Two things I didn't get to mention in my pitch due to space constraints. 1. Ronnie James Dio is a polarizing figure to Sabbath fans, but his place in heavy metal is secure. He is certainly one of the most recognizable and distinctive voices in the genre and he is widely credited with introducing the "devil horns" hand sign \m/ that has become a staple at metal shows. 2. The cover art for this album is among the best ever. In fact, I may or may not have this poster hanging in a part of the house that my wife never goes to. Please don't tell her.
Dec 3, 2020Liked by Ken Warshaw, Mitch Blum, CJ Kaplan
The whole lyric is
“And they'll tell you black is really white
The moon is just the sun at night”
That part made laugh, though and I’m not saying Dio aced 5th grade science but he did know when the dark forces of whoever “they” are, were slinging some lies. Sorry to be pedantic.
Thank you, Darryl. We're bringing Ken along slowly with lyrics. A couple of weeks ago, he tried to sell us a song about a millionaire balloon seller named Levon. And it wasn't a metaphor for anything. Thanks for the comment
Dec 4, 2020Liked by Ken Warshaw, Mitch Blum, CJ Kaplan
With the first thunderous chords of Black Sabbath’s self titled debut album heavy-metal began. Some may say Blue Cheer’s cover of Eddie Cochran’s Summertime Blues was the first heavy metal song but that song doesn't really make feel like I am entering the depths of hell like the first 20 seconds of Black Sabbath does. What a horrifying and wonderful departure from the peace, love, and happiness flower power of the late 60s and early 70s. Sabbath is the undisputed gods of heavy-metal. Ozzy Osbourne was their voice. His vocals on albums like Paranoid and Master of Reality were stellar. How do you replace a guy like him? With the only guy who probably could have. Ronnie James Dio!!!! This wasn’t akin to Gary Cherone taking over the helm with Van Halen. You don’t get much more heavy-metal than RJD. After all he was the person who brought the moloik, the hand symbol of metal heads, to the genre (Gene Simmons may debate this based on the album cover artwork of Kiss’ Love Gun). Heaven and Hell is a great heavy metal album, but it’s just as much Ronnie James Dio as it is Black Sabbath. He definitely grabs these songs by the devil horns especially Neon Knights and Children of the Sea where he hits the listener with 5 trademark LOOKOUTS!!!!!! to end the song. All this happens while the other legendary members of Sabbath do what they do best. This album speeds along at a faster pace than the earlier Sabbath albums and is great precursor to the epic DIo albums to come like Holy Diver and Last in Line. There is not a genre of music that has a more passionate fanbase than heavy-metal and it’s easy to see why this marriage of two legends, or should I say molten combination of steel and iron, is so highly regarded. LOOKOUT!!!!!!!!
Don, we've gotta get a beer sometime. It's hard to explain how strongly metal heads feel about their music, but you did a nice job with Sabbath (in my opinion the sui generis of metal). If you're interested, I wrote a business article for LinkedIn that used my passion for metal as a foil for the bogus passion that people claim to feel for their jobs (https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/stop-telling-me-youre-passionate-cj-kaplan/?trackingId=RcMFUdOBYCnBXvdVN81GuQ%3D%3D). The fact that a good portion of the world sees metal as cartoonish and low-brow makes us a little defensive. But, some of the best conversations I've ever had have been with random strangers wearing Iron Maiden t-shirts. I realize there's a strong contingent of Sabs fans who don't consider the RJD iteration as "Black Sabbath." But, I've always been able to compartmentalize the two. I love Ozzy Sabbath and I love Dio Sabbath for different reasons. And it's okay that they share the same name. Thanks again for your insight and support. Rock on! \m/
Yes we should have a beer one day. I am definitely more of an Ozzy / Sabbath fan. They were far away at their best with him as the lead singer. However I’ve only been a Black Sabbath fan for about 15 years or so. I was a DIo fan long before that. Dio was the first concert I ever saw. And I thought they were the best 80’s metal band. When I first saw the video for Rainbow in the Dark it seemed so ominous and interesting. I was hooked immediately. People do scoff at heavy metal but there’s something about the music that does get your blood and you never grow tired of it. I’ve heard Ronnie James Dio referred to as a “poet for the downtrodden” which I always thought was funny. I think when people frowned upon him replacing Ozzy it was only because it was a no win situation.
I was a big fan of Dio, particularly Holy Diver, back in the day and a friend of mine always raved about "Heaven and Hell" ....but I never dove in. This is a good album despite the fact that Bill Ward's playing is unadventurous. I read that he was checking out of the band at the time so it makes sense. I wonder what this record would have felt like if he had cared? I really like Geezer Butler's playing on this and overall the record sounds less Sabbath and way more Dio/Rainbow. Iommi is solid as always. His riffs are a bit more straight ahead and rigid on most of H&H and I welcome that. It's remarkable how much of his sound/tone influenced the rest of what I considered to be better heavy metal. He defined Metal whereas I believe Jimmy Page defined Hard Rock. The darkness of Drop D tuning had plenty to do with it.
