Black Sabbath/Seventh Star Demos 1985

Rare items that are a must-listen for all Tony Iommi and BLACK SABBATH enthusiasts are now in stock! An amazing piece that records the instrumental demo of 1985's "SEVENTH STAR" before the vocals were added, with the highest quality sound approaching the official one! Furthermore, this edition also includes 8 additional tracks of officially unreleased jam sessions from composition sessions! This is an astonishing new excavated sound source that unravels “BLACK SABBATH's 1985”, which still has many mysteries, with an extremely valuable take! BLACK SABBATH was joined by Ian Gillan for ``BORN AGAIN'' in 1983, and they had a strong and unique presence during the Ozzy and Ronnie eras, but when Gillan reunited with DEEP PURPLE, in March 1984 When he left the band, the band quickly fell into trouble. Iommi and Geezer tried to rebuild the band by bringing back Bill Ward and auditioning vocalist Dave Donato, but this lineup fell apart after just making a demo, and Dave was eventually fired. Bill also leaves again. At this point, SABBATH was temporarily disbanded, and Geezer started his own solo band, THE GEEZER BUTLER BAND, with his nephew Pedro House. Iommi, who remains, will also consider solo activities and the production of an album. The songwriting partner was keyboardist Jeff Nichols, who continued from SABBATH, and the rhythm section included Eric Singer and Gordon Copley, who had been active in Lita Ford's band (her fiancé at the time). Masu. As a potential singer, Iommi auditioned Jeff Fenholt, who also had a career in the musical "JESUS ​​CHRIST SUPERSTAR." We recorded jam sessions and demos (you can listen to the demo sound sources mentioned above in "THE BATTLE OF DEMOS 1985"). However, Jeff was not accepted, and there was a lot of information and speculation that Iommi's solo album would include ``multiple famous vocalists such as Rob Halford and David Coverdale,'' but in the end, it was released in 1985. Glenn Hughes joined in June. The songs obtained from previous jams and demos were reworked and officially recorded. In this work, you can enjoy the backing demo and basic track just before the song is added, with a quality that approaches the sound you can hear on the official version! Although it doesn't include songs, it's not just a ``karaoke album''! Compared to the tracks included in the completed version of "SEVENTH STAR", the songs are still in the development stage. The rough foundation and framework are almost complete, but it's a bit rough as it seems to be a demo. However, the sound that each person's play is properly mixed has a brightness and quality that rivals that historical great excavation "BORN AGAIN UNMIXED DEMOS"! Now, let's take a closer look at the contents in the order of the songs included. ・Seventh Star #1 The final version started with the keyboard instrumental “Sphinx (The Giurdian)”, but here it starts with a guitar riff. Although the impression of the intro is different, the progression and structure of the song is almost complete, and the solos, keyboard decorations, and length of the performance are also in the form known from the album. ・Danger Zone The general outline of the song's progression and arrangement has been completed, and the sound image of the guitar and drums has almost the same impression as the album. However, the major feature is that the composition is different. In the final version, the guitar solo that was in the middle of the song (2:15) appears in the second half (3:20), and the content is also completely different. As the sound quality is good, you will be able to feel the difference clearly. ・Turn To Stone This song is more finished than the other songs, and it feels like it could be completed as it is if Glenn's vocals were included. Unlike "Danger Zone", the guitar solo is in the same location (1:43), but the content of the solo is still in the development stage. ・No Stranger To Love The song starts with a count by Eric's drums, similar to the single version. Keyboard and guitar solos are already included, and in terms of completeness, it can be said to be the highest level of this sound source. However, compared to the over-sophisticated finished version, the raw and exposed drums are much more powerful. ・Seventh Star #2 This seems to be the previous stage of the same song heard in the first song, and it gives the impression that it is close to a basic track. The keyboard decorations and guitar solos are done before input, but you'll be surprised by the clearer and more direct tone than "#1." Especially the powerful drums and bass might overwhelm the listener. ・Heart Like A Wheel #1 This take is the main listening point of this sound source. Even avid SABBATH fans will be