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Audience 8.1 - I’m always amazed that tapes keep turning up just when you think you’ve discovered them all. Here’s one that is new for me, and it’s not bad. Now, you aren’t gonna crank this on the hi-fi and use it to impress your buddy or anyone for that matter – but for those of us who understand what we are dealing with, I think you will appreciate this tape and find probably more good points than bad. For one thing, it is not a muddy mess, and your ears will adjust to it and you’ll get sucked into it like I did and find it to be a decent one.
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Soundboard 9.4 - A great PRE-FM source here that manages to deliver just about all of the necessary ingredients to ensure a positive listening experience. Atmosphere: check. Sound Quality: check. Performance by band: check. It's all here. Black Sabbath Orpheum Theatre Boston, MA. 1992-08-09 Disc 1 01 E5150 02 The Mob Rules 03 Computer God 04 Children Of The Sea 05 Time Machine 06 War Pigs 07 I 08 Die Young 09 Guitar Solo 10 Black Sabbath Disc 2 01 Master Of Insanity 02 After All (The Dead) 03 Drums Solo 04 Iron Man 05 Heaven And Hell 06 Neon Knights 07 Paranoid - Heaven And Hell (Reprise) 08 Laguna Sunrise (Outro)
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Audience 9.3 - This is what I would call a definitive release in that I think if you wanted to know what Sabbath was in ’87 you can use this as a reference. For one thing, it sounds great – and another reason is because it sounds like the band is doing what it had in mind with the line-up and sound. A new direction maybe, but in the same way that maybe Technical Ecstasy was also a new direction. It’s still Sabbath, the bone structure is all there, but the smile has changed…and it has a place in the discography. Black Sabbath Stadthalle Bremen, Germany 1987-11-25 Disc 1 101 Supertzar 102 Neon Knights 103 Children Of The Sea 104 War Pigs 105 Die Young 106 Drums Solo 107 Iron Man 108 Born To Lose Disc 2 201 Black Sabbath 202 Glory Ride 203 Heaven And Hell 204 Guitar Solo 205 Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - Heaven And Hell (Return) 206 Children Of The Grave 207 The Shining 208 Paranoid
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Audience 8.8 - Easily one of the best audience recordings of the tour. Very close to the main P.A. system on Tony’s side of the stage, this puts Ozzy a little in the background but not so much he cannot be heard reasonably well. It’s just, well, it’s the sheer POWER on display by the band that makes this one so special and that the recording manages to deliver that without glaring problems (and in 1973, wow!) is a miracle. Black Sabbath 1973.02.21, Palazzo delle Esposizioni E.I.B., Brescia, Italy 01. Tomorrow's Dream 02. Sweet Leaf 03. War Pigs 04. Snowblind 05. Killing Yourself to Live 06. Wicked World 07. Orchid>Guitar solo 08. Orchid 09. Guitar solo 10. Rock Jam 11. Blues Jam 12. Wicked World reprise 13. Embryo 14. Children Of The Grave 15. Paranoid
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Disc 1: The Bronx 1971 - Audience 8.3 - A huge upgrade to the old tape we know and love. It has been carefully remastered, speed corrected as well, and now is better than ever. Disc 2: Birmingham 1972 - Audience 7.1 - A rare find, but not the best quality. This too has been remastered and is now listenable and worth the price of admission for the very rare inclusion of the track After Forever.
