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| The Rules of Hell | 
| Artist: Black Sabbath
Label: Rhino Records
Category: Music
List Price: $54.98
Buy New: $34.89
You Save: $20.09 (37%)
Buy New/Used/Collectible from $24.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  (25 reviews)
Sales Rank: 6180
Format: Box Set, Original Recording Remastered
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 5
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 6 x 5.3 x 2
MPN: 460156
UPC: 081227993436
EAN: 0081227993436
ASIN: B001AZ7RU0
Release Date: July 22, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Awesome set! August 29, 2008
A Collection of Sabbath's best albums, in their remastered glory! The best of the best in metal is all right here, this set is all you need.
Excellent Set August 23, 2008
I was glad to find out these albums were to be remastered, packaged with new liner notes and reminiscences, and sold in a "black on black" boxed set. I always thought this was a great musical fit: Dio with Iommi and Butler... too bad it never seems to last! My only complaint is it is not a complete set of Dio-era Black Sabbath, because it doesn't have the three newer songs from the CD released last year titled "The Dio Years." But that's a minor gripe. This is a fine boxed set of an excellent band. Nothing can be gained by trying to compare them to Ozzy-era Sabbath, either... It's probably best that they are touring as "Heaven & Hell" and to think of them as their own separate thing.
Black Sabbath and Ronnie James Dio Rule! It's Just What The Dio/Sabb Fanatics Needed! August 20, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Black Sabbath (Dio): The Rules of Hell (Box) 2008
The Complete Dio-Era Black Sabbath Catalog - In Review
Wednesday: August 20th, 2008
By Alexander James Shuris
Warner Brothers (in conjunction with Rhino Records) has recently released a five CD boxed set that includes fully remastered versions of the entire catalog of albums released during the "Dio-Era" of Black Sabbath's reign. The albums include 1980's blockbuster, "Heaven & Hell," the group's widely successful follow-up, "Mob Rules," 1982's "Live Evil" double set, and 1992's tour deforce reunion disc, "Dehumanizer," which was the last full length recording by the Dio-Era Sabbath, which is comprised of Ronnie James Dio on vocals, heavy metal originator
Tony Iommi on guitar, Geezer Butler on bass, Vinny Appice on drums,
and Geoff Nicholls on keyboard (and in some cases bass, which he played during the 1979 sessions for this lineup's best known recording,
Heaven and Hell, which was released the following year).
The set kicks off with, "Neon Knights" (from Heaven & Hell), which was the last thing recorded for the original disc, back in 1980. Dio and Iommi apparently wrote the tune in less than an hour, but it still remains a testament to Dio and Sabbath's union as one of the best comebacks ever. We then move on to "Children of the Sea," which was the first song composed by Tony Iommi, Ronnie James Dio, Bill Ward (who left months after the album's release) and Terry "Geezer" Butler. "Children of the Sea" is quite possibly the best thing that Black Sabbath ever put to tape in the 1980's, besides the title track, "Heaven & Hell" of course, and the menacing "Die Young."
The second disc in the collection, "Mob Rules" from 1981, is every bit as good as its predecessor, but the album opener "Turn Up the Night" still seems like a blatant rip-off of the previous LP's "Neon Knights," even though the track is one of Sabbath's best ever album openers. "Voodoo"
is a slow paced rocker, which is one of Dio's best evil woman lyrics. This song is in the same class as songs like "Lady Evil" from "Heaven and Hell" (CD 1) and Mob Rule's 6th track, "Country Girl," specially written by Ronnie for his wife and manager, Wendy Dio. Track three is an
excellent follow-up to Heaven and Hell from the first disc, "Sign of the Southern Cross." This track is a personal favorite of both Tony Iommi and Ronnie James Dio, the creators of the tune, as well as one of my top ten favorite metal songs ever! "Cross" begins with an acoustic introduction played in skillfull fashion by Tony Iommi, then comes Dio's moving lyrics, and finally the climax, which includes some great bass
effects by Geezer Butler, who is complimented by Vinny Appice and Geoff Nicholls, the band's back-beat. By the album's end we get the slow burner, "Falling Off the Edge of the World" which quickly turns into a sure metal fest of Tony's demonic riffing , Geezer's pulsating bass-lines, Ronnie's frightfully, fantastic and powerfully executed, vocal acrobatics, as well as Vinny's driving drum beats.
