RECORD STORE TALES MkII: Getting More Tale #348: More Journals — SAUSAGEFEST 2007 Reportings
If you’ve been reading along, then you know I kept a journal back in the Record Store days, from which Record Store Tales was partially culled. The journals didn’t end there, and I’m still sifting through them looking for gold. This entry might not be gold per se, but there may be some nuggets. There are also some good rock n’ roll memories! This was my second ever Sausagefest. And it sounds like it was interesting at least.
“What happens in the valley, stays in the valley”, but here are some Sausagefest memories for the record books. It was the best of times, and it was the worst of times….
BEST OF TIMES:
Helix made the list. Twice! At #100 was “Wish I Could Be There” and smokin it up at #13 was “Billy Oxygen”! Scott and I air-guitared like mental.
More Maiden and Lizzy than I could shake a sausage at.
Mmmm, lamb.
Swimming.
“Mandarin Dumpshoot”.
WORST OF TIMES:
It is my own fault. Jen asked me to open up the tent she loaned me and to practice putting it together. I, however, did not. I said, “There will be like 20 guys there. We’ll figure it out.” However, you can’t assemble a tent without the tent posts, and those I was lacking. Sure, I could blame Jen, but it’s my own fault for not checking. So I slept in my car. Second year in a row. It wasn’t so bad until the morning when I was crippled by a wicked leg cramp.
No portapotty. I took a shit in the river. I had little choice.
On the Saturday, I ate too much sausage (maybe a little undercooked, that last one), and vomited all over a scarecrow.
It was an amazing rock n’ roll party and I can’t wait for 2008. Since I’m getting married in August of ’08, this will be my BACHELORSAUSAGEFEST!
Originally, I got this for my birthday in 1987. This is the first of a two-day OZZY DOUBLE SHOT!
OZZY OSBOURNE – Randy Rhoads Tribute (1987, 2002 Sony remastered edition)
It took years for Ozzy to be emotionally ready to release this live album, recorded for intentional release in 1982. When Randy died, it was quickly shelved and replaced by Speak of the Devil, an album consisting entirely of live Black Sabbath covers. When Tribute was released in ’87, it was my first real exposure to the talent of Randy Rhoads. I think Tribute still stands as the very best testament to Randy.
Finally restored to CD was the concert opening featuring a recording of “O Fortuna” from Orff’s Carmina Burana. This essential part of the concert was edited off the 1995 remastered edition, a CD which I advise everyone to stay away from. If you have it, get rid of it and replace it with this one.
“I Don’t Know” is a dynamite opener. Ozzy’s vocal sounds heavily processed and thickened up in the mix. Whatever tampering is done with it, I don’t know (pun intended). What I do know is that Randy Rhoads’ live guitar is so much more than it was in the studio. Unleashed, Randy makes every lick that much more different from the last, unafraid to throw every trick in his very large book out for you to hear. His live sound seemed thicker, but it’s his playing that steals the show, as it should. It’s looser live, Randy pulling off wild sounds midstream at all times. He was obviously someone who had clear ideas about what he wanted to play along with the ability to execute them.
The single/video from this live album was “Crazy Train”, featuring Ozzy’s new 1987 hair cut. The album version is longer but no less definitive. Not only is Randy’s playing at its peak, but I like drummer Tommy Aldridge’s busier fills. In my mind, the live version of “Crazy Train” kills the original.
“Believer” is a bit of a slow point in the show. That’s Rudy Sarzo, Randy’s old Quiet Riot bandmate, on that bass intro. Future Deep Purple keyboardist Don Airey is also present, providing the haunting opening to the classic “Mr. Crowley”. What an astounding version, too. Once again, I’d call this one pretty close to definitive. Lifting the clouds away, the set goes to the party anthem “Flying High Again”. Revealing my naivete at the time, I had no idea what Ozzy was talking about when he said, “It’s a number entitled ‘Flying High’ so keep on smokin’ them joints!” I truly did not know what a joint was, or what “flying high” referred to. I assumed the song was about feeling good, and I suppose that it is. My friends and I didn’t know, and I think that’s the great thing about rock lyrics.
When I was really young, I didn’t like ballads or slow songs that much, but Ozzy was one of the exceptions. “Revelation (Mother Earth)” might be somber but it is also powerful, and with Randy Rhoads on guitar, you can never get to be too soft! Going back to Black Sabbath, Ozzy was always an anti-war crusader. “Mother Earth” seems to be a continuation of that theme. I always found it funny that during the 80’s, Ozzy was always being accused of devil worship by people who had no clue. Meanwhile, Ozzy’s singing about nuclear disarmament.