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Audience 9.1 - I waited a long time to get to hear a very strong and clear audience tape of this line up. The wait is over! This rocks! Reading 1983 FM Broadcast 9.3 - I can’t say for sure if this was broadcast or not but it does sound like one of those recordings that ended up over the air. Why? I don’t know it just has that kind of feel to it, and for that reason this should get repeated plays because it’s simply excellent. Black Sabbath U.I.C. Pavilion Chicago, IL 1983-11-18 Disc 1 101 Supertzar - Devil Baby Crying 102 Children Of The Grave 103 Hot Line 104 War Pigs 105 Disturbing The Priest 106 Supernaut 107 Drum Solo 108 Rock 'n' Roll Doctor 109 Stonehenge 110 Iron Man Disc 2 201 The Dark 202 Zero The Hero 203 Heaven And Hell 204 Guitar Solo 205 Black Sabbath 206 Smoke On The Water 207 Paranoid - Heaven And Hell (Reprise) Bonus DIsc Reading Rock Festival 27-August-83 1. -Hot Line 2. -War Pigs 3. -Black Sabbath 4. -Zero The Hero 5. -Digital Bitch 6. -Iron Man 7. -Smoke on the Water 8. -Paranoid
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Audience 7.9 - This tape shows its age but the master source for this CD is actually an old vinyl boot long since lost to the mists of time. Glad to have it, although I think only hard core collectors will really see the value here. That is not to say its dogshit either, because at times its actually very decent, but it fluctuates also back to mediocre, and that may be due to the tapers having to move or hide their equipment. I still like this one, and I think most Sabbath collectors will appreciate it.
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Chicago 1975 Audience 8.7 A strong tape showcasing Tony for sure as he comes through loud and clear. Ozzy is next in the sound mix followed by somewhat indistinct bass and drums in that they are not detailed, but they are still present as the power of the band is transferred to the tape – this is not a “transistor” radio recording by any means. Very enjoyable! Baltimore 1975 Audience 8.8 This tape is great although it is slightly subdued, but the live sound mix is extremely brutal, you really get a good feel for how powerful this band’s sound was at the time. I wish it was a little bit clearer maybe, but as this show plays you are so sucked into it you really don’t feel critical because it’s a devastating and great ’75 performance. San Bernardino 1975 Audience 9.2 A very open and bright recording that, even with some limitations of the analog tape being used, rates very high for the sheer excitement and power being displayed and thankfully captured so well. I also love the visceral audience reactions (especially when War Pigs gets going), seriously it gave me goose bumps! Love this! Black Sabbath USA 1975 Disc 1 International Amphitheatre Chicago, IL 1975-07-16 101 Supertzar 102 Killing Yourself To Live 103 Hole In The Sky 104 Snowblind 105 Symptom Of The Universe 106 War Pigs 107 Megalomania 108 Sabbra Cadabra 109 Jam - Guitar Solo #1 110 Sometimes I'm Happy 111 Drum Solo 112 Supernaut 113 Iron Man 114 Guitar Solo #2 Disc 2 Civic Centre Baltimore, MD 1975-08-02 201 Intro 202 Hole In The Sky 203 Snowblind 204 Symptom Of The Universe 205 War Pigs 206 Megalomania 207 Guitar Solo #1 - Jam 208 Sometimes I'm Happy 209 Drum Solo 210 Supernaut 211 Iron Man 212 Guitar Solo #2 213 Black Sabbath 214 Spiral Architect 215 Embryo - Children Of The Grave 216 Paranoid Disc 3 Orange Show Auditorium San Bernardino, CA 1975-09-05 301 Supertzar 302 Killing Yourself To Live 303 Hole In The Sky 304 Snowblind 305 Symptom Of The Universe 306 War Pigs 307 Sabbra Cadabra 308 Guitar Solo #1 - Jam 309 Sometimes I'm Happy 310 Drum Solo 311 Supernaut 312 Iron Man 313 Guitar Solo #2 314 Rock 'n' Roll Doctor Jam 315 Black Sabbath 316 Spiral Architect
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Audience 8.4 - This is a welcome tape as far as I am concerned. Anything with Ian Gillan has my attention, and this show is much better than the Dublin gig, which I mention because it also contains the infrequently performed “Hot Line” so it’s a big win for fans. The vocals are really clear, and so is the crunchy guitar, with occasionally a little phasing effect but kept to a minimum. Not hi-fidelity, but very good and well worth having in the collection! Black Sabbath 1983 08 18 Norway, Drammen, Drammenshallen Tracklist Stonehenge Children Of The Grave Hot Line War Pigs Born Again Supernaut Drum Solo Rock N Roll Doctor Disturbing The Priest Digital Bitch Black Sabbath Zero The Hero Guitar Solo Iron Man Smoke On The Water Paranoid
