I have been a Tony Martin fanatic since "Eternal Idol" first came out. I could never understand why so many Sabbath fans either didn't like his era, or never even gave it a chance. So glad that this era is finally vindicated.
For me this is an excellent vindication of how powerful the Tony Martin era actually was for Sabbath. I am 56 so was perfectly placed to enter the Dio era and follow all the ups and downs after that and into the Martin era. When those albums were effectively removed from the catalogue and there was that gaping 10 year period which nobody spoke of ... it was heartbreaking. When these albums went out of print and you could not find them it was, in my opinion, an example of the Sabbath machine and political machinations gone askew. Through all of these years Tony Martin has been a gentleman and never did a rant online. He waited and he hoped. And with the release of these albums, remastered and the remixed version of Forbidden .... these albums can now stand proudly beside the entire catalogue. I am including the compilation "The Sabbath Stones" which came out in 97 and included these songs. So for Martin it really was a 10 year tenure.
Im new to the Tony Martin era because life happened back then, and I missed these. Now, I'm thrilled to have discovered these. This catalog is fantastic! They each are on heavy rotation and I'm not tiring of it. Crank these up on a good stereo and be blown away.
@@CookieMonsterJams the reason why I say that I don't think it would be a box set is they did not do that on Heaven and Hell or Mob Rules so I don't see the born again I'm being a box set maybe a double album and that's about it
Tony Martin said it was a big step forward for Toni Iommi to have validated this period of Black Sabbath with this box set, well now you guys have done this for me as well. Love hearing your enthusiasm for the set. Really hope more material comes out!
My favorite Black Sabbath line-up after Dio. Forbidden is probably my number 1 off that line-up and Headless Cross is the 2nd. I REALLY loved Forbidden when it came out. And I still do. I just couldn't believe that in 1995 (I was in the middle school then) Black Sabbath sounded like a modern band, and not just an old band with a modern production. RIP Cozy Powell
Totally agree with you, John and Darin, about being happy for Tony Martin. He did his work and did it well. Great to see his albums getting proper treatment.
I'm discovering Tony Martin era Black Sabbath for the first time and I absolutely love it! Ive been listening to the box set on vinyl. I wasn't even aware anyone but Ozzy or Dio sang for Sabbath for quite sometime.
I bought all these albums new or almost new, on cassette mostly. My box set just came in the mail and it's been on regular rotation in the car. I remember being enormously impressed when Eternal Idol came out, thinking they'd really found the right guy--somewhat Dio-esque, but not a stylistic clone of Ronnie at all. Glad to see these releases and Tony Martin's era getting a new lease on life. Some exceptionally powerful music was made.🤘🤘
Martin era is the best since the Ozzy days. Songwriting is much better than on Dio/Gillan/Hughes albums. Those albums have definite highlights, like Die Young with its unbeatable lyrics, but Headless Cross is the greatest Sabbath record since Sabotage. Incredibly beautiful and powerful album, one of the best metal albums ever.
It's great mine arrived last Friday. Seen many reviews etc on-line. If one criticism which could be levelled was the non bonus tracks on the vinyl, which could have been on a 7" single or a cd. Main difference is vinyl has lyrics and no bonus tracks. Cds have no lyrics but bonus tracks. Tony's interviews have been amazing honest guy and looks happy with the results Great show guys take care 🤘💯💯💯💯
Forbidden kicks ass now. Songs I did t care for then are shining now. A song like Shaking Off the Chains benefited greatly what a mind melter now. I’ve played this so much the last week. 😂. Now I need to dive into other albums I bet they sound so good w/ the remastering lots of folks are Glowing about that and I cant wait to see for myself. Good to see justice done for this era of Sab🤘
The summer after graduation one of my good longtime friends and I spent many hours cruising around in his '84 Z/28 and blasting Tyr. ⚔ And then news of the impending first Dio reunion broke, and man was I excited for that. Seemed like it took forever for Dehumanizer to finally come out the next year.
For some reason the boxset is extremely expensive to get in Ireland. 100 Dollar/Euro/Sterling or so for both formats. I guess the thinking is demand is so great on this side of the pond (UK and Ireland) that they can justify these prices. My only gripe is that this boxset is way cheaper in the States. Ironic. Rip off your biggest market which is on the doorstep. BMG over here and Rhino over there.
Totally with you on this. In the UK and I was going to order this boxset in the CD format. I went on Amazon and I couldn’t believe the price point. It was £89.99 when they announced it and then went to £99.99. I’ve since found out that in the States it was at 51 dollars- about £40 at the exchange rate and they can get it at less than half the price we can. It makes no sense to me. I am not ordering it now. I realise many Sabbath fans in the UK have given in but I don’t have the money to lash out on such an expensive item.
The whole box set is fantastic, the remix of Forbidden is killer, i feel if the new version was the one originally released, Forbidden would have been much better recieved!
I’m Loving this set. Forbidden unbelievably is actually a good album now. IMO. I really like all 4 albums a lot. I do think though that this era should have a different name for the band (Iommi maybe?) it just doesn’t have much of a Sabbath sound overall
From what I’ve learned about this box set, between all the extra goodies and the 4 CDs, the price is a great value. Question-for those of us who really only want the CDs and not so interested in the extras, any thoughts of them just releasing the remastered individual discs?
