BORN AGAIN UNMIXED DEMOS

Origins

Back in May of 2004, I received an e-mail from a woman who said she was Bill's ex-girlfriend. Apparently, she was fishing around for a buyer for this rare cassette that Bill allegedly gave her as a gift back in 1983. She had gone to England with Bill and was present during the recording sessions for BORN AGAIN at The Manor, which Richard Branson was producing at the time. My interest was definitely piqued when she said this cassette contained demos or rehearsals for the album. I was definitely wishing for the inclusion of an unreleased track (such as "The Fallen"), but she couldn't (or wouldn't) confirm the track listing for me. I told her I was definitely interested and would make her an offer on it, especially since I didn't want it to fall into the wrong hands.

After a strange lapse in correspondence, she finally wrote back and said that another person "had come out of nowhere" to ask her questions about the tape. She insinuated that I had somehow put this person on her trail, which couldn't have been further from the truth. Heck, I didn't even tell my closest friends exactly whom I was dealing with, since I hardly wanted to jeopardize such a deal. As fate would have it, she sold the tape to this other person and that was the end of that. I'm sure that most of you Sabbath collectors can fill in the blanks here. Anyhow, I was mainly concerned that the tape would be hoarded, like many others.

Just 2 months later, Dave Sherrod informed me that BORN AGAIN UNMIXED DEMOS & "THE FALLEN" was to be released by a Japanese bootleg company on August 15th, 2004. I was relieved to know that we would actually have the opportunity to hear this amazing gem, but also knew that Sabbath might not be so happy about it. Trading live shows of the band is one thing, but the band rather upset when an unreleased studio recording or demo tape gets leaked. In many cases, these tapes were either stolen from the band at some point or they were betrayed by someone whom they were once associated with.

So it's quite easy to understand why they might now be so thrilled about such a release. But on the flip side of this coin, Ian Gillan once mentioned having an alternate mix of BORN AGAIN and hinted that he wouldn't mind people getting to hear a proper mix of the album. The bass heavy final mix of the album was always a point of discontent between Gillan and the other Sabbath members.

Tony Iommi and Geoff Nicholls first confirmed the existence of a studio outtake titled “The Fallen” in an interview with Pete Sarfas for one of his BSAS newsletters. Until now, the song has remained something of a mystery for Sabbath collectors. 21 years after it was recorded, Sabbath fans finally got to hear these long uncirculated track with the release of THE BORN AGAIN UNMIXED DEMOS & "The Fallen". It was obviously important enough that it got included in the title!

The inclusion of “The Fallen” was certainly the exciting aspect of this release. I’ve received mixed, but mostly positive reactions to the song, which has a bit more in common with Gillan’s solo work than Black Sabbath. But the propulsive rhythm section is undoubtedly none other than Bill, Tony & Geezer. Maybe it’s the over the top layered vocals by Ian that sets this one apart from the rest of the tracks on BORN AGAIN? Chris Slenker offered that the song is most similar to “Keep It Warm” stylistically. To me, the riffing is reminiscent to the throttled pedal tones of mid-80’s Iron Maiden. Great solo break from Tony too!

In at least one interview, Geezer has also mentioned a song called “Death Warmed Over”. This could be either a working title for one of the album tracks or simply a goof on the interviewer! But now, let's talk about these demos....

Sabbath recorded the BORN AGAIN album at The Manor - Shipton on Cherwell in Oxfordshire, England with their new vocalist Ian Gillan (ex-Deep Purple). Bill Ward was prematurely bailed out of rehab to play drums on the session as well, although he wasn't quite well enough to endure the world tour. The BORN AGAIN album was released in the U.K. on August 7th, 1983 and in the U.S. on October 4th to mixed reviews. The combination of this great ex-Deep Purple vocalist with the Sabs seemed like a fine supergroup on paper, but not everyone was thrilled about the final result. Although BORN AGAIN is a decidedly different record than they'd ever made, I've always enjoyed it for its uniqueness. Ian shrieks like a possessed banshee on tracks like "Disturbing The Priest" and "Hot Line"! The record has plenty of the heavy numbers you'd expect, as well as some softer moments ("Born Again"). It's an album that many Sabbath fans regard highly in retrospect, even if was a slight departure for them stylistically.

The Review

Dated June 26th, 1983, this cassette of demos was a snapshot of how far the band had progressed in their work on the album up until this date. It is quite common for the band to ask the engineer to make a reference tape every now and then. This allows the musicians the opportunity to scrutinize their work outside of the studio. I do not believe this is the 'alternate mix' of BORN AGAIN that Ian refers to, since this tape includes many unfinished songs. There may be several (or dozens) of reference tapes in the band's possession from different stages in the recording process. This just happens to be the one that got away from them.

I finally got my opportunity to listen to this CD in September 2004, when Tito Cantafio sent me an original silver CD copy! The CD cover artwork is based on the 1996 Castle remastered version, but the cover has a red background. Also, the back cover features a 'positive' image of the band, whereas the Castle version is 'negative'. Also, Geoff Nicholls' mug is thoughtfully added to the group photos on the inside cover! All of the text and fonts is perfectly in keeping with the style of the original BORN AGAIN cover.