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Audience 8.7 - A somewhat subdued tape that begs for increased volume, which actually may be fine if you have a nice pre-amp…or just turn this up and get down because it isn’t bad. One thing I do appreciate about this tape is that Tony Martin is probably the clearest out of everything, then maybe Iommi and especially his lead work which really rings out. All instruments are present, I think this tape is a keeper. Black Sabbath Playhouse Edinburgh, Scotland 1989-09-05 Disc 1 1. -Ave Satani & The Gates Of Hell 2. -Headless Cross 3. -Neon Knights 4. -Children Of The Sea 5. -Die Young 6. -When Death Calls 7. -War Pigs 8. -The Shining 9. -The Mob Rules 10. -Black Sabbath 11. -Devil And daughter 12.-Iron Man 13. -Children Of The Grave Disc 2 1. -Heaven And Hell 2. -Paranoid & Heaven And Hell (Reprise) 3. -soundcheck (unknown origin) Line-up: Tony Martin - Vocals Tony Iommi - Guitar Neil Murray - Bass Cozy Powell - Drums Geoff Nicholls - Keyboards
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Audience 8.4 - A middle of the road stadium recording that is quite clear but not very close. That being said, I found much to appreciate from this one – namely the curious line-up at this time. Tony Martin singing, ok, he is decent enough and certainly professional caliber but to me, this just is not Black Sabbath. It’s a really badass metal band with Tony Iommi on guitar. This recording does allow you to really hear both Tony’s pretty loud and clear. BLACK SABBATH DATE : 1987/12/10 VENUE : Palasport, Firenze, Italy Disc 1 Supertzar [Intro] Neon Knights Children Of The Sea War Pigs Die Young Drum Solo Iron Man Born To Lose Black Sabbath Disc 2 Glory Ride Heaven and Hell Children Of The Grave The Shining Paranoid The Shining [Reprise] Laguna Sunrise [Outro] RUNNING TIME : ~ 99 minutes LINE-UP : Tony Iommi - Guitar Tony Martin - Vocals Jo Burt - Bass Terry Chimes - Drums Geoff Nicholls - keyboards NOTES : Very good and complete audience recording of the last show of the "Eternal Idol" tour. This was also the last show for the short lived Iommi / Martin / Burt / Chimes / Nicholls line-up, and a great show it was.
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Audience 8.4 - So, first the good news. This recording is much better than the Dublin ’83 show. Why is that significant? Because there are precious few live recordings of any kind of quality highlighting this short lived period with Gillan. I don’t know about you, but I think this material and the sound of the band during this time period is just awesome. I really would have loved more of this…but alas it was not meant to be. The downside is that the recording is mainly from Geezer’s side of the stage, so you are going to get an earful of Geezer, and that is not a deal breaker but what sucks is that Tony sounds weak in comparison. Another upside? You can hear Ian Gillan over the wall of sound, and therein lies the main reason why this tape deserves a listen. Will it get repeated plays? Probably not…but I was happy to be able to get another chance to hear Ian Gillan live with Black Sabbath and I am better for it. BLACK SABBATH Pavillon Des Sports Del Champel Geneve, Geneva, Switzerland September 25th 1983 THE BAND Ian Gillan vocals Tony Iommi guitar Geezer Butler bass Bev Bevan drums Geoff Nicholls keyboards Disc 1 1 -Supertzar 2 -Children of the Grave 3 -Hot Line 4 -War Pigs 5 -Born Again 6 -Supernaut 7 -Drum Solo 8 -Rock N Roll Doctor 9 -Disturbing the Priest Disc 2 10 -Iron Man 11 -The Dark 12 -Zero the Hero 13 -Heaven and Hell 14 -Iommi Solo 15 -Digital Bitch 16 -Black Sabbath 17 -Smoke On the Water 18 -Paranoid
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Neunkirchen Audience 8.8 - A large sound, almost feel the sound pressure against your chest on this one! The bass is huge and guitars sit slightly behind creating a sensation of dread, and thankfully the vocals are really placed very nicely in the live sound mix. Definitely the better of the two in this set.
