Gonna enjoy all of the free comments from people mad that I said Tommy instead of Tony Also let’s use our brains here… I used an image of Tony during that part of the video… what do you think I had to type into Google to get that picture…
@@MetalTrenchesI once told ventor that I loved his number of the beast song (cover tune) so much that it's the one I post the most because people don't know they covered it and he blocked me . Shit happens..we were talking about Drummers before that
Even though it doesn't say "Black Sabbath" on the cover, I wish you had included that last Dio album, Heaven and Hell. I love that record, and "Bible Black" is one of my favorite Sab tunes.
I think "Headless Cross" is a great album with fantastic vocals, riffs and melodies. But I think people are just biased to it because it doesn't include Dio or Ozzy.
Born Again (the song) just sounds haunting. I hear the song of a once-powerful being, long forgotten and dormant, ready to return and bring chaos anew to the world. In theme, it almost sounds like something Dio would have done, circa Strange Highways.
I still remember buying Sabatoge at Best Buy without hearing a single track from that album, and I was just blown away. In my opinion, it's on the perfection tier.
This was really enjoyable. I agree with you on everything, except Sabotage. I love that album. It`s so raw and a refreshing break from the albums earlier :)
Im someone who loves the born again album, but if you don't like it, no hate. I still love your videos, you introduced me into quite a few bands and albums. Black Sabbath is my 2nd favorite band of all time and The End tour was my first metal concert i ever went to. I think all five eras of the band has something to offer, though its a hard pick between their first 6 with Ozzy and their 4 Dio albums ( yes, im including The Devil You Know with the Heaven and Hell name, dont care what Sharon Osbourne thinks)
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath was the very first metal album I ever owned. My mom bought it for me cause I thought the cover looked cool, having no clue what the music was. So that album obviously holds a very special place in my heart 🤘
20. 13 - Bad, genuinely sounds uninspired and almost like a bad parody of the classic albums 19. Forbidden - Mediocre, not as bad as it is generally said to be but still not good. The remasters did improve it which is why it's not considered bad. 18. Never Say Die! - Mediocre, a couple of good songs in Johnny Blade, and Junior's Eyes but otherwise just kind of lacking in energy. 17. Technical Ecstasy - Good, lacking still but more coherent as an idea than Never Say Die. 16. Dehumanizer - Good, this isn't even my most controversial opinion but this easily the most lacking of the Dio albums. Feels kind of thrown together in parts. 15. Vol. 4 - Good, this however is. Note that I'm not saying it's bad but both the production and the songwriting are rather weak in my opinion. 14. Cross Purposes - Good, the remaster definitely jumped this up a few places but still not really the best, some of the songwriting is clunky and I think Tony's higher end was already starting to go. 13. Seventh Star - Great, despite what a lot of people claim, this was absolutely supposed to be a Black Sabbath album between Iommi buying the rights to keep them away from Ozzy, and more importantly, Sharon and the fact the original choice of vocalist, Jeff Fenholt, has gone on record to say that it was already being called Black Sabbath when he was there. That aside, the songwriting is pretty good and the only reason it's this low is that I think all the other albums have higher peaks. 12. Born Again - Great, the main thing keeping this album down is the fact that Ian's voice was starting to die around this time and at some parts it really doesn't sound good at all. Otherwise, the songwriting is strong and some of riffs are downright villainous. 11. Paranoid - Great, see this is what happens when songs are overplayed, familiarity breeds contempt. Also Planet Caravan has just never clicked for me. That said, however, there is a reason why those songs are overplayed. 10. The Devil You Know - Great, a Dio-era Sabbath in all but name, The Devil You Know is what Dehumanizer should have been, great songwriting from start to finish just not as appealing to me as some other albums. 9. Black Sabbath - Great, an album of peaks and troughs with the eponymous song, The Wizard, N.I.B., and Evil Woman truly excellent songs while rest are just fine, certainly not bad by any means but just nowhere near as good. 8. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - Great, this admittedly was a bit of an acquired taste for me as for the longest time I couldn't get into this album as it always felt a bit, I don't know, pretentious. I still don't really like A National Acrobat but I certainly like the rest. 7. The Eternal Idol - Great, admittedly carried by how much I love The Shining and Glory Ride, there's not a single dud on this album. 6. Mob Rules - Excellent, to be honest I've only recently listened to this album in full as it always seemed a bit hidden but maybe that's just my experience. Even so, this is truly excellent no song dropping below great but I just don't like it as much as the rest of these albums. 5. Sabotage - Excellent, sometimes it feels like this album gets forgotten, even by the obnoxious 'Ozzy or nothin' man' types which is a shame as it truly is an excellent album, though it is carried here from about 8th by Symptom of the Universe and Megalomania. 4. Headless Cross - Excellent, my favourite subgenre of metal is power metal as such this album, and the only other Martin album, get carried by this fact as most of the songs could very easily be argued as being power metal. Not a dud here either. 3. Master of Reality - Perfect, easily the best of the Ozzy albums with crushing stoner riffs from beginning to end. However, I don't really like Ozzy as a person and think his voice is the weakest of any Sabbath vocalist as such, it goes in third. 2. Heaven and Hell - Perfect, frankly, I fully expect to be lynched for not having this or Master of Reality at number 1 but frankly, it's my list, and I find it really funny how angry people get over opinions about music. The reason that's it's not number 1 is because it doesn't have Anno Mundi on it. 1. Tyr - Perfect, this however does have Anno Mundi on it, and frankly every song on here is amazing. By all means, get irrationally angry if you wish but you're not going to change my opinion.
Great list. I’m a bit shocked that as a TM fan you still have Forbidden so low given the recent remix. Ditch illusion of power, and with the fantastic bonus track and masterclass remix duties thrown in it’s nearly on level with cross purposes IMO. I had never even heard this album until the recent re-releases and wasn’t expecting much from forbidden, but was happily blown away by it. Had it on repeat in the car for weeks.
Great list, man. I agree with almost everything except for the Sabotage, Vol. 4 and Dehumanzier ranking. I'd bump those up to fantastic. In general, I think these are the 10 perfect albums for me personally: First 6, all 3 Dio albums and 13. Those I listen to all the time.🤘🏻
S - Dehumanizer, Mob Rules, Heaven and Hell, Paranoid, Master of Reality A - Headless Cross, Tyr, Sabotage, Vol. 4, Black Sabbath, Born Again B - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, The Devil You Know, Cross Purposes, The Eternal Idol C - Never Say Die, Forbidden, Seventh Star D - 13, Technical Ecstasy
I literally grew up listening to Black Sabbath in the 70’s and 80’s , they are my Favorite Band and I found your list to be interesting, like I already said in the comments the First 6 and Heaven and Hell are all Perfect to me, I also loved Mob Rules and 13
They had a great song called 'Psycho Man' from when they reunited with Ozzy in the late 90s - always wonder a late 90s reunion studio album would've been.
