Black Sabbath Too Heavy - Take The Challenge

[Witterings]

I often see the comment Black Sabbath's too heavy for me which years ago I would have agreed ... and some of it is.

I had an experience more recently (but still quite a while back) where having heard good reports on it my wife bought me the 1sr Arctic Monkey's album as a B'day pressie and my 1st listen I thought WTF is this S*-t she's bought me ... I happened to leave it in the CD player of my car and was listening to it subconsciously and a week later thought it was close to sliced bread.

Whilst some of Sabbath's music is a bit meeeh ..... I challenge people to play their Heaven and Hell album 5 times and see what you think afterwards.

The musicianship is absolutely incredible, I want to say the bass player and guitarist stand out but they're all brillint and as you get familiar with it realise how melodic so much of it is.

If you love a good guitar solo, the track Lonely Is The Word is brilliant ... there's the 1st solo, then back into main track and then back into a better solo.

My reason for saying 5 times ... I think what people / the mind likes about music is familiarity which gives a subconscious comfort ... I'm absolutely convinced, I've been driving and heard a song on the radio for what I think is the 1st time and been .... COMPLETELY ..... blown away by it, I don't think that's the 1st time I've heard it but maybe the 2nd/3rd and the recognition's subliminal.

If anyone takes the Black Sabbath challenge, please report back ... would love to hear what your thoughts are and if it's changed your impression of them.

 

[jjbomber]

Whilst some of Sabbath's music is a bit meeeh ..... I challenge people to play their Heaven and Hell album 5 times and see what you think afterwards.

Already well past 5. Best live song I've ever witnessed.

 

[plastic penguin]

Not my bag. Way outside my musical comfort zone.

 

[Rodolfo]

I've just requested two copies/versions/issues? from my public library. Musicianship, melodic, ¿¿really?? A skeptic for sure, loong-term, but curious and open to what is evidently the first post-Osbourne release --for music-literacy maybe that I can report to my nephew for fun, if nothing else. I'll try to five-times at least the Lonely is the World track. If I don't return, I couldn't do it.

 

[Witterings]

Already well past 5. Best live song I've ever witnessed.

I was lucky enough to see them at the Hammersmith Odean many moons ago ... how about you?

Not my bag. Way outside my musical comfort zone.

Have you played it 5 times to come to that conclusion

What / who are you into?

Just in case anyone thinks I'm a out and out metal fan, I like Barbara Streisand or The Carpenters just as much / more depending what mood I'm in. and enjoy everything else in between.

 

[Friesiansam]

Have you played it 5 times to come to that conclusion

If I don't like music, there is no way I'm listening to it 5 times...

 

[plastic penguin]

What / who are you into?

Soul, Funk, New Wave, Indie and a little Jazz.

 

[jjbomber]

I was lucky enough to see them at the Hammersmith Odeon many moons ago ... how about you?

Saw them 3 times in 2007, in three different countries. Wallaby World in Amsterdam, following week at Graspop in Belguim, then November in the UK. Heaven and Hell was clocking in at 20 minutes by then.

 

[GroeneLeeuw]

Saw them 3 times in 2007, in three different countries. Wallaby World in Amsterdam, following week at Graspop in Belguim, then November in the UK. Heaven and Hell was clocking in at 20 minutes by then.

Was that the tour with Dio under the name Heaven & Hell?
20 minutes is pushing, it gets boring

I love the 2 BS records with Dio in the 80´s, I favoriet Mob Rules even

 

[jjbomber]

Was that the tour with Dio under the name Heaven & Hell?
20 minutes is pushing, it gets boring

I love the 2 BS records with Dio in the 80´s, I favoriet Mob Rules even

Ironically I thought Heaven And Hell had been cut, but when I got the bootleg I found out it was 20 minutes. It still seems too short to me. I prefer the longer tracks. Dazed & Confused from Led Zeppelin's 1975 tour was 45 minutes. It's an emotional rollercoaster through the highs and lows.

Yes, that was the Dio tour. Ozzy never sang Heaven And Hell. Sharon wouldn't let him!

 

[GroeneLeeuw]

Yes, that was the Dio tour. Ozzy never sang Heaven And Hell. Sharon wouldn't let him!

True, yes. Ozzy never performed any of the Dio era material

 

[DCarmi]

Went to the Sabbath exhibition Birmingham in 2019, I think it was. It was interesting coupe of hours but I'm not a fan and have not listened to much (heard a few albums though) beyond their Greatest Hits, which is the only album of theirs I actually own.

The exhibition was not on a par with the Bowie or Pink Floyd ones at the V&A, but I'm glad I went.

I've not listened to Heaven and Hell 5 times as there are other albums and artists I'd rather spin 5 times.

