BLACK SABBATH – CAPTURED LIVE: PRE-FM MASTER (CD + DVD-R)

Description

Live at The Centrum, Worcester, MA, USA 4 November 1983

　The ‘BORN AGAIN’ era, a gravitational singularity in Sabbath history. The longest and most powerful soundboard recording of that era, of the highest quality, is being reissued!

　This masterpiece captures the “Worcester performance on November 4, 1983,” in a stereo soundboard recording. While there are “three major soundboard recordings” from the Ian Gillan era, our store has permanently archived all of them using top-tier masters. This release is the most important of them all. Before introducing its contents, let’s first review what the “three major soundboard recordings” are, in light of an overview of Gillan’s activities during that period.

●1983
(August 7th: “BORN AGAIN” released)
– August 18th-28th: ​​Europe #1 (7 shows) ← *READING ROCK ’83
– September 13th-October 3rd: Europe #2 (15 shows) ← *DEFINITIVE PARIS 1983
– October 17th-November 30th: North America #1 (32 shows) ← ★CAPTURED LIVE 1983★
●1984
– January 25th-March 4th: North America #2 (25 shows)
(April 27th: DEEP PURPLE reunion)

■Europe #1: ‘READING ROCK ’83: FRIDAY ROCK SHOW’
　This is the definitive recording of the Reading broadcast, which was also officially released in the ‘BORN AGAIN’ deluxe edition. It is the most famous soundboard recording from the Gillan era, and has better sound quality and is longer than the official version.

■Europe #2: ‘DEFINITIVE PARIS 1983 SOUNDBOARD’
　This disc contains soundboard recordings other than the two top soundboards (Reading/Worcester). While the quality is not as good as the two titles mentioned above, it includes rare tracks such as “Disturbing The Priest,” “Supernaut,” and “Rock ‘N’ Roll Doctor.”

■North America #1: ‘CAPTURED LIVE 1983 (this release)’
　An FM broadcast from the RKO Radio Network’s famous program. This is the longest soundboard recording of the Gillan era, surpassing the Reading broadcast mentioned above, and is the finest version of it.

[The ultimate recording featuring the longest and strongest soundboard recording]
　All of these are must-listens/must-haves, but this is the ultimate live album with the most tracks, the longest running time, and the best sound quality. While FM soundboard recordings have long been a classic, the source for this album is the pre-FM master. This broadcast is so well-known that some “pre-FM” recordings are of poor quality, but this album features the best master, carefully selected by researchers and polished by “GRAF ZEPPELIN”.

　The sound is “completely official quality”… or rather, even better. In fact, it surpasses the official deluxe edition. “GRAF ZEPPELIN” mastering is the type that faithfully reproduces the sound of the time, akin to the restoration work of a painting or cultural artifact. Therefore, instead of masking any shortcomings with the haphazard power-ups often found in official archives, pitch, phase, and noise are thoroughly corrected. The vividness, three-dimensionality, and dynamism are superb, achieved by maximizing the natural feel while bringing out the finest details. This level of precision is not by so-called underground standards, but rather at the level of a high-quality CD. In other words, it’s a sound on the level of “Mobile Fidelity” and “Nimbus Supercut,” where the goal is to faithfully digitize the sound left on magnetic tape and transfer it to CD media with as much accuracy as possible.

[The ultimate live album with the best performances and song selections]
　Even more important than the sound is the length. While the Reading broadcast was about 52 minutes long (the live part was about 50 minutes), this album is about 77 minutes long (the live part was about 75 minutes). Moreover, it’s not just long; the selection of songs, which includes the most important numbers, is perfect. Let’s compare it to another masterpiece, ‘READING ROCK ’83: FRIDAY ROCK SHOW (Zodiac 605)’, to clarify things.

●Devil’s Offspring (3 songs)
– Hot Line / Zero The Hero / Digital Bitch
●Others (5 songs + 2 songs)
– Ozzy Era: Children Of The Grave (★) / War Pigs / Iron Man / Black Sabbath / Paranoid
– Others: Heaven And Hell (★) / Smoke On The Water
*Note: Songs marked with “★” are not available on READING ROCK ’83.

　The performance that weaves together such a set is also wonderful. The debut performance, “READING ROCK ’83,” was also high-energy, but this performance, the 13th show of “North America #1,” is more polished. He’s not struggling to remember the lyrics like at the beginning of the tour, nor is he struggling with Ronnie’s songs that don’t suit his vocal range like at the end of “North America #2.” This is a live performance from the best period of the Gillan era.

　Black Sabbath during the Gillan era has grown in cult popularity with each passing year. Their true strength lay in their live performances. This album is an eternal soundboard recording that allows you to experience a live performance that infused even their classics with the “Born Again” sound, in a quality that surpasses official releases. This is the pinnacle of mastering, meticulously polished from the finest master recording, and it is proudly reissued here.

★A stereo soundboard recording of the “Worcester concert on November 4, 1983.” This is the longest and greatest FM broadcast recording from Gillan’s era, a top-of-the-line release polished by GRAF ZEPPELIN from a pre-FM best master carefully selected by researchers. This is a reissue of the pinnacle work, allowing you to enjoy a perfect selection of songs, including “Children of the Grave” and “Heaven and Hell,” in quality that surpasses the official release.

(77:05)
1. DJ Intro.
2. Supertzar
3. Children Of The Grave
4. Hot Line
5. War Pigs
6. Stonehenge/Iron Man
7. The Dark/Zero The Hero
8. Heaven And Hell
9. Guitar Solo
10. Digital Bitch
11. Black Sabbath
12. Smoke On The Water
13. Paranoid/Heaven And Hell(reprise)
14. DJ Outro.

