Customer Reviews

Live From Radio City Music Hall (Ocrd)

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Just when I had written Dio off as being old an worn out(Holy Diver Live), He completly blows me away in this DVD (CD). Absolutely Amazing. Tony Iommi is absolutely top notch, Geezer just grinds out the bassline, and Vinnie pounds the skins like a Madman. When this whole "reunion" thing was being tossed around, I was having images of the mismanaged Dehumanizer shows. Then I heard "And the Devil Cried"...and I knew this was the real thing. I am the biggest Ozzy fan alive, but this DVD/CD absolutely solidified the Dio years as some of the best Metal music produced. This is a must have for Sabbath fans, and any metal Fan.

I guess it's well known among many Black Sabbath fans that the Dio-lineup was an absolutely brilliant, although unfortunately unstable one, giving us only three studio albums. I am damn sure that they would've produced lots more great stuff if their egos didn't get in the way, and the new songs 'The Devil Cried' and 'Shadow of the Wind' are a testament to that. The tracks performed from this fine classic trilogy of albums (H&H, Mob Rules and Dehumanizer) plus the new material are in excellent form here. I saw one of these Heaven and Hell shows in Toronto earlier this year, and must say that it was one of the best and most powerful concerts I've had the pleasure of seeing in a long time.- This live set (along with the DVD which I also picked up, a real treat!) is worth every penny. A great souvenir of the tour. The sound quality is top notch in it's crispness and clarity. Tony Iommi's guitar playing, Dio's voice, not to mention Vinny's drumming and Geezer's bass are as good as ever. This along with the long out-of-print limited-edition 'Live At Hammersmith' are sonically far superior to the disppointing 'Live Evil'. Anyone into Dio-era Sabbath should not pass this one up! I can just imagine what a new album of studio material form these guys would sound like, if they manage to stick together - and I don't really care whether it's under the B.S. or H&H name either. Oh and, BTW, maybe it's time to give the Ozzy-lineup a permanent rest, as I don't seriously think they'll work out anyway!.

It is good to know that there are still bands out there keeping it real. Dio will never let true rockers down nor will the rest of the Black Sabbath group. The music now is called "classic rock" but in my heart it is still the only "rock" music out there these days. This is a great, and lenghthy, album clocking in at a little over two hours and they still sound as great as they did back in the days. I would have loved to see this show live but I will have to settle for this album instead. Add to your collection NOW!!!!!!!!

Somewhere along the way the comparison struck me, but in a way it fits. Dio, like Shemp Howard, was a talented individual who, taken in their own right, should be respected for what they accomplished, but will forever be overshadowed by their predecessors. Maybe I come at this from a unique perspective. Most stooge fans seem to be either Curly or Shemp, and Sabbath fans seem to be either Ozzy or Dio. Personally I like them all and take each of them for what they were. In the case of Sabbath, Dio allowed the band to finally reinvent themselves with some sort of cohesive vision, and his operatic growl was the perfect foil for Iommi's ever-darkening guitar riffs. They did away with much of the experimentation and occasional acoustic dabblings, and became a more straight forward metal band. On this album the quartet of Dio, Iommi, Butler, and Appice have captured a bit of the old black magic. Though I find myself favoring the first disc, the entire album is about as solid a live performance as you can get. The new material even fits in seamlessly with the old, a rare feat when old bands try to add to their back catalog. In the end I will always love Sabbath with Ozzy or with Dio and this Live masterpiece is a welcome addition to the collection. It's one of those albums perfectly suited to driving with the windows down, the volume up, and your foot feeling a little on the heavy side.
And for the record, I'll let someone else sort out who the Joe and Curly Joe of Sabbath are.

This record is as good a live document of the "Heaven and Hell 2007" tour as anyone can possibly ask for. And yet, I can't help but feel that while a very good album, it is not as great as I had hoped. Now, let me elaborate a little before you start sending me death threats (if you still feel like threatening me by the end of the review, that's ok with me, but at least let me finish, then...). As a major Dio-era Sabbath fan, I was very excited to hear that these gentlemen had decided to give these old, criminally underrated songs a few more spins on tour, especially after catching an unbelievable Dio show in July of 2006, where he played quite a few Sabbath gems and blew me (and everybody else in the house, for that matter...) away!

