This week, the celebration of the upcoming Back to the Beginning, Sabbath/Ozzy final gig in Birmingham continues. I’ll be taking a look at one of the newest unofficial Ozzy releases in the vinyl world. I’ve seen some indication that there are one or two other exciting releases on the way in the very near future, with one being from a label that I’ve never discussed on this site before. Storming The Odeon: Live at Chelmsford 1980, however, is a brand-new release by none other than Casino Records, which continues to put out some amazing material.
I’m trying (with little success) to not make a habit of buying two colors of the same release every time something new comes out, but I do find myself doing it with specific bands. This was a rough month, because we got Casino releases for both Ozzy and Morrissey. These days, as long as it’s only two or maybe three colors, I’ll typically get them all for Ozz and Moz solo stuff, as well as anything that comes out for The Smiths or Sabbath. In the vinyl world, it’s difficult not to develop a “collectors’ mindset”, so to speak, so my sympathies to anyone else out there who’s in a similar boat. The different colors sure look cool though, don’t they?
Storming The Odeon is a double LP, available on both red and blue vinyl. Both colors are transparent, but I wouldn’t exactly call them clear. The red is kind of a different, muted looking red, so overall I’d say I like the looks of the blue discs more. Both versions come in a gatefold sleeve, complete with the standard Casino Records numbered hype sticker and resealable bag. As usual, this is a limited release, this time with only 200 copies of each color pressed worldwide. Last time we saw an Ozzy release from these guys, it sold out very quickly with only 150 copies of each color (red and yellow). You can read about Broken Chains and Broken Rules here. In response, the label put out a third version on “clear ice” vinyl with 200 total copies pressed. Whether a second pressing of another color will happen yet again with this current release is unknown, but always a possibility with the enduring popularity of Ozzy.
The packaging for Storming The Odeon is up to the typically high standard Casino Records has set for itself over the years. The jacket is nice and heavy with excellent print quality and sharp images. The records themselves come in black poly-lined sleeves and have beautiful, full color labels with one photo I hadn’t seen before. Each side is well marked, and the wax is flat and free of any defects or scratches. Granted, some of this comes down to the seller you buy from and how well they package the records, but Casino always does its part to ensure that your newfound treasures will remain intact when they land on your doorstep from halfway around the world. The LPs looked clean enough, but I cleaned them anyway to make sure before giving them a spin. I decided to have my initial listening with the blue copy.
Before I get into this wonderful recording, I should point out some things that make it unique. First of all, this is a very early show. One of the very first Ozzy ever did as a solo artist. The band is the original Blizzard of Ozz lineup, and it didn’t stay together for very long. Personnel wise, we have the following:
Vocals: Ozzy Osbourne
Guitar: Randy Rhoads
Bass Guitar: Bob Daisley
Drums: Lee Kerslake
Keyboards: Lindsay Birdgwater
So, these are the days when Bob Daisley was still playing bass with Ozzy in a live situation. As fans will know, there has been much controversy over the years dealing with songwriting credits for various members of Ozzy’s band. The most vocal of these individuals has always been Bob Daisley, who apparently wrote most of the lyrics for the first three records. I’ll let it be known right now that I’m not a Bob Daisley fan. I’m tired of hearing him complain, and I believe that he’s received more than enough credit and money in court winnings to drop this issue and be satisfied.
Still riding Ozzy’s coattails more than 45 years later as he clings to the one thing he is known for yet endlessly complains about, Daisley continues to bash Ozzy until this very day. Telling reporters (or anyone who will still listen to him) that Back to the Beginning may very well be an “embarrassment” for Ozzy, he continues to find ways to look increasingly pathetic. This statement probably has nothing to do with the fact that other musicians who made significant contributions to Ozzy history were invited, and he wasn’t. I find the number of “supporters” he has in Ozzy forums to be astounding, but I suppose people do love controversy. At any rate, there is no denying that he is an important part of Ozzy history, and this is a great chance to hear him play if you haven’t before.
This particular show in Chelmsford is an early gig, and the songs are still being shaped into their final forms that we have come to know and love. The pressing itself is excellent, with no surface noise at all to speak of. There are sounds from the source tape, but these are certainly to be expected. There is no doubt that this is an audience recording, but it sounds excellent to my ears. Perhaps it is a touch muffled but considering this is an unofficial recording from a hidden device in the audience, it’s quite impressive. The whole show feels a little “looser” than most of us will be used to hearing, but it’s still a very professional performance. You can tell this stuff is still new to the band, so the concert has sort of a special, magical quality to it.
