The Eternal Idol

Bought this to replace my original CD, because Disc 2 has the original Ray Gillen versions of the songs. Interesting comparing him with the more familiar voice of Tony Martin. This won't please the "No Sabbath Without Ozzy" crowd, although I'm aware Tony Iommi never intended anything after Mob Rules to be anything but a solo project (Born Again was meant to be a supergroup album, rather than Sabbath). Nonetheless, a solid entry.

CD1 is the Tony Martin's official version of this really underrated and great record. It has also 2 bonus tracks: one is a demo version of "Black Moon" (later appeared on the following Headless Cross), the other,"Some Kind Of Woman",is a rock song with a strange Van Halen mood. The CD2 is the thing that IT'S NOT POSSIBLE TO MISS! Simply because finally it's the only way to listen the divine voice of Ray Gillen(Badlands) flying on Tony Iommi's riffs. This Eternal Idol version gives off a passion that the official one can't have. Try it!!

The mid-to-late 1980's is an often overlooked era in Black Sabbath's long and chequered career, and in addition to 1989's Headless Cross, 1987's The Eternal Idol is probably the band's most underrated album. Die-hards will disagree, of course, but once you get past the impression that no line-up without Ozzy Osbourne should be called Black Sabbath, you will soon discover that there was some pretty good stuff released under the Sabbath name even when Tony Iommi remained the sole original member of the group. Songs such as "The Shining," "Ancient Warrior" and "Eternal Idol" easily beat anything from the dismal Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die albums, and, frankly, most of the stuff on Sabotage. Long-time Sabbath aficionados already know that prior to the release of The Eternal Idol, vocalist Ray Gillen abruptly left the group, having already nearly completed the album. This led to the hiring of Tony Martin, who re-did all the vocals with very short notice. Up until now, the original Ray Gillen versions have only existed in various bootleg formats, but now finally get an official release on this 2-disc deluxe edition, which features both versions of the album. This release offers some solid evidence of both Gillen's and Martin's undeniable vocal abilities. Comparing the two singers' renditions of the same songs and listening to them back-to-back is great fun. Although the vocal melodies on the different versions of the songs are often very close to one another, both singers have their own style and bring their own flavour to the Sabbath sound. In a way it's a shame that things didn't work out with Ray Gillen, but then again, Tony Martin did a great job and deserves to be on the album. With this re-release, everyone wins.

Excellent! Thanks a million.

Got this album for my boyfriend who is a massive Tony Martin era fan, and I love the album myself. I believe it to be the best Sabbath album without Ozzy or Dio. With some monumental riffs from Iommi, how could any Sabbath fan refuse it? The artwork on it is pretty great to look at in more detail as it's obviously larger on the LP. Great buy, would recommend to any Sabbath or indeed Vinyl fan.

item as described - couldnt see a scratch .played without a fault . would recommend this seller . oh, and this is one of my favourite black sabbath albums

This cd was already great in the regular version, you imagine double!? I love this phase of Black Sabbath (the best time), so if do you do not have? Buy it now!

It was so amazing to hear the Ray Gillan contribution to the album. Ray recorded it first but the album was re-recorded again with the new vocalist. In my opinion, I prefererd Ray's vocals and phrasing.

Tra cambi di formazione e, in particolare, cambi di cantanti, i dischi dei Black Sabbath possono aver confuso gli appassionati nel corso del tempo. Eppure questo disco del lontano 1987 è, a mio modesto parere, un capolavoro che meriterebbe di essere ricordato di più. Sound coriaceo, epico e grintoso, eppure cantabilissimo, qui ripulito e reso al meglio in questo doppio ciddi deluxe con tanto di album extra affidato alla voce di Ray Gillen (e non a quella di Tony Martin come nella versione "ufficiale", per così dire). Ma che sia Ray a cantare o che sia Tony, il risultato non cambia: un album notevole che ascolto spesso e volentieri. Felice di averlo riscoperto.

A pesar de no ser uno de los trabajos obligados o esenciales de Sabbath, The Eternal Idol es un gran obra de Tony Iommi y compañia, que buscaba crear una nueva y energetizada banda en la segunda mitad de los 80's. Un disco sólido, pesado y que nos presenta un gran nuevo talento (en esos momentos) en la persona de Tony Martin. Pero la gran estrella en esta versión Remasterizada y Extendida, es el segundo CD, que nos presenta las primeras sesiones de grabación de este album, en la voz del desaparecido Ray Gillen, (otro) excelente vocalista que alcanzó notoriedad posteriormente a esto en la banda Badlands, junto a Jake E. Lee. No son versiones definitivas ni pulidas en el estudio, pero podemos escuchar como sonaba la banda al comienzo del proyecto. Ampliamente recomendado. El compacto viene en presentación Digipack con booklet informativo con la historia de la grabación y fotos de la época. Amazon lo envió perfectamente protegido y llegó impecable.

This is, in reality, the second Tony Iommi solo album after Seventh Star. Both albums probably would've been billed as Tony Iommi albums had Warner Bros. not forced them to be labeled as Black Sabbath. So, it sounds quite different from the "classic" Black Sabbath lineups from 1970 to 1983. However, it is still very good on its own. Most of the album was initially written and recorded with late vocalist Ray Gillen, but he departed before the album was finalized for release, and Tony Martin was hired to re-record the vocals and add a couple of single B-sides (which are also nicely included on Disc 1). Martin was an extremely different type of voice for Sabbath, but he can sing very well. However, I'm not sure if his voice really fit the Sabbath sound. The actual music is good nonetheless. It does somewhat ride the trends of the 1980s, and I can hear influence from other rock bands of the era. This particular remaster is also very good in my opinion. It is much superior to the 2001 Warner remaster, which I think represents the music terribly. But, I think the best reason to buy this deluxe edition is the fact that it includes the original Ray Gillen album session. I feel like the Gillen version is the "true" Eternal Idol album. I can tell that Martin was singing over songs that he had no involvement with, while Gillen's vocals seem to fit the music more naturally. Gillen also seems much more intense and raw, which fits the tone of the album. I find myself listening to the Gillen album more than the Martin version. Overall, I think this is a very nice package. If you have the 2001 remaster, I really think the main album is a substantial upgrade in sound. But the true gem is the Ray Gillen album included on Disc 2. It also comes in a foldout digipak with great photos and a nice booklet. Even though Sabbath became very different without Geezer Butler, I think The Eternal Idol is a fantastic album where Tony Iommi works his magic as always.

歌が上手いとはこういう事です。

Excelente...