Singer Ronnie James Dio joined Black Sabbath in 1979 which resulted in two back-to-back classic albums: Heaven And Hell and Mob Rules. On those memorable albums, Dio‘s soaring tenor and gothic songwriting were the perfect foil for the band’s bone-crushing mix of razor-sharp riffs, intense grooves, and dark imagery.
BMG salutes the long shadow cast by this short-lived line-up with newly remastered versions of both albums expanded with rare and unreleased music. Heaven And Hell: Deluxe Edition and Mob Rules: Deluxe Edition will be released separately on November 4th and November 18th. Each album will be available on 2-CDs or a 2-LP set. Due to space constraints, both vinyl editions include a selection of bonus material from the CDs. The music will also be available via digital download and streaming services the same day.
Dio joined Black Sabbath for the first time in 1979 and quickly found kindred spirits in guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward. When Heaven And Hell was released in April 1980, the album was met with effusive reviews for the band’s return to form on metal masterpieces like Neon Knights and the title track. The album reached #9 in the U.K. and #28 in the U.S., where it was also certified platinum.
Heaven And Hell: Deluxe Edition adds several bonus tracks, including versions of Children Of The Sea and Die Young recorded live in 1980 in Hartford, Connecticut. The set concludes with live rarities like E5150 and Neon Knights that originally appeared in 2007 on the limited-edition collection Live At Hammersmith Odeon.
To follow-up Heaven And Hell, the group returned to the studio in 1981 to begin recording Mob Rules, with drummer Vinny Appice joining the band for the first time. Released on November 4th, 1981 and certified gold, the album was another classic, including standouts like The Sign Of The Southern Cross, Turn Up The Night and the title track.
Mob Rules: Deluxe Edition boasts an expansive selection of rare and unreleased recordings. Along with additional tracks from Live At Hammersmith Odeon, the collection also includes a newly mixed version of The Mob Rules. The cherry on top is an entire concert recorded in 1982 in Portland, Oregon. Highlights include stellar performances of Neon Knights, Heaven And Hell and Voodoo.
Heaven And Hell: Deluxe Edition 2-CD Track Listing:
Disc One: Original Album (2021 Remaster):
1. Neon Knights
2. Children Of The Sea
3. Lady Evil
4. Heaven And Hell
5. Wishing Well
6. Die Young
7. Walk Away
8. Lonely Is The Word
Disc Two: Bonus Tracks
1. Children Of The Sea – Live B-Side Of Neon Knights
2. Heaven And Hell – Live B-Side Of Die Young
3. Lady Evil – 7 Mono Edit (unreleased on CD)
Hartford Civic Center, Hartford, CT (August 10, 1980):
4. Neon Knights
5. Children Of The Sea
6. Heaven And Hell
7. Die Young
Hammersmith Odeon, London (Dec 31, 1981- Jan 2, 1982):
8. E5150
9. Neon Knights
10. Children Of The Sea
11. Heaven And Hell
2-LP Track Listing:
Side One:
1. Neon Knights
2. Children Of The Sea
3. Lady Evil
4. Heaven And Hell
Side Two:
1. Wishing Well
2. Die Young
3. Walk Away
4. Lonely Is The Word
Side Thee:
1. Children Of The Sea – Live B-Side Of Neon Knights
2. Heaven And Hell – Live B-Side Of Die Young
3. Lady Evil – 7″ Mono Edit (unreleased on CD)
4. Neon Knights – Live 1980
Side Four:
1. Children Of The Sea – Live 1980
2. Heaven And Hell – Live 1980
3. Die Young – Live 1980
Mob Rules: Deluxe Edition 2-CD Track Listing:
Disc One: Original Album (2021 Remaster):
1. Turn Up The Night
2. Voodoo
3. The Sign Of The Southern Cross
4. E5150
5. The Mob Rules
6. Country Girl
7. Slipping Away
8. Falling Off The Edge Of The World
9. Over And Over
Bonus Tracks:
10. The Mob Rules – Heavy Metal Soundtrack Version
11. Die Young – Live B-Side Of “Mob Rules” 7″
12. The Mob Rules – New 2021 Mix *
Live At The Hammersmith Odeon London (31/12/81 – 2/1/82):
13. Country Girl
14. Slipping Away
15. The Mob Rules
16. Voodoo
Live At Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR, (April 22, 1982):
17. Intro *
18. Neon Knights *
Disc Two: Bonus Tracks:
Live At Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR, April 22, 1982:
1. N.I.B. *
2. Children Of The Sea *
3. Voodoo *
4. Black Sabbath *
5. War Pigs *
6. Drum Solo *
7. Iron Man *
8. The Mob Rules *
9. Heaven And Hell *
10. Guitar Solo *
11. Sign Of The Southern Cross/Heaven And Hell – Reprise *
12. Paranoid *
13. Children Of The Grave *
2-LP Track Listing:
Side One:
1. Turn Up The Night
2. Voodoo
3. The Sign Of The Southern Cross
4. E5150
5. The Mob Rules
Side Two:
1. Country Girl
2. Slipping Away
3. Falling Off The Edge Of The World
4. Over And Over
Side Three:
1. The Mob Rules – Heavy Metal Soundtrack Version
2. Die Young – Live B-Side Of “Mob Rules” 7″
3. The Mob Rules – New 2021 Mix *
4. Sign Of The Southern Cross/Heaven And Hell – Reprise *
Side Four:
Live At The Hammersmith Odeon London (31/12/81 – 2/1/82):
1. Country Girl
2. Slipping Away
3. The Mob Rules
4. Voodoo
* previously unreleased
6 Responses
I already have deluxe editions of these that were re-released around 2010 with essentially the same “bonus” track listings.
The Dio era of Sabbath is my favorite Sabbath era. IMO, Sabbath became a heavy metal band once Dio joined the band……a few years after the first heavy metal band, Judas Priest, formed.
I swear they just released these a year or two ago because I have both on vinyl!
Both are classic of classics.
Is this an old article that got put on here by mistake?
Whoever is in charge of these Black Sabbath deluxe versions just dont have it together at all! It would be an interesting article about who is actually putting this stuff together.
The Born Again Deluxe cd I do really like but they could of made the live stuff sound a little better. Do we need Ian Anderson to reach out to these guys?
The article is wrong.
Mob Rules wasn’t released in October 1981; it was realised on 4th November 1981 – the day I turned 3-years-old.
Nearly 44 now!!!
Thank you, I will fix it, and this is a official press release?