Customer Reviews

Born Again

5 star:		(89)
4 star:		(48)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(21)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

This is one of the most enjoyable albums from Black Sabbath, Ozzy even says so! Just like another legendary U.K. band Deep Purple, they made a great album without Gillan and Blackmore called "Come Taste The Band," well Sabbath did the same, without Dio or Ozzy. But of all people, Deep Purple's Ian Gillan!!! The voice of Jesus Christ Superstar. A strange pairing, but it really does work. Born Again is much closer in spirit to the early 70's albums with Ozzy, and Gillan comes off sounding like a mad man, and a drugged up party animal leading Sabbath's original trio down a path of true hard rock high jinx. I find that I reach for this Sabbath album more than any other, not because I'm a Gillan fan, but because of it's inspired vibe, which gives the very best Sabbath albums a run for the money.

The only thing holding back the album from 5 stars is the muddy sound quality. Gillan blames bassist Geezer Butler for this. Story has it, Gillan heard the rough mixes (and still has them) and they sounded great, then Gezzer mixed the album with way too much bass. The remastering is actually pretty good, cleaning up some of the problem. Hopefully one day it will be re-mixed, or Mr. Gillan will release the earlier mixes.

Highlights: Trashed, Disturbing The Priest, Digital Bitch, Born Again & Keep It Warm

Born Again
~ Black Sabbath: 4 1/2 stars

This is what I consider to be Sabbath's last album. After this, there were so many lineup changes, the band basically deteriorated into a Tony Iommi solo project.

Don't believe all of the derogitory comments you hear about this album; it is a classic. It is a horrible shame that Ian Gillan didn't stick it out with Sabbath longer than this. His vocals fit in perfectly with Sabbath's style on this album, which is heavier than anything from any point in their history. Gillan's vocals on the sinister "Disturbing the Priest" is so menacing it would send the guys from Slayer running out of the room.

"Trashed" is another classic track. It is about a wreck Gillan had during the recording while driving under the influence. It may be politically incorrect, but it kicks harder than anything Sabbath has released since the early Ozzy days. "Zero The Hero" has a great riff which Guns n' Roses later used for "Paradise City," and "Hotline" is a great song that I wind up singing to myself days after I last listened to the album.

If you expect this album to sound like a cross between Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, don't worry about it. This album is all Sabbath, and Gillan turns in an awesom performance. If you like Sabbath at any stage of their career, whether it be with Ozzy, Dio, or Martin, get this album. It will not disappoint.

So said Ian Gillan upon perusing this album cover, a bad cross between "The Exorcist", "Rosemary's Baby", and "It's Alive".

Well, Ian, I did too. I've heard that Tony Iommi allowed it because he found it hilarious.

Note: I haven't heard the remastered version. My review of this is based on my original German-made CD.

When Ronnie James Dio left the band, I was crushed. However, somehow, I predicted that they would get Ian Gillan. To my surprise, I was right!!!

This is not their best album. However, it is not worth the abuse ("Black Purple") that has been heaped on it over the years (mostly by people who won't accept anything past "Never Say Die" anyway).

I got this album during my senior year in high school (83-84). I had high expectations, since Sabbath are my favourite HM band and I have very high regard for Ian Gillan. Nobody shrieks like him! Plus, Bill Ward was back (albeit temporarily).

When I played it, I was struck by two things. First of all, I was surprised at how HEAVY it is - far heavier than the two previous studio albums. Riffmaster Tony Iommi certainly doesn't disappoint! I also noticed that, indeed, some of the songs (especially "Hot Line") could easily have come off a Deep Purple album or one of Gillan's solo albums (he was huge as a solo artist in Europe and Japan). Indeed, there was some controversy as he had broken Gillan up due to nodes on his vocal chords and then he shows up in Black Sabbath!

This is perhaps Sabbath's most controversial album after "Seventh Star" (which isn't a Sabbath album, really). Apparently Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler didn't want to call it a Sabbath album. Also, oddly enough, Ozzy praised the album at the time, calling it "the best thing I've heard from Sabbath since the original band broke up" (could be due to the fact that he and Gillan come from the same era of groundbreaking British metal and he and Dio hate one another's guts).

