Sabbath '75 Bootleg

Today is the day of Black Sabbath's final live performance. I was kind of excited when I first heard the announcement that the original four members were going to be playing one last show, and I thought how cool it would be to make the trip to Birmingham to see it. I knew that I wasn't going to go, but it was a nice thought. Tickets sold out quickly, and then came the news that this was more of a Sabbath celebration and that there were a number of big name bands that were going to be sharing the stage to help send Black Sabbath off into retirement. I wasn't sure exactly what that was going to look like, but for me it suddenly became less interesting... then things got worse as it started to spin into more of a spotlight on Ozzy, and that he was going to also be playing some songs from his solo career. Oh for fucks sake. Look, I'm sure that as a tribute to Black Sabbath, it will be a very cool event... it just isn't what it was initially promoted as. So instead, I'll pull this live bootleg from my blog backlog and post this up today.

This bootleg isn't one that I was searching for. I just did a favor for my friend Jeff, and as a way of thanks, he asked if I was interested in taking this live boot from '75. Hell yeah, I'm not going to turn down a free record.

I'm surprised with how great this Sabbath live bootleg sounds. Pulled from the soundboard for their set in Ashbury Park, NJ in 1975, this sounds so good. Possibly the best live Sabbath set with Ozzy that I have from those early days... and the setlist is absolute fire. I'm very happy to have this.

Black Box

I can't believe that this is the second box set that I've purchased this year. I try to stay away from these things nowadays, as I generally find them a big waste of precious shelf space. Still, I needed the Shotmaker box because they are such an underapprciated 90's hardcore punk gem, and then this Black Sabbath box was absolutely crucial.

The Anno Domini box from Black Sabbath finally delivers what hardcore fans have been begging for... the Tony Martin albums, remastered and reissued. Originally released during some of metal's lowest years, it seems that most Sabbath fans look down their nose at those albums with Tony Martin singing for the band. Clowns gonna be "Ozzy or nothing", but to ignore Martin's output with the band is straight up criminal behavior. Of course the Sabbath camp hasn't made it easy to check out those albums as they let the fall away into obscurity, and haven't seen a release since their original pressing in the early 90's... until now.

Headless Cross was the last Sabbath album that I bought on CD before basically abandoning metal throughout the 90's, and I've wanted to pick up the original pressing of the record for years. Owning this box set is good enough for me, and I can stop wringing my hands over having to pay close to $100 to own this.

Tyr was originally released in 1990 and is probably the Tony Martin album that I'm least familiar with. I wasn't completely checked out of metal at this point, but I was on my way out the door... but still, I don't remember hearing a thing about this record when it was released. Ten years later, as I was looking back and catching up on what I'd missed out on, I discovered that this album, plus their next one, Cross Purposes, even existed.

After Tyr, Dio came back to Sabbath and recorded the excellent Dehumanizer, before the line up imploded again. Tony Martin came back to the band and in 1994 they recorded one of my favorite albums with him at the mic... Cross Purposes. Martin tends to have a bit of Dio's sound to his voice, but here, I can really hear it.

Finally, we have Forbidden from 1995. I do seem to recall hearing about this album around the time it was being released, but I think that was only because people were talking about how bad it was. While it is the weakest of the Tony Martin albums, I do still enjoy it... but this is coming from someone that tends to really enjoy universally panned albums like St. Anger or the self titled Warzone record, so take it as you will.

This is a solid box set. In addition to the four records, there is a nice booklet with tons of pictures and information, plus giant Headless Cross poster and a reproduction of the tour program. So glad that Sabbath finally released this!

Sometimes I'm Happy

I've always been a bit fascinated with these unofficial releases. Hell, I remember as a kid going into a record store in Portland that had a section of live bootleg cassettes for sale, and as I'd grown up in a time of FBI warnings around illegal recordings of movies and live concerts, I was certain that I was going to be arrested as a part of some sting operation when I bought one. Bootleg records felt dangerous, and I'm sure that fueled my fascination with them.

A couple of years back I was buying a lot of live boots, but I got to a point last year where I made a conscious decision to ease up and put that money towards records that were more important. A year had passed since I'd bought my last one, and that itch came back, so I started looking around at what was easily available.