This is an interesting list. Basically, follows my rankings +1 or -1 on each space depending on the album (still love MOR and the S/T much more than 'Paranoid'. I was really surprised you rated 'Technical Ecstasy' as high as you did but it got me thinking because when I was younger, I hated the album. I came back to it about 7 years ago when Warner released the complete sessions as a like $65 dollar quadruple CD pack and...it was much better than I remembered. Agreed on the 'Mob Rules' containing some of Dio's best performances. *My favorite Sabbath album is probably still going to be (the very controversial) 'Never Say Die' mainly because of "Johnny Blade" and how badass that number is.* I even bought Levi jacket of it some years back for some unGodly some of money. Good list.
I spent years listening to the early Sabbath albums because of parental influences .. really great stuff. But as I've got older, I actually think Headless Cross is their best album! Sick riffs, great vocals, consistent song themes. No fairies wearing boots, here.
From the mid-1990s until about, I don't know, five to ten years ago, I only ever listened to the first two albums and the comp We Sold Our Souls For Rock and Roll, so I'm relatively burned out on those albums/tracks (when I get burned out on music that I've overheard (as opposed to just getting sick of it), it just becomes background music that I have difficulty consciously listening to and my mind just wanders off to other concerns or other tasks--I don't know if that's just a me thing or if some aspect of ADHD or Aspergers (I haven't been diagnosed with either, btw, though I suspect the latter)), so when I finally got around to picking up the rest of the Ozzy years, it reignited my love for the band. Despite being burned out, I would still rank the first two albums as Perfection, there are just too many great moments. I would add Master of Reality to Perfection, with Sweet Leaf being a great song about dope that somehow is still really romantic if applied to a woman and Children of the Grave being one of their best anti-war anthems. I've probably listened to 4 the least, and looking at the track list, though I remember liking the album, I can't remember that many of the hooks off-hand, and that alone puts it at Great or maybe even good for me (I really need to put it on again, though). Sabbath Bloody Sabbath has more memorable songs for me, and I can remember hooks from every one of the tracks except Fluff, which is another of their typical instrumental interludes; I would rate it at Fantastic. Sabotage has really stuck with me the most, with the surprisingly romantic Symptom of the Universe ("The symptom of the universe is written in your eyes...the symptom of the universe a love that never dies"), the venomous The Writ (Your fallen phallic god dismembered and gone, a poisoned father with his poisonous son, that's you), the kick-ass opening track Hole in the Sky, and the epic Megalomania (Obsessed with fantasy, possessed with my schemes/I mixed reality with pseudo-God dreams/The ghost of violence was something I've seen/I sold my soul to be the human obscene) being the highlights (I even have a soft spot for Am I Going Insane, which others often consider the worst song from the first six albums and is more or less a preview of the next two albums); I would rate it in the Perfection tier. Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die! are Okay at best. Other than Live Evil, other live albums, and compilations, I haven't fully listened to any Sabbath album after this, but I'll say my usual bit about Dio since I've listened to the Dio Years compilation--I like his singing, I don't find his songwriting as compelling (his versions of early Sabbath songs on Live Evil are fantastic). Most of the songs I gravitate towards were written or co-written by Geezer, who wrote or co-wrote the lyrics for the bulk of the first eight albums; the Geezer/Dio songs still have the "downer rock" feel to them, while Dio's songs are more anthemic, closer to NWOBHM (e.g. Rainbow/Judas Priest/Motorhead/Iron Maiden) than the emerging black/doom/death metal that was emerging around the same time, which were clearly inspired by early Sabbath. Dio's songs are in no way bad, per se, they just don't sound like Sabbath songs to me, they sound like dress rehearsals for Holy Diver (for the record, I like Holy Diver, just not as much as I like early Sabbath).
While certainly not the best representation of Black Sabbath, Seventh Star-to me-is their most underrated album. I like it better than any of the albums that came after it. But then again, since I adore that one 1987 Whitesnake album, it makes sense why Seventh Star clicks with me.
Disappointed to see Sabotage getting placed so low, but other than that this list is peak, my top 10 would go: 1. Sabbath bloody sabbath 2. Sabotage 3. Paranoid 4. Master of reality 5. Vol. 4 6. Never say die 7. Technical ecstacy 8. Heaven amd hell 9. Black Sabbath 10. Mob rules
My thoughts, for whatever they are worth: -I like Born Again, but it's a flawed gem. Some songs are good, some are less good, and Ian's voice is... unique. The title track is actually my favorite. I'd like to hear a remastered version, like what Rush did with Vapor Trails, to see what could be done. -Seventh Star wasn't even supposed to be a Black Sabbath album. The label forced it on Tony. Kinda gets a pass for not sounding like Sabbath. In For the Kill is my fav. Tony and Glenn Hughes just recently released another album together, and it's pretty fun. -Tony Martin era: Good singer, but a sludgy band like Sabbath didn't have any favors done with slick 80s production. I'm just glad the Anno Domini box set put these back out there. -Heaven and Hell/The Devil You Know is a Sabbath album. Mob Rules lineup, dark heavy themes, just amazing. It draws from Dio's sound with his own band and the Dio Years new tracks, heavy and thunderous. It even has Henry on the packaging! I would have included it. -13 may have Ozzy but sound-wise it continues the heaviness of Devil You Know. It could be clearer but it is a good send-off. Could it also be remastered to get rid of the compression issues?
Didn't know there was a crossover project between Black Sabbath and The Who. Tommy was killing it back then. Also, I go back and forth on my favorite. My technical favorite is Master of Reality, but my personal favorite is Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. I remember seeing that album cover as a kid back in 2007 and was absolutely fascinated and terrified. Such a vibe of an album.
Well, I differ as far as how I value albums and bands to begin with. I am not as worried about the band sounding the same album to album and instead care more about some interesting tunes with some thought in the writing department and good production. I'm not into bands that repeat the same sound/ideas each album (example: AC/DC) and rather they be more creativity (example: Nevermore). I think there is something to be said for bands that strive to make each album its own thing. Perfection: Pretty much all songs but maybe one or two are listened to because I really want to. Pretty much the best albums. *Paranoid (1970) *Heaven and Hell (1980) *Master of Reality (1971) Fantastic: Pretty much more songs that are what I desire to relisten to over and over. One or two songs are holding them back or the overall songs sound a bit too the same, despite being good to my ears. *Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973) *Tyr (1990) *Headless Cross (1989) *Born Again (1983) Great: To me, down the middle as far as it goes. Half the albums songs are pretty good and look forward to replaying. Other half somewhat hold them down. *Black Sabbath (1970) *Sabotage (1975) *Never Say Die! (1978) *Cross Purposes (1994) Good: I tend to listen to a song or two. Some are good enough to go for. But overall, not into the whole thing. *Mob Rules (1981) *Vol. 4 (1972) *The End -ep- (2016) Okay: I mostly don't listen to these. Maybe two or three songs. All albums here suffer from "a bunch of the same" sounding stuff. They lack creativity. *The Eternal Idol (1987) *Dehumanizer (1992) *13 (2013) Bad: Music on these albums is stuff I don't listen to expect when I want to challenge myself. Maybe two okay songs. By far a hard sit. *Forbidden (1995) *Seventh Star (1986) *Technical Ecstasy (1976)
Great ranking! Off topic, but will you do a Carnifex ranking at some point please? Honestly such a consistent band, everything (except Graveside Confessions, which i actually haven't listened to in full yet) is perfect
@MetalTrenches ah well, that's understandable. Will you be able to do any sort of rankings for any Deathcore band's discography or will that also not be possible?