Two long-bombers in a row follow: complete with drum solo, it’s “Steal Away (The Night)” followed by an extended “Suicide Solution” with Randy’s solo. The “Steal Away” drum solo is still classic to me, but it’s “Suicide Solution” that no serious rock fan should be without.
The setlist detours to Sabbath covers next: a trio of “Iron Man”, “Children of the Grave”, and “Paranoid”. The two Ozzy guitarists who handle Sabbath best are Zakk and Randy. Randy doesn’t play by the rules at all. He throws in licks and tricks that were not on the Sabbath originals in any way, but somehow it all works. Randy was just untouchable in that way. Everything he played was classy and perfect.
Two older recordings conclude the live portion of this album: “Goodbye to Romance” and “No Bone Movies”, recorded earlier with Bob Daisley on bass and Lee Kerslake on drums. I don’t see that in the credits anywhere, nor do I remember seeing it on the original CD’s credits. “SHARON!” I will say that “Goodbye to Romance” blows the original away in my books.
The album closes with an alternate studio version of the acoustic Randy piece “Dee”, named for his mother Delores Rhoads. This version includes outtakes of mistakes and Randy speaking, and it’s a haunting way to end the album. Especially when Randy says, “Let’s hear that,” takes off his guitar and headphones, and goes into the control room, ending the track. It feels interrupted, like Randy’s life.
In the liner notes, Ozzy himself states that “What you are about to hear are the only live recordings of Randy and I,” but that was clearly incorrect, since there was already the Mr. Crowley EP, and later on, a whole other live album included with the deluxe Diary of a Madman. The booklet also includes an insightful letter from Mrs. Rhoads to the fans. Rest in peace, Randy.
RECORD STORE TALES Mk II: Getting More Tale #328: Slowly Going Deaf?
I’ve been listening to music for as long as I can remember. I’ve been listening to rock music — and I’ve been told to turn it down — since I was 11 years old. That’s 30 years ago. Remember all those times your parents said, “Turn it down, or you’ll be deaf by the time you’re 40!” Let’s see if that’s true.
I’m not the concert-goer that a lot of you are. I’ve always had a thing about crowds, but I’ve definitely seen my share of loud shows: Black Sabbath & Motorhead, Helix and Deep Purple are not the kind of bands that turn it down. In 1972 Deep Purple were declared by Guinness to be the world’s loudest band! But I don’t enjoy the sheer earthquake noise levels you can get at a concert like that, so I’ve been using earplugs much of the time for almost 20 years. I started wearing them shortly after seeing Kiss in ’96. I find this cuts a lot of the noise, and renders the concert to a volume more akin to a loud home stereo.
Where I’m most guilty of playing it too loud is the car. Sometimes I don’t realize just how loud it is in there until I start the car in the morning, having left the stereo on at full blast. I seem to turn it up, turn it up, turn it up…and get used to it. Like a frog in cold water that you begin to slowly heat to boil, I become accommodated to the volume of the rock. So that would concern me, where hearing loss is concerned.
How much hearing have I lost? I completed a hearing test at work a short while ago, and have received the results. Using a 2009 baseline as the comparison, it looks like it’s barely changed at all!
Here’s how the exam worked. A mobile hearing test truck pulls into the parking lot and we take the hearing tests six people at a time. Each one of us enters a soundproof booth, which look like we’re sitting in the escape pods of a spaceship, especially after we don our special noise-cancelling headphones. Unfortunately it’s not a perfect setup. I and several others could hear the beeping of forklifts and tow motors in the yard, through the booth and headphones. This doesn’t help when you’re supposed to push a little button at the sound of a beep in your ears. The test took about five minutes to complete and the results came back about two weeks later. And here they are. I don’t know what half this stuff means, but I’m told I have no major loss. Alright!
OZZY OSBOURNE – Under Cover (2005 Japanese CD/DVD set)
I want to know who thought this album was a good idea to release. Sure, we know Ozzy will do pretty much anything. He even appeared on a tribute album to Black Sabbath (Nativity In Black Vol. 2). So why not have Ozzy cover a bunch of songs that, by and large, the world didn’t need him to cover?
“SHARON!”
I’ve never thought much of this album, and I think you can gather why on the first track “Rocky Mountain Way” (Joe Walsh). Why did this song need to be redone, metalized, and howled upon by Ozzy Osbourne? It’s awful. The female backing vocals are totally out of place, the changes made to song are unnecessary, and the vocal is stale. The only positive thing I will say is that Jerry Cantrell (Alice in Chains) plays on Under Cover, and he’s the only thing redeeming it. His slide and talk box solos on “Rocky Mountain Way” are swampy and great.