This Black Sabbath bootleg is from a series of three shows that the band did in Italy in February of 1973. This double LP captures the full live set from their Bologna date, and it sounds fantastic. Recorded on their tour for Vol. 4, we get a bunch of songs from that album, plus an early recording of Killing Yourself To Live that Sabbath would include on their next album, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath... plus the song Sometimes I'm Happy, which will end up being torn apart and pieces will show up in Symptom Of The Universe a couple of years later. Overall, a very cool setlist.

The packaging for this is well done with the Vol. 4 layout, but with Geezer on the front cover and Ozzy on the back. Looking good!

Sabbath Bootleg Haven

I've picked up a number of live bootlegs this past year. I just kept finding them and could not resist the opportunity to buy another one. Looking back, I'm kind of shocked at how many I bought this year, but damn, they were all so great that I just had to add them to the colleciton. As I was talking to my friend Jeff a couple months back, and showing off the latest bootleg that I'd bought, he started complaining about a Black Sabbath one that he had and that he thought it was a piece of shit. I told him that no matter how bad the live recording is, I usually still enjoy them...and without giving it a second thought, he gave me the one he had.

This Black Sabbath boot isn't one of those amazing looking releases from the past few years. Recent bootlegs have some fucking fantastic packaging, and this is not that. This is a bootleg that was released back in 1983, and like most old school boots, the packaging is an uncoordinated mess. The record is actually made up of a few different shows from '75 to '78, however, the front cover photo of Ozzy is from the early 80's when he was fronting the Ozzy Osbourne band...and then the writing from the back cover is all about Ian Gillan and when he joined Sabbath. Good old fashioned bootleg chaos.

Yeah, this recording is a bit rough, and I can see why Jeff was eager to dump it. The recording from the first LP is a bit slow and off pitch, so it is kind of a difficult listen... and overall, it just isn't put together very well. Still, it is an old bootleg from the 80's, so I've got to keep it.

Never Say Die Tour

Earlier this year I picked up an Ozzy live bootleg from the Rock Brigade label. The cover art for that Ozzy boot was amazing. The black and white cover design with the gold OBI strip was a great look, and as soon as I saw that the label also released a live bootleg for Black Sabbath as well, I jumped on it.

Back in 1978, Black Sabbath went on tour to support their Never Say Die album, and they took Van Halen out with them as the opening act. Seems that most people love to talk about how Van Halen blew Sabbath off the stage each night... that Sabbath were dinosaurs and could not keep up with those young guns from California. Fuck that noise. Sabbath may have been on the verge of crashing during this tour, but this bootleg shows that the band could still bring some heat live from the stage. The band is tight and Ozzy sounds fantastic. In fact, this may be my favorite live recording of the song Black Sabbath ever... when Ozzy says "Let's dance with the devil" mid-song, it gives me chills. Plus live versions of Shock Wave and the title track from Never Say Die, plus Dirty Women and Rock 'n' Roll Doctor off Technical Ecstacy make this well worth the price of admission.

This live boot does have it's flaws though. It is a bit rough for me to sit through the drum solo, guitar solo, instrumental of Orchid, and then another guitar solo. Ugh...it is not interesting at all to me. Plus there is a drastic cut at the end of Dirty Women and Electric Funeral, to end Side B and Side C, that is jarring as hell. Still, overall, this shows how strong Sabbath still was on the road at the time, especially when you think that in a little over six months, Ozzy was out of the band and Dio came in to take his place.

This Is Boston, Not UK

The Born Again album was a large hole in my Black Sabbath collection. When I saw Doug post about the record four years ago, it became obvious which pressing I was going to need...the UK Vertigo pressing with those custom labels.

I had actually bought a copy though Discogs a couple years ago, but even though it was listed as a UK pressing, it turned out to be a Dutch pressing with the Vertigo UFO labels. Nope. That was not going to cut it. It was pretty cheap, so I didn't make a fuss, and I just gave it to a friend that wasn't concerned with the pressing info...but it still left me without a copy in my collection.

