Black&White&BlueMoon Town
Well-Known Member
Hearing the rain come down now and at the start of this week's selection reminds me that TS Debby is now here to hang around for the next 4 days or so. The opening track rain isn't exactly "Riders on the Storm" as this one, after the bell tolls, takes us right into Iommi's guitar and the "Black Sabbath" that Black Sabbath started on Black Sabbath.
(confused yet? ;-)
Any song that scares the bass player (not many nicknamed "Geezer" btw) down to his Catholic faith core in all the doom rock and Satan that was part of that has my vote. Geezer also named the band, and this song doesn't disappoint as an intro rocker.
Led Zeppelin's first album was released about one year earlier, and their self-titled debut album and opening song “Good Times Bad Times” were fantastic too, and also helped define them and their unique sound. While I owned Sabbath's Paranoid album, this was never a band I would listen to their back catalogue of, while I did on all of Zeppelin. I ended up listening to Ozzy’s solo albums as they came out, especially on the first 2 with Randy Rhodes. Everyone else too in middle school was listening to those 2 albums.
Ozzy’s harmonica playing totally makes “The Wizard” as it sets the tune for what the guitars later are riffing on. This is an all-out belter and pretty much continues on the theme from the first track: evil power, weaving his spell, long grey cloak, demons – this track has it all.
“Behind the Wall of Sleep” has a nice tempo change in it as it gets into the “remorse and corpse” section, that includes a nice Iommi guitar solo.
Geezer shines on the intro to “N.I.B”, before Iommi’s classic signature riff takes over. This was a song I had heard prior – as it was hard not to. Geezer’s lyrics on Satan falling in love was an interesting take. I enjoyed the music a bit more to this song than the lyrics, which by now are feeling a bit one-dimensional.
“Evil Woman” wasn’t released in the US until 2002 on a compilation album. Iommi’s guitar solo and Geezer’s bass lines after the chorus refrain were the best parts of this song.
The album ends well with “Sleeping Village” and “Warning” musically, with an emphasis on the drums, guitar, and bass, but I didn’t think Ozzy’s vocals worked so well on these, especially on the last. Thankfully there was more music than vocals.
After three listens, I liked this, but it wasn’t anything that especially stood out to me. I guess I appreciate the influence more to heavy metal than the album itself. Admittedly, I have no memories of this or nostalgia to hang my hat onto either. For that reason, I’m at a 7/10 on this, and admittedly this wouldn’t be one I’d choose to listen to over Zep’s first that started it all for them.
(confused yet? ;-)
Any song that scares the bass player (not many nicknamed "Geezer" btw) down to his Catholic faith core in all the doom rock and Satan that was part of that has my vote. Geezer also named the band, and this song doesn't disappoint as an intro rocker.
Led Zeppelin's first album was released about one year earlier, and their self-titled debut album and opening song “Good Times Bad Times” were fantastic too, and also helped define them and their unique sound. While I owned Sabbath's Paranoid album, this was never a band I would listen to their back catalogue of, while I did on all of Zeppelin. I ended up listening to Ozzy’s solo albums as they came out, especially on the first 2 with Randy Rhodes. Everyone else too in middle school was listening to those 2 albums.
Ozzy’s harmonica playing totally makes “The Wizard” as it sets the tune for what the guitars later are riffing on. This is an all-out belter and pretty much continues on the theme from the first track: evil power, weaving his spell, long grey cloak, demons – this track has it all.
“Behind the Wall of Sleep” has a nice tempo change in it as it gets into the “remorse and corpse” section, that includes a nice Iommi guitar solo.
Geezer shines on the intro to “N.I.B”, before Iommi’s classic signature riff takes over. This was a song I had heard prior – as it was hard not to. Geezer’s lyrics on Satan falling in love was an interesting take. I enjoyed the music a bit more to this song than the lyrics, which by now are feeling a bit one-dimensional.
“Evil Woman” wasn’t released in the US until 2002 on a compilation album. Iommi’s guitar solo and Geezer’s bass lines after the chorus refrain were the best parts of this song.
The album ends well with “Sleeping Village” and “Warning” musically, with an emphasis on the drums, guitar, and bass, but I didn’t think Ozzy’s vocals worked so well on these, especially on the last. Thankfully there was more music than vocals.
After three listens, I liked this, but it wasn’t anything that especially stood out to me. I guess I appreciate the influence more to heavy metal than the album itself. Admittedly, I have no memories of this or nostalgia to hang my hat onto either. For that reason, I’m at a 7/10 on this, and admittedly this wouldn’t be one I’d choose to listen to over Zep’s first that started it all for them.