That show really whet my appetite for this reunion tour, as Ronnie sounded fantastic, way better than he does on his "Holy Diver Live" 2CD set (I like that one too, but the show really blew that out the water as well! Yeah, that's how good it was...). It was obvious that they were gonna release a live album for the benefit of all those among us that couldn't make it to a Heaven and Hell show and for those lucky enough to witness the reunion and wanting to relive the experience over and over again, so I was very happy to find out they would release it rather quickly, while still on tour (as opposed to the normal rule of waiting up to a year after a tour is over to release a live album).

Fans and critics unanimously complimented the tour, and I kept a close watch of its evolution: set lists, reviews, interviews, etc. When I read the reviews that detailed the set list, I didn't think that "After All (the dead)" was the best choice for a show opener (dark and powerful, yes, but slow nevertheless), but after listening to the CD, I have to admit that somehow, these guys make it work! The sound of the album is crystal clear and all the more potent because of it, light years away from the muddy production of "Live Evil".

As I kept listening, I was thrilled by the great performances of most songs, even if they had to drop the tuning for the majority of them: I don't care much for downtuning, but the fact is that it is an unavoidable concession to times. I mean, as much as I hate to admit it, Ronnie is no longer a kid...like the Stones said "what a drag it is getting old..." (Mother's Little Helper). Ronnie can still outsing most singers at god only knows what age, Tony's guitar never sounded better (I mean it!), Geezer sounds louder and clearer here than on any other Sabbath album and Vinny is a powerhouse on his own. I think that the structure of the songs, far more sparse and with more room to breathe than the trademark riff fest of the Ozzy-era really helps when playing live, leaving more room for dynamics. Something caught my attention, though: for some reason, some of the songs didn't sound all that great to me. And after listening to the whole thing, I discovered that I liked disc 1 better than disc 2. Most of the songs sound and feel right, but there are a few that, at least for me, don't.

The totally killer rendition "The Mob Rules" is a highlight for sure! Ronnie even manages a huge scream at the beginning of the song that gave me goose bumps! "Children of the Sea" (the opening song at that Dio show that I mentioned earlier) is a classic of hard rock and here it explodes in all of its glory. The next tune, however, made me raise an eyebrow for the first time: "Lady Evil", one of my favorites from their first album, didn't sound quite right for me; it almost felt as if it were a different song...I have no idea why... I was looking forward to hear "I", another one of my favorites (which was also played at the solo show with unbelievable results!), and while I think it is ok, it's not as great as the live version I got to hear...

"The Sign of the Southern Cross" has got to be one of the greatest songs in the Sabbath catalog, period, and yet, the 2 official live releases from this lineup have failed to present it in all of its glory (absent in the "Live at Hammersmith", included in a medley in "Live Evil"). So the guys finally decided to right that wrong, and the result is well worth it, another highlight of the show without a question. Their performance of "Voodoo" is good, but not great, and finally CD1 closes with a monstrous rendition of a new tune, "The Devil Cried", which sits easily among the classics, proving that the song is just as strong as any other from their catalog.

Disc 2 begins with "Computer God", another one of my personal favorites (I absolutely LOVE "Dehumanizer"...), but truth be told, this version didn't cut it for me...I don't know, I guess it lacks a little something, not sure what exactly..."Falling of the Edge of the World" doesn't really improve things for me: first, I would have preferred to hear a different song, such as "Country Girl" or maybe even "Wishing Well", but in addition to that, this version didn't particularly impress me... "Shadow of the Wind", on the other hand, is a classic on its own right: dark, heavy, and powerful, truly worthy of inclusion here. So is "Die Young", one of the live classics of this lineup that kicks butt big time. Probably my biggest disappointment is with the live rendition of "Heaven and Hell": way shorter than the one included in "Live Evil" (that's ok with me), it lacks the feel of the one Ronnie recorded for his "...Diver Live" set.

The last 2 songs of the set are 2 of my favorite Sabbath songs, and that's why they are also 2 big letdowns of this release: both "Lonely is the Word" and the encore "Neon Knights" sound to me almost like totally different songs...and I have no idea why! I'm sure most of you are thinking "this guy is so full of it, he says he doesn't like the songs, but he can't even say why". Well, I've never claimed to be a professional reviewer or critic, I'm just telling you what I...think...no, not really...I'm an instinctive kind of person, I rely on my gut feeling, if something "feels" right to me, great, and if it doesn't, I say it...