 

[jjbomber]

OK, couldn't resist. This time live from Radio City Music Hall in 2007. Only 15 minutes long.

Interesting fact (to me) coming up. I have only ever bought one single in my life. which was Black Sabbath's Die Young. The 'B' side on the 12" single was the 13 minute live version of Heaven and Hell. The 'A' side never got played. Sensational.

I have about 300 live versions on bootleg recordings.

 

[Witterings]

OK, couldn't resist. This time live from Radio City Music Hall in 2007. Only 15 minutes long.

Interesting fact (to me) coming up. I have only ever bought one single in my life. which was Black Sabbath's Die Young. The 'B' side on the 12" single was the 13 minute live version of Heaven and Hell. The 'A' side never got played. Sensational.

I have about 300 live versions on bootleg recordings.

Funny how some songs can sound better live and others considerably worse and I often find which ever I heard 1st becomes my preferred which maybe goes in line with the familiarity I was mentioned in the opening post .... one that very definitely bucks that trend though is Stairway to Heaven adn knew the album version long before the one on The Song Remains The Same which has become my "go to".

I often don't like cover versions .... probably for much the same reason.

 

[jjbomber]

Funny how some songs can sound better live and others considerably worse

Yes, a real conundrum. In theory the studio version should always be better, with multi-tracking and as many overdubs as they need. The band can have as many goes as they like to get it perfect. And yet ...

Music is about emotion. Sometimes we get this over perfection in the studio, while the live versions are filled with emotion, as the band have an audience to fuel their emotions and performance. Led Zeppelin are probably the greatest example of that 'tight but loose' live sound and their concerts in the 'For Badgeholders Only' run of 6 shows in LA in 1977 are probably the greatest in history. Those shows have to be heard to be believed. The other example is Springsteen. His live versions are really 'alive' versions.

 

[Romulus]

If there was a mandatory rule (governed by fines and imprisonment) to play same piece of music just once a month (I am being generous😊) then we would be open to a much wider genres of music...! When I am driving the car my wife and I often listen to Classical FM but because the station plays all the usual suspects of Classical music it does get a bit boring, yet it does not have to be like that because there are various gold nuggets of Classical music which never reach the air waves. In this respect Radio 3 has a more interesting selection of Classical music and also interview musicians and play live music, Radio's answer to Jools Holland show on TV which contains live music (without auto tunes etc...!) Some one mentioned Black Sabbaths Heaven and Hell song (with Ronnie Dio) and I also recommend to listen to Ronnie Dio with Rainbow the song Stargazer which has been branded to the history of Heavy Rock...

 

[Witterings]

I also recommend to listen to Ronnie Dio with Rainbow the song Stargazer which has been branded to the history of Heavy Rock...

Amazing track .... 1st 40 times I heard it was at a party of people I didn't really know who were into various substances, many of which I've never tried
In one room that was filled with a hazy cloud and people at varying degress of coherence, a record player was playing this song and and I'm sure it was set on repeat as every time the track ended it went back to the beginning

Lets just say it was a very interesting evening but the song has been a big favourite ever since

 

[jjbomber]

I also recommend to listen to Ronnie Dio with Rainbow the song Stargazer which has been branded to the history of Heavy Rock...

Indeed, right up there amongst the best of all time. Blackmore wrote Stargazer, Child In Time and Smoke On The Water. Three of the greatest rock tracks, all from the same guitar! The live version of Catch The Rainbow is also superb.

 

[abacus]

Black Sabbath IS Heavy Rock, so it will always be heavy, like all heavy rock. (There is no such thing as too heavy, but there are variations in style)

Bill

 

[Revolutions]

There is no such thing as too heavy

Don’t tempt me 😈

View: https://youtu.be/ob6y1mmILfc

 

[DougK1]

You bunch of head-bangers

 

[Witterings]

You bunch of head-bangers

Bit of that, swiftly followed by some Carpenters

Anything really but not Jazz ....... PLEASE don't make me listen to Jazz

 

[Gray]

Anything really but not Jazz ....... PLEASE don't make me listen to Jazz

Never make the easy mistake of tarring all 'jazz' with the same brush in a way that the stereotypers tend to do.

Plenty of my music goes under the (loose) heading of jazz - but I certainly don't like all jazz.

In the same way that I like some music described as rock more than other music described as rock....the descriptions can be the problem 😉

 

[plastic penguin]

You bunch of head-bangers

View: https://youtu.be/VeQg2auVlU4?feature=shared

 

[DCarmi]

Anything really but not Jazz .......

I used to be in the Jazz hater camp. Once I accepted that some of the stuff I did like and, in fact owned, was really Jazz (e.g. Pat Metheny), I dabbled a bit more. Some stuff I like, some stuff I don't. True of any music genre I listen to.