In the summer of 1976, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward headed to Miami to record Technical Ecstasy at the famed Criteria Studios. The band was coming off a world tour for their previous album, Sabotage, that had found their live performances evolving to include keyboards and synthesizers. These newly incorporated instruments and sounds were then introduced into the recording process on Technical Ecstasy. The new songs encompassed a wide range of styles from the hard charging “Back Street Kids” and single ballad “It’s Alright”, to the funky “All Moving Parts (Stand Still)” and progressive rock “Gypsy”.
This Deluxe Edition presents a newly remastered version of the eight-track album, along with an entirely new mix of the album created by Steven Wilson using the original analogue tapes. It also includes eight previously unreleased outtakes and alternative mixes. Among those are different mixes of “You Won’t Change Me” and “Rock ’n’ Roll Doctor”, as well as both outtake and instrumental versions for “She’s Gone”.
The collection concludes with 10 previously unreleased live tracks recorded during the 1976–77 World Tour. The songs touch on different eras of the band’s history with early tracks like “Black Sabbath”, “War Pigs” (from Paranoid), “Symptom Of The Universe”, “Snowblind” and “Children Of The Grave” alongside new songs “Gypsy” and “Dirty Women.”
This deluxe box set comes with an extensive hardback book featuring artwork, liner notes, rare memorabilia and photos from the era, plus a replica of the 1976–77 world tour concert book and a large colour poster of the iconic Hipgnosis (Storm Thorgerson/Aubrey Powell/Peter Christopherson) image.