Eternal Idol [Import, Original recording remastered]

Black Sabbath | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 1, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import, Original recording remastered
• Label: Sanctuary UK
• ASIN: B0002XMF62
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #65,694 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Shining

2. Ancient Warrior

3. Hard Life to Love

4. Glory Ride

5. Born to Lose

6. Nightmare

7. Scarlet Pimpernel

8. Lost Forever

9. Eternal Idol

Editorial Reviews

Part of the third & final installment in thedigitally remastered series of Sabbath's Warner Brotherscatalog. Features the original sleeve artwork plus addition-al lyrics and liner notes. 'Eternal Idol' completes thecollection. 9 tracks: 'The Shining', 'Ancient Warrior','Hard Life To Love', 'Glory Ride', 'Born To Lose', 'Night-mare', 'Scarlet Pimperel', 'Lost Forever' and 'Eternal Idol'

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Monumentally Underrated Sabbath Monolith, June 3, 2010

By 

Oliverio Casas "Heavy Metal Fan from Northern... (Montevideo, Uruguay) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Eternal Idol (Audio CD)

As much as Sharon Osbourne has made her life quest to convince the world that post-Ozzy Sabbath was completely worthless and irrelevant, we real metalheads know better than to listen to that disgusting old hag's rants.
So, after putting out two absolute classics with Dio (Heaven and Hell and The Mob Rules) and a great, but somewhat flawed album with Gillan (Born Again), the band's Butler-Iommi composing team disintegrated, leaving Black Sabbath as little more than a Tony Iommi solo showcase in 1986's Seventh Star. After this ill-fated album, the once mighty Sabbath's fate up to 1992's Dehumanizer would be a struggle between commercial obscurity and artistic irrelevancy, despite crafting a masterpiece with The Eternal Idol and two decent follow ups.
Of the five ill-fated Tony Martin albums, this is undoubtedly the best. After the softer, hard rock oriented Seventh Star, the band feels rejuvenated and hell bent on recapturing their long lost heavy metal thunder.
Despite a hodgepodge of backing musicians and personel problems during the album's production, Tony Iommi's monumentally heavy riffing, coupled with Tony Martin's Dio-esque vocals on tracks like Hard Life to Love, Glory Ride, and Born to Lose manage to keep the music focused, hard and heavy. Geoff Nicholls, Sabbath's perpetually invisible fifth member, does an excellent job throghout with his eery, atmospheric keyboards, especially on The Eternal Idol and Ancient Warrior. That said, the absolute masterpiece on this album is The Shining, a monumental Sabbath stomper that deserves a place in the band's greatest songs pantheon.
Make no mistake. Tony Iommi is, was and will always be Black Sabbath's dark soul regardless on who's handling the vocals, and despite this being the band's most underrated opus, it still stands as an all-time heavy metal masterpiece and a monument to the left-handed riffmaster's musical vision.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lost Treasure, November 3, 2010

By 

A. DeGaetano - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Eternal Idol (Audio CD)

I've reviewed this album under the regular listing for "Eternal Idol." However, the deluxe editions that Sanctuary is doing in the UK are great for all collectors of Sabbath and those who are looking for something different. This is a 3 1/2 to 4 star release, but the bonus CD makes it a 5.

Not only do you get the remastered, very underrated album, but you also get a second disc that has the recording with the original vocals laid down by Ray Gillen. Gillen died a few years later from AIDS. That, along with the fact that the release with his vocals has floated around in bootleg circles for years now, makes this a heralded release in many circles. People in the know never thought it would officially see the light of day.

The recording of "Eternal Idol" is legendary insofar as the turmoil surrounding the album. With two weeks to go before its release, Gillen left the band, and Tony Martin came in and recorded over his vocals. Subsequently, Martin would sing on four more Sabbath albums.

This release is only available as an import. Rhino has done a great job in their remastering of past Sabbath albums, but these releases won't come out in the US. This, along with "Seventh Star," are a must for any Sabbath/Iommi fan.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Revist of a Minor, but Entertaining Sabbath, November 17, 2010

By 

K. Buckley - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Eternal Idol (Audio CD)

The new 2-disc Special Edition of the "The Eternal Idol" is a fascinating listening experience for anyone who is otherwise a fan of this album. First, the remastered CD of the original LP with Tony Martin on vocals has never sounded better. While not the best produced album, the remastering brings a richer and more musical sound than my original CD, that I purchased back in 1987. But the big revelation is the second disc, which includes demo verions of the originally conceived LP with Ray Gillen on vocals. Be warned that these are demos, and the mix is not polished. Nonetheless, the sound is more than adequate, and for the first time we can hear what "might have been" had Gillen not quit the band before the LP was complete, and before Tony Iommi decided to have the vocals redone my Martin.

So who is the better singer? I would say they are both very good, and about equal. But that is not the main issue in the comparison.

What's most intrigued to me is that Ray Gillen sounds less like the late, great Ronnie James Dio than did Tony Martin. Martin's voice has a slightly husky sound like Dio's, and Martin's phrasing is more Dio-like than Gillen's. Ray Gillen brought a somewhat more unique sound to his version of Black Sabbath.

Given that this album was a major commercial flop, as were all the Tony Martin Sabbath albums, it is interested to wonder if the more original vocal sound Gillen brought may have better connected with Sabbath fans that abandoned the band with this release. Personally I remember upon first listen thinking that Tony Martin sounded like a low rent version of Ronnie James Dio. I doubt I would have thought that if Gillen was singing, and I may have reacted to the LP a bit better back in 1987. It really wasn't until the past five years that I came to appreciate how good Tony Martin is, and that his 5 Sabbath LPs, while by no means great, are all very solid efforts, and very enjoyable.

This special edition is highly recommended for fans of the LP and worth the upgrade from your 1987 CD. For those unsure of Sabbath-the Tony Martin years, probably still worth a try if the steep price doesn't scare you off. That said, "Cross Purposes" is probably the best Martin-era Sabbath, and may be a better starting point for the uninitiated.