Black Sabbath

Mostly good stuff, a couple of tracks that have meandering guitar solos that serve no purpose other than apparently to just drag the song out.

This isn’t my favorite Black Sabbath album but I do still like it!

Very rare do you get to listen to something and go “This is the genesis of a genre”.

Ungdomsminner. Holder seg fortsatt godt.

To be honest, this album was much better than I imagined! I had never listened to it before, but it turned out to be a pleasant surprise. RIP Ozzy

Groundbreaking for it's time, still good nowadays

Giving me this right after Ozzy dies is some kind of conspiracy

Just a damn good album. RIP Prince of Darkness.

Shocked, but I loved this!

Black Sabbath. the album values the instrumental passage as much as the vocal - love it. There's a kind of cohesion, sonic vision, depthful exploration within a sound that these 60s and early 70s albums have. It makes for a very dreamy listening experience. rip Ozzy Osbourne, a life of sound. Best tunes: black sabbath, the wized, n.i.b, evil woman warning

From today's perspective, the album is a 3.5/5. Still holding up, which is impressive given its age. But imagine listening to this in 1970. Some fuckers have just invented Heavy Metal and you are holding it in your hands, unaware that this will help to establish an entire culture.

Not my usual jam but I can get into the mood. The shows must have been sick. RIP

Prince of Darkness sets the stage for a new genre. The opening eponymous track (song, album and band name!) is iconic and opens a new world of music. The riff over the last minute and a half is stellar.

This was probably manually pushed today, in honor of Ozzy's passing. Black Sabbath was a very heavy band, a possibly bordering what I would normally enjoy, but I love their main hits, and their guitar solos are always great. Overall, not a bad album, although it doesn't have any of those hits that we've all heard of. I would say pretty nice and in honor of the Prince of Darkness himself - you will be remembered.

Fun album. Nothing stuck out like Crazy Train, but it was solid all the way through.

OK, a bit dated

Rip ozzy

MY NAME IS LUCIFER PLEASE TAKE MY HAND The instrumentals on a bit of finger are epic

I bought this on CD 20+ years ago, listened to it once, found it boring, and haven't touched it since. Now I think it kinda rules?

Ca commence très fort avec le premier son Il aurait pu aller chercher la cinquième étoile mais des sons qui ne se démarquent pas assez

The first half holds up to today’s standards. Incredible opening track, worth 4 stars alone for that.

RIP.

Forged the foundation along with Hendrix for so much heavy Pysch

this was rad... that opening song is perfect

RIP in hell ozzy!

A classic for a reason.

This shit rips. What else is there to say? It's a classic for a reason.

Very appropriate to review this week, stands up well. Wasn't really into them that much at the time, but they were pushing boundaries. Good to hear again as the whole album rather than the usual selected tracks.

