Overlooked masterpiece!
Ozzy released this album to fulfill a contractual obligation. With replacement guitarist Brad Gillis, he refused to release an album of music he had written with recently deceased guitarist Randy Rhoads. Consequently, Ozzy has always dismissed this album as one that he does not like and encouraged his fans to buy any other album in his catalog. HOWEVER, if you are a fan of great guitar playing, a great early 80's band, Ozzy or Black Sabbath music, this is a MUST OWN. This is an album of all Black Sabbath covers. Brad Gillis is more that up to the task of filling in. In fact, I enjoy his interpretations of many of the songs better than the originals. Bassist Rudy Sarzo is the quintessential '80's hard rock bass player and Tommy Aldridge is one of the finest drummers in Rock & Roll. While I still prefer the Ozzy/Randy Rhoads "Tribute" album to this one, "Speak of the Devil" fills in an important part of Ozzy's history. It's also refreshing to hear Brad Gillis play these tunes live. While his studio work with Night Ranger is great, the live setting performing Black Sabbath tunes showcases a more improvisational side of his guitar work...and he does not disappoint. When people begin listing the great guitarists who have played with Ozzy, Mr. Gillis is often left off the list. This album is a testament to the value of his inclusion on such a list, possibly as high as 2nd behind Randy Rhoads himself!
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