Released April 18, 1980 (UK)
Re-Released February 7, 1996
Re-Released July 22 & Oct 7, 2008
Re-Released April 5, 2010
Re-Released Mar 5, 2021

[ Lyrics | Tour Dates ]

 

2021 CD [ Amazon US ] | 2021 LP [ Amazon US ]
2010 Deluxe [ Amazon US | Amazon UK ]
2008 CD [ Amazon US ] | 2009 Vinyl [ Amazon US ]
Original CD [ Amazon US | Amazon UK ] | 1996 CD [ Amazon US | Amazon UK ]
MP3 [ Amazon US ] | MP3 Deluxe [ Amazon UK ] | iTunes (US)

Listen to 1980 Radio advert for Heaven & Hell album:

 Track Listing

  1. Neon Knights
  2. Children of the Sea
  3. Lady Evil
  4. Heaven & Hell
  5. Wishing Well
  6. Die Young
  7. Walk Away
  8. Lonely is the Word

Disc 2 (2010/2021 Deluxe Editions)

  1. Children of the Sea (Live, Single B-Side – 2010 & 2021)
  2. Heaven & Hell (Live, Single B-Side – 2010 & 2021)
  3. Lady Evil (7″ Mono Edit – 2010 & 2021)
  4. Neon Knights (Live 10 Aug 1980 Hartford – 2010 & 2021)
  5. Children of the Sea (Live Hartford – 2010 & 2021)
  6. Heaven and Hell (Live Hartford – 2010 & 2021)
  7. Die Young (Live Hartford – 2010 & 2021)
  8. E5150 (Live, 31 Dec 1981 – 2 Jan 1982, Hammersmith, 2021 Only)
  9. Neon Knights (Live, Hammersmith, 2021 Only)
  10. Children of the Sea (Live, Hammersmith, 2021 Only)
  11. Heaven and Hell (Live, Hammersmith, 2021 Only)

Writing Credits

  • All songs written & arranged by Ronnie James Dio / Tony Iommi / Bill Ward / Geezer Butler
  • Lyrics by Ronnie James Dio

Credits

  • Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
  • Tony Iommi – Guitar
  • Geezer Butler – Bass
  • Bill Ward – Drums
  • Geoff Nicholls – Keyboards
  • Produced & Engineered by Martin Birch
  • Asst Engineer: Joe “C” Foglia
  • Recorded at Criteria Recording Studios, Miami FL
  • Addtl Recording at Studio Ferber, Paris France
  • Cover at by Lynn Curlee (titled “Smoking Angels”)
  • Back Cover Illustration by Harry Carmean
  • Original Art Direction by Richard Seireeni
  • 1996 Remaster by Ray Staff @ Whitfield Studios
  • 1996 Design, booklet notes, and art direction by Hugh Gilmour
  • 2008 Remaster by Dan Hersch @ Digiprep
  • 2008 Project Supervision: Mason Williams
  • 2008 Project Manager: Liz Erman
  • 2008 Art Direction: Masaki Koike
  • 2008 Original Art by Lynn Curlee (titled “Cardinals”)
  • 2010 Remaster by Andy Pearce
  • 2010 Project Coordinator: Steve Hammonds
  • 2010 Project Management: Jon Richards
  • 2010 Art Direction & Design: Hugh Gilmour
  • 2021 Remaster by Andy Pearce & Matt Wortham
  • 2021 Project Manager: Liuba Shapiro Ruiz
  • 2021 Release Coordinator: Hugh Gilmour

Catalogue Numbers

  • LP Warner Bros XBS-3372 (CAN 1980)
  • CASS Warner Bros M5-3372 (US 1980)
  • LP Warner Bros BSK-3372 (US 1980)
  • CASS Vertigo 7131-003 (FRA 1980)
  • LP Vertigo 6302-017 (EUR 1980)
  • LP Nippon RJ-7672 (JPN 1980)
  • LP Vertigo 6302-017 (S AM 1980)
  • LP Vertigo 9102-752 (UK 1980)
  • CD Warner Bros W2-3372 (US 1987)
  • CD Vertigo 830-171-2 (GER 1987)
  • LP Santa П94-RAT-30852 (RUS 1994)
  • CD Essential ESMCD330 (UK 1996)
  • LP Earmark 41041P (IT 1996 – Picture Disc)
  • CD Sanctuary SMRCD072 (UK 2004)
  • CD Rhino R2-460156-A (US 2008 – Rules of Hell)
  • CD Rhino R2-515958 (US 2008 – Individual)
  • LP Rhino R1-3372 (US 2009)
  • CD Universal 2735073 (UK 2010 – Deluxe)
  • CD Universal UICY-94472/3 (JPN 2010)
  • CD Universal UICY-25126 (JPN 2011)
  • LP Rhino R1-599498 (US 2021)
  • CD Rhino R2-599498 (US 2021)

