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After about 4 years of meandering about musically, odd experimentation resulting in dead ends, and a rather lackluster pair of albums in "Technical Ecstacy" and "Never Say Die", Sabbath emerged with a new singer and the recaptured spirit that originally made them great. The new singer, Ronnie Dio (who has since become a household name with his own solo band) delivers the performance of his life on this fine gem. Many of today's Traditional, Power and Progressive Metal acts site "Heaven and Hell" as a pivotal influence in their work. Axel Rudi Pell is probably the most blatant of this albums enthusiasts, as underscored by his equally long hommage "Disciples of Hell" off of his 2004 album Kings and Queens. Furthere back in the mix, Iron Maiden's 1988 album "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" also can not escape sounding similar to this album on many tracks. In addition, Queensryche's 1984 release "Warning" has several similar elements, particularly on the closing track "Road to Madness". Other more recent Power Metal bands sounding similar to this release at times include Gamma Ray, Iron Savior, Gaia Epicus, and Iron Fire. Meanwhile, Progressive and Symphonic acts such as Symphony X and Rhapsody take more influence from the lyrics. The sheer amount of variety in the songs is reminiscent of Dio's work with Rainbow before he signed on with Sabbath, in addition to some spooky lyrics that fit well with the original theme of the band. Such fantasy driven songs as "Neon Knights", "Wishing Well", and the poetic "Heaven and Hell represent the new injection of Rainbow's rather progressive rock/metal. Meanwhile, slower tunes such as "Lady Evil", "Lonely is the Word", and "Walk Away" are a bit more bluesy and reminiscent of classic Ozzy era Sabbath (though with very different vocals). The production of this album, especially considering the year, is quite stellar. The guitars in particular have the right amount of crunch to them to stand out from the more traditional rock acts of the time such as AC/DC and Deep Purple. The bass is highly present and always active, something that has always been the exception and not the rule with older metal acts such as Judas Priest and Riot. The drums are probably the least raunchy sounding of the bunch, though Bill Ward does make a decent racket on "Heaven and Hell" and "Children of the Sea". But the true strength of this album are the vocal tracks, which are perfectly clean, and blend together perfectly during the harmony sections. Tony Iommi's soloing on this album is nothing short of amazing. He delivers a killer thrill ride with the solo to "Die Young". His long-winded improvisation on "Lonely is the Word" rivals the insanity heard on such extended Jam sessions as Free Bird and some of Jimi Hendrix's live material. There are strong elements of story telling found in his solo work on "Children of the Sea", "Heaven and Hell", and "Wishing Well". And the leads he provides on "Lady Evil" take me back to the glory days of such tracks as "Fairies Wear Boots". In conclusion, there are no weak links on this album, there are no avenues that are left unexplored. This album functions not only as an early pioneer effort that injected more power into the NWOBHM, but as a manifesto by which today's current Metal faithful continue to wage their war for the greatness of the genre. I can't recommend this album more strongly, if you haven't heard it, get yourself to your local CD store or onto Amazon.com and get yourself a coRead full review
I have bought this CD several times over the years since it was released. I got it (again) BECAUSE I was so distraught after purchasing the NEW CD from this lineup of musicians. (Heaven and Hell - aka Black Sabbath with Dio) titled "The Devil You Know " which incidently is the same title as an ECONOLINE CRUSH release from several years back. I reccomend you get THAT ( it is absolutely AWESOME !!!) and don't waste any time or money with the NEW Black Sabbath/New band name:Heaven and Hell CD which is HORRIBLE !!! Sure DIO's voice seems to be strong and in shape but his phrasing and melody lines are so bad it is unbelievable and the music SUCKS too!!! It is inconcievable that this is the same band (different drummer however) that made the Heaven and Hell CD that this review is based on. I have not heard anything from this CD in probably 10 months. I had to get my hands on it because I could not find a copy in my collection (probably borrowed from a friend)- So, from the first minute into the opening song "Neon Knights" and I am stunned at how incredible and still fresh that it sounds !!! What an incredible piece of work this CD is. Song after song of some of the BEST heavy metal ever made !!! Dio's vocals and phrasing is literally some of the best EVER in the heavy metal universe ! All the tracks are great but the stand out ones are Neon Knights, Heaven and Hell, Wishing Well, Die Young and Lonely is the Word. On the 1- 10 scale this CD is a 9 ...and I don't give out 10'sRead full review
Don't get me wrong. I'm one of those guys who believes that the first four Black Sabbath albums are the standards by which all that is doom and gloom should be judged. I struggle to think of any four consecutive albums by any metal or rock artist that begin compare to the raw heaviness of Black Sabbath in what is popularly considered their prime. It was Black Sabbath at their heaviest. That being said, Heaven & hell along with Mob Rules is Black Sabbath at their most rockin'. If Black Sabbath's Volume 4 is the ultimate funeral music, then Heaven & Hell is the music of rescuing orphans from burning buildings. It's a hero's music, if that makes any sense. If yer' not down with that description, I'll put it a different way. If Black Sabbath had ended with the Never Say Die! album, then Black Sabbath would just be a memory. "Johnny Blade", as amusing as it is, is not a good stopping point. It's was the albums with Dio that proved that Black Sabbath was not only important to metal, but vital. Sabbath is still kicking today in their own way and it's not Ozzy, metal god that he is, that they have to thank for that. The early albums are legendary, but it was this album that proved to any fan of true metal, that Sabbath did not need Ozzy to kick ass.Read full review
Heavy metal music is a great album Ronnie James duo will all be remembered
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Best Metal album ever recorded period.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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