Whether Ozzy covers the Beatles (a pukey echo-drenched “In My Life) or Cream (“Sunshine of Your Love”) or the Stones (“Sympathy for the Devil”), nothing of value is added to the song. It’s assembly line rock. There are no innovations or interesting slants. “Sunshine of Your Love” is altered to resemble Sabbath’s “N.I.B.” which doesn’t help matters at all. Ozzy even does two solo John Lennon songs (“Woman” and “Working Class Hero”). I get that Ozzy has a connection to the lyrics to “Working Class Hero” and is a huge fan of Lennon. That doesn’t mean he should try doing his own version. Most songs don’t benefit from being metalized. I’ve even heard a good metalized cover of “21st Century Schizoid Man” better than Ozzy’s.
Best tune (only good tune): “Fire” originally by the Crazy World of Arthur Brown.
Special guests: Leslie West plays some smokin’ axe on the cover of his own “Mississippi Queen”. Ian Hunter joins Ozzy on “All the Young Dudes” but doesn’t do much other than shout along. Others such as Gregg Bissonnette (David Lee Roth) and Joe Bonamassa are credited on the album, with no indication of what they did on which tracks. Maybe Bissonnette was hired solely to play cowbell. Who knows?
The final rip off to fans is that almost all of Under Cover was previously released on Ozzy’s Prince of Darkness box set earlier that year! Many Ozzy fans such as myself picked that one up for its numerous long-sought rarities. When Under Cover was released as its own album, four new recordings were added to make you buy it again: “Rocky Mountain Way”, “Sunshine of Your Love”, “Woman”, and “Go Now”. If you have Prince of Darkness, then you already own over 75% of Under Cover.
The Japanese bonus track was daughter Kelly Osbourne’s cover of Black Sabbath’s ballad “Changes”, with dear old dad singing with her, and lyrics adapted to suit. If you were one of those (I hope not) who bought Kelly’s 2002 album Shut Up, then you already have this. But like most Ozzy fans, I already have this song on the Prince of Darkness set. This version also comes with a bonus region 2 DVD: the music video for “In My Life” (whoop-de-do) and a long (about 45 minutes I think) feature called “Dinner with Ozzy and Friends”. You might recognize a couple of these friends. Road stories are shared, the funniest ones involving Ozzy being mistaken for Meat Loaf, and Lemmy for Willie Nelson. And there’s the infamous story of Zakk Wylde and a cork. Finally, the two sided DVD also has the entire album in “enhanced stereo”.
Compilations are always fun to quibble about. Fans like to complain about which songs are missing, and which songs they’d replace. I won’t spend too much time talking about that. Most reviewers have already pointed out that “Sign Of The Southern Cross” and “Time Machine” are missing from the 2007 Dio-era Black Sabbath compilation, The Dio Years.
It’s very important to remember two things. One, this album contained the first new Black Sabbath music released in nine years. Nine years! This is a band that used to release an album every year, up until the point that Ozzy Osbourne rejoined the band. Since then (and before the new album 13), the band released exactly two new songs (both with the Ozzman singing) and started to stagnate. Since The Dio Years represented the first new Sabbath material in almost a decade, it bears a listen.
The second point of note: this set was originally supposed to be a 2-CD boxed set. As such I’m sure a lot of songs were dropped along the way, Yes, “Southern Cross” is missing. However, this reviewer’s only real quibble is “Southern Cross”. I mean, hey — “Lonely is the Word” is on here! I would have replaced “Lady Evil” with “Southern Cross” myself (I never liked “Lady Evil” much), but perhaps the fine folks at Rhino felt that one 7+ minute epic was enough for a single disc. I can understand that logic. Besides, I, like every Sabbath fan worth his or her own salt, already own Mob Rules.
This disc was freshly remastered. I should point out that this remastering session was not the same one that produced the series of Sabbath Castle remasters in the late 90’s, but one that occurred in 2006/7. As such the sound is even heavier (louder). I found that I had to roll down the bass a bit, as my normal settings made the bass just too heavy. This was also the first time that the material from Dehumanizer (15 years young!) had been remastered. The running order is a little weird, though. “Heaven and Hell” as the third song on an album? A live “Children of the Sea” following “I”? The flow is lacking in cohesion.
The liner notes are excellent, very detailed, with lots of facts that casual Sabbath fans didn’t know (like the fact that Craig Gruber from Rainbow, and Sabbath keyboard man Geoff Nicholls were brought in to play some bass when Geezer briefly left the band in 1980). There are a bunch of cool pictures and artwork as well, which fit in nicely with the Sabbath vibe.