The album is easy enough to track down, but I kept dragging my feet on actually grabbing one. I got tired of the procrastination and added the record to my Top Wants of 2018 list, hoping it would finally push me to make a move and buy one. No matter how great I think Born Again is, or how many moves I made to keep this on my radar, seven months into 2018, it was still sitting there on my Want List. I'd picked up the mission again, and started looking around for a copy recently...and then Marcus unexpectedly came to the rescue, and delivered one right into my hands.

Marcus was overcoming a serious fear of flying, and was making a trip from the UK to spend a couple weeks visiting the US. His first stop was Boston, and I was looking forward to finally meeting him in person. We've had this online/blog relationship for probably over eight years now, so it was great to finally connect face to face, meet his girlfriend, and spend some time hanging out and doing some records shopping.

We arranged to meet in Boston Common, and I had his copy of the new Battle Ruins LP that I'd picked up for him, and he surprised me with a small gift...the UK Vertigo pressing of Born Again. So happy to be able to finally cross this off the list, and to have it hand delivered from a friend in the UK made it even better.

Dio-cember: Part 7 - Die Young

I had to take the past few days off from blogging, but now we can return to our regularly scheduled postings of Dio-cember. The series is winding down, but before I completely wrapped things up, I wanted to finally cross off one of the classic Black Sabbath singles.

Sabbath released four or five singles from 1980 through 1981 while Dio was originally in the band. Despite the fact that I could listen to both Heaven And Hell and Mob Rules everyday, and not get tired of those albums, I didn't own any of the singles from this period. Since I was neck deep in a Dio obsession, I figured that it was time to finally make a move. Finding the Die Young 12 inch from a US seller, and in excellent condition at a decent price, made the choice easier.

Black Sabbath singles don't really offer anything new...no rare exclusive b-side studio tracks or anything cool like that...most often it is just a live recording of a song...so there has been no real push for me to rush and pick them up. I still want them though...because I'm a record collector, and buying things that I don't really need is kind of my purpose in life.

Dio-cember: Part 5 - TV Crimes

After picking up a number of records from the Dio band, I wanted to hit some of the other bands that Ronnie James Dio was in...first and foremost, Black Sabbath.

In 1992, Dio reunited with Black Sabbath after a 10 year split, and released the Dehumanizer album. Obviously it ruled. I wasn't following Metal at the time, but I consider myself very fortunate to have seen the third Dio reunion with the Sabbath guys in 2007 when they were going by the name Heaven & Hell. They played a couple songs from the Dehumanizer record on that tour, and it absolutely melted my face.

Vinyl was on a fast track out of town when Dehumanizer was released, so I was surprised to discover that Sabbath released a single on vinyl from the album. The first single, Master Of Insanity, only saw a CD release, but with TV Crimes, we got both 7 inch and 12 inch formats.

Neither Sabbath or Dio would release a vinyl single again...unless you count the ridiculously rare Age Of Reason 7 inch from 2014.

I suppose that I should have gone after the 12 inch format, but with the 7 inch available from a US seller at a cheap price, I took the easy way out.

Nice fold out poster cover.

Hole In The Sky

In my entire record collecting career, one of the highlights has to be completing the Vertigo Four for Black Sabbath. Buying those first four Sabbath albums, all as complete UK Vertigo swirl label first pressings, was a huge accomplishment that pushed my spending limits and had me stressing overtime until they arrived safely on my doorstep in excellent condition. It took me about three years to get them all, but in reality, my Sabbath mission was far from complete. I still had more original UK pressings for the band in my sights.

Even though I own the majority of the Ozzy and Dio-era Sabbath albums on vinyl, there was one record that has always eluded me...Sabotage. Having owned it on CD for years, I knew Sabotage well enough, and there have been times where I would call it my favorite Sabbath album...but still, it was embarrassing to admit that this piece of vinyl was still a hole in my collection.