Audience Recording – Odeon Theatre, Chelmsford, England – 22nd October 1980
A1 Intro
A2 I Don’t Know
A3 You Lookin’ at Me Lookin’ at You
A4 Crazy Train
B1 Goodbye To Romance
B2 No Bone Movies
B3 Mr. Crowley
C1 Revelation (Mother Earth)
C2 Suicide Solution
C3 Guitar Solo
C4 Drum Solo
C5 Iron Man
C6 Children Of The Grave
D1 Steal Away (The Night)
D2 Paranoid
One song presented here that wasn’t typically heard in later years is “You Lookin’ at Me Lookin’ at You”. This is not one of my favorite tracks, and I never thought it fit in very well with the rest of the album, or any Ozzy setlist, for that matter. Obviously, Ozzy and company agreed, and it did not make it onto the actual Blizzard of Ozz album. Other than feeling like a stylistic outlier, there’s nothing wrong with it, and it is cool to hear it once and while, especially live.
Even some of the best-known songs feel quite a bit different at this early performance. You can tell that Randy was still deciding how he wanted to play certain parts of “Crazy Train” in a live setting, and the outro has an entirely different feel to it than what most people will be used to hearing. It’s not bad in any way, but very different. I would argue that the later versions are significantly better and feel much more developed. “Mr. Crowley” is also a surprise, hitting us with an additional intro not heard in later performances. The well-known, Clockwork Orange inspired synth portion is still there, just with some additional material added before it.
Most Ozzy fans will know that Daisley and Kerslake sort of teamed up against Ozzy and threatened to quit after deciding they no longer liked their positions as what basically amounted to being “session players”. For non-musicians, this means that they weren’t really in a band where everything was equal, and rather were hired players, intended to write with and back Ozzy onstage. Daisley and Kerslake are very good musicians, but I think Rudy Sarzo and Tommy Aldridge were both better and made sense as replacements.
I bring this up because if you listen closely and compare Kerslake’s drumming here with what we get from Tommy Aldrige later on, the differences are vast. Tommy, in my opinion, is a much more exciting and dynamic player by comparison. I feel the same for the Sarzo/Daisley switch, but I think it’s less noticeable musically since Rudy sticks very closely to the original parts written by Daisley. If you check out some of the few videos in existence, however, you will notice that Sarzo is a much flashier player, and that he “looks the part” much more than Daisley did. I’m sure the fact that Rudy was brought into the band by Randy and that they had a preexisting chemistry also helped as well.
Overall, this is an excellent recording, and I think it’s an essential addition to anyone who collects Ozzy material. It has been available on CD for a number of years, but I think this is the first wide release on vinyl. It’s hard to imagine a nicer package, and as usual, I am quite pleased with what Casino has done here. I would say it’s an easy 9/10 pressing and packaging wise. The gatefold looks great and includes all the Blizzard tour dates, as well as a listing of the band lineup and a little bit of information about the show.
As far as the audio is concerned, there is obviously some crowd noise present, but nothing that detracts from the listening experience. The audience is very excited, and some are even armed with whistles (a bit strange). The last thing we hear is a fan loudly yelling, “Ozzyyyyyyyyyyy” as side D fades out. Taking all these environmental factors into consideration, which are quite standard for a live show, I still don’t think you will be disappointed. Source wise, this is a solid 9/10 audience recording. Very deserving of making its way onto vinyl, preserving it in physical form as a significant piece of music history.
There is no doubt that fans will quickly be snatching up copies of Storming the Odeon, with some like me buying multiple sets to cover both colors. There are an extra 100 copies in total to go around this time as compared with Broken Chains and Broken Rules, but I doubt this will be enough to meet the demand. Therefore, I won’t be surprised to see an additional pressing in some other color appearing on the market at a later time. I wouldn’t totally count on this though, and recommend you get one now to avoid future regret. Also, don’t forget that next month will see the release of the highly anticipated “See You On The Other Side v2.0” vinyl box set, which is an official release from Ozzy. You can bet I’ll be talking about this, so if you haven’t already done so, you might want to preorder that one as well if you can still find any available copies. Good luck!