The late ’70s were not kind to the members of Black Sabbath.
Since their
Sabotage album in 1975, the group had been fighting both
creative burnout and attempts to overhaul their sound. Their 1976
release
Technical Ecstasy was a shade better, but further
illustrated that Tony Iommi and crew were not the same band who did
earlier works like “War Pigs” and “Iron Man.”
Never Say Die!, their 1978 release, suggested that the other
shoe had indeed fallen. Gone were the demon-invoking images that
made up their early works. In were songs which dared to be
radio-friendly – and, in one case, even hinted at influences like
the Allman Brothers Band. Whatever the case, it was a bad move –
though there are even a few diamonds in the rough of this disc.
Up until
Reunion, this album was notable for being the final
appearance of Ozzy Osbourne with Black Sabbath. Too bad he couldn’t
have had better material to go out with. Sure, the title track
swings, and has enough groove to rival a lot of the musical output
of this time period. But when the first song is the most accessible
out of the group, you know you’re in trouble.
Indeed, it takes much more than a cursory listen to appreciate
some of the finer points of
Never Say Die! – and even after five listens to the first
four songs, I still found myself saying, “I don’t get it.” I still
don’t understand why Black Sabbath would tackle a song like “Johnny
Blade” or “Swinging The Chain,” and I sure as hell don’t know
what’s with the “In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed” teaser in the latter
half of “Air Dance.” Cripes, I kept waiting for Dickey Betts to
burst through the speakers.
If you think that Black Sabbath was merely going through the
motions, you’re not alone in that belief. Often, it sounds like
Iommi and crew are turning in barely mediocre performances in order
to just get this chapter of their history behind them. As a result,
semi-decent songs like “Over To You” and “Hard Road” get lost in
the malaise.
I think that’s what bothers me the most about this disc.
Never Say Die! Could have been a great album, something that
Osbourne could proudly look back on as one of the defining moments
of his career. Instead, it’s left as a half-baked effort which
might have been best left on the cutting room floor – or, maybe, as
special unreleased “bonus tracks” for later compilations. While
Black Sabbath was by no means throwing in the towel,
Never Say Die! Suggested that the group might want to think
about saying that one little word, instead of “oops.”