Having left Vertigo behind after Vol. 4, and then making a brief stop on the WWA label for Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, the band found themselves on NEMS for the first UK pressing of Sabotage. Following in the footsteps that Doug laid down with his blog post back in 2013, I knew that this was the pressing that I had to chase. Thankfully, prices drop considerably after the Vertigo Four, so it didn't put a strain on the savings account when I finally grabbed one. I don't know if it is due to the textured cover, or what, but this sleeve is in amazing condition considering that it is over 40 years old.

Boot Sabbath

I do love live bootleg LPs. I've got a few of them in my collection, and when I stumble across them on my record shelves, they strike me as something special. Nothing official...fuck, anyone can buy a live album from a band, but it feel like you are part of an elite secret society when you own a live boot...as if record collecting didn't already make you better than everyone else as it is.

Well, a couple months ago, Sandwell was blogging about a few Iron Maiden boots that he'd recently picked up, and it got me itching to pick up one myself.

I'd been eyeballing an Iron Maiden bootleg from the Piece Of Mind tour, and had been tempting myself with it for a couple of weeks. It was a bit pricey, and I kept procrastinating on pulling the trigger. When I saw a new bootleg available for Black Sabbath, and at a great price, I finally scratched that itch.

According to the liner notes on this album, the recording was for the band's first show as Black Sabbath, just after they had changed their name from Earth. 1969. Before they had even recorded their first album. This bootleg really reaches back into the archives!

Very cool to hear the band live during those formative years, including three bluesy songs from the setlist that never were recorded for a studio album.

For a bootleg, the packaging on this is great. The history behind the recording, the list of equipment that the band was using that night...plus all the great old pictures. Well done.

A Philips Record Product

Back in 2013, I first got it in my head that I should chase the first four Black Sabbath albums on the original UK Vertigo swirl label. Doug had heavily influenced me with a Sabbath post on his blog, and it set me down the path of spending more money than I ever dreamed I would on a single record. I eased my way into things with the relatively "inexpensive" Vol. 4, and then set a goal of adding one more to the collection each year...kind of a treat to myself whenever I got my annual bonus from work.

Over the next two years, I managed to pick up both Paranoid and Master Of Reality...leaving only the debut Sabbath album as the last missing piece to the puzzle.

Paranoid and Master of Reality were not cheap to come by. No joke. The money I spent for them was easily the most I'd ever spent on a single record. I figured that those two were the pinnacle of Sabbath collecting, and that the self titled debut album should be a little easier on the wallet.

Of course nothing is as easy as I'd hope.

A true first press of the first Sabbath record has "A Philips Record Product" printed below the Vertigo name on the label. This one line of text can send the price spiraling well out of my range...and I watched a few listings end on eBay with bids over $1,000 dollars. My heart sank, thinking that I wasn't going to be able to afford one of these.

I could have cheaped out, and gone for a second pressing, with the Philips text missing, but damn it, I refused to give up so easily. When buying Paranoid, I stood firm that I needed the first press with the Jim Simpson credit in the liner notes, and for Master Of Reality, it had to come with the original poster. Backing down now for a second pressing, would have undone all the work I'd put into this so far. Thankfully, discogs came to my rescue. While I wasn't able to escape much cheaper than I had with Paranoid and Master Of Reality, I didn't come close to spending a grand either.

Like the other UK Vertigo pressings, this one sounds absolutely amazing. Truly, the best way to listen to these Sabbath albums.

Man, that gatefold sleeve is amazing. That upside down cross. That poem.

"Among the grasses, poppies bleed before a gesticulating death, and young rabbits, born dead in traps, stand motionless, as though guarding the silence that surrounds and threatens to engulf all those that would listen."

Heads must have exploded in 1970 over this.

The seller for this, also included a nice looking poster. While it wasn't a part of the packaging for the original pressing, it is still a nice addition.

It feels good to finally finish the Big 4 for Sabbath UK Vertigo pressings. I still have some holes to fill with Sabotage and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, but at least I can breathe easy knowing that they won't set me back as much as these Vertigo swirl pressings have.

Master Of Vertigo Swirl

Each Spring, I receive a nice sized annual bonus from my employer. As the time of the payout approaches, I start thinking about what big ticket item I can scratch off my Want List. The past two years a UK Vertigo swirl pressing has commanded my attention, with both Volume 4 and then Paranoid, and this year was no different.

