I think I'd grade them as H&H - A Mob - A- Dehumanizer - B+ When this thread has concluded, I need to go back to @GodShifter's Sabbath thread, and get educated on all of the Ozzy albums, as I'm primarily only familiar with the "hits", the first album, and Born Again, outside of the Dio albums.
That may be closer to what I was thinking. I'll copy your grades. Dehumanizer just blew my face off when I first heard it and that tour was great.
For me-- Heaven and Hell-A Mob Rules-B Dehumanizer-B+ 3 new songs on the Dio Years-B- The Devil You Know- C (I was really disappointed in it)
IT NEVER GOES AWAY I often skip this one, but it's OK. I believe the working title was "Black Sabbath," for obvious reasons. It just never takes off, even though I think Paul puts in a really good vocal performance. Sorry, can't think of anything else to say about this one!
In honor of my birthday, Gene and Ace are playing together tonight, to benefit Hurricane Harvey victims. And another of my favorite bands, Cheap Trick, is on the bill as well! Too bad they forgot I was in California, as they booked it in Minnesota! (A state I love, by the way!) Definitely looking forward to reading reviews of the show tomorrow! I hope it gets professionally filmed and/or recorded.
I'd say The Devil You Know was much like the album we're reviewing here (to bring it back). A bit too one note and ultra sludgy. I'd actually rate CoS as a better album due its variety. TDYK didn't have much variance in it's sound. I'll go ahead and admit that barring a catastrophic finish, CoS is a good album. Is it a good KISS album? Yeah, I guess but the radical shift in sound takes me aback a bit. It's still a well executed album and if wasn't KISS, tbh, I'd probably be all over this. It's just with the history, expectations, and the calculated nature of the album it makes it a bit difficult to digest. That's not really fair, but it's the way it is.
On the Devil you Know, I wish they had mixed up the tempos a little, but I think Follow the Tears and Bible Black are amazing tracks. I love the three new Dio Years songs, but Ear in the Wall is a standout for me, even ten years later. Regarding Dehumanizer, I think "I' is one of the best songs Black Sabbath ever did, regardless of lineup. Here's my statement on Mob Rules: I understand some people consider Turn Up the Night an attempt to ape Neon Knights, but I think TUTN is far superior. For my money, TUTN and Voodoo open an album as good as any two songs do.
To me, 2 of the remaining 4 tracks are outstanding, and the other two are solid. So hopefully you will in fact end up giving this album a thumbs-up. For some reason, I had a feeling you'd dig this album more than some other folks would. And I'm really not sure why; it was just a hunch. I still have not heard The Devil You Know. I thought 2 of the 3 new tracks on that Dio Years compilation were really good, so I kinda figured the album would follow suit. But I never bought it, and still haven't heard it. Did you end up covering that one in your Sabbath thread, or did you skip it?
I don't think of Turn Up the Night as being a copy of Neon Knights but I strongly prefer NK. And I'd listen to Carnival of Souls before The Devil You Know. I listened to TDYK recently and it was all I could do to finish it.
For some reason, I do like the final track on TDYK, "Breaking Into Heaven." Maybe the idea that the only way one could get into heaven would be to break in. I also file this CD under Black Sabbath, for ease of finding it the 3 times a year I do listen to it. Anyway...I agree...COS gets twice the plays as does TDYK in my house. Full disclosure: I liked 13.
It never goes away is a Sabbath parody for sure but it's better than some folks here claim. Paul's voice somehow manages to sound a lot less fake than on his AIC tunes. In fact I think he's a better Ozzy than Lace and I like the little Bruce solo, very Tony Iommish. Regarding the so-called Dio Sabbath - I try not to think of them as Black Sabbath albums (for some reason Born Again is the only non-Ozzy album that feels like Sabbath to me) and take them for what they are. Heaven and Hell 10/10 - not even close to the spirit of Sabbath but a heavy metal masterpiece for all times. Mob Rules - some great moments but mostly a direct copy and by far the lesser one 6/10 Dehumanizer - 4/10 never liked the new direction and Dio's new vocal style on it. Gave it hundreds of chances over the years, still a en epic fail. New songs on Dio Years - Shadow of the Wind is very good, the rest I don't even remember The Devil You Know 2/10 - it's a tragedy that this cliched and uninspired snoozefest is the last thing that Dio recorded more or less.
I was a bit too optimistic about 13 when it came out, now I don't rate it as high as any Ozzy era albums but it's still better than all post Ozzy albums except for Heaven and Hell and Born Again.
Just weighing in... I love Mob Rules and feel that it's on an even plane with a Heaven and Hell. They are equally great!
Re-sequencing Mob Rules would help it a lot. With it's original track list it looks exactly like Heaven and Hell part 2. It should definetely start with E510/Mob Rules and end with Falling off the Edge of the World instead of Over and Over.
The Devil You Know...I do find it the weakest of the 4 Dio/Sabbath albums, but I still enjoy it. I think similarly to Carnival of Souls, it works better in small doses. I like the individual songs, but it's a lot to get through the whole album in one sitting. When I first got Dehumanizer (the first Dio/Sabbath I ever heard) I liked a handful of songs, but most I didn't care for. Listening now I love the album a lot. Sure, it's not as great as Mob Rules (my fave) and H&H, but I would give it a solid B. Boy was I in for a surprise when I first heard Heaven and Hell! I didn't hear those albums until 10 years ago. Somehow, I went my whole life as a metalhead NOT listening to those albums. I even had all of Dio's 80's output and the superior Sabbath just eluded me. I've made up for lost time, believe me. In typing this I'm jamming my KISS playlist and She is on right now. Good lord the groove on this song! Absolutely sick.
Oh wait, I missed the Sabbath / Ozzy / Dio conversation! Over and Over is, for me, the perfect closing song because not only is its placement ironic in lieu of the lyrics, but, it is undeniably the best Dio era Sabbath song, featuring Dio's best lyrics, and Dio's best performance. The song induces chills every time Iommi's sad guitar cries that amazing phrasing. And it goes over, and over, and over ...