In my view, Sabotage is top two tiers, Vol 4 is god tier, Headless Cross is great tier….. and 13 a bit crap, but to each their own. 😊 I love Tyr but know it’s nothing special, so will keep that opinion to myself. Wow though, what a discography they have.
Nice ranking, I agree on most of what you said... I think especially Headless Cross is fare more than just "ok", and sorry, 13 was not great, at least ok...but these are just slight differences, I go along with most of what you said
Only thing I would disagree with you on is heaven and hell belonging in perfection. That's my hands down favorite but! I think you made great cases everywhere else good sir !
I find your statement saying that Headless Cross doesn't sound to Black Sabbath kinda weird since from all of the Tony Martin era is the most evil sounding one, I actually would rate it as perfection or at least fantastic! In fact, all of those Tony Martin records sound more Sabbath-y than Never Say Die or even Technical Ecstacy imo, even the infamous and hideous Forbidden.
Born Again as a whole is an average BS album, but the title track is up there with their greatest songs from Ozzy and Dio years for me. I feel like Gillan hitting these high notes fits very well in the Black Sabbath lore. Gives their music a new angle.
I love Sabotage (including the first proto-thrash riff in the Symptome of the Universe) and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. For me both albums are Sabbath at their creative peak. In my top three together with Paranoid which the definitive Black Sabbath album.
Whenever I listen to Sabbath Bloody Sabbath I just get super bummed after the first track because none of the rest live up to it because it's so amazing
Its not technically a Sabbath album, but Tony Iommi's DEP Sessions of 96 and Fused are basically sequels to Seventh Star cause they all share Glenn Hughes on vocals
I love Born Again. Easily my favorite Sabbath album that doesn't feature either Ozzy or Dio. But I guess it's kind of an acquired taste. It's a very polarizing one.
Nice list. I'm mostly in agreement. I had to see where Dehumanizer landed for you. It was one of the cassettes (Yes. I'm old) that I picked up during basic training in the Army when we were allowed to have music. It's been close to my heart as a helpful companion for many years. I is still a fantastic song to me.
I do not like post-Ozzy Sabbath. It's not that I think Ozzy is a great singer. Ozzy was technically the least skilled singer they ever had. I just don't like the music in post Ozzy Sabbath. Sabbath were trailblazers in the 70s. They became followers in the 80s. When I listen to Black Sabbath, I want to hear War Pigs, Children of the Grave, NIB, etc. Not interested in Sabbath that sounds 80s. Loved 13. I think it's one of the best comeback albums ever. Love how the songs are so long and not commercial sounding.
Black Sabbath are metal pioneers and I love the Ozzy and Dio eras and I even think the Tony Martin era is underrated. Aside from two albums, I think everything they’ve done ranges from decent to legendary. This would be my ranking: S - Paranoid, Master of Reality, Mob Rules A+ - Black Sabbath, Vol. 4, Sabotage, Heaven and Hell, Dehumanizer, 13 A - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Headless Cross, Tyr, Cross Purposes B - Technical Ecstasy, Born Again, The Eternal Idol C - Never Say Die! D - Seventh Star, Forbidden
I haven’t heard everything from them yet, but I love a lot of albums from them. Here’s my list so far: 14. Born Again - Bad. There are moments on this album that I enjoy. Some killer riffs and other cool guitar work, but it’s ruined for me whenever Gillan starts screaming his head off. I don’t hate the album, but I never listen to it willingly. 13. Never Say Die! - Okay. This album isn’t anywhere near as bad as many people say it is, but it’s definitely nothing special either. Very middle of the road, very forgettable. 12. Technical Ecstasy - Okay. Basically what I said about NSD, but at least this album has “You Won’t Change Me,” which I think is an awesome song, even if it doesn’t really sound like classic Sabbath. 11. Black Sabbath - Good. I’m going to burn for not having this ranked in my top 10, but I don’t get the obsession with this album. There are some good songs on it (mainly “The Wizard” and “NIB”), but it doesn’t have anything that makes me want to listen to it very often. And I’ve honestly never been a fan of the title track. I know, I know-blasphemy. But I’ve already accepted that I’ll burn for this opinion. 10. Sabotage - Good. A lot of great guitar work on this album. But I have a similar opinion of this as I do with Born Again: I don’t like shouty, over-the-top vocals, and they get in the way of my enjoyment of this album. My favorite song on it is “Supertzar” (the one where Ozzy shuts up for a few minutes). 9. Seventh Star - Good. I used to be afraid of having a unique opinion about the Sabbath albums. I thought I needed to enjoy the first 6 with Ozzy and the Dio albums above all else, and only after those could I rank their other albums. Well I stopped caring about that I can now proudly say that I like Seventh Star. I like it a lot, actually, but it’s not great. It’s very corny and 80s, but there’s some really cool stuff on here, like “In for the Kill,” “Seventh Star,” and “Danger Zone.” And I think Glenn Hughes does a great job vocally-much better than Gillan on the previous album. 8. Eternal Idol - Great. It’s like a Dio-lite album. A bit less heavy than the Dio Sabbath albums, but there are some great riffs here and man does Tony Martin sound cool on this album! He’s like a weird mix of Dio and Klaus Meine from Scorpions. This is the only Martin era album I’ve heard so far, but I’m excited to listen to more soon. 7. Dehumanizer - Great. It’s heavy, it’s powerful, it has more memorable material on it than anything since the Mob Rules album. My only issue with it is that a lot of the songs have a very similar slow, doomy tempo that makes them kind of blend together in my mind. I miss the variety from their earlier albums. But songs like “Master of Insanity,” “Sins of the Father,” and “I” quickly make me forget about that and I remember why I love the album. 6. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - Great. I love half of this album, don’t care too much for the other half. The title track, “A National Acrobat,” “Santa Cadabra,” and “Killing Yourself to Live” are some of my absolute favorite Sabbath songs. But the others I rarely listen to outside the context of the album, and “Fluff” is one I can’t sit through because it’s so boring. 5. Vol. 4 - Fantastic. It’s heavy, pretty melodic, somewhat proggy… Yup, I love this album. Aside from “Changes” and “FX” which I just can’t stand, this is just an incredible album. With songs like “Wheels of Confusion,” “Supernaut,” “Snowblind,” and “Under the Sun,” how could it not be amazing? 4. Mob Rules - Fantastic. We already know it’s great so I’m going to take some time to be a contrarian again: “Sign of the Southern Cross” is probably my least favorite song on the album because it feels like it’s building tension but ends up stagnating and going nowhere with it. “Turn Up the Night” is cool, but it’s a tryhard version of “Neon Knights,” and I don’t need the same song opening two albums in a row. “Country Girl” is my favorite song on the album, and “Over and Over” is a perfect album closer. Thanks for putting up with my opinions, please don’t kill me. 3. Paranoid - Perfect. It was my first Sabbath album so it will always be special to me. It’s just not quite as perfect as I used to think it was, especially since I’m burned out on most of the album at this point. 2. Master of Reality - Perfect. Now this is the ultimate Ozzy album for me. Super heavy, awesome riffing, great bass lines and tone, and some of my favorite vocals from Ozzy. Also I just find it hilarious whenever he ends a line with a powerful “Yeah!” and that is all over this album. 1. Heaven and Hell - Perfect. This is my favorite album of all time, so there was never really any chance that it wouldn’t be my favorite today. The lineup on this album is my favorite band lineup ever, maybe tied with Megadeth’s 90s lineup. I love every song on the album, even the ones that are maybe a bit pedestrian. It’s just a perfect album to my ears.
