Reunion (album)
Encyclopedia
Reunion is a live album
by heavy metal
band Black Sabbath
.
After the departure of vocalist Ozzy Osbourne in 1979, Black Sabbath's line-up slowly lost stability and never quite recovered. Following a couple of one-off reunions in 1985 and 1992, the original Sabbath line-up of Ozzy Osbourne
, Tony Iommi
, Geezer Butler
and Bill Ward reformed, playing sporadic dates until Dio replaced Ozzy a second time, reforming the Heaven and Hell lineup to tour following the release of the compilation album The Dio Years.
This 2-CD live album was put together from the first two shows after the reunion, at the Birmingham NEC
. Along with live versions of tracks such as "Paranoid
", "N.I.B.
", "Black Sabbath
" and "Iron Man
", it also features two new studio tracks - "Selling My Soul" and "Psycho Man". This was the only new material to have been officially released by Black Sabbath post-reunion until three new tracks appeared on the post-Ozzy compilation Black Sabbath: The Dio Years
in 2007. The two new tracks on Reunion were also released on a single CD in the USA.
Black Sabbath received their only Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance
, for the live recording of "Iron Man
" from this album.
It was released as a digipak and in a standard 2CD jewel-case.
Though the band was considered a legend by this time, this was the first "official" live album featuring Osbourne on vocals. 1980's Live at Last
was not approved for release by the band until 2010.
, Tony Iommi
, Geezer Butler
and Bill Ward, except where noted.
Singles - Billboard (North America)
certification
(United States)
CRIA
certification
(Canada)
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
by heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
.
After the departure of vocalist Ozzy Osbourne in 1979, Black Sabbath's line-up slowly lost stability and never quite recovered. Following a couple of one-off reunions in 1985 and 1992, the original Sabbath line-up of Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
, Tony Iommi
Tony Iommi
Anthony Frank "Tony" Iommi is an English guitarist and songwriter best known as the founding member of pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and its sole continual member through multiple personnel changes.Iommi is widely recognised as one of the most important and influential guitarists in...
, Geezer Butler
Geezer Butler
Geezer Butler is an English musician and songwriter. Butler is best known as the bassist and lyricist of heavy metal band Black Sabbath. He was also involved in Heaven & Hell from 2006 to 2010.-Career:Butler formed his first band, Rare Breed, with old friend John "Ozzy" Osbourne in the autumn of...
and Bill Ward reformed, playing sporadic dates until Dio replaced Ozzy a second time, reforming the Heaven and Hell lineup to tour following the release of the compilation album The Dio Years.
This 2-CD live album was put together from the first two shows after the reunion, at the Birmingham NEC
National Exhibition Centre
The National Exhibition Centre is an exhibition centre in Birmingham, England. It is near junction 6 of the M42 motorway, and is adjacent to Birmingham International Airport and Birmingham International railway station. It has 20 interconnected halls, set in grounds of 628 acres making it the...
. Along with live versions of tracks such as "Paranoid
Paranoid (song)
"Paranoid" is a song by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, featured on their second album Paranoid . It is the first single from the album, while the B-side is the song "The Wizard". It reached number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and number 61 on the Billboard Hot 100...
", "N.I.B.
N.I.B.
"N.I.B." is a song released by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It first appeared as the fourth track on the band's 1970 eponymous debut album, Black Sabbath. The lyrics are in the first person from the point of view of Lucifer...
", "Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath (song)
"Black Sabbath" is a song by British heavy metal band of the same name, written in 1969 and released on the band's debut album, Black Sabbath...
" and "Iron Man
Iron Man (song)
"Iron Man" is a song by British heavy metal band Black Sabbath from their second studio album Paranoid released in 1970. It was later included on their initial greatest hits compilation We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll , as well as all subsequent greatest hits compilations.-Writing and...
", it also features two new studio tracks - "Selling My Soul" and "Psycho Man". This was the only new material to have been officially released by Black Sabbath post-reunion until three new tracks appeared on the post-Ozzy compilation Black Sabbath: The Dio Years
Black Sabbath: The Dio Years
Black Sabbath: The Dio Years is a 2007 compilation CD of material from recordings made during vocalist Ronnie James Dio's tenure in the band. The CD contains full album length, remastered tracks culled from all three studio albums; Heaven and Hell , Mob Rules , Dehumanizer , and the live album Live...
in 2007. The two new tracks on Reunion were also released on a single CD in the USA.
Black Sabbath received their only Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance was an award presented at the Grammy Awards to recording artists for works containing quality performances in the heavy metal music genre...
, for the live recording of "Iron Man
Iron Man (song)
"Iron Man" is a song by British heavy metal band Black Sabbath from their second studio album Paranoid released in 1970. It was later included on their initial greatest hits compilation We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll , as well as all subsequent greatest hits compilations.-Writing and...
" from this album.
It was released as a digipak and in a standard 2CD jewel-case.
Though the band was considered a legend by this time, this was the first "official" live album featuring Osbourne on vocals. 1980's Live at Last
Live at Last (Black Sabbath album)
Live at Last is a live album by Black Sabbath. Despite its wide distribution, it was released without any permission or knowledge from the band, and is thus considered "unofficial" in some quarters. However, the release was legal within Europe and ads were carried in the UK music press. In the US...
was not approved for release by the band until 2010.
Track listing
All songs written by Ozzy OsbourneOzzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
, Tony Iommi
Tony Iommi
Anthony Frank "Tony" Iommi is an English guitarist and songwriter best known as the founding member of pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and its sole continual member through multiple personnel changes.Iommi is widely recognised as one of the most important and influential guitarists in...