Every Dio-era album get a look-in, even the controversial Live Evil via a great version of “Children Of The Sea”, almost as memorable as its studio counterpart. No rarities. What you get instead are the aforementioned three new songs. That’s one more than Ozzy gave you on the Sabbath Reunion CD, by the way!
When Dio was with Sabbath he tended to talk about his songs in terms of tempo. As such, you get one “fast one” (“Ear In The Wall”), one “slow one” (“Shadow Of The Wind”) and one mid-tempo song (the single “The Devil Cried”). I almost always prefer the fast Sabbath stuff, so obviously “Ear In The Wall” is my favourite. Sound-wise, these three new songs pick up where Dehumanizer left off, and foreshadow The Devil You Know.
Geezer, unfortunately, was not involved in the writing. Iommi and Dio also did the production themselves. This might have something to do with the fact that I can’t hear nearly enough of Geezer’s trademark slinky bass lines–something I identify with the Sabbath sound more than any singer they’ve ever had. Iommi’s playing some good riffs and some scorching solos here, although I have found his guitar tone over the last decade to be too modern and distorted. I much prefer it when he gets a nice amp-driven sound rather than something so processed. However, bottom line is, these three new songs are good, albeit not essential, parts of the Sabbath catalogue.
Thankfully these three new songs were not the last gasp of Black Sabbath. Before his untimely death, Ronnie James Dio recorded The Devil You Know, under the name Heaven & Hell. And of course after that, the original Black Sabbath finally delivered the unforgettable 13.
HEAVEN & HELL – The Devil You Know (2009 Atlantic)
If one considers The Devil You Know as a part of the official Black Sabbath canon (as I do), then it’s not a stretch to call it the darkest and heaviest album in this band’s storied career. The only album that would be on a par with that is Born Again. If I refer to Heaven & Hell as Black Sabbath in this review, I trust you’ll forgive me. After all, this is the Mob Rules/Live Evil/Dehumanizer lineup of Black Sabbath, and a rose by any other name….
The previous album that these four guys did together was 1992’s masterpiece Dehumanizer, (notwithstanding the three new songs on the compilation Black Sabbath: The Dio Years). The last official Black Sabbath studio album prior to this was 1995’s Tony Martin-helmed Forbidden, a dreadful rushed piece of garbage that almost buried Sabbath forever.*
So, it is quite refreshing that The Devil You Know is so heavy, and so good. If you are familiar with the slow, dirgey sludge that were the three new songs on The Dio Years, that is a good reference point to the sound on this album. Very sludgey, mostly slow, guitar-heavy and intense. There are some faster ones (“Double The Pain”, “Neverwhere” etc) but for the most part this is 10 tons of pure heavy Black Sabbath. Songs like “After All” from Dehumanizer are the blueprint.
Especially enticing are the riffs. Iommi’s riff on “Bible Black” is crushing. “Fear” has some exotic noodling that I found surprising and refreshing. Vinnie’s drums are all cannons without the machine guns, which I do miss. I also wish Geezer’s bass was more slinky and audible, but combined with Iommi’s guitar it just creates this sheer wall of metal. All this is held together by Dio’s still-strong, unique, wonderful voice. Tonally, it is deeper than it was back on Dehumanizer, over 15 years previous. He was 66 years old when this was recorded.
Walmart version
The Devil You Know is not an instant pleasure. Hooks are scarce, as the album bludgeons you with sound. However, the familiarity that these four musicans create with their combined sounds are the hook. One of the most missed sounds in metal was that of Black Sabbath. When Ozzy came back to Sabbath in ’97, new music was scarce (only two new songs on Reunion, although a third never-released new song called “Scary Dreams” was absolutely mindblowing). I am glad that Dio-era Sabbath was capped off with one hell (pun intended) of an album. This album stands up to the glory days without copying it, and that is a hard thing to do.
Itunes bonus tracks exist for the OCD collector: You can find unique live versions of both “I” and “Neon Knights” on their version of The Devil You Know. If you’re not a hardcore collector, then you can stick to the double live album Live From Radio City Music Hall. If you are a Sabbath completist, then be aware the two live bonus tracks are not from that album, but are unique (and great) live versions unavailable anywhere else.
Rest in peace Ronnie. Sleep well, knowing that you did something rare. You created a cap stone worthy of your body of work.
Without further adieu, I present to you the Top 75 songs from this year’s Countdown. Only a handful of my songs made the Countdown this year: Sound City Players‘ “Your Wife is Calling”, Black Sabbath‘s “Damaged Soul”, “Hush” by Deep Purple, Dio‘s “Rainbow in the Dark”, and “Stonehenge” by Spinal Tap.