I haven't heard the new boxset, no cash & don't stream, but always enjoyed the original albums upto Cross Purposes, will hopefully pick up the set sometime. I saw Tony Martin interviewed on the Now Spinning yt & he said he had several tapes of unreleased stuff but BS (Black Sabbath) politics mean they can't release anything "new". That's disappointing.
@@LairoftheAlchemist I think about 10 - 15 years ago it was easing off. You weren't getting 80's levels of dynamic range but, taking the Sabbath remasters of the time as an example, there was a healthy amount of head room. But I think the popularity of Spotify and other streaming radio has meant record companies have fallen back into old practices.
From what I understand from a friend of mine who owns a record store says a lot of them is on backorder but he said that doesn't mean they're going to print anymore of that
I have been a Tony Martin fanatic since "Eternal Idol" first came out. I could never understand why so many Sabbath fans either didn't like his era, or never even gave it a chance. So glad that this era is finally vindicated.
I'm glad the box is out also.
For me this is an excellent vindication of how powerful the Tony Martin era actually was for Sabbath. I am 56 so was perfectly placed to enter the Dio era and follow all the ups and downs after that and into the Martin era. When those albums were effectively removed from the catalogue and there was that gaping 10 year period which nobody spoke of ... it was heartbreaking. When these albums went out of print and you could not find them it was, in my opinion, an example of the Sabbath machine and political machinations gone askew. Through all of these years Tony Martin has been a gentleman and never did a rant online. He waited and he hoped. And with the release of these albums, remastered and the remixed version of Forbidden .... these albums can now stand proudly beside the entire catalogue. I am including the compilation "The Sabbath Stones" which came out in 97 and included these songs. So for Martin it really was a 10 year tenure.
Agreed!
They went out of print because IRS label without a business
Im new to the Tony Martin era because life happened back then, and I missed these. Now, I'm thrilled to have discovered these. This catalog is fantastic! They each are on heavy rotation and I'm not tiring of it. Crank these up on a good stereo and be blown away.
Awesome that you're rediscovering them.
The next order of business for Sabbath is to do a killer Born Again box.
AMEN!!
Yes
They probably will do a release of the album Born Again but it won't be in a box set
@@mikekeeler6362 Iommi mentioned whatever they do it will include the original + the new mix so at least it will be a decent package!
@@CookieMonsterJams the reason why I say that I don't think it would be a box set is they did not do that on Heaven and Hell or Mob Rules so I don't see the born again I'm being a box set maybe a double album and that's about it
Tony Martin said it was a big step forward for Toni Iommi to have validated this period of Black Sabbath with this box set, well now you guys have done this for me as well. Love hearing your enthusiasm for the set. Really hope more material comes out!
Thanks for you kind words and glad we inspired you to check out this era of the band.
Finally. Some great music during this era of the band. Nice to see some love for it
My favorite Black Sabbath line-up after Dio. Forbidden is probably my number 1 off that line-up and Headless Cross is the 2nd. I REALLY loved Forbidden when it came out. And I still do. I just couldn't believe that in 1995 (I was in the middle school then) Black Sabbath sounded like a modern band, and not just an old band with a modern production.
RIP Cozy Powell
Totally agree with you, John and Darin, about being happy for Tony Martin. He did his work and did it well. Great to see his albums getting proper treatment.
Sadly he's probably getting peanuts out of this, Ozzy and Sharon no doubt are getting more than he is from this.
I think at this point he's just happy to have these in print, that said, I hope he's making something out of it.
I'm discovering Tony Martin era Black Sabbath for the first time and I absolutely love it! Ive been listening to the box set on vinyl. I wasn't even aware anyone but Ozzy or Dio sang for Sabbath for quite sometime.
That's awesome that you're discovering this stuff for the first time.
Appreciate the video! I've listened to Forbidden at least 6 times in the past week... Amazing how much the new mix has really elevated the material.
Thanks and I agree
Hi guys from New Zealand, I got the cd version it's fantastic it's long overdue
I bought all these albums new or almost new, on cassette mostly. My box set just came in the mail and it's been on regular rotation in the car. I remember being enormously impressed when Eternal Idol came out, thinking they'd really found the right guy--somewhat Dio-esque, but not a stylistic clone of Ronnie at all. Glad to see these releases and Tony Martin's era getting a new lease on life. Some exceptionally powerful music was made.🤘🤘
your story sounds just like mine.
Martin era is the best since the Ozzy days. Songwriting is much better than on Dio/Gillan/Hughes albums. Those albums have definite highlights, like Die Young with its unbeatable lyrics, but Headless Cross is the greatest Sabbath record since Sabotage. Incredibly beautiful and powerful album, one of the best metal albums ever.
Just listened to Forbidden 2024. Wow is that _way_ better than I remember.
Cool
It's great mine arrived last Friday.
Seen many reviews etc on-line.
If one criticism which could be levelled was the non bonus tracks on the vinyl, which could have been on a 7" single or a cd.