Gillan hated the production. He said "Geezer went a bit wally and it turned into a bass solo". Personally, I love the bass-heavy production - perfect for Sabbath. Tony Iommi has also slagged the album.

And the songs are really good, as Gillan has said, despite the way they were put together. He left the instrumentalists and producer Robin Black to construct the backing tracks while he camped out in a tent and wrote the lyrics while drinking Scotch and then added his vocals.

"Trashed" - A fast one, apparently about Gillan's misadventures with driving mini race cars while intoxicated.

"Stonehenge" - Weird Geoff Nicholls keyboard blurbs. Stonehenge would, however, play a major part in this chapter of the Sabbath saga.

"Disturbing The Priest" - GILLAN RIPS HIMSELF OFF! If any of you have heard the title track of the Ian Gillan Band album "Scarabus", the vocal and melody line are identical! It's got some good shrieking, though the pseudo-evil lyrics don't really fit Gillan, who is known more as an affable jokester.

"The Dark" - Tony Iommi playing flute through some really weird effects.

"Zero The Hero" - The album's finest moment, and one of Sabbath's finest moments. Truly heavy riff (which Guns 'n Roses would later "appropriate" for "Paradise City") and, in my opinion, Tony Iommi's finest-ever guitar solo. However, I haven't any idea what the lyrics are supposed to be about. Geezer's bass effects really punch here.

"Digital Bitch" - More solo-Gillan meets Sabbath. Lyrically atypical for Sabbath but a good song nonetheless.

"Born Again" - A truly creepy song. I have fond memories of listening to this on an early-spring night in 1984 while driving in the fog with two of my buds in my old Plymouth Volare.

"Hot Line" - The most Deep Purple-ish song on the album. The solo is even Blackmore-ish.

"Keep It Warm" - The album's weak moment. The song itself isn't bad, but lyrically is beyond the pale for Sabbath, unless one were to compare it to "She's Gone" or "Sabbra Cadabra".

The Gillan era, of course, did not last beyond this tour. Bill Ward slipped back into alcoholism and was replaced on tour by ex-ELO drummer Bev Bevan.

Gillan calls himself "the worst singer Sabbath ever had". That's a bit harsh, but I do have a bootleg live tape from this tour and he did not fit in onstage at all. On the old stuff he mostly flubbed the lyrics ("Heaven and Hell" was almost unintelligible) and Bevan was clearly uncomfortable with music this heavy. However, they did close the gigs with an energetic rendition of "Smoke On The Water" (which apparently incensed Ritchie Blackmore).

This tour will always be associated with the oversized Stonehenge stage props, which of course went on to inspire a big part of the film "This Is Spinal Tap".

After this album and tour, Sabbath truly went on hiatus for several years. Geezer left, Ward was back in hospital, Gillan rejoined Deep Purple and Tony Iommi was more noted for his relationship with Lita Ford than his musical output (rumours were also rife of a reunion of the original lineup after their appearance at Live Aid in 1985).

The album's not perfect, but it is good. Give it a listen with an open mind and I don't think you'll be disappointed.

With "Heaven and Hell" (1980) and its follow-up "Mob Rules," (1981) the mighty Black Sabbath accomplished the impossible by proving that there was life after Ozzy. After going into commercial and critical decline in the late 70s, vocalist Ronnie James Dio brought the band back to its former glory, revitalizing the band and adding a new chapter to the legendary band's career. But alas, the newly energized second incarnation was not meant to last. In '82 Dio and Sabbath drummer Vinnie Appice (who played on "Mob Rules") left the band after a dispute on the mixing and mastering of "Live Evil" (1982). After the split Ronnie James Dio and Appice formed the highly successful Dio, while founding Sabbath members' Tony Iommi (guitar) and Geezer Bulter(bass) were left with the task of rebuilding Sabbath once again.

To fill the shoes of Ozzy and Dio, vocalist Ian Gillian made perfect sense and seemed like an ideal match. With such albums as "Fireball" (1970) and "Machine Head" (1972) under his belt, the (then) former Deep Purple frontman certainly had the background and credentials to front Sabbath. Although Sabbath and Deep Purple were rivals in their coinciding heyday, their similarities outnumbered their differences as they were both responsible for some of the decade's best rock. With Gillian at the helm and original drummer Bill Ward back behind the kit, Sabbath released their eleventh studio album, the aptly titled "Born Again" in the summer of '83.

