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Drummer BEV BEVAN's BLACK SABBATH Diaries
- Nov. 19, 2008
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English rock musician Bev Bevan, who served as the touring drummer for BLACK SABBATH from 1983 to 1984 and played percussion on "The Eternal Idol" album in 1987, has written about his days on the road with SABBATH in the latest installment of his regular blog for the Sunday Mercury. Check it out at this location. Bevan (born Beverley Bevan on November 24, 1944 in Sparkhill, Birmingham, England) was one of the original members of THE MOVE and the ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA. After the collapse of ELO in 1986, he founded ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA PART II without the original ELO singer/songwriter Jeff Lynne. Bevan recently presented a radio show on Smooth Radio West Midlands called "'70s Sunday". Bevan also reviews records for the Sunday Mercury. Bev Bevan drum solo on BLACK SABBATH's "Born Again" tour — October 21,1983 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada:
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COMMENT | BORN AGAIN
posted by : Land of the Lost Horizon
11/19/2008 1:00:54 PM
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worst sabbath album ever, although seventh star runs a close second.
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COMMENT | BORN AGAIN is LEGENDARY
posted by : shattered73
11/19/2008 1:14:33 PM
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A fascinating piece of Sabbath's history - one of my favorites. But this tour diary is anything BUT fascinating.
'Took limos to hotel. Had lunch at Benihana's. No soundcheck. Audience of 6000. Watched TV at the hotel.' zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
I guess this is what they mean when they talk about boredom on the road.
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COMMENT |
posted by : RiotAct666
11/19/2008 1:17:41 PM
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Great drum solo in that video. When will there ever be a Live DVD from the born again tour? That album was dark and heavy and was not one of sabbath's worst albums like this dude said above me. also Seventh Star ( Originally was gonna be Tony Iommi's solo album) was pretty good too. to each their own.
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COMMENT |
posted by : Land of the Lost Horizon
11/19/2008 1:25:25 PM
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i will cut seventh star some slack as i am aware it was supposed to be a solo album. but ian gillan on vocals??? i like his stuff w/ purple, but to me he just didn't fit the whole sabbath thing. if i remember correctly, he was asked to join the band while they were all shit faced talking in a bar. definitely not the album i would have expected to follow the legendary heaven and hell and mob rules. i've always felt the band must have been kind of desperate to have recruited ian. not picking on the guy cuz he's not ozzy or dio (i think the stuff w/ tony martin is some of their finest work, and ray gillan wasn't half bad either).
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COMMENT | .
posted by :
11/19/2008 1:28:51 PM
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Most roundly consider Forbidden to be the all-time lowpoint for the Sabs.
Born Again is fantastic throughout, very few weak points.
Seventh Star has plenty of strong moments but is a bit lacking. I actually own acetates for that record! And yes printed on the cover it says "Tony Iommi" not "Black Sabbath".
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COMMENT | ACETATES
posted by : Land of the Lost Horizon
11/19/2008 1:34:33 PM
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i learned a new word. how did you get your hands on one of those? probably worth a few bucks, especially w/ the iommi name on it as opposed to black sabbath. and yes, forbidden w/ ice-t on it was definitley a very low point.
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COMMENT | Born Again
posted by : oldmetal69
11/19/2008 1:49:50 PM
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Was an outstanding Sabbath album - Trashed, Zero the Hero, Disturbing the Priest and the title track were outstanding. Ian's vocals fit this record and this set of songs perfectly. I have the vinyl version of that album and it is titled - "Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi". Gleen Hughes, Eric Singer, Geoff Nichols and and Dave Spitz were the musicians on that album. The album has not been reissued on CD, but is available for download.
Land of the Last Horizon is dead wrong that this was their worst album.
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COMMENT | Definitely Not The Worst
posted by :
11/19/2008 2:06:36 PM
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"Born Again" is definitely an acquired taste - it's weird to hear Ian Gillan's vocals alongside Tony Iommi's riffmastery. But, it's well worth the effort - there's some very strong material there. "Zero the Hero," "Trashed" and the title track are all awesome.
"Forbidden" has some very excellent material on it as well - not counting the Ice-T track, as that is definitely the lowest point of Sabbath's career. But, setting that rap aside, "Can't Get Close Enough," "Kiss of Death" and "I Won't Hear You Cry" are all excellent songs.
I have every Sabbath album, and many of the off-shoot recordings, and for me, the worst album of their career is "Reunion." Not because I don't dig Ozzy, not because I'm not glad that they did reunite, but, simply because ol' Ozz wasn't up to the task in 1997 - and he's still out there singing these songs! Plus, it put an end to a very underrated era of the band - Tony Martin's era. Plus, the two new songs on that album are pretty lame.
But, for my money, Sabbath has pretty much hit at least a double every time out.