8/10 While there are a few bands that can claim to have laid the foundations for metal, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple being the two most obvious others, I truly feel like Black Sabbath gave metal it's soul with this album. The opening ambience of the rain, thunder and tolling bell that build into a crashing, heavy riff that lands on that disturbing, unsettling tritone interval that wavers as it rings. The devil's interval indeed. It's just so atmospheric, evocative and as heavy as a tonne of bricks. Singing about wizards, figures in black, Lucifer and all of those themes that will forever be entwined with heavy metal, Sabbath kicked the doors down with this and it's impact has been monumental. From a musical point of view, the guitar and bass create such a heavy sound, and there are some really fantastic hooks and riffs across this, and Bill Ward's drumming just drives and rolls it all forward. And then you throw Ozzy over the top of it all. Ozzy was never a great technical singer, but he was the perfect singer for this band and the birth of this type of music. He sings like a possessed madman. I remember an interview where he said he only ever heard people singing at home when they were hammered, so that's how singing sounded to him, which kind of tracks. Trying to listen to this impartially the day after Ozzy left us is difficult, but the second half of the album does lose focus and drift a little bit. That first side though. Wow. It's hard to really state him much of an impact it had. Hard to know if I'm trying too hard to not let emotion get the better of me, but it doesn't quite hold it's level enough for it's duration to get as high a mark as it possibly deserves when looked at on it's own. Black Sabbath - This track is so evocative. It's simple, but it's all about the atmosphere and broiling sense of doom that it brings. And then, after the slow burn and dread of the first section, it just bursts into life. Great riffs, heavy sound and a twist of psychedelia. Phenomenal. The Wizard - An absolute classic. Iommi's riffs. Ward's beats. Even Ozzy's harmonica. It's heavy and driving with a unrepentant push and pull between that calm and the storm. Every player gets their turn here too. There's definitely a more bluesy edge to this, but it's still building the base for metal. If Black Sabbath (the song) brought the thematic tone, The Wizard brought the musicianship. Behind the Wall of Sleep - A very Led Zeppelin intro and altogether this is more bluesy. But it's still got that darker edge to it. Less iconic than the two openers, but it still rocks hard and has some fantastic riffs. N.I.B. - More of a psychedelic edge to this one, but it still has that weight to it and it absolutely rocks. They never hang around on a section for long so there's always a sense of driving momentum and the little accents and fills they drop in all over the place, even Ozzy's little "oh yeah!"s just add so much flavour. Evil Woman - Geezer Butler gets his mention here. He's anchored everything up until now, but is more prominent here. It's a more standard bluesy rocker really and is one of the album's weaker pure songs. It's still decent, but loses something of the weight and atmosphere of the album up to this point. Sleeping Village - The unsung hero, producer Rodger Bain, gets in on the act with the Jew's Harp to add some boingy flavour. There's plenty of atmosphere here, particularly in the opening, but it's less focused and gets a bit sloppy in places. It's a bit more of a jam track and again, it's not bad, just not quite up there with the earlier stuff. Warning - Again, there are some great bits and pieces in here. Some really heavy, sludgy, driving guitars and some dirty rolling bass lines, but it's a little unfocused. It reminds me a bit of Hawkwind, but without as much instrumentation going on through the middle section to hold the interest. Wicked World - This is more like it again. Heavy, driving and atmospheric with another edge of psychedelia. The vocal recording has issues from a production point of view. Sounds like he's clipping the mic levels. Other than that, a solid way to finish the album.

Snelle inhaal review #7: Zo grappig dat dit ooit het begin was van Heavy Metal. Gaat nog steeds hard daar niet van en rip Ozzy ofcourse, maar voelt relatief zo tam. Eigenlijk geen slecht nummer te bekennen, dus dat is verder geen kritiek ofzo

Ik had eigenlijk geen verwachtingen van Black Sabbath, maar werd toch wel positief verrast. Het doet me toch wel veel denken aan de inspiratie van de oude huisband gorified abomination die we vaak luisterden back in the day, do you remember 420-serge-it?). De afwisseling van ingetogen stukken met opzwepende gitaarstukken verkoopt het voor mij wel.

Solid

Very atmospheric and will produced album. RIP Ozzy

RIP OZ!

Just so good and this was their 1st album.

Another fresh and timeless classic - the opening track still sounds like all doom metal released 55 years later, riffs all over are gargantuan, drumming and basswork are excellent, and Ozzy is ... there Too much meandering in the final track for a 5 but it gets pretty close!

Rock

First song is great. Like a dark meditation and probably best song on album. I can see how people learning the guitar would love this stuff. Steady rocky riffs and when you overlay Ozzy you get instantly elevated to rock god. Few songs interlaced with some great guitar sections but ultimately the magic is when Ozzy comes in. Great voice and suits this church of rock / dark world style. Great stuff and RIP!

I was really glad to dive into this in tribute after Ozzy's death. This album rocks and it's influence alone bumps it up a level. I was surprised by the quality of his voice which cuts through the music perfectly but also the guitar performance which is fantastic. The distortion has a rich and nostalgic tone on the solos which put me in mind of Hendrix. I was starting to think that structure of some of the verses were perhaps a little simplistic, but then as a counterpoint there is the 10 minute rock epic of "Warning". I'm really getting into my metal at the moment and this was a great listen.

i rated paranoid a 5/5, and this was close - if anything, this excellent debut album could walk so paranoid could run.

