|
08-18 Sabbath unveil new 1970 live f
08-17 Black Sabbath's 1st Book
02-05 The original Black Sabbath ret
11-27 Tony Iommi Launches New Fragra
03-10 Dio's Sabbath unreleased song
» Edit Band Information
» Edit Albums
» Add a Review
» Add an Album
» Add News | Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward. After performing as the blues band Earth, they adopted the Black Sabbath name in 1969. Their combination of heavy guitar riffs, ominous atmosphere and dark lyrical themes helped establish the foundations of heavy metal.
Their debut album, Black Sabbath, appeared in February 1970, followed later that year by Paranoid, which included War Pigs, Iron Man and its title track. Master of Reality ...read more
Black Sabbath were an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward. After performing as the blues band Earth, they adopted the Black Sabbath name in 1969. Their combination of heavy guitar riffs, ominous atmosphere and dark lyrical themes helped establish the foundations of heavy metal.
Their debut album, Black Sabbath, appeared in February 1970, followed later that year by Paranoid, which included War Pigs, Iron Man and its title track. Master of Reality (1971) and Vol. 4 (1972) developed their heavy sound while introducing quieter contrasts, including acoustic instrumentals and ballads. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973) and Sabotage (1975) expanded their arrangements through keyboards, more elaborate structures and, on the latter, choral accompaniment. The original quartet recorded eight studio albums between 1970 and 1978.
Osbourne’s departure in 1979 began a new period with former Rainbow vocalist Ronnie James Dio. Heaven and Hell (1980) and Mob Rules (1981) established this lineup, with Vinny Appice replacing Ward on drums before the latter album. Subsequent changes brought Ian Gillan to Born Again (1983) and Glenn Hughes to Seventh Star (1986), which had originally been conceived as an Iommi solo project. Tony Martin made his debut on The Eternal Idol (1987) and sang on Headless Cross (1989), Tyr (1990), Cross Purposes (1994) and Forbidden (1995). Dio returned between these periods for Dehumanizer (1992).
The original lineup reunited in 1997, with their Birmingham performances documented on Reunion (1998). Iommi, Butler, Dio and Appice later renewed their partnership under the name Heaven & Hell, releasing The Devil You Know in 2009 before Dio’s death in 2010. Across Sabbath’s numerous personnel changes, Iommi remained the only member to appear on every studio album.
Osbourne, Iommi and Butler recorded Sabbath’s final studio album, 13 (2013), with Brad Wilk on drums. The band concluded The End tour in Birmingham in February 2017, then reunited with Ward for a final performance at the Back to the Beginning benefit concert at Villa Park on 5 July 2025. Osbourne died on 22 July, seventeen days after the original quartet’s farewell.
Black Sabbath’s music drew on blues, jazz and progressive rock alongside the weight and darkness that became their defining characteristics. Their arrangements accommodated improvisation, changes of tempo and quieter passages, while Butler’s lyrics addressed war, social conflict, religion and the supernatural. Their slower, more oppressive material became a fundamental influence on doom metal and subsequent generations of heavy bands.
Similar artists: Pentagram, Saint Vitus, Sleep and Electric Wizard.
Pentagram and Saint Vitus provide close comparisons through their ominous riffs and traditional doom sound. Sleep develops Sabbath’s emphasis on slow, expansive guitar passages, while Electric Wizard shares their downtuned heaviness and fascination with horror and the occult. These connections are particularly relevant to Sabbath’s early recordings, whose musical influence is central to all four bands. « hide |
Similar Bands: Saint Vitus, Candlemass, Pentagram, Heaven and Hell, Dio Contributors: nylonhair, OmairSh, BerryGarlicia, Hirsch, Anonymoose10, snakebite1480, forkliftjones, Oswaldo88, Mad., zaruyache, taylormemer, AleksiS, austin888, ThrashingWhiplash, RavenRock, Nagrarok, sabs93, IvanStarr, rockandmetaljunkie, Meatplow, Willie, Iai, Greggers, CrazyFool84, EFFYU, Azazel223, Eliminator, HenchmanOfSanta, Mikesn, Ephemeral, blekzebbed, thislifeissacrifice, Hewitt, Nexion, Alex101, pfc_mike, Thor, power_lutin, ogan, rockarollacola, ToSmokMuzyki, KManoc1, Matthias812, cor22222, tempest--, arcane, loeb, BMDrummer, Insurrection, BenMorrison, KILL, Nagrarok, MrSirLordGentleman, Achilles32094, taylormemer, KILL10, Deviant., rockandmetaljunkie, RavenRock, IvanStarr, StevenHyde, Mikesn,
|