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COMMENT | oldmetal69
posted by : Land of the Lost Horizon
11/19/2008 2:07:48 PM
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i have a version of seventh star on cd, but i believe it's a japanese import. not sure if it's a reissue , or something that was left over from when it originally came out. it also says "black sabbath, featuring tony iommi". i knew i'd take some shit for saying what i did, but i just cannot get into this album. i've forced myself to listen to it several times, but i can't find anything i like. the vocals are m,y biggest problem. even if i listen to it as a purple album, or ian gillan solo album, it still doesn't work for me. oh well. like riotact666 said, to each their own.
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COMMENT | Bootlegs of this tour!
posted by : ironmaiden316
11/19/2008 2:08:13 PM
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If you can find a decent recording, it will give you a whole new appreciation for the live show! (When Ian could remember/see the lyrics)
I hated the CD cover, but album is truly GREAT!!! Get the unmixed version, and you'll love it even better!
Too bad there are not decent DVD boots of these shows (w/ Ian)
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COMMENT | Land of the Lost Horizon
posted by : oldmetal69
11/19/2008 2:14:12 PM
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Exactly, to each his own so we We will agree to disagree!
Hell, I like Born Again more than I do the stuff with Ozzy. But of course, the best Sabbath material ever recorded in my opinion are every single album that was done with the master - RONNIE JAMES DIO!!!!
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COMMENT | nit-picking
posted by :
11/19/2008 2:21:34 PM
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There is no such thing as a bad Black Sabbath record. The reason they are the greatest metal band in history is that they never stuck to a formula (except staying heavy). Technical Ecstacy, Never Say Die, Born Again, Seventh Star, and Forbidden have all been named as low points upon their release yet still get regular play from Sabbath fans years later. They are all great albums with many excellent songs and memorable riffs.
As for Seventh Star, I think of that as the Iommi-Hughes Project, with a trilogy of albums completed by the DEP Sessions and Fused -- all top-notch metal.
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COMMENT | ummm, yeah....
posted by : me...?
11/19/2008 2:34:00 PM
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"worst sabbath album ever,"
as you can easily see, there are more than just a couple of us who like that album. i'm convinced that many people who dislike that album do so because they're akin to lemmings, being led along by certain music critics who panned this album. think for yourselves for once...
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COMMENT | my asshole on the subject.....
posted by :
11/19/2008 2:48:12 PM
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worst BS album? anything with Tony Martin.
the worst part about Born Again was the shit production. other than that i happen to like it for the most part. but BS with Gillan was strange live. He sang Neon Nights in 3 different octaves....each verse higher than the one before not to mention Smoke On The Water as the encore. and Bev was mediocre at best and that's being kind.
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COMMENT |
posted by : rds
11/19/2008 3:14:34 PM
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Born Again is easily Sabbath's darkest record ever!!!
those haunting vokillls on Distrurbing the Priest, Born Again, and those intros. the production is great! hell even the demos sounded awesome too. the track "The Fallen"(from the demos) should have made the record also.
as you can tell by the name Landofthelosthorizon, his favorite vocalist is obviously DIO. so as you can tell Dio is his fav Sabbath singer, and everyone else who sang after has no bearing on the Sabbath legacy, bullocks!
BORN AGAIN...............................2008 a.d.
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COMMENT |
posted by : Land of the Lost Horizon
11/19/2008 3:37:37 PM
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me...?- i have no problem thinking for myself. i am thinking for myself when i say i think this album sucks. i knew when i posted my opinion, it would offend some people, and they would come out to defend his album (as they should). as for "being led along by certain music critics who panned this album", i can assure you, that is not the case. i was about 8 when this album came out. music critics opinions were not, and never have been, any of my concern.
rds- i stated in an earlier post that it has nothing to do with the singer not being dio (yes, he is my favorite singer, and heaven and hell is my favorite metal album). tony martin and ozzy were both great. had ray gillan recorded an actual album (not just the demo and live bootlegs i've got copies of) i would have also enjoyed his contribution. gillan just simply does not fit sabbath's style for me.
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COMMENT | Tony Martin sucks?
posted by :
11/19/2008 3:49:50 PM
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Throw shit at me now!! I don't give a fug!!
I dig all eras of Sabbath but Headless Cross and Tyr were some of Sabbs Darkest material. Plus Tony Martin had the grit Of Dio, the soul of Coverdale and a killer High register.
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COMMENT | BORN AGAIN
posted by :
11/19/2008 4:34:11 PM
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is an amazing album! Gillans vocals and Iommi's riffing made for a great combo! The problem I had with Ian being in the band is that he didn't sound right doing the other era Sabbath tunes. Everything Dio did with Sabbath is amazing and most of what Martin did is very good also.