I love Dio's lyrics but I don't take them too seriously (and there are a plenty of Dio-isms on H&H) but they work most of the time. I do have to laugh when his words enter the absurd. What in the Heaven and Hell is this from Walk Away?
Lord, she's handsome as she flows across the floor
Nothing I've seen in my life has ever pleased me more
She's got the look of freedom and it makes you think she's wild
But I can see right through it all, it's a way to have a child
Oh well, it's RJD and it's what he does. I have to say that Dio (with the incredible pre Whitesnake/Def Leppard Vivian Campbell) is Dio at his best. Too bad Ronnie and Viv had a falling out, their styles were perfect for one another. Sabbath will always mean Ozzy to me but that doesn't take away the fact that they are damn good with Dio, as Heaven and Hell proves.
All great points, Dave. The hyperbole of Dio combined with the starkness of Sabbath is what makes this a minor miracle of an album. There was no way that dichotomy could hold and you could feel it falling apart on The Mob Rules, which is a very good album but nothing compared to H&H. And yeah, "Walk Away" always make me laugh. It's so ridiculous and out of place on this album, I'm convinced Tony and Geezer were locked in a basement somewhere when Dio recorded it. Even so, for a band as established as Sabbath to take as wild a change of direction from Ozzy to Dio and still make something legendary is testament to their greatness.
I risked incarceration (or a brute savage beat down at least) by stealing this cassette from a friend. Yes, he had some legitimate claims to said property besides having possession (probably another RJD lyric inspiration) like his many Boris posters or his mounted sacrificial bone knife, but he didn’t appreciate what he had. The cassette holder was stained with wet beverage rings, cigarette ash and dander. The cassette itself was even defiled with a Sharpie (with initials, I believe) and grease smudges. Did I even have a choice? Is the moon not just the sun at night? Does the wind not blow south of witches valley? In the end it was worth it as I wore what was left of it out, mostly by rewinding and playing “Lady Evil” over and over. I rescued this gem from neglect. The way I see it, my friend was one of the lost children of the sea... and I was the Neon Knight.
Two things I didn't get to mention in my pitch due to space constraints. 1. Ronnie James Dio is a polarizing figure to Sabbath fans, but his place in heavy metal is secure. He is certainly one of the most recognizable and distinctive voices in the genre and he is widely credited with introducing the "devil horns" hand sign \m/ that has become a staple at metal shows. 2. The cover art for this album is among the best ever. In fact, I may or may not have this poster hanging in a part of the house that my wife never goes to. Please don't tell her.
I also wanted to compliment the amazing album art - a perfect blend of Van Halen's 1984 and Dogs Playing Poker. I adore it.
(You can keep the devil's horns.)
The whole lyric is
“And they'll tell you black is really white
The moon is just the sun at night”
That part made laugh, though and I’m not saying Dio aced 5th grade science but he did know when the dark forces of whoever “they” are, were slinging some lies. Sorry to be pedantic.
This is a fun site to read. Thanks guys.
Ha! “They” are the worst, aren’t they? Thanks for reading and contributing
Thank you, Darryl. We're bringing Ken along slowly with lyrics. A couple of weeks ago, he tried to sell us a song about a millionaire balloon seller named Levon. And it wasn't a metaphor for anything. Thanks for the comment
With the first thunderous chords of Black Sabbath’s self titled debut album heavy-metal began. Some may say Blue Cheer’s cover of Eddie Cochran’s Summertime Blues was the first heavy metal song but that song doesn't really make feel like I am entering the depths of hell like the first 20 seconds of Black Sabbath does. What a horrifying and wonderful departure from the peace, love, and happiness flower power of the late 60s and early 70s. Sabbath is the undisputed gods of heavy-metal. Ozzy Osbourne was their voice. His vocals on albums like Paranoid and Master of Reality were stellar. How do you replace a guy like him? With the only guy who probably could have. Ronnie James Dio!!!! This wasn’t akin to Gary Cherone taking over the helm with Van Halen. You don’t get much more heavy-metal than RJD. After all he was the person who brought the moloik, the hand symbol of metal heads, to the genre (Gene Simmons may debate this based on the album cover artwork of Kiss’ Love Gun). Heaven and Hell is a great heavy metal album, but it’s just as much Ronnie James Dio as it is Black Sabbath. He definitely grabs these songs by the devil horns especially Neon Knights and Children of the Sea where he hits the listener with 5 trademark LOOKOUTS!!!!!! to end the song. All this happens while the other legendary members of Sabbath do what they do best. This album speeds along at a faster pace than the earlier Sabbath albums and is great precursor to the epic DIo albums to come like Holy Diver and Last in Line. There is not a genre of music that has a more passionate fanbase than heavy-metal and it’s easy to see why this marriage of two legends, or should I say molten combination of steel and iron, is so highly regarded. LOOKOUT!!!!!!!!