Notes

  • For the longest time, I had the release date of this album as 25 Apr 1980.  However, an old advertisement has recently come to light which shows the release date as a week before at 18 Apr 1980 (which was a Friday).  This is a European date, and as 25 Apr was a Friday, and albums weren’t released in the states on Fridays at that time, that was unlikely to be the US date either.  There is an image for this in the images section below. Tkx Mitch Lafon.
  • There are music videos for Neon Knights and Die Young. However, they’re just staged live footage with overdubbed music; they’re not conceptual.
  • The bass line for Heaven & Hell was written by Geoff Nicholls.
  • The Bass player position on this album has a tortured history.  Right after Dio joined, Geezer left, and both Geoff Nicholls & Craig Gruber worked on bass (mostly Gruber from what I can tell) up until the point it was time to record the album.  When Geezer returned, Gruber was gone, and Nicholls switched to just keyboards.
  • Craig Gruber claims to have written “Die Young” while he was still part of the band Rainbow, and “brought the song with him” when he was asked to join.
  • All the songs but one were written before Geezer returned – the only song that Geezer actually had a hand in writing was Neon Knights, which was the final song recorded.
  • The song Children of the Sea was written in the earliest days of the project when Ozzy was still involved.  Both Geezer & Tony have said in interviews, they have tapes of Ozzy singing Children of the Sea (with different lyrics and vocal melodies).  That version has never surfaced.
  • The cover art is actually a painting done by artist Lynn Curlee called “Smoking Angels”, and was not specifically commissioned for the Heaven & Hell album.   In December of 2008, I published an interview with Mr. Curlee about Smoking Angels.  You can read it here.

Links

Images

  • This is an advert from a magazine from Apr 1980 showing the release date of the album to be 18 Apr 1980, not 25 Apr 1980.

  • The following is the original, uncropped version of Lynn Curlee’s “Smoking Angels” artwork.

  • This is the cover art and the back cover images for the 2010 “Deluxe Edition” CD release.

  • The following is the original back cover of the vinyl release (minus the copyright stuff all the way at the bottom).  This particular image though is a scan from the 1996 Castle Remaster booklet, as I don’t have the true original vinyl to make a scan of.

  • The following images are back cover scans of the original 80’s US Warner Bros release, the 1996 Castle release, & the 2008 Rhino release.

  • The following is a picture of one of the old style CD “longboxes” from the US in the 1980’s/early 90’s.

  • Here are some scans of the original 1980 Warner Bros cassette tape release in the US.

  • There’s this oddball released in the US in the 80’s.  It’s from Warner Bros, and has both Heaven & Hell plus Paranoid on the same pre-recorded cassette tape.

  • This is the sticker that was on the front cover of the 2021 re-release of Heaven and Hell.

  • These are the spines of the 2021 re-releases of Mob Rules and Heaven and Hell. Oddly enough the Mob Rules album uses the same font as the front cover of the Heaven and Hell album.  The front from the front cover of the Mob Rules album would be fairly unreadable there, so I get it.  It just looks odd to see the Heaven and Hell font on the Mob Rules artwork like that.

  • Here is an image of the back side of the 2021 Deluxe Edition release..

Video


Neon Knights

Oh no, here it comes again
Can’t remember when we came so close to love before
Hold on, good things never last
Nothing’s in the past, it always seems to come again
Again and again and again

Cry out to legions of the brave
Time again to save us from the jackals of the street
Ride out, protectors of the realm
Capatin’s at the helm, sail across the sea of lights

Circles and rings, dragons and kings
Weaving a charm and a spell
Blessed by the night, holy and bright
Called by the toll of the bell

Bloodied angels fast descending
Moving on a never-bending light
Phantom figures free forever
Out of shadows, shining ever-bright

Neon Knights!
Neon Knights! all right!