I liked The Seventh Star because it was only supposed to be a Tony Iommi solo project. And Headless Cross is just a great album, no matter what band name it is under. Tony Martin is a great vocalist. Edit: Bleeding the Priest makes Born Again an above standard album, but yes Ian Gillan did not work well with Sabbath.
The way that Led Zeppelin ended things when one of the key members died is something I kinda wish both Sabbath and Deep Purple learned from because I don't think all the lineup changes, inconsistency, and mediocre output did any favors for their legacies (with a few exceptions of course). However I'm so thankful that 13 ended Sabbath's career on a good note because it would be depressing if their 90's stuff was the last thing we got from them. If only they could play one last show with Bill Ward....
Seventh Star was supposed to be Tony's first solo album but Warner Brothers demanded one more Sabbath. That's the only reason it even counts. Which it kinda doesn't.
Black Sabbath losing their focus on sounding heavy and doomy was mainly Tony Iommi's fault. He wanted the band to sound more like Yes or Queen. That was the main reason Ozzy quit the band before he came back and then was fired anyway. People act like Iommi can do no wrong but his creative input is linked to a lot of their worst material. Also, I think Sabbath Bloody Sabbath was their creative apex.
"Heaven & Hell" The Devil You Know should have been included in this because let's be real, it's The Mob Rules lineup, and it's Black Sabbath in everything but name only, for the only reason that Sharon Osbourne was still alive
Gonna enjoy all of the free comments from people mad that I said Tommy instead of Tony
Also let’s use our brains here… I used an image of Tony during that part of the video… what do you think I had to type into Google to get that picture…
I once accidentally wrote his name as "Toni", invoking images of a jerry-curled hairdresser from 1984. 😅
TBH, I didn't even notice that mistake, just the slip of the tongue that Sabotage had a title track.
Don't forget accordion instead if harmonica!
dick move
"YoU dIdN't PrOnoUncE ToNi riGHt yOU'rE a PosER" - all of the mad commenters probably
You're gonna get torn up for saying 'Tommy' instead of 'Tony' Iommi.
At this point it’s becoming a troll
@@MetalTrenchesaccidents happen. Could've been worse
@@MetalTrenchesI once told ventor that I loved his number of the beast song (cover tune) so much that it's the one I post the most because people don't know they covered it and he blocked me . Shit happens..we were talking about Drummers before that
Wait until they he finds out it’s a harmonica on the wizard and not an accordion .
@@jamesh2859I thought surely I misheard that
The Tony Martin era except for Forbidden is criminally underrated. I love Headless Cross and Tyr especially.
me too...
agreed BUT it's getting reassessed again
the new remasters help a lot, too
Agreed
Have you heard the new Forbidden that Tony remixed. Way better.
Headless Cross is a brilliant album
Sabotage is perfection hands down.
Yep that was the one I thought should be up 2 tiers at least.
Even though it doesn't say "Black Sabbath" on the cover, I wish you had included that last Dio album, Heaven and Hell. I love that record, and "Bible Black" is one of my favorite Sab tunes.
Best song they made in a long while for sure
Yeah that album is amazing!
@toddspango its an essential Black sabbath album!
I think "Headless Cross" is a great album with fantastic vocals, riffs and melodies. But I think people are just biased to it because it doesn't include Dio or Ozzy.
It's top-tier Sabbath for me, the songs on that record are fantastic!
Headless Cross is the best Sabbath album imo
Zero The Hero and disturbing the priest from born again are both the heaviest and evil sounding sabbath trucks and are pretty underrated.
"Trashed"...all of side A
I came here to say this! The riffs on Zero The Hero send CHILLS down my spine lol.
Born Again (the song) just sounds haunting. I hear the song of a once-powerful being, long forgotten and dormant, ready to return and bring chaos anew to the world. In theme, it almost sounds like something Dio would have done, circa Strange Highways.
Born Again is at least a good album, maybe great.
Love Born Again
I still remember buying Sabatoge at Best Buy without hearing a single track from that album, and I was just blown away. In my opinion, it's on the perfection tier.
For me it's the perfect mix of experimentation and still being Sabbath, the pioneering metal band
Where it all started. Every metal band is still trying to live up to the high standards they set. First six albums are masterpieces
What do you mean "where it all started" ?
Headless cross is perfection in my book
Should have included The Devil You Know by Heaven & Hell
I like how you put Mob Rules above H&H. I agree. Its very close. H&H probably have a couple bigger songs but Mob Rules is more consistent.
1. Sabotage
2. Sabbath bloody Sabbath
3. Heaven and Hell
I like sabotage but I have to pick heaven and hell is the best album by Black Sabbath
"Fluff" is one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever recorded.
I couldn't agree more.
Absolutely angelic.
Played it at my wedding.
Right after Another One Bites The Dust 😂
Great list! Not as familiar with the post-Ozzy, so fun to hear your take on it.
That's harmonica on The Wizard, not accordion
I know. I said the wrong word in the moment. It happens. No one would mistake those 2 completely different sounds.
Dio Sabbath is still my favorite. Heaven & Hell #1
The first 6 albums shuld all be in perfection. 🐐🐐🐐
Sabotage and Vol.4 are my favorite!
Yeah me too, great stuff.