STEREO SOUNDBOARD RECORDING

★The pinnacle of Ian Gillan’s era, the soundboard live recording “CAPTURED LIVE 1983: PRE-FM MASTER”. The first limited edition with a numbered sticker will include a special bonus: “PRO-SHOT COLLECTION with GILLAN”, a video collection featuring all of Gillan’s multi-camera pro-shot footage.

BLACK SABBATH – PRO-SHOT COLLECTION with GILLAN(Bonus DVDR)
‘ROCK PALACE’ The Palace, Hollywood, CA, USA 14th January 1984
PROMO CLIPS and more

　This main feature CD is a top-of-the-line soundboard album from the Ian Gillan era, surpassing even the official deluxe edition of the Reading Festival recording. As a bonus, we have also specially included a complete collection of pro-shot footage from the Gillan era.

　This release is a complete collection of the rare pro-shot footage from Ian Gillan’s era. It’s a DVDR that comprehensively covers the promo clips and live pro-shots from the ‘BORN AGAIN’ era, as well as two songs from his later collaboration with Tony Iommi. Let’s take a closer look at each of them.

●Promotional clips from the BORN AGAIN era (2 songs, 3 takes)
　First up are the promotional clips produced during the ‘BORN AGAIN’ era: “Trashed” and “Zero The Hero”. However, because the footage for “Trashed” was subject to censorship, two versions were produced: the original version and the broadcast version. The main difference is the women. In this clip, the protagonist is attacked by zombies after a car accident, but the original clip featured a large number of scantily clad, sexy female zombies. Perhaps their bare skin was subject to self-censorship, as the broadcast version was filled with male zombies. The broadcast version also contains a lot of live footage of Gillan’s Sabbath, so it’s a mixed blessing, but this release completes all three versions of the two songs, including both.

　Moreover, each version is of the highest quality. “Trashed (Original)” and “Zero The Hero” use the masters from before the broadcast, and “Trashed (Censored Version)” uses the best version from the digital rebroadcast. In fact, the quality is superb. The visual beauty of each version is such that it wouldn’t be out of place on an official DVD. Actually, the original version was released on a compilation laserdisc, but this version surpasses even that.

●Live Pro-Shot from the BORN AGAIN Era (2 songs)
　Next up is extremely rare live footage of Gillan’s SABBATH. This is multi-camera pro-shot footage filmed in Hollywood on January 14, 1984. This wasn’t a regular concert, but a special performance for the famous TV show “ROCK PALACE.” However, this show is primarily mime-based, and SABBATH synchronized their performance with studio takes. While it’s mime, it’s undoubtedly an extremely rare multi-camera pro-shot of Gillan’s SABBATH.

●Promo clips from their reunion era (2 songs)
　The pro-shot footage from the ‘BORN AGAIN’ era is complete with the four songs (five takes) mentioned above. There is nothing else. However, the situation changes after that. There are two more pro-shot songs from Iommi and Gillan’s reunion. This release includes both of them as bonus features.

　The first is the 1989 charity project “ROCK AID ARMENIA.” This project originated from the Armenian earthquake in December 1988. It was a major disaster with 25,000 deaths and 400,000 displaced people, and leading figures in the rock world rose up to help the victims. This project was not the only one; the 1980s music scene was full of charity projects. There was BAND AID (1984) to alleviate the Ethiopian famine, USA FOR AFRICA (1985) which had a huge hit with “We Are The World,” LIVE AID (1985), the largest charity concert in the 20s, HEAR ‘N AID (1986) which was HR/HM, and the MOSCOW MUSIC PEACE FESTIVAL which supported the Soviet Union’s anti-drug campaign, etc. This project appeared at the very end of that charity boom. The highlight of this project was a cover of DEEP PURPLE’s “Smoke on the Water” by a stellar lineup of musicians. Not only Gillan & Iommi, but also Roger Taylor & Chris Squire, Paul Rodgers, Brian May & Dave Gilmour, Ritchie Blackmore, and many more. Enjoy a feast of British rock heroes in professional footage.

　And finally, the last track is “WhoCares,” a charity project realized on the 25th anniversary of “ROCK AID ARMENIA.” Centered around Gillan and Iommi, it was a stellar lineup featuring not only the two giants but also Jon Lord, Nico McBrain, Jason Newsted, and Linde of HIM. “ROCK AID ARMENIA” was a remake of “Smoke On The Water,” but for this project, original new songs “Out Of My Mind” and “Holy Water” were written, with Kropp also producing “Out Of My Mind.” This album includes the video clips for those songs. Being a recent clip, it’s incredibly beautiful, but even more appealing is the song itself. Iommi, who was just “one of the crowd” in “Smoke On The Water,” is completely in control here. It’s like Gillan’s version of “FUSED,” “THE DEVIL YOU KNOW,” and “13,” and you can enjoy a 21st-century version of “BORN AGAIN” in official quality.

　This disc contains all the professional recordings from the ‘BORN AGAIN’ era, of which only four songs and five takes exist, along with promotional clips of two songs from their reunion. It’s a compilation of all the professional recordings in which Ian Gillan and Tony Iommi layered their sounds. Be sure to add this video compilation to your collection, along with the main CD, which is the finest soundboard live recording from the Gillan era.

(36:14)
PROMO CLIPS
1. Trashed
2. Trashed (Censored)
3. Zero The Hero

ROCK PALACE
The Palace, Hollywood, CA, USA 14th January 1984
4. Digital Bitch ★Chapter cut at 3:38
5. Zero The Hero

BONUS FOOTAGE
6. Smoke On The Water (Rock Aid Armenia)
7. Out Of My Mind (WhoCares)

PRO-SHOT COLOUR NTSC Approx.36min.