Black Sabbath Concert Reviews
August 25, 2009

New York, NY
WaMu Theater @ MSG

THE BAND

  • Ronnie James Dio - Vocals
  • Tony Iommi - Guitar
  • Geezer Butler - Bass
  • Vinny Appice - Drums
  • Scott Warren - Keyboards

SET LIST

  1. Unknown
CONCERT PHOTO GALLERY

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FAN SUBMITTED TOUR REVIEWS & REMARKS

I just got back from the WAMU in New York City tonight. Let us make this as simple as we possibly can. This concert kicked a## period. I was up front. The venue was full. Thank you New York metropolitan area fans and our fans from overseas which there were a few.

This is the fourth time I have seen them since their reunion. I saw them at Radio City Music Hall and at PNC twice. This is by far the best they have sounded.

Dio was incredible. As was Tony. Geezer is amazing and playing better than ever and a joy to watch. Also stop the talk about Bill Ward and the comparisons to Vinnie. Vinnie cemented his legacy with Heaven And Hell/Black Sabbath tonight. Vinnie belongs with this line-up!

I do not care what the Ozzy fan boys have to say. This line-up kicks a## and are extremely powerful. This concert was terrific. I hope Tony does well with his surgery. This will give Dio time to wrap things up with whatever he wants to do solo and then back to Heaven And Hell. This group Kicks a##!

They seemed so comfortable with themselves tonight. They seemed totally in sync. Gentleman do not waste another year away from each other. We want to see more of you and we want another CD.

If I have one complaint about the evening it is; I wanted more! I think Dio could've sang all night. I forgive them. It must be tough for Tony gutting it out with his hand!. Bravo to Tony, Ronnie, Geezer and Vinnie!

I will only be disappointed if I never get a chance to see this line-up together again!

Posted by: Frank Costarelli at August 25, 2009 10:42 PM


On Tuesday August 25th, my wife and I had the opportunity to see Heaven and Hell courtesy of winning two tickets from a Sam Ash contest. It was doubtful that we were going to the show, as Sam Ash did not deliver the tickets until after 7 PM!

I've been a Sabbath fan since the beginning, and first saw them back in 1976. However, this concert was a stand-out. Now only for a Sabbath concert, but of all the concerts I've attended. The evening stated with Eddie Trunk and his co-host of “That Metal Show” warming up the crowd. Eddie did a great job in telling the crowd, “Whatever the band is calling themselves, this is Black Sabbath”. The set-list was the same as all the previous cities, and the band seemed to be having quite a good time. Ronnie James Dio is an amazing showman, and can sing his ass off. His voice has not changed since I saw them back in 1992. Vinnie Appice was solid, and performed a nice drum solo. Geezer of course is a marvel of musicianship-one the best bassists of our time. Tony Iommi moved around the stage more that I'd seen him in the past. I did notice that he would “shake out” his playing hand every so often and could tell his carpel tunnel situation was quite bothersome. That however did not impede his ability to once again demonstrate that he is one of the best and enduring guitar players of all time. I especially enjoyed how the band jammed during the song Heaven and Hell. One suggestion that I would have for the band is to tome down the devil and wizard themes-that's getting a bit old and corny.

Posted by: Ralph Bocchino at August 26, 2009 5:57 AM


The band was tight, the music was thunderous but this show was too damn short!!!!!
Especially since I was expecting a set length similar to that of Radio City.

Posted by: Billy at August 26, 2009 10:34 AM


Set List:

E5150
Mob Rules
Children of the Sea
I
Bible Black
Time Machine
Drum Solo
Fear
Falling of The Edge of The world
Follow The Tears
Die Young
Heaven and Hell

Encore:
Country Girl (snippet)
Neon Knights

A great show, although not as intense as the Radio City Music Hall show of 2007 (but then, that was the greatest Sabbath show of all time, so it would be hard to top). VH1's Eddie Trunk and Don Jamieson introduced the band and they came out and belted the absolute classic "Mob Rules". Another classic in "Children of the Sea" followed and then my favorite song from the Dehumanizer album, "I". It was the usual set list from this tour and it was played to perfection. The three new songs played are destined to become Sabbath classics. They've really grown on me and are even better live. "Heaven and Hell" was epic, as usual. The break was reworked by Iommi. I thougth it was very different since I saw them last at Radio City, but I'm going to have to hear the bootleg to confirm. Maybe it was just the beer (ha, ha!). The encore was the snippet of Country Girl (why not just play the whole thing?) then Neon Knights. The whole show was exactly 1 1/2 hours, as the lights went down at 8:20pm and they were taking a bow at 9:50pm. Like I said, not as intense as Radio City but a great show, nonetheless. Somehow, we managed to get 2nd row seats for this one (on Geezer's side) so we left very, very happy. And, please, heed my advice: Catch Them While They're Still Around. Sabbath!!!

Posted by: viper at August 26, 2009 10:56 AM


The WAMU MSG concert was totally awesome! The set, as said by other who've attended previous shows was the same. But the knowldge of what songs were coming up did NOT take away the pure power of the song or the anticipation of listening and watching them play the song! The gents played as if they were in their prime! I would 100% see them again!

Posted by: Fernando Z at August 26, 2009 11:02 AM


The guys are in their 60s (save Vinny, the baby of the group, who is in his 50s), yet they still play shredding, heavy, high intensity stuff. I'm only 45 and I envy their energy level! I first saw this lineup in 1980, and I think they sound even better now. My only regret is not hearing any of the tunes from the 70s that still mean a lot to me even now, but at least there is no false advertising here: they play exactly what you'd expect from the "Dio Years" lineup. Here's the set list:
 The Mob Rules
 Children of the Sea
 I
 Bible Black
 Time Machine into Vinny’s Drum Solo
 Fear
 Falling Off the Edge of the Earth
 Follow the Tears
 Die Young into Tony’s guitar solo
 Heaven and Hell
 Encore: Neon Knights

Posted by: Michael at August 26, 2009 1:42 PM


Let me say I have been a Sabbath fan for 30 years so I may be over critical at times since I have seen many of their shows when they come to NYC. I thought Iommi and Butler were great. Dio for his age sounds good but his voice does not cut through the music as it once did unless he is singing solo. I was not able to hear his voice at times during some songs and the Wamu theatre in NYC is not that big. Also, the set list was good but I thought some of the new songs were boring. I witnessed same reaction from crowd around me. Overall 4 out of 5 stars.

Posted by: Peter at August 26, 2009 2:15 PM


The first time I was lucky enough to see Sabbath was in 1976 at the Garden. Since then I have had the fortune to see them with all their lineups. Ozzy, RJD, Tony Martin, Ian Gillan. Maybe 18 shows. The first thing about this show was the energy from Geezer and Tony. They actually looked liked they were enjoying themselves. Maybe that comes from the fact that they can tour for months and Ronnie's voice holds up from show to show. During the Sab's reunion tour in 1999 I saw them early in the tour and Ozzy was great but later in the tour he couldn't sing at all. Do I love the original lineup the best? Absolutely. But this lineup kicks ass and the show in NYC was no exception. If and when they perform again anywhere in the Metro area, I will be there. The greatest metal band of all time. Black Sabbath.

Posted by: Steve at August 29, 2009 10:04 PM


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