Cry out to legions of the brave
Time again to save us from the jackals of the street
Ride out, protectors of the realm
Capatin’s at the helm, sail across the sea of lights
Again and again, again and again and again

Neon Knights!
Neon Knights!
All right!

 

Children of the Sea

In the misty morning, on the edge of time
We’ve lost the rising sun, a final sign
As the misty morning rolls away to die
Reaching for the stars, we blind the sky

We sailed across the air before we learned to fly
We thought that it could never end
We’d glide above the ground before we learned to run, run
Now it seems our world has come undone

Oh they say that it’s over
And it just had to be
Ooh they say that it’s over
We’re lost children of the sea, oh

We made the mountains shake with laughter as we played
Hiding in our corner of the world
Then we did the demon dance and rushed to nevermore
Threw away the key and locked the door

Oh they say that it’s over, yeah
And it just had to be
Yes they say that it’s over
We’re lost children of the sea

In the misty morning, on the edge of time
We’ve lost the rising sun, a final sign
As the misty morning rolls away to die
Reaching for the stars, we blind the sky

Oh they say that it’s over, yeah
And it just had to be
Oh they say that it’s over
Poor lost children of the sea, yeah

LOOK OUT! The sky is falling down!
LOOK OUT! The world is spinning round and round and round!
LOOK OUT! The sun is going black, black
LOOK OUT! It’s never never never coming back, LOOK OUT!

 

Lady Evil

There’s a place just south of Witches’ Valley
Where they say the wind won’t blow
And they only speak in whispers of her name
There’s a lady they say who feeds the darkness
It eats right from her hand
With a crying shout she’ll search you out
And freeze you where you stand

Lady Evil, evil
She’s a magical, mystical woman
Lady Evil, evil in my mind
She’s queen of the night
All right!

In a place just south of Witches’ Valley
Where they say the rain won’t fall
Thunder cracks the sky, it makes you bleed, yeah
There’s a lady they say who needs the darkness
She can’t face the light
With an awful shout, she’ll find you out
And have you for the night

Lady Evil, evil
She’s a magical, mystical woman
Lady Evil, evil on my mind
She’s queen of the night

So if you ever get to Witches’ Valley
Don’t dream or close your eyes
And never trust your shadow in the dark
‘Cause there’s a lady I know who takes your vision
And turns it all around
The things you see are what to be, lost and never found

Lady Evil, evil
She’s a magical, mystical woman
Lady Evil, evil on my mind
She’s queen of the night

She’s the queen of sin
Look out, she’ll pull you in!
Lady wonder!

 

Heaven & Hell

Sing me a song, you’re a singer
Do me a wrong, you’re a bringer of evil
The Devil is never a maker
The less that you give, you’re a taker
So it’s on and on and on, it’s Heaven and Hell, oh well

The lover of life’s not a sinner
The ending is just a beginner
The closer you get to the meaning
The sooner you’ll know that you’re dreaming
So it’s on and on and on, oh it’s on and on and on
It goes on and on and on, Heaven and Hell
I can tell, fool, fool!

Well if it seems to be real, it’s illusion
For every moment of truth, there’s confusion in life
Love can be seen as the answer, but nobody bleeds for the dancer
And it’s on and on, on and on and on….

They say that life’s a carousel
Spinning fast, you’ve got to ride it well
The world is full of Kings and Queens
Who blind your eyes and steal your dreams
It’s Heaven and Hell, oh well
And they’ll tell you black is really white
The moon is just the sun at night
And when you walk in golden halls
You get to keep the gold that falls
It’s Heaven and Hell, oh no!
Fool, fool!
You’ve got to bleed for the dancer!
Fool, fool!
Look for the answer!
Fool, fool, fool!

 

Wishing Well

Throw me a penny and I’ll make you a dream
You find that life’s not always what it seems, no no
Then think of a rainbow and I’ll make it come real
Roll me, I’m a never ending wheel

I’ll give you a star
So you know just where you are
Don’t you know that I might be
Your wishing well
Your wishing well

Look in the water, tell me what do you see
Reflections of the love you give to me
Love isn’t money, it’s not something you buy
So let me fill myself with tears you cry, why?

