. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath 2. Orchid / Lord Of This World 3. Dirty Women 4. Black Sabbath 5. Iron Man 6. Children Of The Grave 7. Paranoid 8. Psycho Man 9. Selling My Soul