I thought that last years hunt for my copy of Paranoid was over the top crazy, but getting my hands on a quality copy of Master of Reality exceeded all previous efforts. No expense was spared in my quest to find one in top condition...because if you are going to do it, you've got to do it right. It is by far the most I've ever spent on a single record, and is either a testament to how much I love Black Sabbath, or an indication that I'm incredibly stupid.

Unlike any other Sabbath record, the UK Vertigo swirl pressing of Master of Reality comes packaged in a laminated and embossed box. The box cover makes it difficult enough to find one in good shape, as I'm sure it had a tendency to get crushed over the years...add in fact that on most copies the laminate has bubbled along the edges of the embossing, and finding one in great shape is like finding a needle in a haystack. When I found this one on eBay, and saw the amazing condition of the box, I knew that finding another one in this good of shape was going to difficult, so I was determined to make it mine.

Another major piece that will drive up the price is the original poster that came with this record. You can actually pick up the Vertigo swirl of Master of Reality for a decent price if you are willing to sacrifice the poster, and go without it. I couldn't cheat like that...I needed the complete package.

The nine day auction seemed like it took forever to finish, and when the price started to shoot up within the first couple of days, I started to get nervous. Stupid fucking kids were already driving up the price of this thing, and needed to calm the fuck down. I started chewing my fingernails and my nerves were shot as I imagined the price on this thing skyrocketing out of my range. In the end, I may have paid more than I intended...partially because I didn't account for the currency exchange when I threw my maximum bid down...but none of that mattered once the auction ended and it was mine. This was huge...such a major purchase...and I was elated that it was done, and I was crossing a heavy hitter off the Want List.

I've purchased a few other copies of Master of Reality over the years, but none of them come close this UK Vertigo swirl pressing. It is easily the copy to own for big time Sabbath fans. The sound on this thing is amazing.

Vertigo Swirl Paranoid

After picking up a copy of Vol. 4 last year, it was only a matter of time before I expanded my Black Sabbath Vertigo swirl collection. With an upcoming bonus from work coming my way, the timing was right for me to start the search.

There were a stream of distractions that were trying to keep me from my prize, including a tempting offer for a No Tolerance test press, but I held firm to my mission...Vertigo swirl at any cost.

I spent a few weeks refreshing myself on the different pressing info, and following eBay listings...scouring over pictures to find records in the best of condition. This was a big deal, and I didn't want to cut any corners. I dropped decent bids on the first Black Sabbath record, as well as Master Of Reality, but I came up short on each of them. In the end, I probably paid more than I should have, but there was no sweeter win than grabbing this first press of Paranoid.

When I was looking for a copy of Paranoid, I was really hoping to grab a legit first pressing with the Jim Simpson/Big Bear credit on the inside of the gatefold sleeve. As soon as the album was issued, this line was immediately removed due to contractual disputes between Sabbath and Big Bear Management. This one line can cause the price to jump dramatically, and I've seen some of them sell on eBay for well over a grand. Thankfully, my copy was much cheaper than that.

How does a record that is 40 plus years old still manage to be in such great condition? Not a speck of ring wear to be found. Amazing.

It is always a tough call for me when picking my favorite Black Sabbath album...do I go with Paranoid or Master Of Reality? Right now, I'd have to go with Paranoid. Yeah, everyone gets tired of hearing "the hits", and Paranoid has three of them on Side A of this record...still, within the context of the full album War Pigs, Paranoid, and Iron Man are still amazing songs...and then to flip the vinyl over to find songs like Electric Funeral, Hand Of Doom, and Fairies Wear Boots....F U C K...absolute perfection.

Two down, two to go.

Vertigo Swirlblind

Well, that escalated quickly. A few months ago, after some conversations with friends, I was hit with a strong desire to collect some original pressings for old Metal records. I immediately set out and bought a few relatively cheap ones through eBay. I was feeling pretty good about my recent purchases and was discussing them with Doug. Now, if you follow Doug's blog at all, you know that he does not fuck around. After talking with him, I was dreaming bigger, and had thoughts of original silver label Megaforce pressings of Kill Em All and UK Neat pressings of Black Metal dancing through my head. It didn't stop there though, as soon we were talking about the holy grail...original UK Vertigo swirl labels for Black Sabbath.