Bottom Line, this is a very good package, with a clear, potent sound that is a faithful representation of the show and the tour. I don't like it as much as I thought I would, but I'd still recommend it to those of you who, like me, were unable to catch the band live, and for those who were lucky enough to do so as well. This is a 3 ½ star record at least, and while I would have preferred a 5 star record, I guess this is as close as we're ever gonna get. A must for Dio-era Sabbath fans and recommended listen for everybody else. (There, NOW you can send your death threats...happy?)

The rock band Heaven and Hell (better known as the Ronnie James Dio fronted incarnation of Black Sabbath as not to confuse some people of who Black Sabbath consisted of after the original lineup got inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006) released the second Dio-led Sabbath lineup's double live album entitled Live at Radio City Music Hall 2007 in August of 2007 in time for their fall US Tour which had Queensryche and Alice Cooper on the bill.
If you Ozzy Osbourne and Bill Ward poseur fans thought singer Ronnie James Dio, guitarist Tony Iommi, bass player Geezer Butler and drummer Vinny Appice were absolutely nothing without Ozzy (who admittedly is a caricature of himself these days), just one listen to this double album and it will erase that thought very quickly as Iommi and Butler were the sound of Sabbath.
The album (and its off-shoot DVD) was recorded at Radio City Music Hall in March of 2007 just as the recently reunited early 1980s incarnation of Sabbath were about to release its best of called The Dio Years. After not playing together for 15 years, would either the reunion work or should have they stopped in 1992, read on and find out as I did when I bought the album last year.
We open with the eerie "E5150" which segues into the Dehumanizer track "After All The Dead" and you know Sabbath/Heaven and Hell means business and rock out. Next is "The Mob Rules"* where Dio unleashes an unearthly scream and a barnhouse version of the track follows. Other classics from the Dio era Sabbath albums that are given a fresh live spin on this album are "Children of the Sea"*, "Lady Evil", "I", "The Sign of the Southern Cross"*, "Voodoo"*, "Computer God", "Die Young", "Heaven and Hell"* (in a killer extended version), "Lonely Is the Word" and "Neon Knights"* and they all rock as hard, if not better than the versions on either of the band's three studio efforts or those tracks marked with a * that were also on the band's first live album together, 1982's Live Evil.
Also, two of the three tracks that appeared on The Dio Years best of released earlier in 2007 which are "The Devil Cried" (with Vinny Appice's killer drum solo) and "Shadow Of The Wind" are great pieces that are tasters for the upcoming reunion studio album of this great band which is due in 2009.
Myself having seen this tour in September 9, 2007 outside Boston, this live album is recommended!

This is the reunion I have been waiting for! I enjoy the Ozzy Era material, but since I grew up with this lineup I see them as Sabbath's best. If you are a fan of this version of Sabbath, or Heaven and Hell as they are calling themselves, buy this CD. Although I am not really a fan of live CD's, but this one will blow your mind. The 64 year old Dio is amazing. The man can still belt out about 98% of the notes in the songs and is a great frontman. His polite, and sober, demeanor is really great.

Butler, Iommi and Appice are all fantastic. First they open with the techno "E5150" and then surprisingly come out with a great version of "After all (The Dead)". Next is the one everyone was expecting "Mob Rules", and then a great version of "Children of the Sea" in which Dio relates it was the first song the band wrote together. Next we have great versions of "Lady Evil", "I", And a favorite of mine, "Sign of the Southern Cross". We then have "Voodoo", a great new song "The Devil Cried", and the powerful "Computer God". Then they played a favorite of mine "Falling off the Edge of the World" which I am sure is one which has not been played for many years. Next was a really heavy and great new song "Shadow of the Wind" ,a sinister song about drug addiction, then the great "Die Young", the all time classic "Heaven and Hell", "Lonely is the Word" and for their encore the great "Neon Knights".

This is real metal. Melodic and heavy, unlike some of the garbage today, you will not be disappointed. Dio, Iommi, Butler, and Applice should reform and do a full length CD. Forget drug addicted Ozzy, bring back this lineup!

