Apart from Paranoid, my first real exposure to Sabbath was H&H, with Neon Knights being the first track I heard.
My uncle who got me into rock and metal was a big Rainbow fan, so when H&H was released it was played to death, and as a 10 year old, I was a pure sponge.
Dio, and this album have always stuck with me. I admit that I have never really listened to much of pre-H&H Sabbath apart from the truly well known tracks.
Anyway, keeping DIO alive, it's time for Holy Diver. Sure, some Sabbath inspired tracks, but the guitar work is a lot more rock focused, and of course the keyboards lighten things a little.
Such a great 'debut' album, and another that never sounds old.
My favorite run of albums is Heaven and Hell, Mob Rules and Holy Diver. I like to look at artist's trilogies and those three albums are about as good as it gets.
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