BLACK SABBATH – 13(2013 Universal deluxe, Best Buy, and Spotify editions)
Last year, Uncle Meat gave us his detailed review of Black Sabbath’s 13. (His rating: 3.25/5 stars. Check out his full review for the scoop on the first CD of this metal monolith.) Having had almost a year to live with it myself, I think it’s time I got around to reviewing the songs he didn’t: the bonus tracks!
The deluxe and Best Buy editions have “Methademic,” “Peace of Mind,” and “Pariah.” “Methademic” is cool for being a fast-paced heavy rocker, something I associate more with a Dio kind of sound. It’s a good track, good enough that Sabbath play it live. Geezer’s got a serious groove going on with the bass part, and Brad Wilk is playing with furious drive. You wouldn’t consider this song to be as good as any on the first CD of 13, but it’s a great bonus track.
“Peace of Mind” is of equal quality to “Methademic.” This time Sabbath have gone back to doomy, but Ozzy’s vocal melody takes it to a special place. All it’s missing is that looseness that only Bill Ward could provide. It sounds so authentically Black Sabbath, but if you concentrate on the beat, you can hear that the loose swing of old is not there. Having said that I enjoy “Peace of Mind” very much, especially when it picks up after the 2:15 mark.
My favourite of this trio of songs is “Pariah.” It occupies a mid-paced groove which chugs along nicely. Tony has a couple cool riffs in it, but once again Ozzy’s vocal seals the deal. Tony’s guitar solo is icing on the cake. I love when he has a chance to slow down and play bluesy, as he does here.
Japanese fans, and Best Buy shoppers have their own exclusive bonus track, and it’s the one with the best title: “Naïveté in Black.” You have to love that. This smoker is similar to “Time Machine,” from Dehumanizer. I don’t know why a song this good was left to Best Buy, because it’s better than the other three. It’s definitely unique among the 13 songs for sounding more like Dio-Sabbath than Ozzy-Sabbath; perhaps that’s the primary reason. Count me as a big fan of “Naïveté in Black.”
Finally even Spotify have a bonus track, which is “Dirty Women,” live. This is with Tommy Clueftos on drums, from the same show as the recent Gathered In Their Masses live DVD (but not the CD). I am fortunate enough to have an excellent quality copy of the song burned to a CD, the perfect final bonus track to 13.
But that’s not all folks. With the deluxe box set edition, there’s a DVD as well. There is a brief documentary about the reunion and recording of the new album. There are quite a few humorous moments, but I do not consider this to be much of a bonus. All this stuff is available for free on youtube. I don’t value a physical copy of something like this as much as I value a physical copy of a song.
Best moment:
Fan – “I came all the way from Croatia!”
Ozzy – “Where the fuck is that?”
The deluxe set is large and very nice to look at, but I considered it sparse in terms of worthwhile goodies. There are lots of large glossy photos, but they’re not up to handling repeatedly. There’s a print of the “God Is Dead?” single art, a 2 CD set (minus “Naïveté in Black”), and 13 on double 180 gram vinyl LPs. Everything is lovely and fragile. There’s also far too much room in the box itself for everything, so things move around inside. That’s a bit of a design flaw just to save on some extra cardboard packaging.
The Best Buy set came with a T-shirt, which I have kept in-package. You can find pictures of both versions below.
“I’m letting them pick what songs they wanna do in the way they wanna do it.” Wendy Dio
VARIOUS ARTISTS: Ronnie James Dio – THIS IS YOUR LIFE (2014 tribute CD)
No preable from me: we all know how great Dio was. Let’s get to the tracks.
Anthrax kick off the festivities with a slamming “Neon Nights”. The storming opener couldn’t have been in a better slot. Not only is Charlie Benate heavy as shit, but the guitar solos are mental. Joe Belladonna handles the powerful vocal ably. Rob Caggiano is still in the lineup indicating this isn’t brand new. I suspect it was recorded at the same time as last year’s Anthems EP.
The guys that never get respect, Tenacious D, tackle the difficult second slot. No worries there; they chose “The Last In Line” which Jack Black sings with no difficulty. Uncle Meat has said it before: Jack Black is one of the best singers he’s seen live. “The Last In Line” proves his pipes, although some may not like his exaggerated, humorous vocal enunciation. Kyle Gass plays a cute recorder solo in lieu of guitar, but there’s not enough K.G. on this track. Brooks Wackerman kicks the drums in the ass.
And speaking of drums, Mike Portnoy is next with Adrenaline Mob. They demolish “Mob Rules”, although singer Russell Allen is certainly no Dio. He is completely overshadowed by Portnoy and the shredding of Mike Orlando.