Not an Ozzy song to be found and that's not a bad thing in my opinion. Great set list, crisp-clear-in your face sound. I don't normally write reviews but I was blown away by the performance of these great songs,I especially appreciated hearing the lesser known songs off of H&H and Mob Rules such as "Die Young", "Lonely is the Word", "Lady Evil" and "Falling Off the Edge of the World". All instruments can be heard clearly - Iommi's guitar is out front but Geezer's excellent bass can be easily heard as well as Vinny Apppice's drums. Appice adds some nice drum fills not heard on the original versions of the songs. To me, that's why you get a live album (1) to hear a great cross section of songs and (2) to hear extended versions with subtle changes to make them unique. I wouldn't call it improvisation but it is still excellent musicianship and Iommi is still one of the greatest guitarists of all time. The man has riffs as Dio says and Heaven and Hell deliver the goods on this cd in outstanding fashion. Dio's voice has lost a slight bit of range, but he still belts these songs out with authority and enthusiasm. Dio still hits about 97% of the notes from the original songs and this in no way detracts from the show. Amazing since its been over 25 years since H&H was first released. I think the performance shows the band truly enjoying this performance. Highly recommended to any Dio fan, Sabbath fan and metal fan, in general

Argueably, Black Sabbath is the greatest rock band ever to grace a studio, and for that matter a stage. I can hear it now; all of the Zeppelin and Beatles fans are going nuts. Sorry if I'm not a snob. For so many years Sabbath has taken so much abuse from critics and music snobs alike. It's probably because Sabbath has usually gone against the grain, and has been its own enemy with a number of line-up changes. Not to mention the fact that at times Tony Iommi was the lone original member and decided to put out records under the Sabbath moniker. All that being said, regardless what the band was called, the music has always been of high quality and most of it is still relevant today.

I was fortunate enough to see the Radio City show live. Both vocally and musically, this is the best version of Black Sabbath. The 3 albums they've turned out are classic pieces with great lyrics and great production. As a matter of fact, Iommi's sound on the albums is far better than any of the other stuff. Couple that with Dio's vocals, and you have the basis for great things. Now, I love Ozzy, and in no way am I insulting him, but the fact is Dio is a better singer.

This recording of the "Heaven & Hell" band is amazing. Get the DVD too. It's hard to imagine that these guys are as old as they are. But then again, it's not so surprising because they've had a lot of practice, and they are also older and wiser.

I'm not going to go through each song. If you know Sabbath then you know how great the songs are. The performance is the thing to marvel at. The sound is perfect, the vocals are perfect; everything about it is mind-boggling.

I love the fact that there's never been a rhythm guitar player in the band. It shows how great Iommi is, but also how the rhythm section (Butler and Appice) can keep it together. Although they only did 3 albums together, I don't think it's too hard to say that this is the best version of Sabbath. I just hope they take it back into the studio and put out a full-length in the future. In the meantime, I'll be looking for the original Sabs to hopefully get something to us in '08.

This is just what I've been waiting for.

I currently own "Live Evil" and "Cross Purposes Live." Both of those are excellent (and underated). I've owned "Live at Last," "Past Lives" (rip-off) and the unnecessarily F-word laden "Reunion," all of which I got rid of.

This is BLACK SABBATH, people. Tony Iommi, Ronnie James Dio, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice. This is the lineup that existed when I first got into Sabbath back in 1980-81.

Even at 65, Ronnie has still got a voice that would put singers a third of his age to shame. Tony...what can you say? The man invented heavy metal guitar as we know it, and he's still the master! Geezer...solid when he needs to be, and fluid when he needs to be, the mark of a truly excellent bass player. Vinny...Ronnie once called him "the American John Bonham," and I'm inclined to agree. Big brother Carmine may be better-known, but I've seen Vinny live twice (once with Dio and once with Sabbath) and he is among the most impressive drummers I've ever seen live, along with Neil Peart, Bobby Rondinelli and Phil Ehart (it's a shame I never got to see Cozy Powell).

Ronnie James Dio is easily the best frontman I can think of. I have never seen anyone connect with an audience the way he does, without having to resort to profanity-laden stage raps.

The song selection is excellent, and proves that this version of Black Sabbath can stand quite nicely on its own, without having to rehash any other lineup's songs, as good as those are. Of course, I miss songs like "Time Machine," "TV Crimes" and "Slipping Away"...I also think they should have done "Ear In The Wall"...but you can't please everyone.

By any other name, it's BLACK SABBATH. Do yourself a favour and get this necessary live album.