Probably mine too. I think my favorite Ozzy performances on those ones
This was really enjoyable. I agree with you on everything, except Sabotage. I love that album. It`s so raw and a refreshing break from the albums earlier :)
Im someone who loves the born again album, but if you don't like it, no hate. I still love your videos, you introduced me into quite a few bands and albums. Black Sabbath is my 2nd favorite band of all time and The End tour was my first metal concert i ever went to. I think all five eras of the band has something to offer, though its a hard pick between their first 6 with Ozzy and their 4 Dio albums ( yes, im including The Devil You Know with the Heaven and Hell name, dont care what Sharon Osbourne thinks)
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath was the very first metal album I ever owned. My mom bought it for me cause I thought the cover looked cool, having no clue what the music was. So that album obviously holds a very special place in my heart 🤘
One of the greatest bands ever! Do a dio ranking next.
20. 13 - Bad, genuinely sounds uninspired and almost like a bad parody of the classic albums
19. Forbidden - Mediocre, not as bad as it is generally said to be but still not good. The remasters did improve it which is why it's not considered bad.
18. Never Say Die! - Mediocre, a couple of good songs in Johnny Blade, and Junior's Eyes but otherwise just kind of lacking in energy.
17. Technical Ecstasy - Good, lacking still but more coherent as an idea than Never Say Die.
16. Dehumanizer - Good, this isn't even my most controversial opinion but this easily the most lacking of the Dio albums. Feels kind of thrown together in parts.
15. Vol. 4 - Good, this however is. Note that I'm not saying it's bad but both the production and the songwriting are rather weak in my opinion.
14. Cross Purposes - Good, the remaster definitely jumped this up a few places but still not really the best, some of the songwriting is clunky and I think Tony's higher end was already starting to go.
13. Seventh Star - Great, despite what a lot of people claim, this was absolutely supposed to be a Black Sabbath album between Iommi buying the rights to keep them away from Ozzy, and more importantly, Sharon and the fact the original choice of vocalist, Jeff Fenholt, has gone on record to say that it was already being called Black Sabbath when he was there. That aside, the songwriting is pretty good and the only reason it's this low is that I think all the other albums have higher peaks.
12. Born Again - Great, the main thing keeping this album down is the fact that Ian's voice was starting to die around this time and at some parts it really doesn't sound good at all. Otherwise, the songwriting is strong and some of riffs are downright villainous.
11. Paranoid - Great, see this is what happens when songs are overplayed, familiarity breeds contempt. Also Planet Caravan has just never clicked for me. That said, however, there is a reason why those songs are overplayed.
10. The Devil You Know - Great, a Dio-era Sabbath in all but name, The Devil You Know is what Dehumanizer should have been, great songwriting from start to finish just not as appealing to me as some other albums.
9. Black Sabbath - Great, an album of peaks and troughs with the eponymous song, The Wizard, N.I.B., and Evil Woman truly excellent songs while rest are just fine, certainly not bad by any means but just nowhere near as good.
8. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - Great, this admittedly was a bit of an acquired taste for me as for the longest time I couldn't get into this album as it always felt a bit, I don't know, pretentious. I still don't really like A National Acrobat but I certainly like the rest.
7. The Eternal Idol - Great, admittedly carried by how much I love The Shining and Glory Ride, there's not a single dud on this album.
6. Mob Rules - Excellent, to be honest I've only recently listened to this album in full as it always seemed a bit hidden but maybe that's just my experience. Even so, this is truly excellent no song dropping below great but I just don't like it as much as the rest of these albums.
5. Sabotage - Excellent, sometimes it feels like this album gets forgotten, even by the obnoxious 'Ozzy or nothin' man' types which is a shame as it truly is an excellent album, though it is carried here from about 8th by Symptom of the Universe and Megalomania.
4. Headless Cross - Excellent, my favourite subgenre of metal is power metal as such this album, and the only other Martin album, get carried by this fact as most of the songs could very easily be argued as being power metal. Not a dud here either.
3. Master of Reality - Perfect, easily the best of the Ozzy albums with crushing stoner riffs from beginning to end. However, I don't really like Ozzy as a person and think his voice is the weakest of any Sabbath vocalist as such, it goes in third.
2. Heaven and Hell - Perfect, frankly, I fully expect to be lynched for not having this or Master of Reality at number 1 but frankly, it's my list, and I find it really funny how angry people get over opinions about music. The reason that's it's not number 1 is because it doesn't have Anno Mundi on it.
1. Tyr - Perfect, this however does have Anno Mundi on it, and frankly every song on here is amazing. By all means, get irrationally angry if you wish but you're not going to change my opinion.
Great list. I’m a bit shocked that as a TM fan you still have Forbidden so low given the recent remix. Ditch illusion of power, and with the fantastic bonus track and masterclass remix duties thrown in it’s nearly on level with cross purposes IMO. I had never even heard this album until the recent re-releases and wasn’t expecting much from forbidden, but was happily blown away by it. Had it on repeat in the car for weeks.
Corny ass butt rock albums after sabotage
Wow for once someone agrees that Tyr is the best Sabbath album
@@rmcpolin1987womp womp cry about it
Great list, man. I agree with almost everything except for the Sabotage, Vol. 4 and Dehumanzier ranking. I'd bump those up to fantastic. In general, I think these are the 10 perfect albums for me personally: First 6, all 3 Dio albums and 13. Those I listen to all the time.🤘🏻
S - Dehumanizer, Mob Rules, Heaven and Hell, Paranoid, Master of Reality
A - Headless Cross, Tyr, Sabotage, Vol. 4, Black Sabbath, Born Again
B - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, The Devil You Know, Cross Purposes, The Eternal Idol
C - Never Say Die, Forbidden, Seventh Star
D - 13, Technical Ecstasy
The 2009 Heaven and Hell album with Dio should have been on the list despite Ozzy and Sharon forcing the band to change the name.
1. The Mob Rules
2. Paranoid
3. Sabotage
4. TYR
5. Born Again
6. Dehumanizer
7. Black Sabbath
8. 13
9. Master Of Reality
10. Heaven And Hell
11. Seventh Star
12. Headless Cross
13. Cross Purposes
14. Vol. 4
15. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
16. Never Say Die
17. Technical Ecstasy
18. The Eternal Idol
19. Forbidden
I literally grew up listening to Black Sabbath in the 70’s and 80’s , they are my Favorite Band and I found your list to be interesting, like I already said in the comments the First 6 and Heaven and Hell are all Perfect to me, I also loved Mob Rules and 13
"Tommy" right off the rip isn't a good look and not a good way to keep people watching
Pinned comment…
Thank you for sharing this!
Ah yes the great Tommy Iommi and his wonderful bandmates Jimmy Osbourne, Timmy Ward and Weezer Butler
I like that that's a good one
And let's not forget the incomparable "Ian Gollom" 😅😅😅
@@Sabotage8675 And of course Ronnie James Doh!
They had a great song called 'Psycho Man' from when they reunited with Ozzy in the late 90s - always wonder a late 90s reunion studio album would've been.
