OzzY

[Jack the Stripper]

Yep, the failed Dio hologram/cash grab should be a lesson to everyone

[Vyn]

HOLORONNIE!

[Charger]

Today being the 41st anniversary of Speak Of The Devil album I thought it might be fun to talk about it for a bit.

I have never been a huge fan of the album...

First of all Brad Gillis, as fine of a guitar player that he is, couldn't do the material justice. He lacked the heaviness of Iommi and the techincal wizardy of Randy.

The second bit is ofcourse that not all of the album is live...Sabbath Bloody Sabbath for instance was not even played on those shows at the Ritz and was recorded in a "Back up set" preformed by the band before the show on the 27th...few other songs from that made it to the album as well...probably because Ozzy screwed up the lyrics during the actual show. This was pre-teleprompter time and Ozzy had written down the lyrics to a sheet of paper for the show but still couldn't quite keep up. It's not clear just how much of the set is actually live and how much isn't but accoriding to Producer Max Norman atleast 3 songs from those afternoon rehearsal shows was used on the album.

The set list is pretty good...featuring some songs that Ozzy hadn't preformed with Sabbath all that much...The Wizard for instance.

Ozzy's voice is kind of all over tha place but he was in a rather bad way with his drinking being totally out of control at the time so I guess one can say it's a small miracle he managed to pull it off in the first place.

But most importantly was there any need for this album?
Well according to Ozzy NO. He has repeatedly said how much he hates the album and how it should have never been made.

And I kind of agree...Ozzy's solo career was off to a good start and he didn't really need to go back to the Sabbath days like this...And let's be honest as good as the band was (Rudy Sarzy, Gillis and Tommy Aldridge) they can't touch Tony and Geezer and Bill...

What screams out of this was a contractual obligation and a quick cash grab.

Is it a nice curiosity? Sure I guess...Is it a good live album? Not really...

[Vyn]

Have never owned that record - even when it came out, not sure why I didn't pick it up. Seems like something I would have jumped all over back then, but for some reason didn't. Maybe I needed beer money and then just never got around to buying it lol

[Zzzptm]

I remember getting it for Symptom of the Universe live.

I remember wanting to toss it after the first track, but listening to the whole thing and coming to the conclusion that I was right to reject it. It was so uneven, a real disappointment. I'd almost forgotten completely about it until it turned up today.

[Ted Sallis]

I bought the album upon release in 1982 and I still have it.  Quite a few people have been praising it in other anniversary posts elsewhere on social media; my own impression of it has gradually improved over the decades.  IMHO Brad Gillis performed the songs better than I expected.  Yes, I've read that not of the album is live, but Charger, re. your comment about Ozzy's voice, are you aware that his vocals on the album were entirely overdubbed in the studio afterward?

As for whether the album was 'needed' or not, it's been reported since around when it was 1st released that Speak of the Devil was a contractual obligation album and I've also read that Ozzy was eager to get out of his contract with the label (Jet Records) at that time.

Ted

[Charger]

No Ted...I did not know Ozzy had redone the vocals....that's strange to hear though considering his preformance is far from something you'd expect from him in studio. His voice cracks quite a bit there...it's strange that he would have done them so poorly....

[Ted Sallis]

Ozzy's vocals were also re-recorded in the studio and overdubbed for the Speak of the Devil home vid. and DVD release, which features a different concert from the same year with the same lineup.

Ted