The third incarnation of Sabbath is not a radical departure from the sound of the Ozzy or Dio years. With Tony Iommi's heavy, gloomy riffs and bluesy solos over Ward and Butler's solid rhythm section, "Born Again" certainly sounds like a Black Sabbath album. Gillian, however, definitely adds his signature to the band. While Ozzy and Dio certainly have different styles, both singers have a straight-forward delivery and their lyrics deal with similar themes; God, the occult, afterlife, etc. Gillian's satanic screams and more down-to-earth lyrics concerning hangovers ("trashed") and misogyny ("Digital Bitch") offered a change of pace to the band. Guest Keyboardist Geoff Nicolas peppers the album with synthesizers, giving an 80s touch to the sound of the album. While Nicolas had been present since "Heaven and Hell," with "Born Again," his presence is more apparent.

"Born Again," opens strong with the thundering "Trashed," which sounds like a cross between "Neon Knights" and "Paranoid." The bizarre, eerie instrumental "Stonehenge," acts as a buffer to the sinister, off-beat, mid-tempo "Disturbing the Priest." Butler's pounding bass over Nicolas dark synthesizers works well here. With its obvious religious theme, "Disturbing the Priest" is probably the most typical Sabbath-like song on the album. "The Dark," another off-beat eerie instrumental acts as the perfect lead-in to the highly, highly underrated Sabbath classic "Zero the Hero," which has the same riff as Guns N' Roses "Paradise City." The almost-anthem-like "Digital Bitch" is no less catchy, with its infectious hook and sing-along-chorus. The album slows down considerably for the epic title track "Born Again," which is dark and harrowing and shows Tony Iommi at his bluesy best. "Hot Line" sounds a bit like Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water," and while not the album's strongest cut, is still pretty good. The melodic, hard-rocking "Keep it Warm" is effective and makes for a good closer.

While "Born Again" fared better than Sabbath's later-day Ozzy albums, it still underperformed, failing to go gold as its immediate predecessor "Mob Rules" had. The Gillian line-up of Sabbath proved to be short-lived as the band broke-up shortly thereafter, reforming a few years later with an entirely different lineup, featuring Deep Purple's Glen Hughes and later Tony Martin. After his tenure with Sabbath, Gillian would once again front Deep Purple, starting with their "Perfect Strangers" (1984) reunion album.

Upon its release, one of the major criticisms of the album was its mix. Ian Gillian himself says that he "puked" when he first heard the album. The 1996 edition, however, is a big improvement over the original release, and the sound has been cleared up considerably. And while most critics have panned "Born Again" since its release, over time it has attained a cult following. This is one album that I feel most critics are really wrong on. The album is well paced, has killer hooks and groves, melody, Gillian's unique brand of humor, and, well, just plain rocks. "Born Again," in this fan's opinion ranks among both Sabbath and Gillian's finest work. If you are a fan of Sabbath, Deep Purple/Gillian or old-school rock in general, due yourself a favor and give "Born Again" a listen.

This is in response to what reviewer John Spokus said in his review of this classic Sabbath masterpiece. 1st of all, let's get something straight, no matter how rough Sabbath's career may have turned in the 80's, their albums NEVER went to any cutout bins!! As a matter of fact, this one even placed well on the charts for a brief period. And the lame comment you made about the lyrics being 'kindergardenish' ("the devil and the priest can't exist if one went away"). If you don't understand the deep meaning behind that line proves that you're a complete idiot who shouldn't be listening to Sabbath in the 1st place! And as for not being able to hear Geezer Butler?? Are you high?? Listen to "Zero the Hero", he's all over the place! Matter of fact, Judas Priest blatantly stole Geezer's bass riff from that song for the intro to their song "Love Bites", which came out later in the same year. And Guns & Roses blatantly stole the entire riff for their "Paradise City". And for the comment, how did you put it, "Even the great riffmeister Iommi couldn't save this project". Hello!! Are you sure you listened to the same album I did?! Because the "Born Again" cd I'm used to is FULL of mean riffs and rythms that are a glorious throwback to the early days of Sabbath (think "Master of Reality" and "Sabotage"). Songs like "Trashed", "Disturbing The Priest", "Zero The Hero", and the title track are true classics! And this version of the band live was probably the most sinister sets that Sabbath ever turned in. Gillan's continous screaming/singing/screaming amisdt the gloom and doom of the titanic Iommi/Butler riffs, this made for one hell of a terrific year for Black Sabbath! They didn't call the album "Born Again" for nothing! (Footnote to other reviewers on here: If you don't like the cover, then don't buy the cd! The baby devil is the PERFECT cover for the title they chose.) This is a must for any Black Sabbath fan! (And to think that it was released the same year as Ozzy's weak "Bark At the Moon" album.) Rock on!

