Couldn't agree more with your assessment. This album takes me to so many places. The vinyl box (which I have, as well as the 2009 cd) is beautiful. You know pal, you are about the only person to talk about albums that I can listen to. Brilliant stuff!
hello phil i'm listening this record NOW ! and it's very a great album ! j'avais oublie a quel point c'est bien ! merci de me l'avoir remis en memoire !!!!!!!!
What a coincidence, was just listening to the excellent job that they did when remastering the studio album from this box this morning. Amazing, and a really cool box to boot!
hello phil,cet album m'avait decu a sa sortie ! j'avais adore "master of reality" et le 4 la pochette francaise etait (pas de gatefold et pas de livret photos) moche ! au fil du temps l'ecoute fut plus agreable en trouvant L'EDITION ANGLAISE!!!!!! thank you phil ! ca fait plaisir de voir quelquun qui aime cette musique!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and opinions on this. I own all of the super deluxe sets plus the remasters from the 90's and my treasured Nems and Vertigo LP's I love this box set, The alternative versions make me so happy. I will one day get a turntable just to recreate the feeling of being 15 again and dropping a needle onto the first track and sitting back in the chair to await the sonic delights of mr Iommi and co. I have subscribed your channel .
Hi Supernawt, thank you for watching and subscribing. Your account name suggests a Sabbath fan of the highest order! I love your observation of imagining the first time the needle hits a record for the first time. I can certainly remember doing that myself with Wheels of Confusion. Phil :)
It took me a while to get this one because of the two LPs of outtakes. The second one was not needed. I really wanted the live portion because I have live at last on vinyl from 1980 and wasn't done well. I ended buying the vinyl boxed set because my local record store has a rewards points program. I spend way too much there and was able to get the vinyl boxed set for $25 US. This is my favorite Sabbath album. I do enjoy the outtakes on the Technical Ecstasy boxed set better though. Thanks for the review.
Phil I can tell you grew up with this band because you have that perspective and appreciation for how unique Sabbath was and how influential they were in the 70's and what an experience it was to hear these albums when they arrived on our conciseness at the time. I like this box set, more than anything I appreciate the Live 1973 double album, it's the Sabbath live album we didn't get back in the day. A Great review and I so much enjoyed hearing your perspective on the album and era when it was released.
Hi Kevin, thank you for watching and welcome to my channel:) I have also done videos here on Paranoid, Technical Ecstasy and Heaven and Hell including my signed tour program. Phil
Illuminating indeed, Very good review. I do own the '96 remaster and have noticed some "dubious" lyrics(basically wrong) that are printed. In the gatefold photo of Mr. Iommi you can clearly see his thimble fingers, at the time we all thought that he had to wear them because he used heavy gauge stings to get "that sound", but since then much more information has come out (his accident) and as it turns out he uses very light gauge strings. A classic album for sure.
Hi Stan, thank you for watching and dropping by. I really enjoyed putting this video together and it is great to get feedback like this. It is indeed a classic album and in my top 5 Sabbath albums. - Phil :)
Also for this review: Phil, - Many thanks! Mentioning the big live albums aera at this time - They missed it to bring out a proper one at the correct time. Live at last did not do the job, years too late. I started collecting the bootlegs and was surprised what I found at the "correct time" with "Live at Lund" or naming the best: "Asbury park" - the most energetic performance I ever heard. Even the concerts I visited did not have this dynamic. Cheers, Hajo
It is a mystery in that of all the big bands in the 70s and the peak time for live albums Black Sabbath did not release one. Live at Last in it’s original form was quite poor and as you say a bit late to the party! Phil
Great video -- very fun to watch!! I've seen your review in this video and the similar review for the Sabotage record. In both, you mention the original vinyl and then the next chronological version you mention is the remastered CD in the 90s. I'd be very curious to know what you think about the CDs that were released in the 80s before the 90s remaster, like the original WB CDs or Castle Cds.