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COMMENT | Keep it Warm
posted by : Holy Outlaw
11/19/2008 4:44:36 PM
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Keep It Warm is Tony Iommi's greatest guitar solo.
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COMMENT | I have the montreal show on disc
posted by : Kissfan77
11/19/2008 5:25:28 PM
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Anyobody interested in a copy of it? email: scarecrowsband@hotmail.com
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COMMENT | Drums on Born Again
posted by : THRASHMONGER
11/19/2008 5:41:44 PM
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were played by Bill Ward, not Bev Bevan. Bev did the tour after Bill quasi-voluntarily had to drop out.
Bev, pre-ELO, was in The Move, another Birmingham band (like Sabbath were) who literally helped form heavy metal. (ELO was a spinoff of The Move.)
Check out The Move doing "Don't Make My Baby Blue" on their second album (which was recorded before the first Sabbath album), or the title track to "Looking On" and you'll hear exactly why Iommi tapped Bev to play for Sabbath.
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COMMENT | Gillan rules
posted by : Ganjamancer
11/19/2008 7:14:00 PM
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First of all idiots Glenn Hughes sings on Seventh Star and it was not originally supposed to be a Black Sabbath album, the label decided to put that on there.
Born Again with Ian Gillan is one of the greatest albums ever made period. Every single song is masterpiece. Gillans screams are the greatest metal screams ever recorded. My only bitch is the production sucks. Gillan joined as a favor, the Deep Purple reunion was in the works so this version of Sabbath did not last long as Gillans was off recording perfect Strangers within a year of this release.
Ian Gillan is a god.
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COMMENT | Boooooooorrrrnnnn Agaaaaiiiiinnnn!
posted by :
11/19/2008 8:08:13 PM
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This album workks on so many levels. Dark, Moody, Haunting.....one of my favorites.
I'm not sure why the song "The Fallen" was omitted from this album. That song rules, and would've fit real nice on there.
During the live show, Gillian would play the bongo's during Supernaut....crazy.
Is there any video available from this tour? I remember seeing a 3 or four song clip of them live on MTV when the album came out.
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COMMENT | BORN AGAIN...
posted by : TC
11/19/2008 8:57:42 PM
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IS ONE HELL OF AN ALBUM (No pun intended). Seventh Star wasn't a bad album either.
Sample some Born Again @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmZCrQfQmD4
Great Song, Great Video!!!
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COMMENT |
posted by : me...?
11/19/2008 11:13:32 PM
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"me...?- i have no problem thinking for myself. i am thinking for myself when i say i think this album sucks. i knew when i posted my opinion, it would offend some people, and they would come out to defend his album (as they should). as for "being led along by certain music critics who panned this album", i can assure you, that is not the case. i was about 8 when this album came out. music critics opinions were not, and never have been, any of my concern."
you personally may not have been inspired to dislike this album because of the critics, however, it has become "fashionable" over the years to write-off this album because so many critics did so in the beginning themselves. anyone who has a complaint with a black sabbath album always picks "born again". sorry, but it's just too coincidental the critiques of this album. that's the "think for yourself" part i was referring to.
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COMMENT | GAVE IT ANOTHER LISTEN...
posted by : Land of the Lost Horizon
11/20/2008 12:12:07 AM
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still doesn't work for me, although holy outlaw was right. that guitar solo half way through keep it warm does kick ass. forgot about that. i still to this day listen to it every now and then, thinking maybe i'll figure out why so many other people that like sabbath like this album. but, after roughly 16-17 years of listening to it, i can't figure it out. i personally have no problem understanding why the critics didn't like it, but hey, if you guys like it, that's one more album out there for you to listen to and enjoy.
as far as the live stuff goes, all i can say is holy shit. i'm not blaming him for having to cover the dio era stuff. he had to, but fuck is it awful. i've got a bootleg lying around somewhere. not sure if it's the same show kissfan77 is refering to.
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COMMENT | Got Born Again
posted by :
11/20/2008 11:06:58 AM
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the day it came out and have loved it ever since!! I wanted to go see the Tour (with opening act Quiet Riot) was was too broke at the time.
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COMMENT |
posted by : Fani Dilth
11/25/2008 11:21:06 PM
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I remember that Night Ranger was the support on the Born Again tour. Can you say bad mix???
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COMMENT | Born Again tour
posted by :
11/29/2008 4:44:10 PM
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My first concert was Black Sabbath on the Born again tour with Quiet Riot as the opening act. The show was at the Metro Centre in Rockford, Illinois in Nov. of '83. I was 13 years old and what I remember most was how loud that show was!!! I don't think any concert I went to after that matched the volume level. That concert was 25 years ago and had such a HUGE impact on me.
I have Born Again on cd and listened to it just a few days ago. It's still one of my favorite albums!!!
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