Ozzy Osbourne "Necromandus", who had supported Black Sabbath in Birmingham when they were called "Earth", did backup for Osbourne in the studio and briefly became the first incarnation of his solo band. At the request of the other members, Osbourne rejoined Sabbath. The band spent five months at Sounds Interchange Studios in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, writing and recording what would become "Never Say Die!" "It took quite a long time", Iommi said. "We were getting really drugged out, doing a lot of dope. We'd go down to the sessions, and have to pack up because we were too stoned, we'd have to
Black Sabbath in tribute. While Ozzy Osbourne was working on new solo album material in 2006, Rhino Records released "", a compilation of songs culled from the four Black Sabbath releases featuring Ronnie James Dio. For the release, Iommi, Butler, Dio and Appice reunited to write and record three new songs as Black Sabbath. "The Dio Years" was released on 3 April 2007, reaching number 54 on the "Billboard" 200, while the single "The Devil Cried" reached number 37 on the "Mainstream Rock Tracks" chart. Pleased with the results, Iommi and Dio decided to reunite the Dio era line-up for a world