Great video! HAIL BLACK SABBATH!!! 😎🤘🖤🔥💯☠️🎸
This is an interesting list. Basically, follows my rankings +1 or -1 on each space depending on the album (still love MOR and the S/T much more than 'Paranoid'. I was really surprised you rated 'Technical Ecstasy' as high as you did but it got me thinking because when I was younger, I hated the album. I came back to it about 7 years ago when Warner released the complete sessions as a like $65 dollar quadruple CD pack and...it was much better than I remembered. Agreed on the 'Mob Rules' containing some of Dio's best performances. *My favorite Sabbath album is probably still going to be (the very controversial) 'Never Say Die' mainly because of "Johnny Blade" and how badass that number is.* I even bought Levi jacket of it some years back for some unGodly some of money. Good list.
Black Sabbath's first four album has no right to be as good as they actually are. Nice video, thanks for recording and doing it for us!
I spent years listening to the early Sabbath albums because of parental influences .. really great stuff. But as I've got older, I actually think Headless Cross is their best album! Sick riffs, great vocals, consistent song themes. No fairies wearing boots, here.
1. Black Sabbath (1970)
2. Paranoid (1970)
3. Master of Reality (1971)
4. Vol. 4 (1972)
5. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)
6. Sabotage (1975)
7. Heaven and Hell (1980)
8. Mob Rules (1981)
9. Born Again (1983)
10. Dehumanizer (1992)
11. Technical Ecstasy (1976)
12. Headless Cross (1989)
13. Never Say Die! (1978)
14. The Devil You Know (2009)
15. 13 (2013)
16. Tyr (1990)
17. The Eternal Idol (1987)
18. Cross Purposes (1994)
19. Seventh Star (1986)
20. Forbidden (1995)
From the mid-1990s until about, I don't know, five to ten years ago, I only ever listened to the first two albums and the comp We Sold Our Souls For Rock and Roll, so I'm relatively burned out on those albums/tracks (when I get burned out on music that I've overheard (as opposed to just getting sick of it), it just becomes background music that I have difficulty consciously listening to and my mind just wanders off to other concerns or other tasks--I don't know if that's just a me thing or if some aspect of ADHD or Aspergers (I haven't been diagnosed with either, btw, though I suspect the latter)), so when I finally got around to picking up the rest of the Ozzy years, it reignited my love for the band. Despite being burned out, I would still rank the first two albums as Perfection, there are just too many great moments. I would add Master of Reality to Perfection, with Sweet Leaf being a great song about dope that somehow is still really romantic if applied to a woman and Children of the Grave being one of their best anti-war anthems. I've probably listened to 4 the least, and looking at the track list, though I remember liking the album, I can't remember that many of the hooks off-hand, and that alone puts it at Great or maybe even good for me (I really need to put it on again, though). Sabbath Bloody Sabbath has more memorable songs for me, and I can remember hooks from every one of the tracks except Fluff, which is another of their typical instrumental interludes; I would rate it at Fantastic. Sabotage has really stuck with me the most, with the surprisingly romantic Symptom of the Universe ("The symptom of the universe is written in your eyes...the symptom of the universe a love that never dies"), the venomous The Writ (Your fallen phallic god dismembered and gone, a poisoned father with his poisonous son, that's you), the kick-ass opening track Hole in the Sky, and the epic Megalomania (Obsessed with fantasy, possessed with my schemes/I mixed reality with pseudo-God dreams/The ghost of violence was something I've seen/I sold my soul to be the human obscene) being the highlights (I even have a soft spot for Am I Going Insane, which others often consider the worst song from the first six albums and is more or less a preview of the next two albums); I would rate it in the Perfection tier. Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die! are Okay at best. Other than Live Evil, other live albums, and compilations, I haven't fully listened to any Sabbath album after this, but I'll say my usual bit about Dio since I've listened to the Dio Years compilation--I like his singing, I don't find his songwriting as compelling (his versions of early Sabbath songs on Live Evil are fantastic). Most of the songs I gravitate towards were written or co-written by Geezer, who wrote or co-wrote the lyrics for the bulk of the first eight albums; the Geezer/Dio songs still have the "downer rock" feel to them, while Dio's songs are more anthemic, closer to NWOBHM (e.g. Rainbow/Judas Priest/Motorhead/Iron Maiden) than the emerging black/doom/death metal that was emerging around the same time, which were clearly inspired by early Sabbath. Dio's songs are in no way bad, per se, they just don't sound like Sabbath songs to me, they sound like dress rehearsals for Holy Diver (for the record, I like Holy Diver, just not as much as I like early Sabbath).
While certainly not the best representation of Black Sabbath, Seventh Star-to me-is their most underrated album. I like it better than any of the albums that came after it. But then again, since I adore that one 1987 Whitesnake album, it makes sense why Seventh Star clicks with me.
Disappointed to see Sabotage getting placed so low, but other than that this list is peak, my top 10 would go:
1. Sabbath bloody sabbath
2. Sabotage
3. Paranoid
4. Master of reality
5. Vol. 4
6. Never say die
7. Technical ecstacy
8. Heaven amd hell
9. Black Sabbath
10. Mob rules
Having Sabotage in the same echelon as Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die! is criminal!!!
My thoughts, for whatever they are worth:
-I like Born Again, but it's a flawed gem. Some songs are good, some are less good, and Ian's voice is... unique. The title track is actually my favorite. I'd like to hear a remastered version, like what Rush did with Vapor Trails, to see what could be done.
-Seventh Star wasn't even supposed to be a Black Sabbath album. The label forced it on Tony. Kinda gets a pass for not sounding like Sabbath. In For the Kill is my fav. Tony and Glenn Hughes just recently released another album together, and it's pretty fun.
-Tony Martin era: Good singer, but a sludgy band like Sabbath didn't have any favors done with slick 80s production. I'm just glad the Anno Domini box set put these back out there.
-Heaven and Hell/The Devil You Know is a Sabbath album. Mob Rules lineup, dark heavy themes, just amazing. It draws from Dio's sound with his own band and the Dio Years new tracks, heavy and thunderous. It even has Henry on the packaging! I would have included it.
-13 may have Ozzy but sound-wise it continues the heaviness of Devil You Know. It could be clearer but it is a good send-off. Could it also be remastered to get rid of the compression issues?
I agree with your tier list, except for Born Again that I like very much!
Didn't know there was a crossover project between Black Sabbath and The Who. Tommy was killing it back then.
Also, I go back and forth on my favorite. My technical favorite is Master of Reality, but my personal favorite is Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. I remember seeing that album cover as a kid back in 2007 and was absolutely fascinated and terrified. Such a vibe of an album.
I have to put the first over Master of Reality, but a big part of the appeal and the effect of music is when you first heard it.
Well, I differ as far as how I value albums and bands to begin with. I am not as worried about the band sounding the same album to album and instead care more about some interesting tunes with some thought in the writing department and good production. I'm not into bands that repeat the same sound/ideas each album (example: AC/DC) and rather they be more creativity (example: Nevermore). I think there is something to be said for bands that strive to make each album its own thing.