Time is a never ending journey
Love is a never ending smile
Give me a sign to build a dream on
Dream on…

Yeah, Throw me a penny and I’ll make you a dream
You find that life’s not always what it seems, no no
Love isn’t money, it’s not something you buy
So let me fill myself with tears you cry

I’ll give you a star
So you know just where you are
Someday, some way, you’ll feel the things I say
Dream for a while
Of the things that make you smile
‘Cause you know
Don’t you know
Oh, you know
That I’m your wishing well
Your wishing well
Your wishing well
I wish you well
I’m your wishing well

 

Die Young

Yell with the wind, though the wind won’t help you fly at all
Your back’s to the wall
Chain the sun, and it tears away and it breaks you as you run
You run, you run!
Behind the smile, there’s danger and a promise to be told:
You’ll never get old – ha!
Life’s fantasy – to be locked away and still to think you’re free you’re free, you’re free!

So live for today
Tomorrow never comes

Die young, die young
Can’t you see the writing in the air?
Die young, gonna die young
Someone stopped the fall

Yell with the wind, though the wind won’t help you fly at all
Your back’s to the wall
Chain the sun, and it tears away and it breaks you as you run
You run, you run!

So live for today
Tomorrow never comes

Die young, young!
Die young, die young!
Die young, die young, young!
Die young, die young, die young, die young, die young!!

 

Walk Away

Lord she’s handsome as she flows across the floor
Nothing I’ve seen in my life has ever pleased me more
She’s got the look of freedom, and it makes you think she’s wild
But I can see right through it all, it’s the way to have a child

Oh, walk away
She’s looking to love you
There’s nothing to say
Just turn your head and walk away
Walk away, walk on

She moves in sunlight, never seen the night at all
Like a star in the midnight sky, burns before it falls
I’ve never been lonely, and I can’t imagine why
Maybe she could be the one to tell me, I guess it’s do or die

Can’t see her fire
But I can feel her heat, all right!
It’s rising higher
I’m walking the wire

Walk on by!

Oh! Walk away!
She’s looking to love you
There’s nothing to say
Just turn your head and walk away
Oh, walk on by, walk away!
Walk on!

You’ll feel her fire, she’ll lift you higher
But don’t be fooled! just turn your head and walk away!

 

Lonely is the Word

It’s a long way to nowhere
And I’m leaving very soon
On the way we pass so close
To the back side of the moon
Hey join the traveler if you got nowhere to go
Hang your head and take my hand
It’s the only road I know

Oh! Lonely is the word, yeah yeah yeah!

I’ve been higher than stardust
I’ve been seen upon the sun
I used to count in millions then
But now I only count in one
Come on, join the traveler
If you got nowhere to go
Hang your head and take my hand
It’s the only road I know

Yeah, Lonely is the word
Got to be the saddest song I ever heard

Yeah, Lonely is the name
Maybe life’s a losing game

Comments

  1. Chris Tatton says

    I’m sure every Black Sabbath fan will agree with me when I say that this has to be one of Sabbath’s finest albums. All songs are absolutely brilliant.

    • What’s amazing is that they could produce this strong an album right around the time they were producing (let’s be fair) not their best work (Technical Ecstasy & Never Say Die). Dio certainly breathed new life into the band, that’s for sure.

      • Brian Fowler says

        And, too be fair to Ozzy, Blizzard of Oz did the same for him. As much as I love the original Sabs, breaking up was a great thing for both sides, and for fans.