Hi Michael, thank you for watching and I am pleased you enjoyed this series of videos. I don’t have the first CD version or the original castle releases so I don’t know. They were very primitive with respect to artwork and details which is why I did not pick them up. They were issued when CDs were very expensive as well. Phil
@@NowSpinningMagazine Oh interesting! I actually wasn't aware that CDs were more expensive in the 80s, although it makes sense now that I think about it. I'm a child of the 90s, so CDs were my dominant form of media when I was young and weren't super expensive. There are many classic bands with remasters post 2000s that I don't prefer, and so in some cases I've sought out earlier versions which is why I was curious about those initial Sabbath CDs. No worries though, and thanks for taking the time to respond!
Hi Phil. Great review again. I'm a few years older than you so I was buying Sabs albums as soon as they came out. At the time, lots of people looked down on them but to my mind Vol 4 and SBS are as good as anything Zep or DP released. Totally agree with you on Under The Sun, which they were not really played in full on their final two tours for some reason. Incidentally, I stood next to Tony in the Mermaid Bar at Birmingham University in late '76. He had a massive fur coat and a Guinness head froth on his moustache! Think he was producing the band " Nutz" who were playing at the Uni Ball.
It looks like Geezer was playing a Dan Armstrong Acrylic bass guitar in the picture. They were popular for a while back then. I had a 6 string. That guitar featured inter changeable pickups that you could swap in no time at all. It's too bad it never caught on.
It was his Fender bass guitar got smashed up in Canada and the tour manager knew a guitar shop owner who opened up on a Sunday and Geezer purchased the Dan Armstrong plexiglass glass bass guitar which he used for the recording of Vol 4 and never used it again.
Another good ‘un, Phil. You’re performing a valuable public service with these videos! I’m sure I’m not the first person to have noted ‘72 era Tony Iommi’s disturbing physical resemblance to Peter Wyngarde .....
In my opinion this is the best of the Black Sabbath lot for boxsets. I absolutely love this set and Steve Wilson nailed the remixes. They sound great. Anyhow Vol 4 ranks #1 so far. Lets just wait for Master Of Reality. :)
It would be Technical Ecstasy in first place for me then vol 4 in second. Paranoid in 3rd (but why did they miss out the 4.1 mix) and Sabotage in last place because of the content. I have a feeling there is nothing to add for Master of Reality. It is possible that the 2CD set from a few years ago is it! Phi
@@NowSpinningMagazine I don’t know why I haven’t bought the Technical Ecstasy set yet. I have to get in that. I have all the others, so why stop now? :) I really like the album as well, but I think I’m gonna splurge on the Manfred Mann 40th Ann career boxset. ;)
Another good one Phil...I am sat on the fence, probably due to the price,I think 40 to 45 is the right pricing for these,the 80 plus they are asking for the English version as you say is ridiculous...I will pick one up hopefully sometime..🤟🤟
Hi John, thank you for watching. I did enjoy doing this one. If I did not have this channel or Now Spinning I probably would be like you and waiting for the price to drop. The thing is Sabbath seem to be able to command these prices and they still sell. I am pleased I bought it (£52 was the price I paid). I suspect that the Tony Martin Years Box Set will be in a similar format and high price. Phil
Hello sir. I've just found your channel, which I like and have subscribed too. Do you have any AC/DC box sets to show? Thanks, and greetings from Finland.
Frank Zappa thought Supernaut was a brilliant track and loved it. Steven Wilson would have probably fine the Sabbath remixes as he was into metal in his teenage years. He also got into Meshuggah after being introduced to them by Gavin Harrison. Meshuggah are my fave metal band and obviously wouldn't exist without groups like Sabbath. Not my fave Sabbath album, but one I do play from time to time.
@@NowSpinningMagazine Hi Phil. Yea they are. I usually don't listen to that type of metal much, but Meshuggah are in a league of their own. Apologies the word fine should have read done.
Vol 4 is my personal favorite. Thanks for pointing out Bill holding the sticks upside down, I never paid attention to that. Once again, I’m impressed with how clean and new your vinyl looks. It doesn’t look 50 years old! I have the 2016 packaging of the 2012 remastered CD, with essays, interviews and pictures and I’m able to place it in the box at the bottom of the super deluxe, so I have them all in one place Is the live recording the same as on Live at Last?
Hi Thank you for watching and your kind comments. There are some similarities in the track listing but the live album here is totally different in sound quality. This is the full gig remixed by Digby Smith ( Free - Island Records) it is just stunning! Phil
3:45 the "see-through-bass" is an Ampeg plexiglass bass. Must say you have taken good care of your records. How have you managed to keep them all intact for so long, and in that condition?