My verdict? Fascinating! These mixes put Ian Gillan's vocal tracks in the forefront, allowing us to admire the craft of his multi-tracked parts. But if anyone’s wondering why it takes me so long to post new articles and reviews, then here’s one hint for you. I don’t always have the liberty of doing this, but I spent HOURS poring over every detail of this BORN AGAIN UNMIXED DEMOS CD. I’ve been marveling over all of the interesting bits that this release has given us, so I figured I’d take the time and do it right.

But before I started writing, I decided to create a speed corrected version to examine. That’s right – the original silver CD version PLAYS TOO FAST. If you’d like to fix your copy, use the Pitch Shift function in Sound Forge (or any decent WAV editor that allows this) and reduce the speed by -.85. I determined this by fine turning my electric guitar to the original studio release and then adjusted the extracted WAV’s with Pitch Shift until they matched the guitar. The speed problem appears to be consistent with every track.

I’d definitely rate the quality for this release as ‘Excellent’, but it’s obviously not going to sound as good as the 1996 Castle remaster I used for reference. You’ve got to keep in mind that this mix was bumped to cassette, so the songs lost a lot of high and low end frequency response in the process. I’m sure it could benefit from some gentle equalization to compensate for these losses. To me, it sounded good enough that I didn’t bother goofing around with the EQ.

I should also mention that “The Dark” is the only song from BORN AGAIN that is not represented here. Similar in mood to “Stonehenge”, “The Dark” is short 30 second instrumental featuring Geezer and his beloved pedal board.

Song By Song Analysis

"Hot Line": Nearly finished version with some notably different guitar fills and solos. There's about 2 seconds of guitar noise before Tony starts in with the riff. Iommi is a bit lower in the mix here than he is on the final mix, but Ian's vocals are loud and clear! You can hear lots of interesting little fills and guitar bits punched into every nook and cranny, many of which I don't remember hearing on the record. The main guitar solo sounds like the same one on the album. The outro guitar solos do sound quite different and were later redone or just removed from the mix.

"Keep It Warm”: This version is also near completion, but the mix itself is very unbalanced. Someone yells out "Go!" as Iommi lurches into the opening riff that starts “KIW”. Ian’s vocals are boosted leaps and bounds over the backing track, as if they wanted to get a closer listen to his parts. I’ve always thought this to be one of the weakest songs on the record. But after listening to Ian’s multi-tracking on the chorus here, I couldn’t help but admire the song a bit more. It sounds almost, uh, angelic? What a way to end such a devilish album, eh? This just goes to show that Mr. Gillan is an absolute studio pro. I suppose it did help that he owned his own studio (Kingsway in London) for many years!

Anyhow, aside from Ian dominating the mixes (as he does on most songs on this CD), Tony's guitar solo and rhythm parts during the outro are also maximized beyond normal levels. Did I already say how much I liked the layered vocals on the chorus? I did? Okay, next song then.

"The Fallen": Ah, here's the one! Previously unreleased and unheard by most up until 2004, this may be the sole outtake from BORN AGAIN. It's an up tempo rocker with a percolating riff that sounds more like Iron Maiden or Gillan than Sabbath. And I would venture to guess that was the reason it was left off for that reason in the first place. Many people have written to me to say that “The Fallen” should have been on the album in the place of "Keep It Warm", since it does ROCK a lot more. Ian's vocal approach is reminiscent of the singing style he used for his early 80's records with GILLAN. Come to think of it, maybe Sabbath should have done "No Laughing In Heaven". Would have fit nicely in the set list after maybe “Disturbing The Priest”? ;)

Unfortunately, this does NOT appear to be a final mix, since the levels are a bit unbalanced. For instance, the vocals are turned way up again. Wait a minute - maybe it was Ian who mixed these demos? Just kidding. Well, maybe Sabbath will consider adding a proper mix of this track to BORN AGAIN when BLACK BOX II is being mastered. (This hint's for you, Tony!)

Special thanks to Tito Cantafio for transcribing the lyrics for "The Fallen" below!

I’m turning around and around

I’m falling down and there is no sound

I said fear grips my mind

Tears will make me blind

I’m trapped in a falling dream

Alone with a silent scream

Tumbling through dead of night

I’m falling right out of sight

I’m flying in water; it’s all around

I’m falling slowly through the ground

Eagles nest near by

Deep in my sky

Trapped in a falling dream

Alone with a silent scream

Tumbling through dead of night

I’m falling right out of sight

I’m reaching out in the darkness

I’m trying to reach for your hand

But every time I get near you

You’re gone and I don’t understand

You know I’ve fallen, I’ve fallen

It’s dark and I’m blind

O yes, I’ve fallen, I’ve fallen

Oh, oh, oooooh, ooooooooh, hahaha (Classic Gillan scream)

(Iommi guitar solo – rather long too)

It’s night time, the night time; the day

Oh, life goes on in this rain

It keeps me from flying

Leads me to die

Trapped in a falling dream

Alone with a silent scream

I’m tumbling through dead of night

I’m falling right out of sight

I’m dead if I hit the ground

"Digital Bitch": Nearly finished, but possibly includes some different guitar takes. Someone yells out in the background just before Tony kicks in with the main riff. The guitars are turned up higher, so you can hear more of the subtleties in what Tony played. Ian is also up front again too, but the guitar is definitely dominant this time.