This deserved another listen, but on first rip I liked it. The use of the bell in the first song was pretty dope. 4/5

Black Sabbath defined their sound early on in their career with this debut album. It took them a while to perfect it (which is why this isn't a five-start album for me), but the pieces are all there in an album that starts to lay out their sonic signatures (like the Devil's chord).

É um album bem anos 70, com as mesmas caracteristicas de outros álbuns da época, mas de alguma forma se destaca. Tem um diferencial. Não sei se é o vocal do Ozzy, ou a guitarra do Tony Iommi, ou algo além. Destaque para The Wizard, N.I.B e Warning

Black Sabbath isch hald wükli nie so Metal/Rockig wie mer immer s gfühl het.. het mer gfalle! 4 mal es "Rest in Pease"

This surprised me.

RIP, Ozzy

May have ozzy tinted glasses on but this was a great listen. Self titled into wizard was great and finished strong. Very listenable lengthy songs

Apparently yesterday was Black Sabbath day for everyone here. I've never listened to this album in full, pretty great =)

RIP OZZY.

What a wonderful rock album. Had not listened to this album of theirs before, but just as good as the albums to come. Rock at its finest! I'm so glad I finally got over my fear of Black Sabbath too.

Dude. Fucking AWESOME. Holy shit I loved it I think I like it better than paranoid. The third song is unbelievable. 4.5 for me

Most quintessential rock sound of all time? Might have to be sabbath for me. Only problem is I think as I get older I start to lose some love for the genre of rock as a whole… definitely an interesting development as I’ve moved out of my teenage years… but this album is awesome and reminds me of why I was obsessed with War Pigs when I was in middle school and HS. Fuckin awesome stuff.

Probably why Black Sabbath was as popular across rock genres. Masterful guitar licks and a cacophony of delight, melancholic dread, passionate adrenaline that helped define them as pioneering Metal superstars!

for not liking metal I'm surprised at how much I'm liking the Black Sabbath albums. RIP Ozzy

RIP Ozzy

I go back a long way with this one. RIP Ozzy.

Classic, the actual "birth" of metal as I understand it. Doesn't hit quite the same as some of their other efforts but impressive and fun to listen to all the same.

Surprised by this one. I'm not really a metal fan, but this is really the blueprint and I'm glad to hear Ozzy didn't really like the term Heavy Metal. He just considered it rock and I agree. It is heavier, but the basics are there and at times you can really hear the blues influence when you slow down the riffs.

For obvious (ozzvious?) reasons, I was listening to Ozzy more than I usually do. Guys, I think he’s pretty good. After the first three tracks (US version), I was contemplating 5 stars, but I think it settled into 4. Honestly, a relief. If I had to consider dethroning Paranoid as the best Black Sabbath album, I might spiral.

A nice tribute after Ozzy’s passing. Despite some of the evil references, overall the sound and guitar were impressive and enjoyable.

Really solid debut. Not as good as some of their later work but still really good. Guitar is phenomenal. RIP Ozzy

Ozzy and the boys debut is nothing short of greatness in essence. It challenged all anyone knew about rock and roll music at the time. Rode the tail end of the British blues rock wave and blew it up with TNT. High production value and well crafted rythmn sections lend to this albums added success. Its simplistic rock excellence and beauty. RIP Ozzy, Tony Iomi inspired a generation of musicians.

A note to all bands: 5-10 songs, less than 40 minutes. Bring your best, leave them wanting more. It always works, and it has rarely worked better than it does here.

First listen and much respect to all those who knew before. BenP <3

Diggar soundet. Inte riktigt lika mycket som förra dock. Men älskar att de kombinerar munspel och hårdrock. Funkade rätt bra tycker jag (iaf i the wizard). RIP Ozzy!

