Black Sabbath – Born In Hell (1983)

October 27, 2023

Pretty great boot, which showcases some of the cuts from the Gillan era in a live setting but with good quality sound. It is a shame that this was never officially released, as Gillan was in Sabbath for such a short time. Heck, the entire rest of the band are on Born Again so Gillan’s era is as valid as Dio’s / Heaven And Hell, so even the nay-sayers who quote the Sabbath revolving door lineups as unspeakable years can get fucked. However, by the time this tour was under way, Bev Bevan was behind the kit as Bill Ward had fallen off the wagon again.

The best thing about recordings like this live set is that we get to hear Ian Gillan’s take on some of the Sabbath classics like “War Pigs”, “Iron Man”, “Black Sabbath” and “Paranoid” (the latter two are really really good intepretations). Oh, and Sabbath covering “Smoke On The Water” is a real treat.