Premium Vinyl Series Revisits Two Influential Hard Rock Staples
Limited Edition Reissues Of Black Sabbath’s Paranoid and Alice Cooper’s Love It To Death Out Now
High-End Remastering Of Essential Albums
Available Exclusively At Rhino.com
(March 14, 2025 - Los Angeles, CA) Rhino High Fidelity (Rhino Hi-Fi) ignites its series of acclaimed limited-edition, high-end vinyl reissues by recharging two essential hard rock epics.
New Rhino Hi-Fi versions of Black Sabbath’s massively influential sophomore LP, Paranoid, and Alice Cooper’s seminal third full-length offering, Love It To Death, arrive today, exclusively at Rhino.com and internationally at select WMG stores. Both are available as 1LP pressed on 180-gram black vinyl. Each release is limited to only 5,000 individually numbered copies priced at $39.98. Order HERE.
Black Sabbath forever cemented the template for heavy metal as we know it on their second full-length record, Paranoid. They first unleashed the album on September 18, 1970—a mere eight months after the release of their self-titled debut, Black Sabbath. Powered by “War Pigs,” “Iron Man,” “Planet Caravan,” and the title track “Paranoid,” it peaked at #1 on the UK Albums Chart, eventually achieved a 4x-Platinum certification from the RIAA, becoming the band’s best-selling LP in the process. Rolling Stone placed at #1 on its “100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time” and touted it among “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.” Among other accolades, Guitar World christened it one of “The 50 Greatest Guitar Albums of All Time,” and Pitchfork granted it a rare 9.5 score, going on to profess, “These eight songs have become scripture because they are breathless explorations of possibilities, unfettered by expectations or half a century of heavy metal history. Paranoid, after all, captures Black Sabbath at a moment when the future must have seemed suddenly tantalizing and limitless.”
Speaking to its continued relevancy, “Paranoid” has also amassed over 1.2 billion streams on Spotify, enshrining it as one of the most-streamed rock songs ever.
Paranoid engineer Tom Allom spoke to Hugh Gilmour for the new liner notes. He recalled the sessions' lightning speed over just two days at Regent Sound and Island in London. The quartet—Ozzy Osbourne [vocals], Tony Iommi [guitar, flute], Geezer Butler [bass], and Bill Ward [drums, congas]—notably recorded live, conjuring magic by playing at the same time. “I think the guitar was the loudest thing I ever heard in my life,” grins Allom. “I think he had two 4 x 12s in that room at Regent. God, it was loud. Absolutely deafening, I’m surprised he could hear the drums.”
Moreover, the engineer spotlights some of the most recognizable signatures of the record, such as Ozzy’s vocal echoes on “Iron Man” and “Planet Caravan.” Alllom continues, “That was his vocal through a thing called a ring modulator. It adds frequencies into what you have recorded, and you can distort it to how that vocal sounds. It was an old device that they used to use on Dr. Who, and things like that, to create the Dalek voices, and all that stuff. It was one of those gizmos that was around at the time that you could use to feed your recording into, and it would.”
Rising up out of Motor City, Alice Cooper broke into the mainstream on their own terms with Love It To Death. The record made waves after landing on March 9, 1971. It received a Platinum certification from the RIAA fueled by staples such as “Caught In A Dream,” “Sun Arise,” and “I’m Eighteen.” Rolling Stone named it one of “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,” and Classic Rock graded it 4.5-out-of-5 stars, proceeding to proclaim, “Irrefutably progressive yet seductively steeped in garage swagger, this is the Alice album that most appreciates with age.”
Not to mention, “I’m Eighteen” has generated 52 million Spotify streams and inspired a cover by Anthrax, while Sonic Youth famously cut their own renditions of “Hallowed Be My Name” and “Is It My Body.” As a whole, Love It To Death showcased the musicians—Alice Cooper [vocals, harmonica], Glen Buxton [lead guitar], Michael Bruce [rhythm guitar, keys], Dennis Dunaway [bass], and Neal Smith [drums]—firing on all cylinders.
The accompanying new liner notes feature a conversation between album co-producer Bob Ezrin and Jaan Uhelszki. The producer recounts the sessions, working on the songs with the band and shaping the vision of what became a key creative milestone. It also established the foundation for a longstanding relationship between Alice Cooper and Ezrin in addition to marking his first proper production gig as co-producer alongside Jack Richardson.
Ultimately, immense passion for Alice Cooper’s music underscored Ezrin’s approach. He notes, “I went in as a fan. I’d seen them and loved them, so I went in wanting that feeling but knowing we’d have to get it without any other people in the room. The people who were going to be listening to this record would be listening by themselves, usually in their bedroom. So that means it’s a very special job, to re-create the excitement of their show just by the songs and the sound of the record.”
Alice Cooper left quite the imprint on Ezrin as well, “They changed me by giving me confidence,” he admits. “I’ve always been really confident and a little bit brash. But underneath it all is a healthy level of anxiety. By us succeeding together at such an early point, they helped me to believe in myself in a big way, because they believed in me.”
Black Sabbath – Paranoid Tracklisting:
Side 1
- War Pigs / Luke’s Wall
- Paranoid
- Planet Caravan
- Iron Man
Side 2
- Electric Funeral
- Hand of Doom
- Rat Salad
- Jack the Stripper / Fairies Wear Boots
Alice Cooper – Love It to Death Tracklisting:
Side 1
- Caught in a Dream
- I’m Eighteen
- Long Way to Go
- Black Juju
Side 2
- Is It My Body
- Hallowed Be My Name
- Second Coming
- Ballad of Dwight Fry
- Sun Arise
About Rhino High Fidelity
Rhino High Fidelity has set the industry standard for sound quality and packaging, demonstrating Rhino's 45-year legacy of award-winning audio releases. To ensure an unmatched listening experience, Kevin Gray expertly cuts lacquers and Optimal handles the 180-gram vinyl pressing. The attention to detail extends to the aesthetic experience, with glossy covers and "tip-on" jackets reminiscent of vinyl’s golden age.
Rhino High Fidelity will continue to tap into Warner Music’s extensive music catalog, bringing music enthusiasts and audiophiles superlative versions of landmark albums from diverse genres, including jazz, blues, rock, pop, and beyond. The series will introduce two classic albums quarterly, maintaining the same exceptional audio and packaging quality that has quickly defined Rhino High Fidelity.