Corey Taylor, Satchel (Russ Parish) and friends chose “Rainbow In the Dark” as their tribute to Ronnie. This has always been such a fan favourite, and a personal one as well. It is difficult to imagine anyone but Ronnie singing it. While Corey Taylor is not at all like Ronnie James Dio, you can tell he loves this song. It bleeds out of his performance. He does it in his own rasp, and it works.
The incredible Lzzy Hale and Halestorm are up next with another Dio classic, “Straight Through the Heart”. There is no denying the talents of Lzzy Hale, but her powerful pipes are almost too much. Perhaps she overpowers the song, rather than simply fueling it. Halestorm fans will love it, but I think Lzzy maybe should have reeled it in a bit. Or, maybe I just need to get used to it. “Straight From the Heart” does sound better after a few listens.
Biff Byford (Saxon) joins Motorhead on lead vocals for Rainbow’s “Starstruck”. There’s a bit of that Motor-slam in it, but if I didn’t know who it was, I never would have guessed Motorhead. You can hear Lemmy on backing vocals, but weirdly, he’s not credited on bass. Nobody is, but you can hear the bass clearly and it sounds like Lem.
I’m a little sick of the Scorpions doing ballads, but I admit that “Temple of the King” (another Rainbow classic) is stunningly good. One might almost mistake it for a Scorpions original. It has that regal Scorpions bombast to is, but Matthias Jabs’ lead work is just sublime. He’s an underrated player, absolutely. You can tell he’s a Blackmore fan.
An oldie from 1999, Doro’s cover of “Egypt (The Chains are On)” is excellent. It’s cool to hear female singers like Doro and Lzzy Hale sing Dio. Doro’s impressive pipes have always been astounding. Her version of “Egypt” is a little over the top compared to Dio’s, but that’s cool by me.
Killswitch Engage…hmm. “Holy Diver” starts great, super heavy, with some perfectly acceptable, melodic vocals. Then it all goes down the toilet at the bridge. That’s when it turns into hardcore shouting and blast beats…sorry, not on this song, thanks. I can listen to that stuff in moderation, but don’t sully “Holy Diver” with it. Fortunately the guitar solos are great, sounding like an Iron Maiden outtake from Powerslave. Shame about the growling and shouting. Skip.
“Catch the Rainbow” is a great song, and Craig Goldy plays guitar on this cover. He’s ex-Dio himself, and he’s backed by his former Dio-mates Rudy Sarzo, Scott Warren and Simon Wright. (Hey, that’s also 1/3 of Tateryche!) Glenn Hughes sings, but this song sounds out of his scope. His bluesy slant doesn’t work for me. Sorry Glenn, you’re still awesome!
I find it strange that two more ex-Dio members (Jimmy Bain and Rowan Robertson) chose to cover Black Sabbath. But who cares! They covered “I”, perhaps the greatest song from Dehumanizer (1992)! On drums is Brian Tichy, with Oni Logan (Lynch Mob, Dio Disciples) singing. It’s a perfectly authentic version and I love it. It’s absolutely thunderous, and I love Jimmy Bain’s bass sound. Always have. Of all the vocalists on This Is Your Life, it is Oni Logan that comes closest to nailing Dio’s vibe. Considering he’s in Dio Diciples, I shouldn’t have been surprised. I didn’t expect it though, based on what I knew of Logan from Lynch Mob. He fits “I” like a glove!
I was disappointed in Rob Halford’s version of “Man On the Silver Mountain”. It’s true that Halford did replace Dio in Black Sabbath for two shows in 1992. However, having owned a bootleg video of that show since that time, I knew that Halford’s and Dio’s styles didn’t really mesh. This is no different; I don’t think his voice works with the song and it unfortunately shows off the places where Rob’s voice has weakened. What is cool though is that the band (all ex-Dio: Doug Aldrich, Vinnie Appice, Jeff Pilson and Scott Warren) take it to a swampy bluesy Whitesnake-y place for the intro. You can definitely hear Pilson covering the high notes in the chorus.
Finally we arrive at the mighty Metallica. Snicker if you like. If Metallica do one thing really well, it’s covers. If they do two right, it’s covers and medleys. The “Ronnie Rising Medley” is entirely made up of parts of Rainbow songs. “A Light In the Black” bleeds into “Tarot Woman,” where the vocals begin. It’s safe to say if you don’t like Metallica, you won’t like this. If the opposite is true, I think you’re in for a treat. Metallica do these classics in their own style, just as they have in the past when covering Maiden, or Mercyful Fate, or Thin Lizzy. Simply add Lars’ thuds, James’ growl, and some standard Metalli-licks, and you’ve got a medley that is enjoyable through its near-10 minute run time. Having said that, the weak point is definitely “Stargazer”, which is gutted of all its majesty. They do much better with “Kill the King” which is fucking perfect. They include the entire song in their medley!