Perfection: Pretty much all songs but maybe one or two are listened to because I really want to. Pretty much the best albums.
*Paranoid (1970)
*Heaven and Hell (1980)
*Master of Reality (1971)
Fantastic: Pretty much more songs that are what I desire to relisten to over and over. One or two songs are holding them back or the overall songs sound a bit too the same, despite being good to my ears.
*Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)
*Tyr (1990)
*Headless Cross (1989)
*Born Again (1983)
Great: To me, down the middle as far as it goes. Half the albums songs are pretty good and look forward to replaying. Other half somewhat hold them down.
*Black Sabbath (1970)
*Sabotage (1975)
*Never Say Die! (1978)
*Cross Purposes (1994)
Good: I tend to listen to a song or two. Some are good enough to go for. But overall, not into the whole thing.
*Mob Rules (1981)
*Vol. 4 (1972)
*The End -ep- (2016)
Okay: I mostly don't listen to these. Maybe two or three songs. All albums here suffer from "a bunch of the same" sounding stuff. They lack creativity.
*The Eternal Idol (1987)
*Dehumanizer (1992)
*13 (2013)
Bad: Music on these albums is stuff I don't listen to expect when I want to challenge myself. Maybe two okay songs. By far a hard sit.
*Forbidden (1995)
*Seventh Star (1986)
*Technical Ecstasy (1976)
Master Of Reality is definitely my favorite.
can't forget the album they did as Heaven And Hell too. some of Iommi's best later era riffs on there.
Agree with reasoning behind most picks but definitely would have bumped up Sabotage, Vol. 4, Dehumaniser and Heaven and Hell
Fair enough
Would love to see a tier list for Ozzy's solo material
Vol. 4 being so low is criminal
Great ranking! Off topic, but will you do a Carnifex ranking at some point please? Honestly such a consistent band, everything (except Graveside Confessions, which i actually haven't listened to in full yet) is perfect
Viewership just wouldn’t be there unfortunately. Otherwise I would.
@MetalTrenches ah well, that's understandable. Will you be able to do any sort of rankings for any Deathcore band's discography or will that also not be possible?
In my view, Sabotage is top two tiers, Vol 4 is god tier, Headless Cross is great tier….. and 13 a bit crap, but to each their own. 😊
I love Tyr but know it’s nothing special, so will keep that opinion to myself.
Wow though, what a discography they have.
I don't hate Born Again, Seventh Star and Forbidden but their also my least favorite Black Sabbath albums so you're doin great with your ranking.
I think Headless Cross and Tyr are very underrated. Ruthless Metal has them high up and for good reason.
Nice ranking, I agree on most of what you said... I think especially Headless Cross is fare more than just "ok", and sorry, 13 was not great, at least ok...but these are just slight differences, I go along with most of what you said
Great list
Only thing I would disagree with you on is heaven and hell belonging in perfection. That's my hands down favorite but! I think you made great cases everywhere else good sir !
Frank Zappa said Supernaut was one of his fav rock songs…can’t argue with him
The relatively dull 13 is better than the classic Sabotage??! Does anyone else actually think that??!
No, his opinion is way off on multiple albums.
@@guanoguy4800 Yeah he's sleeping on the first 3 Martin albums, and he ranked Sabotage too low
No, that's a ridiculous joke, or just a strange damn taste.
Sabotage is only good, come on dude
What about, "The Devil You Know" by Heaven and Hell? It at least deserves an honorable mention.
I find your statement saying that Headless Cross doesn't sound to Black Sabbath kinda weird since from all of the Tony Martin era is the most evil sounding one, I actually would rate it as perfection or at least fantastic! In fact, all of those Tony Martin records sound more Sabbath-y than Never Say Die or even Technical Ecstacy imo, even the infamous and hideous Forbidden.
Different Strokes
The last albums The Devil You Know and 13 are both good tier and a much more fitting way to end the journey than Forbidden ever was.
I was 3 years olds when their first came out. Dang 😮
Born Again as a whole is an average BS album, but the title track is up there with their greatest songs from Ozzy and Dio years for me. I feel like Gillan hitting these high notes fits very well in the Black Sabbath lore. Gives their music a new angle.
What if the album The Devil You Know was by Black Sabbath? How would it be classified?
Never Say Die and 13 above Headless Cross is criminal. Also, The Devil You Know is as much as Black Sabbath album as anything else here
I love Sabotage (including the first proto-thrash riff in the Symptome of the Universe) and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. For me both albums are Sabbath at their creative peak. In my top three together with Paranoid which the definitive Black Sabbath album.
Some say Children of the Grave was the first proto-thrash, some say Symptom was
I think Kiss's Parasite from 1974 is more proto-thrash than Symptom Of The Universe.
Sabatoge in good is insane its their best album
Whenever I listen to Sabbath Bloody Sabbath I just get super bummed after the first track because none of the rest live up to it because it's so amazing
All around in my opinion, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath is the best! It's a good mix of early and a little prog..
IMO, the first 6 Ozzy albums and all records with Ronnie (including "The Devil You Know") are Perfection.
I love Black Sabbath they are my beatles. And probably the most brilliant metal band of all time.
Its not technically a Sabbath album, but Tony Iommi's DEP Sessions of 96 and Fused are basically sequels to Seventh Star cause they all share Glenn Hughes on vocals
I love Born Again. Easily my favorite Sabbath album that doesn't feature either Ozzy or Dio. But I guess it's kind of an acquired taste. It's a very polarizing one.
Nice list. I'm mostly in agreement. I had to see where Dehumanizer landed for you. It was one of the cassettes (Yes. I'm old) that I picked up during basic training in the Army when we were allowed to have music. It's been close to my heart as a helpful companion for many years. I is still a fantastic song to me.
I do not like post-Ozzy Sabbath. It's not that I think Ozzy is a great singer. Ozzy was technically the least skilled singer they ever had. I just don't like the music in post Ozzy Sabbath. Sabbath were trailblazers in the 70s. They became followers in the 80s. When I listen to Black Sabbath, I want to hear War Pigs, Children of the Grave, NIB, etc. Not interested in Sabbath that sounds 80s. Loved 13. I think it's one of the best comeback albums ever. Love how the songs are so long and not commercial sounding.
I personally think Headless Cross is a top 3 Black Sabbath album along with Paranoid and Master Of Reality.
Black Sabbath are metal pioneers and I love the Ozzy and Dio eras and I even think the Tony Martin era is underrated. Aside from two albums, I think everything they’ve done ranges from decent to legendary. This would be my ranking:
S - Paranoid, Master of Reality, Mob Rules
A+ - Black Sabbath, Vol. 4, Sabotage, Heaven and Hell, Dehumanizer, 13
A - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Headless Cross, Tyr, Cross Purposes
B - Technical Ecstasy, Born Again, The Eternal Idol
C - Never Say Die!
