Exploring The Rules of Hell - Introduction

                             
                                             

I haven't been the best Black Sabbath fan. After getting into the band over 20 years ago I haven't really dug much deeper than their first 6 genre-defining albums. Starting with 1970's Black Sabbath and ending with 1975's Sabotage, Black Sabbath laid the groundwork for the musical direction countless bands would take in the decades that followed, and that was good enough for me.

Black Sabbath recorded a total of 8 albums with original singer Ozzy Osbourne. While familiar with the last 2 releases of the Ozzy era (1976's Technical Ecstasy and 1978's Never Say Die) those more hard rock leaning albums never connected with me the way that the first 6 did.

After Ozzy's departure the band continued om with former Rainbow singer Ronnie James Dio. I was never really a Dio fan so exploring that part of Sabbath's catalog never appealed to me. With news of a new Sabbath album with Ozzy slated for release later this year my interest in the band was rekindled. And as much as I loved those first 6 releases I realized that there had to be some gems in the 12 other albums that they released between 1980 and 1995.

Looking at the catalog I figured that I would start with the Ronnie James Dio incarnation of the band. Black Sabbath recorded 3 studio albums and 1 live album with Dio. Those albums as well as 3 additional songs that were recorded for a 2007 Dio era compilation were released as part of a box set called The Rules of Hell.

Over the next 45 days I will be listening to and writing about 1 Dio era Sabbath song right here. I'll be covering the songs in the order that they appeared on each album starting with "Neon Knights" from 1980's Heaven and Hell and finishing with "Ear in the Wall" from 2007's Black Sabbath: The Dio Years.

And while I'll be familiar with some of the songs much of the music that I will be listening to will be brand new for me. So stop by tomorrow for coverage of  "Neon Knights"!