Rating: 
Summary: Sound is bad
Review: I say this because being the big Sab fan that I am, I already had obtained a bootleg VHS copy of this show. Upon hearing that it was being released on DVD, I of course preordered a copy immediately. When I received it, I was appalled by the sound quality; it doesn't appear that anything was done to enhance it with today's technology at all. The picture is better of course, but the overall show is lackluster. For diehard fans, yes, of course, get it. For the uninitiated, you might want to try "The Last Supper" or "The Black Sabbath Story Volume I" for a better representation of Sabbath live. I must say this even has a worse 5.1 mix than "Raising Hell" by Iron Maiden which hands down gets the muddiest I've ever heard on DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: Sabbath 4 life
Review: i was very excited when i heard this was going to be released on dvd...and i must say its a great concert...the band is in high spirits, even though they were on the verge of breaking up...if theres anything wrong with this dvd..its that there are no extras..but overall great concert from the sabb..i highly recomend it...set list-Symptom of the Universe,War Pigs,Snow Blind,Never Say Die,Black Sabbath,Dirty Women,Rock n Roll Doctor,Electric Funeral,Children of the Grave,Paranoid
Rating:
Summary: I was there!!
Review: In aug 1978 i saw this show in New Haven Ct, opening band was then unknown's Van Halen, which in my opinion blew sabbath away, i was 16 at the time and barely remember the show but i do remember VH was alot better.
Where this film was shot i cant find out, but with some shots of the crowd it def looks in usa.
Rating: 
Summary: Slab O' Sabb
Review: My only negative take on this is that it was recorded at a time when the band had lost some of the heaviness in favor of Big-Arena-Mega-Dome-Super-Rock-Star-Shenanigans ~ that is, gone was their strange brew of underground drug-laced sci-fi/existentialism/supernatural-warnings and outcries that made the dense and distorted atmosphere of their early albums soooo heavy.
By the late 70's, they had lapsed into self-parody, and as is seen in this recording, drummer Bill Warde can't play anything like he did in the early 70's, and the others unfortunately come off as lampooning "rock stars" going through the motions of what was originally deeply felt inner termoil, demons and band-chemistry that gave creation to their early material.
Don't get me wrong, Sabb going through the motions is still better than a lot of the over produced junk that passes for mainstream metal today, but I guess I liked Sabbath more when they weren't as well known...when there was a fire burning inside when they played. Just my 2 cents.When will the QUINTESSENTIAL live Sabbath film be released on DVD?!..that is, the Paris 1970 film that was shot for TV?
Now THAT was Black Sabbath! My old video copy of that, despite poor audio/video quality, still smokes this Hammersmith show, hands down! For those unfamilar with it, the DVD Sabbath Story Vol.1 takes the version of N.I.B. from that Paris show. Also, someone should make a doc., interviewing people from great doom bands such as Pentagram, Saint Vitus, The Obsessed, Trouble, Earth, Sleep, Candlemass, Electric Wizard, Acid King, Goatsnake and so forth, and ask them how they were inspired by the mighty Sabbath. It's ironic that as popular as Sabbath became, the underground music scene they inspired(doom/stoner) has remained just that...underground. Thankfully.
Rating:
Summary: Not bad but a shame...
Review: Not bad but a shame Black Sabbath unlike so many other bands ov their time, actually threw away most material they decided NOT to put on final cuts for recordings o_O
Back then may have been more cost effective but thats how Blackmore, Deep Purple, Blackmores 'Old' Rainbow have such a tight following with all the bootlegs where as Sabbath bootlegs are just songs redone which listening to 20 billion versions ov paraniod, um, kind er gets old :-/
But still its not bad, alittle over priced for what little you get with it though.
Little trivia for anyone who remembers the album cover Never Say Die! art done by a Canadian company Hypnotics I belive, however they had one ov two for Sabbath to choose from, one being Dr's looking down into a camera as if operating on the one holding the album, the second being the empty chemical war air plane suits your lead to belive carried the lost souls ov old aviation warriors... obvious Sabbath choose the air piolits. Contrary to belife, the front photo with the aviation piolits were said to just be propts/maniquens, however to one on back is a person but unknown...