surprised by the extended version, which is about 5 minutes longer than the final version. Enjoy 11 minutes and 30 seconds of blues-style jam, with Iommi's guitar creating a sticky sound over a solid rhythm. Iommi's playing, which effectively mixes push and pull, quick picking, and accumulation, and shows a variety of expressions, makes you think, ``Could it be completed as an instrumental as is, even without singing?'' ・In For The Kill In contrast to "No Stranger To Love", this song is a basic track with only rhythm and is less complete than "No Stranger To Love" (drums and bass are strong). However, the progression of the song is almost complete, so if you can play the guitar, it would be fun to play guitar along with the rhythm here, pretending to be Iommi. ・Heart Like A Wheel #2 It's 2 minutes and 50 seconds, which seems to have been extracted and condensed from the 11-minute jam "#1" of the same song. Even though it's short, Iommi's guitar gives the impression that he plays it a lot, and it's worth listening to. However, it is not simply a trimming from "#1", but there are phrases (such as 0:42) in the guitar that do not appear in "#1", so it seems that it is a different take or a faded part. Masu. ・Angry Heart Compared to the same song that can be heard in the final version, the progression, structure, and even the song idea are almost the same, but the essential guitar riff is very different, making this a unique take on the original sound source. The tempo seems a little faster, and the entire song is about 30 seconds shorter. ・In Memory The medley from “Angry Heart” is the same as the finished version, and the song idea and rough structure are already complete. However, there is no rhythm in the beginning, and you can enjoy the lyrical performance of only the guitar and keyboard. Drums and bass gradually enter from around 0:30, and from 1:05 onwards, it develops almost the same as the final version. This take shows that Iommi was working on the song even more before adding the vocals. Furthermore, from track 11 onwards, 8 tracks of jam sessions that were held when Jeff Fenholt was enrolled are included. This could be heard in the previously released demo sound source title, but this work uses a higher quality master (same route as that “BATTLE OF THE DEMOS 1985”) provided by an overseas taper. The twisting and rubbing of the tape, which was a concern with previous releases, has also been greatly improved. The more realistic, vivid, and powerful sound will impress even enthusiasts who have heard the previous releases. ``Unreleased Jam #1'', which includes Fenholt's song, has a very lively feel, and ``Unreleased Jam #3'', where you can feel Iommi's musical backbone, which has a jazz-like session that continues from ``MYTHOLOGY'' in the 1960s. “Unreleased Jam #4”, which is imagined to have become the basis for “In For The Kill” later, is worth listening to. Another interesting point is "Unreleased Jam #7" where Iommi's fast playing attracts the listener's ears to "The Thrill Is Gone" sung by Lita Ford. It is not hard to imagine that the hints obtained from this jam session, such as the aforementioned "Unreleased Jam #4" and the blues-like "Unreleased Jam #6", evolved into "SEVENTH STAR", the main demo sound source. This work is full of important sound sources until the end! Iommi completed "SEVENTH STAR" with Glenn's vocals after reuniting the original SABBATH for only three songs at "Live Aid '85", which appeared on July 13, 1985. However, the work, which was originally under his solo name, was requested by the record company to be given the name BLACK SABBATH, and after the release of the album, he toured completely as BLACK SABBATH. The period from '85 to '86 was a major turning point in the band's history, when SABBATH's signboard became equal to Iommi both in name and reality. This work is a valuable record of that time, and is an important work that spotlights the 1985 SABBATH, which has many unknown parts. Together with the sister work "BATTLE OF THE DEMOS 1985", it will further advance mania's examination of band history. Of course, the excellent sound is also top-notch entertainment! Seventh Star Instrumental Demo Sessions 1985 STEREO SBD 1. Seventh Star #1 2. Danger Zone 3. Turn To Stone 4. No Stranger To Love 5. Seventh Star #2 6. Heart Like A Wheel #1 7. In For The Kill 8 . Heart Like A Wheel #2 9. Angry Heart 10. In Memory TONY IOMMI "Jam Session 1985" 11. Unreleased Jam #1 (With Jeff Fenholt) 12. Unreleased Jam #2 13. Unreleased Jam #3 (With Jeff Fenholt) 14. Unreleased Jam #4 15. Unreleased Jam #5 16. Unreleased Jam #6 17. The Thrill Is Gone (With Lita Ford) 18. Unreleased Jam #7 Tony Iommi - Guitar Dave Spitz - Bass Eric Singer - Drums Geoff Nicholls – Keyboards