Thank you for watching. I have just tried to look after them over the years. I don’t have a record cleaner or anything like that and I did damage some from using PVC sleeves but they do get played. The key thing for me living near the sea is humidity so I have to keep an eye on that. Phil
This one was remixed recently by Digby Smith and sounds fantastic. The Sabotage one is a bootleg. I am interviewing Digby for a podcast soon and will be asking him about this concert. Phil
@@NowSpinningMagazine Sounds great, I will follow. It has been confirmed that the live content on Technical Ecstacy unfortunately suffer the same unprofessionalism as on Sabotage live content, using MP3 sources. To me, and maybe to many others, this is the end of physical media as I see (hear) it. Slapping MP3 onto CD and Vinyl and sell it at these prices without even notifying about the sources is nothing else but fraud. Buying a CD, you expect full range content (lossless). Sabotage is bootleg live content, yes we know, but it is lossy (MP3).
Masterpiece album ... Cornucopia is a particularly unique work of genius ... Supernaut is one of the greatest rock tracks of all time in my view .
Totally agree 👍
Awesome review once again. The outtakes are awesome on this set. Under the sun outtakes are amazing. So heavy for 1972.
Hi Both, thank you for watching, I agree Under The Sun is amazing! Phil
always very good reviews Phil, very much appreciated!
The 1986 original Castle cd is the best sounding imo. The ‘96 Castle is notable for an extended coda on ‘Wheels Of Confusion’.
Really enjoyed this breakdown. I picked up the Deluxe vinyl boxset and have been loving it.
Hi Spencer, thank you for watching and finding my channel. This is a good box set I am hoping the Technical Ecstasy one follows this pattern. Phil :)
Couldn't agree more with your assessment. This album takes me to so many places. The vinyl box (which I have, as well as the 2009 cd) is beautiful. You know pal, you are about the only person to talk about albums that I can listen to. Brilliant stuff!
Hi Bareknuckles, Thank you for watching. Your comments are helping put together quite a list for the videos I am planning in the new year. Phil
hello phil i'm listening this record NOW ! and it's very a great album ! j'avais oublie a quel point c'est bien ! merci de me l'avoir remis en memoire !!!!!!!!
Hi Phil! Thank you for your fantastic review. I´ve got this album on vinyl and cd (the 1996 version). Greetings from Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Hi Norman, thank you so much for watching and sharing you Vol 4 memories - Phil :)
What a coincidence, was just listening to the excellent job that they did when remastering the studio album from this box this morning. Amazing, and a really cool box to boot!
Hi W.T Thank you for watching. They really have brought out the best in this remastering. The album sounds born again! Phil
hello phil,cet album m'avait decu a sa sortie ! j'avais adore "master of reality" et le 4 la pochette francaise etait (pas de gatefold et pas de livret photos) moche ! au fil du temps l'ecoute fut plus agreable en trouvant L'EDITION ANGLAISE!!!!!! thank you phil ! ca fait plaisir de voir quelquun qui aime cette musique!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and opinions on this. I own all of the super deluxe sets plus the remasters from the 90's and my treasured Nems and Vertigo LP's
I love this box set, The alternative versions make me so happy. I will one day get a turntable just to recreate the feeling of being 15 again and dropping a needle onto the first track and sitting back in the chair to await the sonic delights of mr Iommi and co.
I have subscribed your channel .
Hi Supernawt, thank you for watching and subscribing. Your account name suggests a Sabbath fan of the highest order! I love your observation of imagining the first time the needle hits a record for the first time. I can certainly remember doing that myself with Wheels of Confusion. Phil :)
It took me a while to get this one because of the two LPs of outtakes. The second one was not needed. I really wanted the live portion because I have live at last on vinyl from 1980 and wasn't done well. I ended buying the vinyl boxed set because my local record store has a rewards points program. I spend way too much there and was able to get the vinyl boxed set for $25 US. This is my favorite Sabbath album. I do enjoy the outtakes on the Technical Ecstasy boxed set better though. Thanks for the review.
