Heaven And Hell

Many had left Black Sabbath for dead at the dawn of the 80s, and with good reason -- the bands last few albums were not even close to their early classics, and original singer Ozzy Osbourne had just split from the band. But the Sabs had found a worthy replacement in former Elf and Rainbow singer Ronnie James Dio, and bounced back to issue their finest album since the early 70s, 1980s Heaven and Hell. The band sounds reborn and re-energized throughout. Several tracks easily rank among Sabbaths all-time best, such as the vicious album opener, Neon Knights, the moody, mid-paced epic Children of the Sea, and the title track, which features one of Tony Iommi s best guitar riffs. With Heaven and Hell, Black Sabbath were obviously back in business. Unfortunately, the Dio-led version of the band would only record one more studio album before splitting up (although Dio would return briefly in the early 90s). One of Sabbaths finest records. ~ Greg Prato