Discs 3-4 feature the very same band who recorded "Mob Rules," but in concert, instead of in the studio. Dio is joined by the rest of Black Sabbath, Mark II, as they run through many of the hits found on their last two albums, as well as a few classics by the Ozzy-Era Sabbath, which dissolved in 1978, some 4 years before the release of this double sized document of Dio-Era Sabbath's live prowess. The only thing these discs are missing is the inclusion of live-in-concert versions of key Dio-Era tracks like "Die Young", "Lonely is the Word" (quite possibly Iommi's best solo showcase ever!), "Slipping Away" (with Vinny's drum solo of course), "Turn Up the Night" and Dio's very own "Country Girl." However, you get 14 of Sabbath's best (circa 1970-1982) performed live by the Dio/Iommi/Butler/Appice line-up who still tours to this day under the moniker of "Heaven and Hell" (an apparent tribute to the best thing that this version of the band has to offer). Please listen to the
magnificant "Heaven and Hell" and "Sign of the Southern Cross" medley, which showcases the best of what all five of Sabbath's band members
(including sometimes hidden keyboardist and occasional bassist, Geoff Nicholls) had to offer in the early 1980's and beyond.
Disc 5 comprises 1992's doomed reunion album, "Dehumanizer" which was Dio's least-successful album with Sabbath. It came out during a time when Black Sabbath was breaking free from a ten year hiatus in rock worthy material (1983-1992), and Dio was experiencing a decreasing fan base, due to his last two albums that didn't exactly match such past glories as "Holy Diver" and "Last in Line." Both bands (Sabbath and Ronnie's own group, DIO) hadn't had a popular hit since 1984, with each party each releasing 5 albums during this "wilderness" period of band activity. Dio was able to muster up (Holy Diver, Last in Line, Sacred Heart, Dream Evil and Lock Up the Wolves), while Tony Iommi and his cast of thousands released (Born Again, Seventh Star, The Eternal Idol, Headless Cross and TYR). Of note, Iommi was the sole member of the original Sabbath Line-up, from 1985 to 1991. However, Iommi's talent really shows on those four albums, even though his backing band is a mere shadow of its former self. Such journeymen as Glenn Hughes(Deep Purple), Bob Daisley (Rainbow and Ozzy), Eric Carr (KISS and Badlands), Cozy Powell (Rainbow) and Tony Martin (10-year Sabbath veteran) joined Mr. Iommi on these 4 somewhat, sub-par albums, but having Sabbath's
(hidden member)Geoff Nicholls on the keyboards, Tony Martin on the mic and Rainbow's Cozy Powell on the skins,didn't worsen the effect too
much.
 Dissapointing but handy August 18, 2008
4 out of 8 found this review helpful
Somewhat dissapointed in this release. Yes, it is very cool to have all the DIO-Era material in one handy box set, but it looks like the fans are being shortchanged - no bonus tracks, no booklet, or any other extras. It is quite apparent this was done without any of the band's input.
However, my biggest complaint is that the calling card of this box set is that the music is remastered. I perused all the other reviews, but noticed that no one has mentioned that THESE CDS HAVE ALL BEEN REMASTERED BEFORE- by the UK's Castle Records in 1996. And their packaging was better with extensive liner notes. Dehumanizer is the only one that wasn't remastered then, but that came out in the 90s, so what type of improvement would there be anyway?
I am inclined to sell this version I bought on EBAY and simply put my Castle Remasters in a little box and call it a box set.
 The Rules Of Hell Are Not To Release Mediocre Material Among Classics August 11, 2008
3 out of 11 found this review helpful
"Heaven and Hell" and "The Mob Rules" were two of my favorite LP's during my teenage years. I am happy they have been re-mastered for "The Rules Of Hell" a five CD set featuring all the albums from Sabbath's Dio era. All of the music sounds brand new as opposed to the dated sounds of the original pressings of the CDs. A complaint here is that the material on here is only available as a boxed set. The price Amazon is offering is more than fair, however, I could have done without owning "Dehumanizer" an album that was released when both Dio and Sabbath were at career lows. "Dehumanizer" has some okay songs but comes no where near the brilliance of the first two albusm. Also, having a listen to "Live Evil" for the first time in two decades I am reminded it is one of the worst live albums ever released. Dio has a great voice, but his interpretations of the Ozzy Osbourne songs just sound wrong. Still, "Heaven and Hell" and "The Mob Rules" are classics that are worth having. Rhino needs to release them separately.
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