Phil I can tell you grew up with this band because you have that perspective and appreciation for how unique Sabbath was and how influential they were in the 70's and what an experience it was to hear these albums when they arrived on our conciseness at the time.
I like this box set, more than anything I appreciate the Live 1973 double album, it's the Sabbath live album we didn't get back in the day.
A Great review and I so much enjoyed hearing your perspective on the album and era when it was released.
Hi Kevin, thank you for watching and welcome to my channel:) I have also done videos here on Paranoid, Technical Ecstasy and Heaven and Hell including my signed tour program. Phil
Illuminating indeed, Very good review. I do own the '96 remaster and have noticed some "dubious" lyrics(basically wrong) that are printed. In the gatefold photo of Mr. Iommi you can clearly see his thimble fingers, at the time we all thought that he had to wear them because he used heavy gauge stings to get "that sound", but since then much more information has come out (his accident) and as it turns out he uses very light gauge strings. A classic album for sure.
Hi Stan, thank you for watching and dropping by. I really enjoyed putting this video together and it is great to get feedback like this. It is indeed a classic album and in my top 5 Sabbath albums. - Phil :)
Also for this review: Phil, - Many thanks! Mentioning the big live albums aera at this time - They missed it to bring out a proper one at the correct time. Live at last did not do the job, years too late. I started collecting the bootlegs and was surprised what I found at the "correct time" with "Live at Lund" or naming the best: "Asbury park" - the most energetic performance I ever heard. Even the concerts I visited did not have this dynamic. Cheers, Hajo
It is a mystery in that of all the big bands in the 70s and the peak time for live albums Black Sabbath did not release one. Live at Last in it’s original form was quite poor and as you say a bit late to the party! Phil
Great video -- very fun to watch!! I've seen your review in this video and the similar review for the Sabotage record. In both, you mention the original vinyl and then the next chronological version you mention is the remastered CD in the 90s. I'd be very curious to know what you think about the CDs that were released in the 80s before the 90s remaster, like the original WB CDs or Castle Cds.
Hi Michael, thank you for watching and I am pleased you enjoyed this series of videos. I don’t have the first CD version or the original castle releases so I don’t know. They were very primitive with respect to artwork and details which is why I did not pick them up. They were issued when CDs were very expensive as well. Phil
@@NowSpinningMagazine Oh interesting! I actually wasn't aware that CDs were more expensive in the 80s, although it makes sense now that I think about it. I'm a child of the 90s, so CDs were my dominant form of media when I was young and weren't super expensive. There are many classic bands with remasters post 2000s that I don't prefer, and so in some cases I've sought out earlier versions which is why I was curious about those initial Sabbath CDs. No worries though, and thanks for taking the time to respond!
Hi Phil. Great review again. I'm a few years older than you so I was buying Sabs albums as soon as they came out. At the time, lots of people looked down on them but to my mind Vol 4 and SBS are as good as anything Zep or DP released. Totally agree with you on Under The Sun, which they were not really played in full on their final two tours for some reason. Incidentally, I stood next to Tony in the Mermaid Bar at Birmingham University in late '76. He had a massive fur coat and a Guinness head froth on his moustache! Think he was producing the band " Nutz" who were playing at the Uni Ball.
Hi Malc, thank you for watching and sharing your story about Tony Iommi. I had forgotten he was involved with Nutz! Phil :)
It looks like Geezer was playing a Dan Armstrong Acrylic bass guitar in the picture. They were popular for a while back then. I had a 6 string. That guitar featured inter changeable pickups that you could swap in no time at all. It's too bad it never caught on.
It was his Fender bass guitar got smashed up in Canada and the tour manager knew a guitar shop owner who opened up on a Sunday and Geezer purchased the Dan Armstrong plexiglass glass bass guitar which he used for the recording of Vol 4 and never used it again.
Another good ‘un, Phil. You’re performing a valuable public service with these videos! I’m sure I’m not the first person to have noted ‘72 era Tony Iommi’s disturbing physical resemblance to Peter Wyngarde .....
Hi Parsifal, thank you for watching and your kind comments. I really enjoyed making this one! It is great to know people enjoy them. Phil :)
My NEMS version doesn’t have the extra live shot pages in the gatefold 😢
In my opinion this is the best of the Black Sabbath lot for boxsets.