I've bought a lot of Black Sabbath vinyl over the years, but I never really imagined myself stepping up to the Vertigo swirl level of collecting. That shit just seemed to be out of my league. Still, after talking with Doug, I couldn't stop thinking about them. They were the only records that I had on my mind. Nothing else seemed to matter. I needed a fix, and I needed it bad.

I spent a bunch of time talking with Doug, and reading stuff on the internet on how to identify the UK Vertigo pressing. I needed to make sure that I bought the pressing that I wanted. Can you imagine the embarrassment and shame to mistakenly end up with a French or Italian pressing? The horror!

After watching record after record come and go on eBay, I came across a copy of Sabbath's Vol. 4 album listed with a Buy It Now price. It was reasonable, but I was so stressed over this purchase as I checked and double checked all the info to verify it was the one that I wanted. Everything looked to be in great shape, but I was so nervous that there was some horrible flaw that I was not seeing in the photos. After sweating over it for a couple of days, I couldn't take the stress any longer and finally just pulled the trigger.

When it arrived, I could not have been happier. This thing is in amazing condition, with no sign of ring wear. And the sound? Holy shit. Typically Vol. 4 gets looked down on a bit because of the muddy production, but the audiophiles are right...UK Vertigo is the way to go for the best sound. This sounds great. It's funny because, I've probably listened to this album a hundred times, but as far as the last song, Under The Sun, goes, I wouldn't have given it a second thought. As I sat there listening to this pressing, it was like I was hearing this song for the first time. This song that I've probably overlooked many times over, sounded so powerful...so vital. It blew me away. Easily, one of my favorite Sabbath songs right now.

Even the attached booklet on the inside of the gatefold cover looks amazing. The paper pages are crisp and clean...damn near perfect.

When we finally get time machines, my first stop is going to be this Sabbath show. This picture from the inside booklet absolutely captivates my attention, and I can't tear my eyes from it. I can't even imagine how cool it would be to watch Sabbath play in such an intimate setting.

So yeah, I already had a few copies of Vol. 4, and of course they are now obsolete now that I have the first press Vertigo swirl copy. Still, there isn't any such thing as too much Black Sabbath, so I don't see myself getting rid of them any time soon.

I'm in no rush to try and keep up with Doug's original six, but I've started down that path. We'll see where it takes me, and how long until I get to the finish line.

Black Sabbath 13

Black Sabbath may be my favorite band of all time. Yet, when it was announced that the band was getting back together with Ozzy, I couldn't help but let out a groan. This was sure to be embarrassing. Ozzy has turned into a cartoon, and his solo albums have gotten progressively worse since 1983's Bark At The Moon, with his more recent album being unlistenable. Add in all of the shenanigans that Ozzy's wife has pulled over the years, and I'd grown to really hate anything that they had a hand in. Still, it was Black Sabbath. It was still Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler. As much as I expected Ozzy to be a giant, stinking turd on the entire thing, I still needed to check it out.

As we got closer to release day, I let my guard down, and I found myself looking forward to it. Rick Rubin was involved and was driving the band back to their roots. He forced the band to listen to their first couple of albums, and challenged them to get into that state of mind, and write a follow up album to what they heard. It was tempting to get sucked into the hype, and on release day I found a download and listened to the first four songs on my drive to work. I could not believe what I was hearing. This was everything that I'd wanted from a new Sabbath album, and absolutely crushed my low expectations. Even Ozzy manages to not sound completely auto-tuned and over processed.

As soon as I got my first chance at work, I was out the door and headed to the record store. 20 minutes later I owned both the vinyl and deluxe CD of 13.

From the doomy greatness of End Of The Beginning, the trippy, and quickly becoming one of my favorites, Zeitgeist, the amazing guitar tone and solo in Age Of Reason, and the harmonica in Damaged Soul...man, this thing just gets better with each listen. Well done.