Fittingly, the album ends on a ballad: Dio’s own somber “This Is Your Life”, performed by the man himself in 1996. I did not like the Angry Machines album, but if there was one song I would have picked as a highlight it would be “This Is Your Life”. Performed only by Dio and Scott Warren on piano, it is unlike anything else in Dio’s canon. The lyrics speak of mortality:
This is your life This is your time What if the flame Won’t last forever?
This is your here This is your now Let it be magical
What a way to end a great album. As much as you can “miss” a person you have never met, I do miss Ronnie James Dio. In many ways he’s been my friend for 30 years.
4.5/5 stars
As a nice added touch, the liner notes include photos of just about every performer on this CD with Ronnie!
Of note: the Japanese edition has a bonus track by Dio Diciples: “Stand Up and Shout.” It also has Stryper’s version of “Heaven and Hell” from their 2011 album The Covering, which I reviewed here.
BLACK SABBATH – Live…Gathered In Their Masses (2013 CD/DVD/Blu-ray box set)
Any time a classic rock band releases new music and goes back on tour, there has to be a live album to go with it these days. Actually, to be more accurate in the current age it’s more likely to be some kind of CD/DVD combo pack. This deluxe of Live…Gathered In Their Masses contains 1 CD, 1 Blu-ray, and 2 DVDs.
The visual program opens with a collage of pre-gig ritiual. The band arrive, and get ready in their own dressing rooms, the cameras offering a brief intimate glimpse. Before too long, the air raid sirens of “War Pigs” brings us to the stage. The Blu-ray looks absolutely gorgeous. Every line on every face is visible, every grain on Tony’s Gibson SG, and the stage is gorgeously lit. It’s a beautiful disc to watch in 1080p. I couldn’t help myself; I sat there playing air drums, and putting my hands in the air when Ozzy commanded. It was fun!
Ozzy hops about, but most exciting visually is unofficial member Tommy Clufetos. I wonder if it’s intentional, but he definitely resembles a young Bill Ward circa 1976 (as long as he keeps his shirt on). And Tony? He smiles, a lot. You would too if you’ve been through what he has I imagine! Ozzy’s already dumped a bucket of water over his head before they get to the second song, a sludgy “Into the Void”. I think the temptation is often to play this song a little faster live, but this version is very much in pace with the deliberately slow original.
My cell phone ring tone these days is that riff from “Loner”, one of the best songs from 13. Unfortunately, the fact that this is a new song means Ozzy’s rivited to one place on stage, concentrating on the words, glancing at the floor. Even so, Ozzy remains a mesmerizing presence. Another bucket of water, and Ozzy’s the cheeleading frontman again. The bonus interview on the disc, by the way, reveals why Ozzy really douses himself in water! (You probably don’t want to know.) “Snowblind” then erupts, Ozzy hitting the high notes with cracking but real voice! (That’s the part that counts.) Tony’s extended guitar solo is a stunner in itself.
The rain and tolling bells of “Black Sabbath” sound great on blu-ray, though I was hoping to hear more stuff going on behind me in the 5.1 mix. “Black Sabbath” is the standard workout, no surprises here. Likewise, “N.I.B.” is very much the traditional Sabbath version, even down to each note of Tony’s solo. Ozzy somehow manages to still be menacing behind the mic. “Methademic” is one of the new songs again, but oddly it’s a only bonus track on the deluxe versions of 13. This is a song that resembles Dio-era Sabbath and would have sounded at home on Dehumanizer or The Devil You Know. With Ozzy behind the mic, it’s still classic Sabbath. I think it’s a great number, only weakened live by Ozzy struggling through the wordy lyrics.
Oz doesn’t seem to have trouble with the old favourite “Fairies Wear Boots”. His wail of “Allllllright now!” looms, and out comes the water again! “Symptom Of the Universe” then stomps on the stage. This is the song that Clufetos can really sink his chops in. He’s obviously not Bill Ward, but I like his interpretation of Bill’s parts. They’re as close to the mark as any other Sabbath drummer’s parts, if not more. Tommy gets an extended drum solo too, during “Symptom”, not bad for an unofficial member! Mrs. LeBrain called the solo “Sweet!”