I absolutely love this set and Steve Wilson nailed the remixes. They sound great. Anyhow Vol 4 ranks #1 so far. Lets just wait for Master Of Reality. :)
It would be Technical Ecstasy in first place for me then vol 4 in second. Paranoid in 3rd (but why did they miss out the 4.1 mix) and Sabotage in last place because of the content. I have a feeling there is nothing to add for Master of Reality. It is possible that the 2CD set from a few years ago is it! Phi
@@NowSpinningMagazine I don’t know why I haven’t bought the Technical Ecstasy set yet. I have to get in that. I have all the others, so why stop now? :)
I really like the album as well, but I think I’m gonna splurge on the Manfred Mann 40th Ann career boxset. ;)
Another good one Phil...I am sat on the fence, probably due to the price,I think 40 to 45 is the right pricing for these,the 80 plus they are asking for the English version as you say is ridiculous...I will pick one up hopefully sometime..🤟🤟
Hi John, thank you for watching. I did enjoy doing this one. If I did not have this channel or Now Spinning I probably would be like you and waiting for the price to drop. The thing is Sabbath seem to be able to command these prices and they still sell. I am pleased I bought it (£52 was the price I paid). I suspect that the Tony Martin Years Box Set will be in a similar format and high price. Phil
Hello sir. I've just found your channel, which I like and have subscribed too. Do you have any AC/DC box sets to show? Thanks, and greetings from Finland.
I have one 'Bonfire' Phil
Frank Zappa thought Supernaut was a brilliant track and loved it.
Steven Wilson would have probably fine the Sabbath remixes as he was into metal in his teenage years. He also got into Meshuggah after being introduced to them by Gavin Harrison. Meshuggah are my fave metal band and obviously wouldn't exist without groups like Sabbath. Not my fave Sabbath album, but one I do play from time to time.
Hi Robert, thank you for watching. Meshuggah, is pretty intense stuff ! Phil
@@NowSpinningMagazine Hi Phil. Yea they are. I usually don't listen to that type of metal much, but Meshuggah are in a league of their own. Apologies the word fine should have read done.
Vol 4 is my personal favorite. Thanks for pointing out Bill holding the sticks upside down, I never paid attention to that.
Once again, I’m impressed with how clean and new your vinyl looks. It doesn’t look 50 years old! I have the 2016 packaging of the 2012 remastered CD, with essays, interviews and pictures and I’m able to place it in the box at the bottom of the super deluxe, so I have them all in one place
Is the live recording the same as on Live at Last?
Hi Thank you for watching and your kind comments. There are some similarities in the track listing but the live album here is totally different in sound quality. This is the full gig remixed by Digby Smith ( Free - Island Records) it is just stunning! Phil
3:45 the "see-through-bass" is an Ampeg plexiglass bass.
Must say you have taken good care of your records. How have you managed to keep them all intact for so long, and in that condition?
Thank you for watching. I have just tried to look after them over the years. I don’t have a record cleaner or anything like that and I did damage some from using PVC sleeves but they do get played. The key thing for me living near the sea is humidity so I have to keep an eye on that. Phil
Maybe we'll get a super deluxe edition of Seventh Star eventually 😄
I hope so ! Phil :)
9:54 The Live in UK is probably sourced from MP3 as well (just like Sabotage). Not buying any of these boxsets.
This one was remixed recently by Digby Smith and sounds fantastic. The Sabotage one is a bootleg. I am interviewing Digby for a podcast soon and will be asking him about this concert. Phil
@@NowSpinningMagazine Sounds great, I will follow.
It has been confirmed that the live content on Technical Ecstacy unfortunately suffer the same unprofessionalism as on Sabotage live content, using MP3 sources.
To me, and maybe to many others, this is the end of physical media as I see (hear) it.
Slapping MP3 onto CD and Vinyl and sell it at these prices without even notifying about the sources is nothing else but fraud. Buying a CD, you expect full range content (lossless).
Sabotage is bootleg live content, yes we know, but it is lossy (MP3).
First and foremost what I learned when reading the book is that the album cost 75,000 to make and they spent 65,000 on cocaine while making it. ;)
It is a wonder it sounds as good as it does!
@@NowSpinningMagazine I said the exact same thing to myself when I read it! ;)