Blackmores Rainbow although bigger at the time was left with second choice, the Dr's which came to be known as the now hard to find Rainbow Difficult to Cure album cover only the original front was now the back and vice versa ;P
Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Bit dissapointing
Review: ok first off, the sound on the drums and guitars was awesome. The vocal sound was terrible.
Rating:
Summary: Good but not great DVD of Sabbath's best lineup
Review: OK, it's not the granddaddy of all music DVDs, but one must remember that this was shot on videotape for television back in 1978, during the band's "Never Say Die" tour, the last full tour with Ozzy. There are some horizontal lines apparent on the video, kind of like the lines seen duirng Queen's set on 1979's "Rock/Concert for Kampachea" video. Not sure if it's the theater lights "flaring" the video cameras' lenses or the loud sound affecting the camera's picture. Anyway, there are moments on "Never Say Die" when the picture is crystal clear, the times when the horiznontal lines disappear. The color is better than videotape in most shots, although grain can be seen from some cameras. The sound quality, also, isn't the greatest, but, to purists' delight, the sound apparently hasn't been tampered with too much with post-gig studio overdubbing. The group's delivery is tight and well-rehearsed, with plenty of energy. The earlier comments of Bill's alleged below-par performance are baffling. He's great and miles above Vinnie Appice, Ward's eveuntual replacement, in originality and kick. I only wish the DVD's audio was a little louder with a bit more separation between instruments and a tad more bass guitar. The sound often is a bit on the muddy side. Like Bill, Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi both play well (I love Randy Rhoads, but give me Tony's memorable riffs on "War Pigs" anyday). Also, Ozzy isn't obsessed with four-letter words like he was on the 1999 "Reunion" CD, a plus for us musicians who want to concentrate on the music and performance instead of the "celebrity" aspect. A good, but still brief (60 minutes), video of the best heavy metal band of all time. And it's refreshing to see Ozzy when he still really was "one of the boys." Rock Hall of Famers they should be ...
Rating:
Summary: NEVER SAY DIE... -A MASTERPIECE!-
Review: Recorded live in 1978, Never Say Die is a defining moment in BLACK SABBATH'S history. This unique concert is one of SABBATH'S final performances with the original classic line-up of OZZY OSBOURNE, TONY IOMMI, GEEZER BUTLER, and BILL WARD. After a breif break from the band in 1977 frontman OZZY returns here in triumphant form performing classic songs including: Never Say Die, Black Sabbath and Paranoid! Tracklisting:
1.Symptom Of The Universe
2.War Pigs
3.Snow Blind
4.Never Say Die 5.Black Sabbath
6.Dirty Women
7.Rock And Roll Doctor
8.Elecrtic Funeral
9.Children Of The Grave
10.Paranoid
Rating:
Summary: A Concert!
Review: There's nothing more than concert in the year 1978.
The tracklist:
Symptom of the Universe
War Pigs
Snowblind
Never Say Die
Black Sabbath
Dirty Women
Rock'n'Roll Doctor
Electric Funeral
Children of the Grave
Paranoid Very good! Ozzy has a good voice!
My favourite tracks are "Symptom of the Universe", "Paranoid", "Electric Funeral", "Never Say Die" and "Black Sabbath".
Rating:
Summary: Wow. This show rocks.
Review: This is Black Sabbath from 1978, right before Ozzy was to leave for good. The video is superb quality for that year. I get pissed at people who compare this to something that was released a year ago. For cryin out loud, this thing is 25 years old! It's not gonna have widescreen! Anyway, the thing is recorded at a very low volume, so if you want to headbang you'll have to crank your amp. This DVD serves as a blueprint for how they should have done Last Supper. There are no interviews, no cutting away from the show. Just a straight up live concert with no commentary. Maybe they'll get it straight next time!
|