D - Seventh Star, Forbidden
I haven’t heard everything from them yet, but I love a lot of albums from them. Here’s my list so far:
14. Born Again - Bad. There are moments on this album that I enjoy. Some killer riffs and other cool guitar work, but it’s ruined for me whenever Gillan starts screaming his head off. I don’t hate the album, but I never listen to it willingly.
13. Never Say Die! - Okay. This album isn’t anywhere near as bad as many people say it is, but it’s definitely nothing special either. Very middle of the road, very forgettable.
12. Technical Ecstasy - Okay. Basically what I said about NSD, but at least this album has “You Won’t Change Me,” which I think is an awesome song, even if it doesn’t really sound like classic Sabbath.
11. Black Sabbath - Good. I’m going to burn for not having this ranked in my top 10, but I don’t get the obsession with this album. There are some good songs on it (mainly “The Wizard” and “NIB”), but it doesn’t have anything that makes me want to listen to it very often. And I’ve honestly never been a fan of the title track. I know, I know-blasphemy. But I’ve already accepted that I’ll burn for this opinion.
10. Sabotage - Good. A lot of great guitar work on this album. But I have a similar opinion of this as I do with Born Again: I don’t like shouty, over-the-top vocals, and they get in the way of my enjoyment of this album. My favorite song on it is “Supertzar” (the one where Ozzy shuts up for a few minutes).
9. Seventh Star - Good. I used to be afraid of having a unique opinion about the Sabbath albums. I thought I needed to enjoy the first 6 with Ozzy and the Dio albums above all else, and only after those could I rank their other albums. Well I stopped caring about that I can now proudly say that I like Seventh Star. I like it a lot, actually, but it’s not great. It’s very corny and 80s, but there’s some really cool stuff on here, like “In for the Kill,” “Seventh Star,” and “Danger Zone.” And I think Glenn Hughes does a great job vocally-much better than Gillan on the previous album.
8. Eternal Idol - Great. It’s like a Dio-lite album. A bit less heavy than the Dio Sabbath albums, but there are some great riffs here and man does Tony Martin sound cool on this album! He’s like a weird mix of Dio and Klaus Meine from Scorpions. This is the only Martin era album I’ve heard so far, but I’m excited to listen to more soon.
7. Dehumanizer - Great. It’s heavy, it’s powerful, it has more memorable material on it than anything since the Mob Rules album. My only issue with it is that a lot of the songs have a very similar slow, doomy tempo that makes them kind of blend together in my mind. I miss the variety from their earlier albums. But songs like “Master of Insanity,” “Sins of the Father,” and “I” quickly make me forget about that and I remember why I love the album.
6. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - Great. I love half of this album, don’t care too much for the other half. The title track, “A National Acrobat,” “Santa Cadabra,” and “Killing Yourself to Live” are some of my absolute favorite Sabbath songs. But the others I rarely listen to outside the context of the album, and “Fluff” is one I can’t sit through because it’s so boring.
5. Vol. 4 - Fantastic. It’s heavy, pretty melodic, somewhat proggy… Yup, I love this album. Aside from “Changes” and “FX” which I just can’t stand, this is just an incredible album. With songs like “Wheels of Confusion,” “Supernaut,” “Snowblind,” and “Under the Sun,” how could it not be amazing?
4. Mob Rules - Fantastic. We already know it’s great so I’m going to take some time to be a contrarian again: “Sign of the Southern Cross” is probably my least favorite song on the album because it feels like it’s building tension but ends up stagnating and going nowhere with it. “Turn Up the Night” is cool, but it’s a tryhard version of “Neon Knights,” and I don’t need the same song opening two albums in a row. “Country Girl” is my favorite song on the album, and “Over and Over” is a perfect album closer. Thanks for putting up with my opinions, please don’t kill me.
3. Paranoid - Perfect. It was my first Sabbath album so it will always be special to me. It’s just not quite as perfect as I used to think it was, especially since I’m burned out on most of the album at this point.
2. Master of Reality - Perfect. Now this is the ultimate Ozzy album for me. Super heavy, awesome riffing, great bass lines and tone, and some of my favorite vocals from Ozzy. Also I just find it hilarious whenever he ends a line with a powerful “Yeah!” and that is all over this album.
1. Heaven and Hell - Perfect. This is my favorite album of all time, so there was never really any chance that it wouldn’t be my favorite today. The lineup on this album is my favorite band lineup ever, maybe tied with Megadeth’s 90s lineup. I love every song on the album, even the ones that are maybe a bit pedestrian. It’s just a perfect album to my ears.
If you were going to count Heaven and Hell- The Devil You Know as a Dio era Black Sabbath album, where would you rank it?
I liked The Seventh Star because it was only supposed to be a Tony Iommi solo project. And Headless Cross is just a great album, no matter what band name it is under. Tony Martin is a great vocalist.
Edit: Bleeding the Priest makes Born Again an above standard album, but yes Ian Gillan did not work well with Sabbath.
accordion on the wizard?
Harmonica. I don’t know why it’s so hard to understand how someone who speaks for hours might say the wrong word now and then…
The way that Led Zeppelin ended things when one of the key members died is something I kinda wish both Sabbath and Deep Purple learned from because I don't think all the lineup changes, inconsistency, and mediocre output did any favors for their legacies (with a few exceptions of course).
However I'm so thankful that 13 ended Sabbath's career on a good note because it would be depressing if their 90's stuff was the last thing we got from them. If only they could play one last show with Bill Ward....
I know it wasn't an official Sabbath release, but if you were to include the album the Devil You Know by Heaven and Hell, where would you rank it?
The devil cried is one of my favs but only got released on the dio years compilation sadly
Seventh Star was supposed to be Tony's first solo album but Warner Brothers demanded one more Sabbath. That's the only reason it even counts. Which it kinda doesn't.
Your felling about Seventh Star not sounding like a Sabbath album is true, it was supposed to be a Iommi's solo album.
Black Sabbath losing their focus on sounding heavy and doomy was mainly Tony Iommi's fault. He wanted the band to sound more like Yes or Queen. That was the main reason Ozzy quit the band before he came back and then was fired anyway. People act like Iommi can do no wrong but his creative input is linked to a lot of their worst material. Also, I think Sabbath Bloody Sabbath was their creative apex.
Awesome
"Heaven & Hell" The Devil You Know should have been included in this because let's be real, it's The Mob Rules lineup, and it's Black Sabbath in everything but name only, for the only reason that Sharon Osbourne was still alive
Master of Reality! Master of Reality! Master of Reality!
Vol 4. Is clearly perfection scale and the best Sabbath album by far IMHO.
When I was a kid, I thought his name was Tom Eiome.
Black Sabbath is my all time favorite band. Saw four times with Ozzy. Top 3 favorites are Vol 4, Heaven and Hell, and Born Again.
My all time favorites
There is no bad Sabbath albums, just some not quite as awesome as others!
Would you ever consider ranking Theatre of Tragedy or Draconian? Two slow bands, I know 😅 but they are not too slow.