“Stonehenge”: This is a complete and un-edited mix of "Stonehenge" in all its original glory. The BORN AGAIN version was edited down to a 1:58 running time. It appears to me that all of the music between 1:39 to 4:20 was removed for the final cut. Although the edit may have been done differently (such as removing more of the front end and segueing in a bit earlier), this is how it appears to me. I don't disagree with the band for using this piece as an intro for “Disturbing The Priest”, since the full version did get a bit long-winded and repetitive. But it is interesting to hear the complete piece of music from which the final edit originated.

The levels are set a bit differently, so some tracks aren't as audible on this version. This song is truly a Nicholls / Butler collaboration, with each of them summoning eerie chord swells from their respective instruments. Like "E5150", Geezer summons some otherworldly tones from his bass by playing it through an effects pedal board. Geezer's volume swells, ultra-slow string bends and harmonics only enhance the misty ambience. The song as we knew it actually ends at 1:39, at which time the melody is modulated into a different key. This variation does not appear in the final version. The main themes are alternated and repeated several times until 4:21, when the song finally climaxes with the familiar outro.

I also have an extended "single edit" of this track which may be similar to this edit. I'm not certain what single this came from, but this version was circulating long before this boot came out.

"Trashed": After a “1-2-go!” count-in (from Bill?), we get to hear “Trashed” at an earlier stage. The mix is similar to the final one, but the rhythm guitar parts are a bit higher in volume. These do sound like the same vocals that appeared on the album, but they aren’t quite finished. In fact, there are NO vocals laid down after Tony’s guitar solo. The first half of Tony's solo [2:08-2:36] may have been used for the final version, but rest was probably punched in. From here, Tony doubles the other rhythm guitars, creating a very dense sound. There are no outro guitar solos either. “Trashed” is actually faded out much sooner than the final mix. (The running time is only 3:48 instead of 4:17)

"Zero The Hero": The backing tracks sound pretty solid here, but the vocals are still a work in progress. At the beginning of the track, you can hear about 6 seconds of extraneous guitar noise, as Tony gets ready to lay down the track. He starts the main riff chug at 0:07. The bass and drums are faded up at 0:14. Ian's multi-tracked vocals enter at 1:18 and again they are very prominent in the mix. But the chorus is a bit different than what we're used to hearing...

"What you gonna be, what you gonna be brother?

Oh - oh, the hero!

Don't you wanna be, don't you wanna be?

Oh no, the hero! [2nd chorus - Oh, not the hero!]

“How you gonna be, how you gonna be brother?

Oh no, the hero!

The possibility, impissibolity brother.

Zero the hero!”

Tony's guitar solo appears to be the same one that is in the final mix. Ian hadn't laid down any vocals from 5:41 until the end of the song, so the ending is all instrumental. It's also extended nearly two minutes beyond the length of the final mix! During this final section, you can hear many guitar and keyboard bits that are obscured on the final mix. Geoff even reprises one the G-A-B flat-C# bit again before the long fade finally kicks in around 8:27.

"Born Again": Nearly finished track, but with a very unbalanced mix. You can hear the count-in, as well as the drums that were used as the bed track during the intro. The drums are not turned up in the mix until 0:17 in the final mix. There are two guitar parts here; one playing the main riff and other playing just light chord accents. When Sabbath played this track live, Geoff Nicholls actually played the main lick and Tony played the accents. I would imagine Geoff would have played the main lick here as well, but I'm just speculating. Once again, Ian is in the forefront of the mix. This is such a gorgeous and underrated track that really spotlight's Gillan's very dynamic and flexible vocal abilities. His singing here is good enough for a final take, but I can't be certain if this is actually the one. The long fade begins during Tony's outro solo at 5:58, but ends just a little sooner than the final mix.

"Disturbing The Priest": We they saving the best for last? This diabolically delightful song was easily my favorite when I first set ears on BORN AGAIN. This mix shows the song to be nearly finished. “DTP” was probably just waiting for some final tweaking and mixing at this point. Unlike the final mix, this one has Iommi playing a very "snake charmer" lick for about 8 seconds before the now familiar beginning of the song crashes in. Ian's vocals are WAY UP in the mix here, giving us a great opportunity to dissect his now classic vocal parts. At 2:19, some of the backing vocal parts are turned down too low. But within seconds, the other vocals tracks are boosted by the engineer. But don't worry; you can still hear the rest of the band just fine here. A long fade out begins at 5:20, much earlier than the final mix (begins at 5:40), obscuring Ian's final screams.