A drum solo naturally suits “Iron Man” to segue into. “Iron Man” is wooden, Clufetos unable to cop Bill Ward’s loose feel. It’s still “Iron Man”, a song Black Sabbath have probably played live at every show since ’72, but it’s not definitive. Only when the song gets up to speed does it become the beast it should be. Another new song, the deliberately vintage sounding “End of the Beginning” takes over, but it’s not the song I would have chosen to play at this point of the set. Not only is it too similar to “Black Sabbath” but it slows the set down too much so close to the end. It does pick up, but I feel it would have worked better closer to the start of the show.
Ozzy then teases out that they will only play one more song, unless the crowd goes “extra crazy”. This “final” song is the storming “Children of the Grave.” The audience bounces like a wave in sync with the classic tune, led by an energized Ozzy. I detected some clever editing here to make it appear that Ozzy is jumping around more than he actually is, but that’s video. One pretty thing about this song is the appearance of Tony’s old cream Gibson SG, paint cracked and chipping. Blu-ray allows you to see every scratch in the paint.
The crowd goes “extra crazy” and then Ozzy says they’ll play one more song. It’s “God Is Dead?”, the excellent first single from 13. Clufetos nails the stuttering drum roll, but Ozzy’s back to reading lyrics off the floor, which is distracting. But does anyone actually believe it is the last song; that they won’t play “Paranoid”? Of course they play it, and the riff from “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” too. It’s the quintessential closer, ending the concert as a party, not a session of pure doom! Clufetos and Ozzy are quite animated on “Paranoid”, and of course Ozzy reminds the crowd that they are “number one”! I just wish Tommy would pull up his pants. Fuck, I wish I could fit into that size!
The DVD and Blu-ray versions contain three bonus tracks. “Under the Sun” is a nice one to pull out of the hat. Ozzy handles the difficult vocals without issue. How does he do it? You can hear his voice cracking from time to time; it sounds live. “Dirty Women” is a personal favourite of mine. This is an interesting version. It’s the one that Spotify have as their own exclusive bonus track to 13. I already had an audio copy of this bonus track, but Blu-ray is cool, too. It’s a damn great rendition of a lost classic from Technical Ecstasy. “Electric Funeral” is the big surprise, a song I don’t think I’ve ever heard played live. Ozzy really struggles with the words on “Electric Funeral” but it’s a treat.
Elsewhere on the disc, there are more bonus features. I have to say the Blu-ray menu is an annoying, repeating tolling bell. Leaving the menu running unattended for more than 60 seconds is an excersize in testing your patience. In the bonus features, the Sabbath interview is typically low key. You know what to expect: a difficult to understand Ozzy, and a soft spoken Tony, with occasional comments from Geezer. There’s not too much here in the way of revelations. Vegetable juice and food have replaced vodka and a line before the show, although Geezer still drinks wine. How scandalous! I don’t know who the interviewer is, but he’s very good at getting the band involved and in good humour.
Lastly there’s a feature called “Show Day”. This is a behind the scenes look at the goings-on in the 24 hours before the show in Melbourne. I love it!
Ozzy: “You know what I was looking at, the old re-runs of the Twilight Zone.”
Geezer:“You told me that about 40 times.”
Ozzy: “Sorry. Trying to make conversation.”
Tony: (Laughs.)
Even Joe Perry and Steven Tyler show up backstage. I enjoy watching Joe and Tony chatting…what a meeting of guitar greats in one room.
The packaging for this box set is loaded with goodies. I always enjoy some complimentary guitar picks. There’s one here from Tony, and one from Geezer. There’s also a replica concert ticket, setlist, and a small poster. Nothing to get too excited about, but when you buy an expensive box set it’s nice to get these added touches as a bonus. There’s also two DVDs included with the same content as Blu-ray. That’s extraneous to me, I may never play them, so they’re sealed. I don’t have a problem with that, but I do wish they didn’t edit the CD version of the concert down to fit on one CD. I’m pleased that the CD version contains all the new songs, but for the price of this set relative to the cheap cost of a CD, I don’t know why they couldn’t just make it a 2 CD set. That part is disappointing. When I buy a deluxe edition, I want the whole thing on CD.
That niggle aside, Black Sabbath Live…Gathered In Their Masses is worth:
A drum solo naturally suits “Iron Man” to segue into. “Iron Man” is wooden, Clufetos unable to cop Bill Ward’s loose feel. It’s still “Iron Man”, a song Black Sabbath have probably played live at every show since ’72, but it’s not definitive. Only when the song gets up to speed does it become the beast it should be. Another new song, the deliberately vintage sounding “End of the Beginning” takes over, but it’s not the song I would have chosen to play at this point of the set. Not only is it too similar to “Black Sabbath” but it slows the set down too much so close to the end. It does pick up, but I feel it would have worked better closer to the start of the show.
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