Boblingen 1983 Audience 8.6 The overall sound here is somewhat average but it's actually slightly clearer than the Neunkirchen show albeit more distant and hollow sounding. It really could use some mid-range boost to bring up the guitars but if you have a good system you can attenuate this to dial in your desired EQ. It's not bad, it's just not quite up to prime time and you'll get more satisfaction from the Neunkirchen show in this set.
Black Sabbath Germany 1983 Disc 1 Hemmerleinhalle Neunkirchen am Brand, Germany 27th September 1983 1. Supertzar 2. Children Of The Grave 3. Hot Line 4. War Pigs 5. Born Again 6. Supernaut 7. Drum Solo 8. Rock ‘N’ Roll Doctor 9. Disturbing The Priest Disc 2 10. Iron Man 11. The Dark - Zero The Hero 12. Heaven And Hell 13. Guitar Solo 14. Digital Bitch 15. Black Sabbath 16. Smoke On The Water 17. Paranoid - Heaven And Hell(reprise) Disc 3 Sporthalle Boblingen, Germany 28th September 1983 1. Children Of The Grave 2. Hot Line 3. War Pigs 4. Born Again 5. Supernaut 6. Drum Solo 7. Rock’n’roll Doctor 8. Disturbing The Priest Disc 4 9. Iron Man 10. The Dark - Zero The Hero 11. Heaven And Hell 12. Guitar Solo 13. Digital Bitch 14. Black Sabbath 15. Smoke On The Water 16. Paranoid - Heaven And Hell(reprise) 17. Interview with Ian Gillan Ian Gillan – Vocals Tony Iommi – Guitar Geezer Butler – Bass Bev Bevan – Drums Geoff Nicholls – Keyboards -
Hammersmith 1977 Audience 8.5 Not bad for a ’77 aud. but it doesn’t open up much, stays within a bandwidth that allows you to hear everything on stage but with mostly guitar and bass, with Ozzy singing rising over it all. Drums are somewhat buried the snare comes through OK The more I listen to the more I adjust and like it, like the rating indicates this isn’t terrible seeing as how there are few really stellar ’77 tapes. 6-10-78 Audience 8.4 This tape does not rise above what seems at first a noisiness, where you don’t get a good separation of instruments and a frequency that favors upper mid and highs, but thankfully not annoyingly so. I would say that you might still endure it all the way through regardless because while I was not blown away, I also wasn’t offended. It’s average, but not garbage bin material. 6-19-78 Audience 9.0 The best of the Hammersmith set for sure. It’s pretty clear and has good separation of instruments. I did find it leans more to treble tone, but you can add bass and not destroy this at all…so there’s a lot to like about this show. Black Sabbath Hammersmith Story 1977-1978 Disc 1 Hammersmith Odeon London, UK 1977-03-13 101 Supertzar 102 Symptom Of The Universe 103 Snowblind 104 War Pigs 105 Gypsy 106 Black Sabbath Disc 2 201 Dirty Women 202 Drum Solo 203 Rock 'n' Roll Doctor 204 Guitar Solo 205 Electric Funeral 206 Jam 207 N.I.B. 208 Iron Man 209 Children Of The Grave 210 Paranoid Disc 3 1978-06-10 301 Supertzar 302 Symptom Of The Universe 303 War Pigs 304 Snowblind 305 Never Say Die 306 Black Sabbath 307 Dirty Women 308 Drum Solo 309 Rock 'n' Roll Doctor 310 Guitar Solo 311 Jam 312 Electric Funeral 313 Iron Man 314 Fairies Wear Boots 315 Children Of The Grave 316 Paranoid Disc 4 1978-06-19 401 Supertzar 402 Symptom Of The Universe 403 War Pigs 404 Snowblind 405 Never Say Die 406 Black Sabbath Disc 5 501 Intro 502 Dirty Women 503 Drum Solo 504 Rock 'n' Roll Doctor 505 Guitar Solo 506 Jam 507 Electric Funeral 508 Iron Man 509 Fairies Wear Boots 510 Children Of The Grave 511 Paranoid 512 Outro (She's Gone)
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Pro Audience 9.2 - This rating may seem confusing and that is because I just don’t believe this to be a board feed recording, nor do I believe it to be a straight audience tape. I believe this may have been recorded for broadcast locally and the station probably hung mics or placed them somewhere in the hall because there’s too much ambience for a straight board tape. It’s very good, it’s got a critical element missing in every board tape and that’s some sense of the room, the audience, etc.