Well, boys & girls... What a distinctive Sabbath chapter this is! You may call it the begining of the end, but this was the most mistreated Sabb album at that point. The downside was the absolutely miserable production which is quite unacceptable for a band who, more than once, brought us cutting edge sound. Even I regard it as a rush job: I believe that the guitar solos on "Trashed" are too loud, the drums sound like they were recorded from a different room to the mics, blah, blah ,blah...
Ahem!... ANYWAY... The front cover is considered one of the most horrible, ugliest piece of album (f)artwork (source: KERRANG's top 10 worst album sleeves - "Born Again" is #2, the golden spot being occupied by the Scorpions' "Lovedrive"). The story behind this regrettable sleeve is actually quite interesting, personally I never understood people who would listen to an album or look at a work of art and say "It's a joke!!!". Well the "Born Again" artwork IS a joke... literally!... Steve Joule, who designed it used to work for Ozzy Osbourne and when the latter fell out with Sharon's father the other latter seeked revenge by stealing as many of the Osbourne staff as he could for Black Sabbath. Since Steve didn't want to lose harmony with the Osbournes, he purposefully came up with the most tasteless, dispicable piece of trash he could think of. He took a photograph from a learning magazine (and believe me, when you've seen the original, the Joule version looks quite nice), stuck on the most horrible colors, horns, eyes and fingernails... Sadly, Mr. Iommi loved it and the rest is history... and the band was history. The most ludicrous consequence of this prank was the midget in the devil-baby suit who would jump off the stonehenge stage set and land on a matress... that was once inadvertently removed... OUCH!
So the cover is also a founder of an infamous line of BABY ROCK COVERS featuring Nirvana's "Nevermind" and Papa Roach's "Lovehatetragedy".
This is the very last studio album with Bill Ward on drums, sadly. He was unable to join the tour due to ill health and was replaced by Bev Bevan.
Most people complain about Ian Gillan's unusual screaming, but I believe that he was only aiming at a different approach. Frankly, I think that joining Black Sabbath was the worst thing that could have happened to Ian for the aforesaid reasons.
The Black Sabbath remasters are quite fun, however it's a shame they didn't include any bonus tracks since there are countless gems from the "Born Again" session that were never once released. "The Fallen" is the first track that springs in mind. This album might have been considerably more successful if it had a more polished production and tracklisting.

Well this review is going on a bit, so I'll end it once I've said that "Born Again" may not reach the standards of its predecesors, but you should still give it a shot.

Cheers!

This was my first concert "Black Sabbath's Born Again", I saw these guys with Quiet Riot. That right, Quiet Riot, ok to the point. Aside from being 14, and never been to a concert, this was one of the best stage performances ever! I have seen all the different versions of Sabbath and Ian was awesome in his own way. The stage was filled with stonehenges and a baby devil at the beginning! Why do you ask is he talking about the concert? Because this is what led to me buying the album which kicks serious ass! I remember my parents trying to throw this away and having teachers sending me to the office because my shirt was not appropriate dress. Please just put all opinions aside and buy this album and realize this is a great album regardless of your love for Dio and Osbourne! They kick ass too, I am just saying Black Sabbath has given us a variety of sounds and style over the years. Rock on Sabbath Fans!!!!!

I've owned and heard most of Black Sabbath's records, and have been a devoted fan for years. I saw the orginal Sabbath (Technical Estasy tour 77), Ozzie (Diary of a Madman tour), Ronnie James Dio (Holy Diver 83 tour), and Ian Gillan (Perfect Stranger tour 86). I've always loved the band, both as a whole and as individual artists...