Main difference is vinyl has lyrics and no bonus tracks.
Cds have no lyrics but bonus tracks.
Tony's interviews have been amazing honest guy and looks happy with the results
Great show guys take care 🤘💯💯💯💯
I agree, should have thrown a 7 inch in there.
I've always loved Tony Martin's singing with Sabbath. He's got a great singing voice, Tyr is my fav Tony M. Album.
Agreed
Was really surprised how Forbidden sounds. I really liked the original but this is so much better.
Can’t wait to get it!
The remix is great!
Forbidden kicks ass now. Songs I did t care for then are shining now. A song like Shaking Off the Chains benefited greatly what a mind melter now. I’ve played this so much the last week. 😂. Now I need to dive into other albums I bet they sound so good w/ the remastering lots of folks are
Glowing about that and I cant wait to see for myself.
Good to see justice done for this era of Sab🤘
I agree that the new mix helps a lot.
The summer after graduation one of my good longtime friends and I spent many hours cruising around in his '84 Z/28 and blasting Tyr. ⚔ And then news of the impending first Dio reunion broke, and man was I excited for that. Seemed like it took forever for Dehumanizer to finally come out the next year.
Great story!
Great time to be a Sabbath fan. I love the box set, definitely a looooooong time coming. 🤘Sabbath worship🤘
For sure!!
For some reason the boxset is extremely expensive to get in Ireland. 100 Dollar/Euro/Sterling or so for both formats. I guess the thinking is demand is so great on this side of the pond (UK and Ireland) that they can justify these prices. My only gripe is that this boxset is way cheaper in the States. Ironic. Rip off your biggest market which is on the doorstep. BMG over here and Rhino over there.
Totally with you on this. In the UK and I was going to order this boxset in the CD format. I went on Amazon and I couldn’t believe the price point. It was £89.99 when they announced it and then went to £99.99. I’ve since found out that in the States it was at 51 dollars- about £40 at the exchange rate and they can get it at less than half the price we can. It makes no sense to me. I am not ordering it now.
I realise many Sabbath fans in the UK have given in but I don’t have the money to lash out on such an expensive item.
I'm in the UK and got a copy for £55 off eBay. It's the Warner version so I'm guessing some sellers mass imported.
The whole box set is fantastic, the remix of Forbidden is killer, i feel if the new version was the one originally released, Forbidden would have been much better recieved!
I agree
I’m Loving this set. Forbidden unbelievably is actually a good album now. IMO. I really like all 4 albums a lot. I do think though that this era should have a different name for the band (Iommi maybe?) it just doesn’t have much of a Sabbath sound overall
We mention that in our podcast that if this era had been called something else it might have been accepted more.
From what I’ve learned about this box set, between all the extra goodies and the 4 CDs, the price is a great value.
Question-for those of us who really only want the CDs and not so interested in the extras, any thoughts of them just releasing the remastered individual discs?
I've heard that they won't be released individually, which is a shame.
I believe he and my records owns the rights to cross purposes
I haven't heard the new boxset, no cash & don't stream, but always enjoyed the original albums upto Cross Purposes, will hopefully pick up the set sometime. I saw Tony Martin interviewed on the Now Spinning yt & he said he had several tapes of unreleased stuff but BS (Black Sabbath) politics mean they can't release anything "new". That's disappointing.
They can release it underneath a different name but it can't be under Black Sabbath
I agree, as great the remasters sound, they are way too compressed.
Shame, as the deluxe Eternal Idol has plenty of headroom.
It is a bummer, but it seems like everything these days is over compressed.
@@LairoftheAlchemist I think about 10 - 15 years ago it was easing off. You weren't getting 80's levels of dynamic range but, taking the Sabbath remasters of the time as an example, there was a healthy amount of head room.
But I think the popularity of Spotify and other streaming radio has meant record companies have fallen back into old practices.
Tony Martin has stated in the Phil Aston interview that this release is unlimited so no limits on represses. First run has sold out!!
Really? that's awesome. I've read different but I assume Tony would know.
From what I understand from a friend of mine who owns a record store says a lot of them is on backorder but he said that doesn't mean they're going to print anymore of that
@@mikekeeler6362 I think what Tony Martin meant was that it will be repressed until demand slows down. Demand is high at the moment!
I'm one of those unfortunate souls whose order is delayed. Still waiting for it : (
Bummer...it will be worth the wait though.
My understanding is cross-purposes is not owned by IRS records anymore so they have to buy it from someone else
really? interesting.
@@LairoftheAlchemist Cross Purposes live is owned by PMI entertainment not IRS
Pre-ordered from Amazon and still waiting on it to ship, sigh!!!
Bummer...I did the same but mine arrived on Sunday.
BTW, I'll keep my kidney and sell something that can be regenerated, like blood.
lol
Blood donations don't pay out ;)
good idea!
sigh…no Eternal Idol
Different label, probably couldn't work out the rights for it.
I wouldn't pay 110 euro for this and it missing eternal idol and no live dvd or concerts.
I get it, was worth it for me as I want all their albums on vinyl.
more Tony Martin crap
Give it a chance, some cool stuff from that era.