Black Sabbath members to tour again

The rumors are true -- guitarist Tony Iommi and singer Ronnie James Dio are working together again, though not as Black Sabbath. They've reunited with bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward, and the group will likely be called Heaven And Hell, which was the name of the first Sabbath album with Dio on vocals. According to a post on the official iommi.com website, "After various promoters have approached their respective management, the guys have started taking all of this very seriously... If all goes well, Heaven And Hell should be hitting the road in early 2007." Dio and Iommi have already written some new material that will be included on the Dio-era Sabbath box they've been working on.

Ozzy Osbourne would seem to be the odd man out in this situation, but he only wishes the best for everyone. Osbourne, whose departure from the group in early 1979 allowed Dio to join, released a statement that reads: "Tony Iommi and Ronnie Dio are working on a project together which has nothing to do with Black Sabbath. There is only one Black Sabbath. Ozzy, Tony, Geezer, and Bill will be touring late next year along with a new Black Sabbath album. However, Ozzy wishes Tony and Ronnie much success in their project together."

It's unknown if this is an archival release, or whether it's an all-new Black Sabbath album. There have been rumors over the years about new recordings, but Osbourne told us it would take a lot for that to happen: "If I had an album which blew Master Of Reality off the map, I'd be crazy not to do it. I don't want to put an album out, just for the sake of us four being on an album."

Dio sang on four Black Sabbath albums -- Heaven & Hell in 1980, Mob Rules in 1981, Live Evil in 1982, and Dehumanizer in 1992.
Submit the above story to:

Del.icio.us   Digg   reddit   StumbleUpon   Facebook