, Geezer Butler
Geezer Butler
Geezer Butler is an English musician and songwriter. Butler is best known as the bassist and lyricist of heavy metal band Black Sabbath. He was also involved in Heaven & Hell from 2006 to 2010.-Career:Butler formed his first band, Rare Breed, with old friend John "Ozzy" Osbourne in the autumn of...
and Bill Ward, except where noted.
Disc one
- "War Pigs" – 8:28
- "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 4:07
- "N.I.B.N.I.B."N.I.B." is a song released by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It first appeared as the fourth track on the band's 1970 eponymous debut album, Black Sabbath. The lyrics are in the first person from the point of view of Lucifer...
" – 6:45 - "Fairies Wear BootsFairies Wear Boots"Fairies Wear Boots" is a Black Sabbath song from their 1970 album Paranoid.In the liner notes to Black Box: The Complete Original Black Sabbath , Tony Iommi states that the song title comes from when "Geezer and Ozzy were smoking outside and witnessed fairies in the park, running around wearing...
" – 6:19 - "Electric FuneralElectric Funeral"Electric Funeral" is the fifth song from Black Sabbath's second album Paranoid, released in 1970. The song deals with nuclear war and its aftermath...
" – 5:02 - "Sweet LeafSweet Leaf"Sweet Leaf" is a song by Black Sabbath from their 1971 album Master of Reality. The song, a hymn to recreational cannabis use, got its title from a packet of cigarettes bassist Geezer Butler bought in Dublin that claimed the tobacco was "the sweet leaf." The song begins with a tape loop of...
" – 5:07 - "Spiral Architect" – 5:40
- "Into the VoidInto the Void (Black Sabbath song)"Into the Void" is a song by Black Sabbath, released in 1971 on their album, Master of Reality. An early version of "Into the Void" called "Spanish Sid" was released on the deluxe edition of Master of Reality...
" – 6:32 - "Snowblind" – 6:08
Disc two
- "Sabbath Bloody SabbathSabbath Bloody Sabbath (song)"Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" is a song by British heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It is the title track of the band's fifth album Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. It was released on the album in 1973. The song is the opening track on the album....
" – 4:36 - "Orchid/Lord of This World" – 7:07
- "Dirty WomenDirty WomenDirty Women is the final track from Black Sabbath's seventh album Technical Ecstasy. At seven minutes and thirteen seconds it is the longest track on the album. Lyrically the song has prostitution as its subject and, with several changes in riff, it relies heavily on Tony Iommi's guitar work...
" – 6:29 - "Black SabbathBlack Sabbath (song)"Black Sabbath" is a song by British heavy metal band of the same name, written in 1969 and released on the band's debut album, Black Sabbath...
" – 7:29 - "Iron ManIron Man (song)"Iron Man" is a song by British heavy metal band Black Sabbath from their second studio album Paranoid released in 1970. It was later included on their initial greatest hits compilation We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll , as well as all subsequent greatest hits compilations.-Writing and...
" – 8:21 - "Children of the Grave" – 6:30
- "ParanoidParanoid (song)"Paranoid" is a song by the British heavy metal band Black Sabbath, featured on their second album Paranoid . It is the first single from the album, while the B-side is the song "The Wizard". It reached number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and number 61 on the Billboard Hot 100...
" – 4:28 - "Psycho Man" (Osbourne, Iommi) – 5:18
- "Selling My Soul" (Osbourne, Iommi) – 3:10
Personnel
- Ozzy OsbourneOzzy OsbourneJohn Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
– vocals - Tony IommiTony IommiAnthony Frank "Tony" Iommi is an English guitarist and songwriter best known as the founding member of pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and its sole continual member through multiple personnel changes.Iommi is widely recognised as one of the most important and influential guitarists in...
– guitar - Geezer ButlerGeezer ButlerGeezer Butler is an English musician and songwriter. Butler is best known as the bassist and lyricist of heavy metal band Black Sabbath. He was also involved in Heaven & Hell from 2006 to 2010.-Career:Butler formed his first band, Rare Breed, with old friend John "Ozzy" Osbourne in the autumn of...
– bass - Bill Ward – drums*
- Geoff NichollsGeoff NichollsGeoff Nicholls is a musician and keyboardist, who is best known as the longtime sideman for the heavy metal band Black Sabbath. Nicholls also played in the NWOBHM band Quartz before joining Black Sabbath...
- keyboards, guitar
* In the credits for the two studio recordings, Bill Ward is only credited for drums on "Psycho Man." "Selling My Soul" features a drum machineDrum machineA drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...
.
Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | The Billboard 200 | 11 |
| Top Canadian Albums | 5 |
Singles - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | "Psycho Man" | Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock Tracks Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks is a ranking in Billboard magazine of the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations, a category that includes stations that play primarily rock music. Modern rock tracks are counted in the Alternative Songs chart.This chart began with the March 21, 1981, issue... |
3 |
| 1999 | "Selling My Soul" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 17 |
Sales Accomplishments
RIAARecording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
certification
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
(United States)
| Date | Designation | Total Sales |
|---|---|---|
| 4 January 1999 | Gold | 500,000 |
| Platinum | 1,000,000 |
CRIA
Canadian Recording Industry Association
Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada...
certification
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
(Canada)
| Date | Designation | Total Sales |
|---|---|---|
| 26 February 1999 | Gold | 50,000 |
| 26 September 1999 | Platinum | 100,000 |