With the talks of an upcoming Sabbath reunion album, I've been revisiting some of their catalog being the classic metal fan that I am. It begs the question.... which lineup is best? I've included only what I consider the three "real" Sabbath lineups here, the lineups that at least 3/4 of the band was usually made up of original members.
I don't consider any of the late 80s stuff to be "real" Black Sabbath, where Tony Iommi is the only actual Sabbath member and the rest of the band is sort of made up of a rotating cast of characters. These are basically Iommi solo albums marketed under the Sabbath label for financial and/or contractual reasons.
The Dio lineup gets my vote. The three (four if you count the album The Devil You Know, released under the "Heaven & Hell" label) albums they released are musically and lyrically just spectacular. Dio's voice fits the Sabbath soundscape better than either of the other guys, plus he can actually sing. The band has never sounded tighter than it does on these albums. Also, this lineup recorded three new tracks for a 2007 Sabbath Best-of compilation, and proved time can't touch the amazing talent of these guys. It's some pretty amazing consistency, especially considering the span of time (27 years).
Gillan lineup would be my second choice. They only did one album, but boy was it a killer. This lineup might have actually been my number one had they released more material, and had it been up to par with the Born Again album. Ian Gillan (originally of Deep Purple) is a great singer, although he's not quite as good a fit IMO as Dio. He sings the Ozzy songs better than Ozzy, though.
Ozzy is my third choice. I don't particularly like Ozzy Osborne, as a person, or as a singer. He can't really sing, hence the invention of the trademark Ozzy double-tracked vocals. He's a doofus. Even my dislike of Ozzy can't deny the musicianship of the other members, however, and they did some really good stuff with him in the band. I feel a lot of it was overexposed and has been given more attention over the years than it probably deserves. The Born Again album, for example, is better than most of what the band did with Osbourne. Nobody knows this, though, because only the radio-friendly Ozzy singles ever get any airplay.
I have to say I'm less than excited about these upcoming "reunion projects" (Sabbath, Van Halen, etc). Ozzy never could sing, and the fact that he's now nine hundred and five certainly won't be helping matters. I'm idly interested to see what they come up with on the off chance they're able to generate another "Paranoid." I guess since Ronnie James Dio is dead and isn't around for another reunion this is the next best thing.
