Just returned from this concert at Fresno's Selland Arena.

I think the last time I went to a concert there was 1978, so it brought back a lot of memories of being a teenager in the dawn of rock music. The last time I was there, the only people over 25 years of age were security guards and janitors. This time... well, Tony Iommi will be 60 in February. At the time, had anyone suggested a 60-year-old would even attend a rock concert it would have seemed ridiculous, let alone be on the stage. My first concert was ELP's Brain Salad Surgery tour, then Jethro Tull, then Yes, and I could locate the sections I'd sat in at each. As a teenager, I didn't know it, but the acoustics in there are horrible. The sound system has to be good, and forget adding reverb to anything. Sound systems then were better, although even then Tull's was somewhat sub-par. The one tonight was sub-par generally. Queensryche benefited from that because since they customarily up the volume for each band, and they started, so they had the least distortion from the system being overdriven.

Anyway, a brief review:

Queensryche: band pretty much spot on, singer excellent, only played 6 songs, no encore. :(

Alice Cooper: band spot on, as in whoa, singer very good, stole the show.

Black Sabbath: band good, singer Dio, and at this point I have to disqualify myself.

The concert was well worth the money, for Queensryche and Alice Cooper.

But if I were to do it again, I probably would leave at that point. I never cared for Dio w/ Blackmore in Rainbow, or with Black Sabbath. He sounds the same in every song, no imagination. "Heaven and Hell" was good, but drawn out with a wandering guitar solo and various other nonsense as if to avoid playing something cool like "Paranoid" that Ozzy originally sang.

Re: Black Sabbath / Alice Cooper / Queensryche
By: Ille Homine Albe to All on Wed Oct 03 2007 02:33 am

But if I were to do it again, I probably would leave at that point. I never cared for Dio w/ Blackmore in Rainbow, or with Black Sabbath. He sounds the same in every song, no imagination. "Heaven and Hell" was good, but drawn o with a wandering guitar solo and various other nonsense as if to avoid playi something cool like "Paranoid" that Ozzy originally sang.

Back in the mid 1970's I saw Richie Blackmore in Rainbow with a bunch of other bands in an outdoor venue, Blue Oyster Cult was another band at that show, had a great time btw. A couple of years ago my wife and I saw "the new" Black Sabbath in a show at a club here in CT, "Toads Place". Motorhead was the other band that night. Unbelievably LOUD, but we really enjoyed Motorhead, Black Sabbath just isn't cool without OZZY, IMHO.

*Lord Eros*