Black Sabbath Civic Center Hartford, CT 1980-08-10 Disc 1 101 Supertzar 102 War Pigs 103 Neon Knights 104 N.I.B. 105 Children Of The Sea 106 Sweet Leaf 107 Drum Solo 108 Sweet Leaf (Reprise) 109 Black Sabbath Disc 2 201 MC 202 Heaven And Hell 203 Iron Man 204 Guitar Solo 205 Die Young 206 Paranoid 207 children Of The Grave Bonus track Hammersmith Odeon London, UK 1980-05-08 208 Children Of The Sea -
Sale!Soundboard 9.5 - Cool to hear such a nice board because quite frankly the volume and mix of most of the live recordings I have heard just have little separation of instruments and I like hearing Geezer clearly. Drums sound great on this one. It also happens to be the final show.
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Audience 8.5 - While some may say this recording is not technically that great, I beg to differ. Now, it is not super clear, but it is not muddy…it is not distant, it is not super dynamic but it still has guts and balls. I actually REALLY grooved to this, and the band is ferocious sounding. Hearing the fresh faced Vinnie Appice on drums for the first time with Sabbath and he’s really driving the beat, a different style to Bill Ward. This one is a must have for anyone that calls themselves a Sabbath fan. It’s THAT important. Black Sabbath Aloha Stadium Honolulu, Hawaii August 31, 1980 1. -Dio and Appice interview 2. -War Pigs 3. -Neon Knights 4. -N.I.B. 5. -Children of the Sea 6. -Sweet Leaf 7. -Black Sabbath 8. -Heaven and Hell 9. -Iron Man 10. -Guitar solo 11. -Die Young 12. Paranoid 13. -Children of the Grave
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Audience 9.0 - This is one of those recordings that really grows on you. You kind of have to adjust a little, especially through the first couple of songs. Taper begins to slowly sort of find the spot, and the recording gets better, a good mix actually although I wasn’t crazy about Tony’s guitar tone around this time…and it’s only Tony who is still original Sabs but his crew is highly competent (not crazy about the big rock stadium mannerisms of Tony Martin). I like the vocals of Martin, don’t get me wrong, but the between song banter is a little over the top. Listen to this without bias, it’s not Sabbath but it’s a great fucking band with Tony Iommi on guitar. Black Sabbath Olympiahalle Innsbruck, Austria 1990-10-09 Disc 1 101 Intro - Ave Satani - The Gates Of Hell 102 Neon Knights 103 Iron Man 104 Children Of The Grave 105 Die Young 106 The Sabbath Stones 107 Bass Solo 108 Heart Like A Wheel (A Part Of) 109 Guitar Solo 110 Headless Cross 111 When Death Calls 112 The Law Maker Disc 2 201 Anno Mundi 202 Black Sabbath 203 Heaven And Hell 204 Paranoid 205 Heaven And Hell (Reprise)