Black Sabbath
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Black Sabbath is a British hard rock metal band from England. The group became one of the most famous classic heavy metal band together with Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Judas Priest.
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About
Heavy Metal band Black Sabbath was formed in 1969. Originally they were supposed to be a blues band and called themselves Polka Tulk. Subsequently renaming their band to Earth. William "Bill" Ward (drums), Anthony "Tony" Iommi (guitar), Terence "Geezer" Butler (bass) and John "Ozzy" Osbourne (vocals) started the band. They toured all over Europe. While on tour, they were mistaken for another band named as Earth as well so they decided to adopt the name Black Sabbath from a novel written by Dennis Wheatley. The name became famous and landed them a contract with Phillips Records. The following year, the Black Sabbath released their self-titled debut album which entered the U.K. Top 10 Charts. The album crossed over to the U.S. under Warner Bros and entered the Top 40 selling over millions of copies.
In 1970, Black Sabbath released their follow-up album, Paranoid. It went straight to #1 in the U.S Charts. The album stayed in the charts for a year selling four million copies. In 1971, Master Of Reality, reached the Top 10 charts and sold over a million of copies. In 1972, Black Sabbath, Vol. 4 was issued. In 1973, just as when Sabbath Bloody Sabbath was released, they put in an additional member of the band Rick Wakeman (keyboard). In 1975, they came back with a new album, Sabotage. In 1975, the We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll album was the cause of the disagreement between Osbourne and Iommi. He wanted to add horns in the band but Osbourne resisted. The following year, Technical Ecstasy embraced Iomi's suggestion. Osbourne's defeat led him to leaving the band but returned later for the 8th album titled, Never Say Die!. After the release of the album, Osbourne once again left to start his own solo career. He was replaced by Ronnie James Dio, vocalist of the band Rainbow.
In 1980, Heaven and Hell was a commercial success. During this time, Ward also left the band for health issues, Vinnie Appice took his place. Butler, Iomi, Appice and Dio recorded Mob Rules in 1981. The album reached the gold status. In 1983, Dio and Appice left Black Sabbath. The band convinced Ward to come back to Black Sabbath and recruited Ian Gillan vocalist of Deep Purple. The band was now composed f Ward, Gillan, Iommi and Butler. In 1983, Black Sabbath went on an extensive tour. Bev Bevan went with them as a subsitute for Ward. Born Again was released entering the Top Five Hit Chart in U.K and Top 40 in U.S. In 1984, Gillan was replaced by Dave Donato until October.
In 1985, the band reconciled with Osbourned for the Live Aid concert but Butler left Black Sabbath after the performance. In 1986, Seventh Star followed by The Eternal Idol the following year. The Eternal Idol was not success. In 1989, Headless Cross was released under I.R.S. Records. Drummer Cozy Powell and bassist Laurence Cottle joined the band. Iommi managed to reunite Butler, Dio and Appice for the 1992 album Dehumanizer. The Black Sabbath convinced Osbourne to join them for a final live appearance. It turns out, Osbourne announced that he was back with the band for good. Just befor the announcement was made, Appice and Dio left again replaced by Martin and added Bob Rondinelle as the new drummer. In 1994, Cross Purposes did good sales followed by Forbidden which featured Neil Murray, Geoff Nichols and Cozy Powell. In 1997, the original line-up of the band decided to record a reunion cd which was released in 1998.
Awards & Certifications
Awards
| Year | Award | Category |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Grammy Award | Nominated for Best Metal Performance for "The Wizard" |
| 2000 | Grammy Award | Best Metal Performance for "Iron Man" |
| 2000 | Grammy Award | Best Metal Performance for "Iron Man" |
Certifications
| Year | Album | Certification |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Black Sabbath (album) | Certified Platinum in U.S. |
| Certified Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1970 | Paranoid | Certified 4x Platinum in U.S. |
| Certified 5x Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1971 | Master Of Reality | Certified 2x Platinum in U.S. |
| Certified 3x Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1972 | Black Sabbath, Vol. 4 | Certified Platinum in U.S. |
| Certified 2x Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1973 | Sabbath Bloody Sabbath | Certified Platinum in U.S. |
| Certified 3x Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1975 | Sabotage | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| Certified Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1976 | Technical Ecstasy | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| Certified Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1978 | Never Say Die! | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| Certified Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1980 | Heaven And Hell | Certified Platinum in U.S. |
| Certified 3x Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1981 | Mob Rules | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| Certified Platinum in U.K. | ||
| 1983 | Born Again | Certified Platinum in U.K. |
| 1992 | Dehumanizer | Certified Gold in U.K. |
Chart Toppers
| Year | Title | U.S. Mainstream Rock | U.K. Singles Chart | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Paranoid | 61 | 4 | Paranoid |
| 1971 | Iron Man | 52 | Paranoid | |
| 1973 | Changes | 1 | Vol. 4 | |
| 1978 | Never Say Die! | 21 | Never Say Die! | |
| 1978 | A Hard Road | 33 | Never Say Die! | |
| 1980 | Neon Knights | 17 | 22 | Heaven And Hell |
| 1982 | Turn Up The Night | 24 | 37 | Mob Rules |
| 1992 | TV Crimes | 33 | Dehumanizer |
News
Tours & Concerts
No upcoming tours and concerts for this group.
Announcements
- The latest single "The Devil Cried" is now available on iTunes.
- Hear a Premiere Exclusive of the brand-new track, "Ear In The Wall" from the upcoming CD of Black Sabbath which will be released on www.mp3.com
Discography
Albums
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Singles
| Year | Single | Label | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Paranoid | Rhino | Paranoid |
| 1971 | Iron Man | Rhino | Paranoid |
| 1998 | Psycho Man | Epic | Reunion |
Compilations & Live Releases
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Cross Purposes Live
1995 |
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Other artists
Similar artists
Influences
Contemporaries
Trivia
- The group ranked no.85 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
- The tracks "Iron Man" and "War Pigs" are featured in the Playstation 2 games Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero II.
Reviews
The screams of the guitar solos, vocals conveying full anguish and unlimited resource of imagination makes the Black Sabbath father of heavy metal. They didn't follow tradition but instead they made a new trend of traditions to be followed developing rock and roll. They gave birth to a new style that continued for decades. --Mimi 02:15, 29 March 2007 (PST)
External Links
Categories: Artist | Rock | Pop
