NEVER SAY DIE!

I made a tape of this off an l.p. borrowed from a friend. Not liking the original sequence, I changed it and actually made an improvement. What that tells me is there is good music on this album, but that it is also a sloppy package. This is not classic Sabbath, nor is it the pit of excrement that some seem to think it is. The album came during perhaps the lowest period in the professional lives of the band, and that is in evidence here. The tunes do not have the same spark as earlier releases. To give them some credit, they were eight or nine years into their careers and burnt out. Touring, internal conflicts, massive amounts of drugs and alcohol were all taking their toll. Ozzy would soon be fired, while Bill Ward's increasing psychological troubles would force him into rehab. (A friend of mine saw them live around this time, and watched in horror as Ward completely lost his $hi+ and with a screaming fit demolished his drum set in the middle of the show.) It is a miracle these guys turned anything out at this time, much less something that is actually pretty decent. The sludge guitar of the past is traded for a sharp, brighter sound. That bite is nowhere more effective than in the first section of Johnny Blade, which also features one of Tony Iommi's most cutting riffs. This is one of the best moments of the album. Unfortunately, this song descends into something that merely rocks instead of shredding your earbones. There is a lot of creativity in this album. In fact, I would say it is one of Sabbath's most experimental. This may sound odd since many of the song structures are pretty basic. Lack of inspiration required a whole other level of effort. So we hear some of Ozzy's best singing in the band, very melodic in places, and in lower ranges. We also get a number of bridges and production values that add layers of sound not often heard with the Sabs. Breakout, Swinging the Chain, and Air Dance, are all unique. Black Sabbath gives us some jazzy passages, dips into what might be called soft rock (hey, every album of theirs before this also had a soft tune on it, so don't complain too much), gives us an arena-rock anthem, and rocks us as few other bands can. Over To You demonstrates the good and bad aspects of this album best: Ozzy sings quite well on it, yet the melody and drums are repetitive. Both Iommi and Geezer Butler compensate for this with some carefully crafted and tasty guitar and bass parts. The problem is, even with all this diversity, they don't sound so much like themselves anymore. It is as if they were trying to adopt the many sounds popular at the time. Being Sabbath, Never Say Die still sounds like Sabbath, but being caught in a vicious cycle of problems, it is also kind of generic. It was their professional seasoning that saved this album, but the internal and personal strife of the band members also made it the last of an era. If you have any familiarity with Black Sabbath, you know that they are not a true Prog band, but are rather one that has a broad influence on rock music. If you are new to Sabbath, don't start here because the album is so problematic to the serious listener. If you are well versed with the classics and wish to expand your experience of Sabbath, this is a good place to go. Don't expect Paranoid, however. Keep your mind open, allow yourself to rock, and listen carefully to how all of this is put together. It won't convert you, but it is worth hearing. Three stars.