Good Tribute album but don't expect it to sound like Ozzy
Stargazer | New York | 07/21/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Ok I'll give my review for each track
1.Mr. Crowley- 8/10 Ripper Owens opening screams don't quite fit but when he uses his deeper vocals he sounds similar to Dio not as great but it works great on this song and his screams in the middle part of the song and the later part work great. Yngwie Malmsteen both solos however with the same arpeggios he's been playing for 20 plus years. I'm surprised Yngwie didn't dig the original solo however as the original is classically based and faster than the one Yngwie plays here.
2.Over The Mountain- 9/10 Very good cover as Mark Slaughter's vocals work very well here. Brad Gillis throws in a mostly improvised solo with some great whammy bar work but keeps the recognizable licks which is how your supposed to improvise.
3.Desire- 8/10 Lemmy's vocals are good here although they're an aquired taste. Ritchie Kotzen's guitar work here is very good as he actually sounds a lot like Zakk.
4.Crazy Train- 6/10 This would have gotten a better rating if not for Dee Snider's gut wrenching vocals. Doug Aldrich throws in some nice guitar work too. Doug's solo is partially improvised but he keeps the noticable licks as he shows he knows how to improvise.
5.Goodbye To Romance- 8/10 Lisa Loeb's vocals work very well here as it's a soft song. Dweezil Zappa plays tastefully here aswell.
6.Hellraiser- 10/10 This is as good as the original!!! Joe Lynn Turner's vocals are perfect and session guitarist legend Steve Lukather is the lead guitarist!...Enough said!
7.Shot In The Dark- 9/10 Jeff Scott Soto's powerful voice is perfect for this song. Bruce Kulick improvises the solo but keeps the noticable parts as he puts himself togethor a nice solo. Very enjoyable.
8.Children Of The Grave- 9/10 Very good cover! Good vocals by Jeff Martin but the real highlight is Paul Gilbert's shredding! Paul Gilbert play's very similar to how Randy played on Tribute on this song.
9.Paranoid- 7/10 Awful whiny vocals by Vince Neil but an awesome solo by George Lynch. The song is played well and if they got a singer that fit the song it would have been a 9/10.
10.Suicide Solution- 0/10 It's a dance remix!!! Enough Said!
11.I Don't Know- 9/10 Very good vocals by Jack Blades and a very good partially improvised solo by Reb Beach. A perfect way to end the album with one of the best covers on the album.
All In All a good tribute. The only song that's up there with the original is Hellraiser but still oneo of the best tribute's out there. If you want to hear different versions of Ozzy songs played by other good musicians buy this."
A new fresh pop-rock sound brought in Ozzy's best songs
starbreaker | France | 02/04/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"You often find tributes disappointing. Why ? Because you want them to sound like the originals. That's not the aim ! If you're an Ozzy purist, you shouldn't get this. If you're more open-minded, or if you know and like at least some of the artists present on this tribute, this may interest you.The choice of the songs is pretty well done, since it includes the best songs of Ozzy's solo albums :
- Mr Crowley, Crazy Train, Goodbye to Romance, I don't know, Suicide Solution (1980 - Blizzard of Ozz)
- Over the mountain (1981 - Diary of a Madman)
- Shot in the dark (1986 - The ultimate sin)
- Hellraiser, Desire (1991 - No more tears)
and two Black-Sabbath songs :
- Paranoid (1970 - Paranoid)
- Children of the grave (1971 - Master of Reality)I know most of the artists appearing on this tribute, that's why I was interested. Steve Lukather (Toto's guitarist), one of my favorites, plays guitar on 'Hellraiser', but Joe Lynn Turner (Deep Purple's Slave&Masters) does the entire singing. I still don't understand why Yngwie Malmsteen, guitarist on 'Mr Crowley' is so much blamed, he's not bad. He teams with Tim 'Ripper' Owens (new Judas Priest), who sings allright. Vince Neil (Motley Crue) is more credible on 'Paranoid' than on most of the group's song.I find the best covers are 'Shot in the dark', which pop-sound didn't fit Ozzy's sound, 'Hellraiser' for its breathing sound like in the original, and 'Goodbye to Romance', featuring female vocals (Lisa Loeb).Sure, there are some cons. ONE track is especially butchered : 'Desire', but how was it possible to come even close to the mind-blowing version of Ozzy ? But since I found the rest of the album is simply amazing, this doesn't even count in my review, and for me this tribute album deserves 5 stars.If you're not conviced this is a great tribute, you must be an Ozzy purist who has the whole Ozzy collection and believes that what isn't Ozzy is bad. You also believe that Ozzy is a great man but I'll tell you he isn't quite : In 2002, He has re-recorded 'Blizzard of Ozz' and 'Diary of Madman' with his new bassist and drummer, butchering the originals. If you're hesitating between this tribute and one of these 'new' versions, don't hesitate anymore !"
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1