        • A perfect album except Walk Away,, which is one of the worst songs they ever did, and is an absolute misuse of the talents of the entire band. I wish Geezer had come up with just one poem and then they’d done a new song around that. Either that or take whatever poem Ozzy originally wrote for Children Of The Sea and redo the instrumentation entirely. These guitar solos, are probably the best solos Tony has done on a Sabbath album, along with the solos from the first Sabbath record. I like the other album titled Heaven And Hell better (2009), but only because there are more songs, and it would be the same with Dehumizer if there weren’t SO MANY REPEATED OLD RIFFS on that record. Notice they never played Walk Away or Wishing Well live? With Walk Away I understand, because, let’s face it, every other song on here is better, but Wishing Well is a wonderful piece. I think Devil You Know would have been a better album if Follow The Tears had been more bright and melodic like this record. I do wonder if the whole thing about the stolen songs and parts about this album that is written here is true. Because as far as I can tell, there’s no proof of that. But yeah they initial breakup was great, because Sabbath got a better singer and Ozzy got a better guitar player, and we got this album, Blizzard Of Ozz, Mob Rules, and Diary Of A Madman out of the whole thing. But it didn’t last long, because just after 2 albums each, Randy Rhoads died and Dio and Vinny quit. Thankfully Dio and Vinny went back, twice. Not so fortunate for Randy Rhoads. A lot of the singing on Bark At The Moon is so off because Ozzy was choked up with tears the whole time, he really should have taken a break. That and the guitar tone of that album is way too thin. It’s a good album, maybe very good, but not great. Thankfully in 83 we got Born Again and Holy Diver though after the disillusionment of the whole thing….. It’s hard for me not to think of Dio’s band when he has Vinny as Black Sabbath though, especially with what happened after Born Again and Cross Purposes…… but that’s another story.

  2. vito monteiro says

    i agree with him. this album i love too! the cover art and the songs…. my god! top of the tops album! the powerful voice of mr dio, their slight change in sound. modern at the time fitting dios vocals. I love it! true work of art in my opinion.

  3. Jay Demetrick says

    The studio tracks with live footage promo vids for Neon Knights and Die Young.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhe1SuBGkiA

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frtJQFe9apw

  4. Kevin Peterson says

    I love the lyrics. They’re dark but still has a message that is very positive. For example the title track is maybe the heaviest song here but it’s about comparing the ups and downs of life and the final verse tells you to live life to the fullest. Certainly one of my favorite albums. RIP Dio.

  5. I love this album. Children Of The Sea is amazing. Heaven And Hell… Y’know what? screw going through each track, this album is one of the best sabbath albums and best albums of all time. Dio is in top shape, Tony sounds refreshed, Geezer is amazing (as always), and Bill – I don’t believe he plays on this album. The drumming is too safe to be Bill. I do think he plays on the song heaven and hell, but other than that, I don’t believe that it’s him on this album. Other than that, I think it’s a masterpiece. The band’s first since sabotage.

  6. Daniel Boulanger says

    You’re right guys this album is one of the best, whit paranoid and sabbath bloody sabbath. RIP Ronnie

  7. Yugoslavian (PGP RTB – 2220377) release have different artwork:
    http://www.discogs.com/Black-Sabbath-Heaven-And-Hell/release/3647314

  8. there’s a strange difference between Die Young lyrics among several lyrics sites. in particular, it touches on the lines

    “Yell with the wind, though the wind won’t help you fly at all”
    “Gather the wind, though the wind won’t help you fly at all”

    “Chain the sun, and it tears away and it breaks you as you run”
    “Chain the sun and it turns away to face you as you run”

    “Can’t you see the writing on the wall?”
    “Can’t you see the writing in the air?”

    “Someone stopped the fall”
    “Someone stopped the fair”

    while trying to hear which version sounds closer to the actual Ronnie’s singing, I can say that in some way both of them may be considered right. i’m very interested in native speakers’ opinion on this matter, since i’m not the one. thanks

  9. I first got into Black Sabbath’s Heaven and Hell album twenty years ago in the late spring of 1995. I was very impressed with Children of the Sea, the title track, Die Young, and Loney Is The Word. However, I think the entire album is a masterpiece! I remember being awestruck when I first heard Die Young. Its so powerful! I’m glad I had the honor of hearing Heaven and Hell songs live when I saw Heaven and Hell twice and I’m so glad the Dio era got the attention it deserves.

  10. Steve Armourae says

    Tony’s autobiography says they recorded a version of Children of the Sea that’s ‘very different’ to the Dio version, which is fantastic btw.
    Can someone with more influence ask Sabbath to retrieve and release this version please?

  11. The song Heaven and Hell was one of the first Sabbath songs I discovered – already being a Dio-fan at the time – and I learned later that the whole album was equally good. One of my favourite albums of all time – part from Walk Away – just amazing!

  12. Where are these songs sourced from?

    Disc 2
    1. Children of the Sea (Live, Single B-Side)
    2. Heaven & Hell (Live, Single B-Side)

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