Don, we've gotta get a beer sometime. It's hard to explain how strongly metal heads feel about their music, but you did a nice job with Sabbath (in my opinion the sui generis of metal). If you're interested, I wrote a business article for LinkedIn that used my passion for metal as a foil for the bogus passion that people claim to feel for their jobs (https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/stop-telling-me-youre-passionate-cj-kaplan/?trackingId=RcMFUdOBYCnBXvdVN81GuQ%3D%3D). The fact that a good portion of the world sees metal as cartoonish and low-brow makes us a little defensive. But, some of the best conversations I've ever had have been with random strangers wearing Iron Maiden t-shirts. I realize there's a strong contingent of Sabs fans who don't consider the RJD iteration as "Black Sabbath." But, I've always been able to compartmentalize the two. I love Ozzy Sabbath and I love Dio Sabbath for different reasons. And it's okay that they share the same name. Thanks again for your insight and support. Rock on! \m/
Yes we should have a beer one day. I am definitely more of an Ozzy / Sabbath fan. They were far away at their best with him as the lead singer. However I’ve only been a Black Sabbath fan for about 15 years or so. I was a DIo fan long before that. Dio was the first concert I ever saw. And I thought they were the best 80’s metal band. When I first saw the video for Rainbow in the Dark it seemed so ominous and interesting. I was hooked immediately. People do scoff at heavy metal but there’s something about the music that does get your blood and you never grow tired of it. I’ve heard Ronnie James Dio referred to as a “poet for the downtrodden” which I always thought was funny. I think when people frowned upon him replacing Ozzy it was only because it was a no win situation.
I was a big fan of Dio, particularly Holy Diver, back in the day and a friend of mine always raved about "Heaven and Hell" ....but I never dove in. This is a good album despite the fact that Bill Ward's playing is unadventurous. I read that he was checking out of the band at the time so it makes sense. I wonder what this record would have felt like if he had cared? I really like Geezer Butler's playing on this and overall the record sounds less Sabbath and way more Dio/Rainbow. Iommi is solid as always. His riffs are a bit more straight ahead and rigid on most of H&H and I welcome that. It's remarkable how much of his sound/tone influenced the rest of what I considered to be better heavy metal. He defined Metal whereas I believe Jimmy Page defined Hard Rock. The darkness of Drop D tuning had plenty to do with it.
I love Dio's lyrics but I don't take them too seriously (and there are a plenty of Dio-isms on H&H) but they work most of the time. I do have to laugh when his words enter the absurd. What in the Heaven and Hell is this from Walk Away?
Lord, she's handsome as she flows across the floor
Nothing I've seen in my life has ever pleased me more
She's got the look of freedom and it makes you think she's wild
But I can see right through it all, it's a way to have a child
Oh well, it's RJD and it's what he does. I have to say that Dio (with the incredible pre Whitesnake/Def Leppard Vivian Campbell) is Dio at his best. Too bad Ronnie and Viv had a falling out, their styles were perfect for one another. Sabbath will always mean Ozzy to me but that doesn't take away the fact that they are damn good with Dio, as Heaven and Hell proves.
All great points, Dave. The hyperbole of Dio combined with the starkness of Sabbath is what makes this a minor miracle of an album. There was no way that dichotomy could hold and you could feel it falling apart on The Mob Rules, which is a very good album but nothing compared to H&H. And yeah, "Walk Away" always make me laugh. It's so ridiculous and out of place on this album, I'm convinced Tony and Geezer were locked in a basement somewhere when Dio recorded it. Even so, for a band as established as Sabbath to take as wild a change of direction from Ozzy to Dio and still make something legendary is testament to their greatness.
I risked incarceration (or a brute savage beat down at least) by stealing this cassette from a friend. Yes, he had some legitimate claims to said property besides having possession (probably another RJD lyric inspiration) like his many Boris posters or his mounted sacrificial bone knife, but he didn’t appreciate what he had. The cassette holder was stained with wet beverage rings, cigarette ash and dander. The cassette itself was even defiled with a Sharpie (with initials, I believe) and grease smudges. Did I even have a choice? Is the moon not just the sun at night? Does the wind not blow south of witches valley? In the end it was worth it as I wore what was left of it out, mostly by rewinding and playing “Lady Evil” over and over. I rescued this gem from neglect. The way I see it, my friend was one of the lost children of the sea... and I was the Neon Knight.