Normally, I try to shake things as much as possible by writing posts that cover a good variety of the different bands I collect. Lately though, there have been some really cool records from the same bands coming out, and I’d like to cover those while they are still a little newer. Quite a few of those are Black Sabbath and Ozzy releases, and as a result, I’ll be posting mostly on those topics over the next couple of weeks. I think that most of my readers are pretty much into the same stuff as I am anyway, and a collector can never have enough Black Sabbath. I’ll talk about a couple of newer Pink Floyd sets as well, and at least one more (and very exciting) Morrissey set, so stay tuned for those.
Today’s feature is a brand-new Flying Dragon 2 LP set called Divine Providence. You might recall that I covered one of their other releases quite a while ago, called In Memoriam. It’s a great Ozzy show that features Randy Rhoads on the cover, along with the nicest booklet and posters I’ve ever seen included with an unofficial release. The pressing and sound were nearly flawless, and it was certainly one of my favorite records of last year. Not surprisingly, Flying Dragon has managed to do it again with this new Sabbath release. I saw pictures of this set a couple months ago, and I started searching for a copy right away. After a painfully long wait, it finally arrived.
With the current state of trade in the US, getting a hold of a copy wasn’t exactly fast or easy. As most collectors know by now, vinyl records, tapes, CDs and the like are all covered under the Berman Amendment and are not supposed to be subject to any tariff fees imposed by the United States. For the most part, they have been following this rule with media I have gotten, but sometimes they still make me pay anyway, regardless of the law. The bigger issue, though, has been the large number of sellers that are just not willing to ship to the US any longer. They don’t care if we have to pay tariffs or not, but they aren’t willing to take the risk of the item being abandoned or getting a charge back if the rules change, or customs decide to charge people incorrectly and the recipient refuses to pay. Importing records has become quite annoying, but I promise this one if worth it.
This is double LP set, and based on what I gather from internet chatter, it was originally meant to come in two colors. One was supposed to be a red splatter set, and the other was supposed to be yellow splatter. I guess the pressing plant messed up though, and instead of producing two sets of 200 in each color, they did 200 total sets with one red disc and one yellow disc. As a result, there are only half as many copies as intended, but we are left with some of the most beautiful records I have seen all year. Divine Providence comes in a high-quality gatefold sleeve, and is adorned with full artwork, great pictures of the band, and hand numbering. The labels look fantastic and really tie everything together. Each set is hand numbered on the back and comes unsealed in a nice quality plastic sleeve.
In addition to being a beautiful all-around package, we also get two large fold-out posters. Most posters that are included with bootlegs are small and low quality, and I can’t imagine anyone actually trying to hang them up. The posters Flying Dragon does are top quality… equal to any official release you would find in a shop. The smaller one of the two is a gig poster from the event where the show was recorded. We also get a comic book themed one that features Ozzy dressed as a superhero, beating the shit out of a tank-driving War Pig. I like to keep at least one set together, so I think I might try to pick up an extra copy of this release just to get a second poster that I can frame. It’s that cool. Both LPs in this set are heavy weight and have a bit of transparency to them. Each one was flat, free of any visible defects and comes with a white poly-lined inner sleeve for scratch-free storage. As usual, I cleaned both discs before giving them a spin.
Live Recording – Civic Center, Providence, Rhode Island USA – 21st February, 1974
A1 Tomorrow’s Dream
A2 Sweet Leaf
A3 Killing Yourself To Live
A4 Snowblind
B1 War Pigs
B2 Sabbra Cadabra
B3 Guitar Solo/Jam
B4 Sometimes I’m Happy
C1 Drum Solo
C2 Supernaut
C3 Iron Man
C4 Guitar Solo
D1 Black Sabbath
D2 Jam
D3 Sabbra Cadabra (Reprise)
D4 Children Of The Grave
D5 Paranoid
If you have never heard this show before in any other format, you should know that it really is an amazing one. It has a few small source imperfections, but nothing major. At this point in their history, Sabbath would just have released Sabbath Bloody Sabbath in December of the previous year. As a result, we get to hear a lot of great stuff from all five of the first records. By all accounts, this is a very high-energy show, and Ozzy is on top of his game when engaging the crowd. Early on in the evening, he addresses the crowd with the memorable line, “Music to me is freedom. If you want to do your thing, then do it!”
Performance wise, everything is great, but there are a few songs that stuck out to me in particular. “Tomorrow’s Dream” opens the set, and apparently Bill has just gotten a new cowbell and is taking it for an extensive test drive. We hear quite a bit of it on this track, but he does back off a little as the show goes on. “Snowblind” has always been, and always will be, one of my favorite songs by any band. This particular version is fantastic, and the high-quality recording really helps it shine. “War Pigs” has sound effects with it, including some blowing wind in addition to the obligatory wailing sirens. In this version, the sirens sound quite a bit different than what many of us will be used to hearing. These sirens are a little higher pitched, I guess, and they sound pretty cool. A small detail perhaps, but it stuck out to me.
Ozzy really does have a great time with the audience here, and at one point, even engages directly with a fan in the front row. He points him out to the rest of the crowd after noticing the dude is apparently having a really great time. Ozzy says he likes to have a great time as well, and everybody should do what this guy is doing. Tony plays a couple different guitar solos during the show, and the first one has a bit of accompaniment by Bill on drums. This is the first point where there is a small cut in the tape, but it’s honestly barely noticeable.
“Sometimes I’m Happy” is always a song that I am surprised to hear live, but the band played this version as sort of an extra bluesey type jam. It’s a great version, but it too has a small cut in the tape. Once again, it’s nothing too bad and I don’t think a lot of listeners will even notice. I think that this one is a defect that could be easily corrected or repaired, but I get the appeal in leaving the show as is. Flying Dragon has ensured that the fade-ins and fade-outs are perfect and that there are no spaces between tracks, so I’m sure they could have done something like that if they had wanted to. I think it might be a good project for another label at some point, but I’m glad they preserved this historical document just the way it was.
The second guitar solo is going to be a real treat for Iommi fans and guitar connoisseurs, as this one is a proper solo with Tony just letting loose. Eventually, he is joined by the rest of the band, and they go into “Black Sabbath”. This particular version of “Black Sabbath” has some of Ozzy’s best live vocal work that I have heard on any recorded version of this song. His screaming and wails sound genuinely terrifying, and it brings the track to a whole other level. Every member of the band is on fire (metaphorically) for the entire duration, and there is no doubt that this is a special performance as the band was hitting their peak.
Overall, this is a release that Sabbath fans won’t want to miss. The pressing is fantastic and has only a touch of surface noise here and there. I would rate it right around 9.5/10. As for the audio source itself, I think this is an audience recording, but it’s an amazing one. It’s easily an 8.5/10, and I think most collectors and going to be thrilled with it. Packaging wise, the pictures tell the tale here. As I mentioned before, this is my favorite Sabbath release this year, and the print quality and bonus posters are just fantastic. That’s an easy 10/10. I can’t see how anyone could release a more perfect package for this show, so if you want one for your collection, now is the time to seek one out. From everything I’ve heard, there are only 200 copies, which makes Divine Providence extremely limited. Good luck in the search!