Black Sabbath - Never Say Die: Live in 1978

The guy who said that Bill Ward's drumming was below par and the band were going through the motions on this recording was talking absolute bull and should be given a good kicking. I should know, I play drums in a Sabbath tribute band. In fact the whole band are giving it 100%, apart from Geezer who is off the scale, the song selection is as good as it possibly could be, there are no gimmicks, fancy lighting, extras, etc, it's just in-yer-face evil music done as only Sabbath can do it.

I cannot recommend this DVD highly enough to Sabbath fans or to anyone who wants to know what heavy music is really about (no preening and posing like Zep, for a start, superior musicians they may be, but Zep were the END of the BLUES, not the originators of metal - yes it's true, Sabbath WERE responsible).

Anyway, the only minor gripe I have is that the sound quality is below par, but it hardly matters when the performances are this good. Just crank it up and give it a bit more treble: couldn't they have done this sort of thing before releasing the DVD though?

If you are reading this, you either have this DVD or you are thinking about maybe possibly getting it. If you are even slightly curious, I can confirm that you SHOULD buy this DVD.

Repeat: you SHOULD buy this DVD. You NEED this music in your life. Oh yes.

You have to bear in mind this was recorded on 1978 analog tape, so of course the sound quality leaves a little to be desired. The DVD sure makes up for it with energy and fun, though! The songs are all uncut, it's the best you're gonna see of Sabbath from '78.

Ozzy is quite raunchy and strong on the vocals. Bill Ward flails the drums like a f*ckin maniac - he hasn't changed a bit since. :-D Toni Iommi's playing was outstanding, and I think I actually saw him smile once! Maybe... Geezer, well - that guy needs no introduction. Awesome bass player, and he plays like hell in this vid.

Sound quality could be better, but it's a concert vid from start to finish. I'm very happy with this. If you're a fan of early Sabbath, grab this DVD. You'll be glad you did!

First off, this concert is too short for a band that had been together for ten years. It barely clocks at over an hour with encores which is a disappointment. Tony's guitar tone is not loud at all in the mix which actually allows the viewer to see the intricate talent of Sabbath's superb rhythm section. You finally get to hear all of the bass fills done be Geezer which are a great treat for bass players such as myself. Bill seems to be the only person in the band not playing well. It just seems like he's too drugged up to do anything. His drum solo is only 1 minute long which can be attributed to his excessive drug use. My last comlaint is how Ozzy's mike is off to the left and Tony (a boring showman compared to Ozzy) dead center. Now to the more positive comments.

The show starts with Ozzy flashing peace signs all throughout during Symtom Of The Universe. The song is well played and the band is tight. Next is the unbeatable War Pigs which Sabbath always seems to manage to perfectly play. This is followed by the epic cocaine influenced song that is Snowblind. It is far better then the truncated version that appears on The Last Supper. Never Say Die follows which I find to be a treat because of it rarely being played live. Great Song. Ozzy then gives his tenth anniversary speech and the band proceeds to play Sabbath's calling card, Black Sabbath. Then is one of the last classics Sabbath managed to make. That song is Dirty Women. Bill Ward's crappy drum solo follows which then proceeds into the useless Rock and Roll Doctor. Good song and all but I wish it was replaced with maybe another song off of Never Say Die like Johnny Blade. This song is followed by the yet again incomplete Electric Funeral. Would it kill sabbath to ever play all five minutes of the song. The only time you hear the full live version of the song is on Reunion. Then comes Children Of The Grave minus the Embryo intro. That killed the song for me. Without embryo the song seems incomplete. Credits then role and are interupted by the singular encore song that is Paranoid. Yet again this is a song that is impossible to do bad. Overall, great dvd for that point in time and a fun show to look at today. Go out and buy it. Sabbath forever!!! Can't wait till they make a new album.