I thought the first album was somewhat dark (but what a classic). Then Ronnie joined on and pushed the band to new levels. However, the darkest sounding album of all is Ian Gillan with "born again". While I'm a true born-again Christian, this album really touches the soul in a very peculiar way.

The best tracks on the album are "disturbing the priest" and "zero the hero". It sounds as though you are witnessing a black mass in progress. Geezer lays down some very heavy bass lines while Tony shows off his guitar wizardry. Ian's amazing vocal range is still evident, although not as sharp as in his younger days. He's not the vocalist that he was in his "Jesus Christ Superstar" days (I thought it was funny to think he cut JCS, then this album, then played some riffs of JCS while on the Perfect Strangers tour... talking about a 180 degree flip-flop) :)

Needless to say, I'm sure this album's darkness and cover probably turned alot of Christians away. But to me this album opens a true awareness of evil and good, and actually is spiritual in nature. Sure, I don't ever intend to go out and celebrate some black mass, but if you enjoy stepping into the dark side of rock n' roll, then brother/sister this is a good place to start... By the way, get the Ouija board out while your listening... :o

When I heard that one of the greatest heavy metal bands and one of the greatest hard rock/metal singers had collaborated, I was naturally intrigued; at first mention it does not seem that a union of Ian Gillian and Black Sabbath would be "natural." Having listened to this album several times now, I'm still not quite sure it is... Regardless, this is a very interesting record and one well-worth finding; with the exception of "Keep It Warm," every track is a winner, even the two instrumentals. Iommi and Butler create great riffs as usual, especially on the extremely foreboding "Zero the Hero," which is as menacing as anything Sabbath created with Ozzy or Dio (no other band is as adept at creating a mood as Black Sabbath). And Gillian... he turns in an incredible performance. While it could be argued that perhaps his regular singing voice does not fit the Sabbath vibe, it does not detract from the material. When Gillian wails, however, any doubts that he does not "belong" are erased - at times he sounds more otherworldly than the music, not even sounding remotely like a human being (especially at the end of "Disturbing the Priest"). For one record Ian Gillian takes us on a journey with Black Sabbath, and it is not one you will soon forget.

Originally released in 1983, this is the the lone, unjustly overlooked amazing album released by Sabbath. After the falling out with Dio(R.I.P.) and the infamous Live Evil album, Sabbath was left with only Tony and Geezer(Vinny left by this time as well). They recruited former Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan for this album, and welcome back Bill Ward on drums. When the album was released, there was a great travesty surrounding it, particularly over the final mix of the album, to which Ian is reported to have 'puked when I heard it'. No matter the mix, Sabbath had turned out an all out hard-rock/metal album, filled with some of Tony's best riffs to date. Even Ozzy stated how much he enjoyed the album. But as soon as things came together, they fell apart just as fast. Bill was unable to tour, so ELO drummer Bev Bevin was brought in four the tour, now famous for the pre-Spinal Tap stonehenge stage sets and midget devils. After the tour, Ian parted ways to re-join his Deep Purple Mark 2 line up band mates for their reunion the following year with Perfect Strangers. Sabbath was inactive for a few years afterwords.

As for this 2011 Deluxe Edition, it is one of the best yet. For the sound, it's not a remix like they were hoping to do, unfortunately the tapes could not be found(really Sony??) but it is stated they still want to do a remix when/if the tapes are found. But overall, it sounds alot better than the version before it. Alot of the harshness is gone, it sounds alot less distorted and balanced out correctly. It's nicely cleaned up as well. I would say it's the closest to the vinyl, if not better, because even the vinyl's mix was distorted. Overall, it's good for what they had to work with. As for the 2nd disc, the outtake track The Fallen is nice little song, could have definately fit on the album. The extended version of Stonehenge is also cool, but nothing more than just an extended version. Apparently Tony plays flute, but because of the mix, you really can't hear it. The Reading Festival show is really worth it for the price, this is some of the best live Sabbath I've heard. Ian really knows how to get the crowd rolling, and his singing on Sabbath classics like 'Black Sabbath' are just downright frightening at times. This is definately a must-buy for the fans, for the cleaned up sound and the impressive extras. I myself can't wait for the next Deluxe Editions of the Tony Martin Era albums, espeically the epic Headless Cross album.