Oh joy and rapture my prayers have been answered. This is indeed a wonderful day after all. I hope it is a good pretense for the impending Friday. The AP Entertainment section has just given me the best news I could ever have dreamed of. As usual there is a back story that we must tread through to get to the news, but I want you to fully understand my joy and rapture. Without the back story it is just “some oh well” story. My brother had a great influence on my musical taste growing up. I was five years younger than he was (was? Still am five years younger) and I had that overwhelming desire for him to think I was cool. He played Dungeons and Dragons so I played it. He loved horror movies so I loved horror movies. He was the quintessential 80’s metalhead complete huge afro bush atop his head so I had to be a metalhead as well.
My brother introduced me to metal right at the prime time of heavy metal. It was the wonderful time between the tragic end of Led Zeppelin and the horrible rise of Glam. Ozzy Osbourne had just released “Blizzard of Oz” and introduced the world to a guitar prodigy named Randy Rhodes and Black Sabbath hired ex-Rainbow front man Ronnie James Dio. My first exposure to real hard rock was with the Dio fronted Sabbath and the album “Heaven and Hell.” I never knew music could do the things it did with Dio. “Heaven and Hell” was not the general hard rock album I was used to. I was a Kiss fan and figured music had to be about sex whatever that was. I was only nine. “H&H” told me tales of knights and witches and magical lands. It was amazing. I was hooked and “borrowed” by brother’s H&H album often until he made me a copy which I wore out quickly. I never listened to Kiss again.
“The Mob Rules” was the second and sadly last studio album Dio and Sabbath released together. It is also the first album I ever bought with my own money as a kid. It was birthday money, but so what. I still get chills when I hear this album remembering every detail of the Specs I bought it in. I remember that huge clear plastic glass with the Swiss cheese holes that you grabbed your cassette and dropped it on a conveyor belt. I remember the rows and rows of albums. Honest to G-d real live vinyl albums.
Tangent, sorry about that, but it did take me longer than usual to lose track so I am getting better.
The happy joyous news is that the Black Sabbath of my youth is reforming under a new name for an album and tour! Yes, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, Bill Ward, and Ronnie James Dio are getting together for a new project named “Heaven and Hell” conveniently. I will get a chance to see them live. I will pay any amount. This is beyond a fantasy for me. I hope I am not dreaming. I mean I was too young to even think about concerts when they were around and they broke up before I had a chance.
I could see Dio yes, but I never got into his solo work because it always seemed lacking to me. The same with Sabbath. I love Ozzy Sabbath, but Dio Sabbath is Black Sabbath to me and the other is Black Sabbath with Ozzy Osbourne. I never ever ever thought I had the chance to see them.
10 comments:
Good for you! Rapture is a good thing. If you have the opportunity to go to the concert, go. I would -- and will if they're ever booked in my area. I know I've felt rapturous since I saw Hendrix (twice), but I'll be darned if I can remember what did it for me.
I remember well when 'Heaven and Hell' came out....I loved the album.....Holy Diver.....
I had a similar kind of upbringing, but was laways into harder music then either of my brothers....they started it with Kiss and I ran with it...
DAMN DAMN DAMN, this would be the perfect story for the PWZ.....Kasn did you get my email about contributing?
I am afraid Horace has power over the PWZ email adress still.....
Serena, that must have been a blast.....Loved Hedrix, even though he had died by the time I was 7....My first album was The Hendrix Collection, I still have it.....even if I can't play it....
I grew up with some really great music. I never did care much for Kiss, though. Hendrix was mesmerizing both times I saw him play. Gawd, I was way older than 7. LOL.
Question: how do you guys get your comments on the left with the Show Original Post option, and the comment form on the right? Did you have to use custom html for that?
Disregard that last question -- I figured it out.
Hey Rex,
You can post this to PWZ by all means. Sorry I did not answer anyone last night but I crashed really early to get my strength to do battle with the Friday Monster.
Serena, you saw Hendrix? I am offically jealous now. I saw the Grateful Dead with two different keyboard players and I saw Dylon give a rare good show, but never saw Hendrix.
My first concert was the POlice in 83. My mom dragged me to it and it was awesome. THe Fixx opened.
Kan... my childhood was similar to yours. Although ten years earlier. I'm the youngest. I have 3 bros. 9 years 12 years and 13 years older than me. They were hippies and very influential to me musically. I saw Black Sabbath with Dio at the Civic Arena in Pitts. They were there in all their glory playing heavily while an arena seat went up in flames. Rapture for me was seeing Jimmy Page and Robert Plant together.I was content to see Unledded,But they opened up with The Immagrant Song. Pure Bliss I tell you.
The Phantom
I remember going to see Plant when I was 17 and had an orgasim when I heard the opening notes to "In the Evening".
There are very few bands ,imho, that command this type of reverence. You know when you go to their show and know every song,then can go home and tell someone and they Know 'em all too!
The Phantom
Steve,
Now I am jealous of you. It was not enough you are an amzing writer, but your concert list puts mine to shame.
To quote King Louis from the Jungle Book: OOO-BE-DO I wanna be like you-ou-ou.
Yep, Kan, I was lucky enough to see Hendrix twice. The first time was in concert in Norfolk, VA. I was too young for Woodstock, but there was a similar festival in Atlanta a few years later. I saw all the greats of that era there. The highlight was hearing Hendrix play the 'Star-Spangled Banner' at midnight on the 4th of July.
Steve, I'm jealous! I never saw the Beatles or the Stones.
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