TOUR REVIEWS

March 11th, 2007 - Pacific Coliseum - Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Shane Pittenger: WOW~!  Just got in and before I crash I wanted to fire this off.  I'm sure you got 100 emails already.  Man, I'm telling you (and me being a huge degenerate Sab head) I was totally amazed and blown away by the performance.  I've only seen Sab 4 times but this was just, amazing!  Maybe it's FINALLY getting an exiting set list but I was floored.  "Falling" & "Sign"!? Are you kidding!  And "Sign" was the complete performance, not the linked "Heaven & Hell" version.  The crowd was ballistic and if these guys can stay cordial they're gonna kick much ass and make much money this year.  People were excited for the new stuff. I've been to shows where that great old band plays something new and everyone sits but not tonight.  Iommi and Geez had the heads down alot concentrating as it's such a change for them playing this stuff that was given up for dead.  I can't imagine how they will sound by NYC.  Didn't hear a bum note all night.  Ronnie came in late once but that was it.

I don't mean to slam Ozzy but I'm sure Sharon is shitting bricks about this endeavour.  I think finally Iommi and Geez are getting the long overdue respect while Oz is kinda stale.  I hate ripping him, but I'm so sick of hearing Ozzy is Sabbath etc.  If you want to see "Iron Man", "War Pigs", "N.I.B." etc, then yes Ozzy must be it.  But last night proved these guys could probably play every song in their catalogue whenever they wish.

J.R.: The show was obviously fantastic!  What a great set.  I thought it was a bit weird to open with "After All" - not my favorite Dehumanizer song, but, a good tune nonetheless.  As I was taping it, I had my camera fixed on Vinny, expecting him to count in 'Mob Rules' or 'Neon Knights,' so they threw me for a bit of a loop!  The venue was well filled, though, not nearly the 80 or 90 percent I've seen some people suggest.  We were all alone in the farthest section, dead center.  They didn't have screens to aim at, but, considering the desolation (so to speak) of our seats, I was able to do some
pretty good cinematography (especially considering that I don't use a pod of any sort - I was pretty much holding it with my left arm the whole night, zooming in and out with my right).  

From the condo we're renting, I've already watched the show and it's easily the best film I've personally shot.  This is going to set a pretty high standard for other films of this tour - not to say it won't be surpassed, but, it's opening night, I had no obstructions (maybe one or two people walk by the whole time) and other than a small bit of stage patter ("Thank you, Vancouver!  Great to be here")  I got every word and every note.  And, the audio's pretty decent to boot - though, I'm watching for any DAT audio that might have been recorded.  Let me know if you hear anything, 'cause I'll be eager to synch it up to what I've got."

Of course, with technology today, it probably won't be hard to beat.  I met a guy after the show who showed me the 15 minutes or so of footage that he shot on his cell phone!  The audio was crap, but, the picture looked pretty good!  And, he was in the GA area, right by the stage!

Since we're on vacation - it's my wife, myself and our 11 year old (today - it's his birthday!) son - we decided to hang out after the show and see if we could get a picture with Ronnie.  We got a glimpse of Geezer and Tony about an hour after the show, but, they didn't stop - just kind of smiled and waved and piled into the tour bus.  About an hour after that - by then after 1 AM! - Vinny came out and signed a few things, but, quickly jumped on the (different) bus.  My wife snapped a couple of pictures of him, but, I was off bringing our rental car a bit closer!  I returned and moments later,
Ronnie emerged.

Now, Rob, let me tell you - I'm a huge music fan, and a big music collector (as you know), and even something of a musician, but, I've never been too much of an autograph hound.  I met the guys in Jon Anderson & Alan White of Yes once, and I was happy to just shake their hands and make small talk.  But, my boy is a big Live Evil fan and when I told him that I had heard that RJD will typically hang out and sign things and take pictures, he begged us to stay until he got a chance.  So, my wife and I agreed - though, by 1:30ish AM, we were all pretty tired from the whole day.  Plus, there were about 20 other people waiting, who clearly were there to get a lot of autographs.  One guy - who was very nice - had 10 CD sleeves he was hoping to have Ronnie sign!  When Ronnie walked out, all these guys rushed the gate, and Kyle (my son) was left jumping up and down, waving his Live Evil sleeve, hoping to get noticed.

I kind of gently coaxed him toward the front, and the guy with the 10 CD sleeves suddenly says 'Ronnie, this little guy has been waiting for you all night' motioning at Kyle, and I pushed Kyle up the front, and Ronnie gives Kyle a great big hug and thanks him for waiting and coming to the show.  At that point, I kind of nudged myself up to the front, and gently asked 'Hey, Ronnie, do you mind if I take a picture of you with my son?'  Ronnie smiled brightly and said, 'Absolutely!'  He then kind of nudged everybody out of the way, gives Kyle a big smile and big hug, and I snapped the pic.  When I get home, I'll email it to you - it's not art or anything (and I'm just glad there wasn't a huge flash spot anywhere on the pic!), but, I was nearly in tears when I saw the look on both of their faces as we were driving back.  Right after that Ronnie signed his Live Evil booklet, shakes Kyle's hand and Kyle says 'See you in Denver, Ronnie - thank you so much!'  My son was beaming for the rest of the drive, and today hasn't stopped talking about the show.

Clearly, Ronnie James Dio is a man who knows how to nurture his legacy!  :)

Anyway, gotta get back to the vacation, but, I was excited to tell you, and am looking forward to hearing your feedback when you see it!  Take care, buddy, talk soon!