Den är förjävla bra den här skivan och i kombination med nostalgi och att den var så banbrytande så skulle jag egentligen vilja ge en femma, men det blir tyvärr ändå bara en fyra då den skulle behöva ett par till låtar i stil med N.I.B och Black sabbath för full pott. RIP Ozzy! ❤️

Ok, so this one has obviously been interjected here because of the passing of Ozzy Osborne. It is said that Black Sabbath invented heavy metal, and that after seeing a horror film of the time (I think it may have been Witchfinder General) they decided to play a style of music that frightened people, and the rest, as they say, is history. On listening to this eponymous album again, you can hear each of the instruments playing their own part as well as their unique combined sound. Which later versions, although brilliant, could not replicate without Ozzy's vocals. This album contains some iconic tracks including Black Sabbath itself and N.I.B. Though Warning and The Wizard are two of my personal favourites now we come to the important bit. It is without doubt an excellent album, but there is just something I just can't define that is preventing me from awarding it a 5. I mean it is a 4.8, but just not quite there for me, so 4 it is.

I don't believe in coincidences. The day after Ozzt's death? Are they trying to pull on my heartstrings and give this a high score and glowing appraisal? I have never had anything to do with Black Sabbath or Metal as a genre, so this could be a hard task for me. Turns out it was pretty good for what it was. The title track was a beast and the rest was better than I expected. But this stuff will never enter my rotation. As a one off it deserves a 4.

RIP Ozzy. This was good but not as good as Paranoid.

Better than expected

Every so often a group will come along with a debut album that is so unbelievably good, you can't help but wonder where the hell did these guys come from and can they keep it up? Well, this was a sign of things to come for as good as their opening act was, the albums that followed immediately, were even better. It was the dawning of a new sound, and it was spectacular!

Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath... Is this the one with Black Sabbath on it? Black Sabbath: Indeed, this is the album with Black Sabbath on it. Black Sabbath on Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath. This is really crazy! The guitar is so slow and gothic and melodramatic. The vocals are similarly intense. The tortured pleading really makes it feel like I'm listening to the top 40s in Hell. Then it speeds up and there's a bit of a guitar solo. Pretty cool. Pretty spooky mormon hell dream. The Wizard: This is a little more rock n roll and a little less oops-stumbled-into-a-vampire's-lair. Is that harmonica? Like the cowbell. Like the vocals. Pretty solid. Wasp/Behind the Wall of Sleep/Bassically/N.I.B: Confused as to why this song has 4 different titles. I like Bassically the best. Anyways, the song itself does have a couple different vibes. Ozzy's vocals are remarkable and sort of perfect for this kind of music. The guitar is very cool. "My name is Lucifer, please take my hand," is a fun line. Wicked World: Really solid wow nice A Bit of Finger/Sleeping Village/Warning: Another song that's WAY too long with way too many names. I guess that's the point. Like, every song title is probably an act of the song. But it's a lot for me. Very unique. And it's very good rock n roll. I wish they were separated into different songs. Gets into a good groove. Edit: Dude, he died 2 days after this review. RIP Ozzie hope I didn't have anything karmically to do with your death

Ei ollenkaan niin raskas kun muistin. täytyy ymmärtää et eka metal levy

The birth of heavy metal! Classic album.

Easy first album for me to rate!

FUUUUCK !!!!!! 8+

Influential, great, but not perfect.

I don't think I'd quite appreciated how Zeppelin, Sabbath are. This album was not as dark as I maybe expected and funking rocked basically.

The original metal album. Where it all started. Front loaded. Back half isn’t perfect but overall, solid stuff. Paranoid is better but this belongs in the book.

Not a criticism, but it's funny how many times you hear the pentatonic scale during some melody lines or guitar solos. Overall a pretty good album, a little unpolished, but not one I'll revisit. Not my favorite sound.

This is is an Iconic metal album. This was a starting point for a lot of metal and the tritone in the intro of Black sabbath was the start of the rumor that tritones were banned by the church and demonic(it wasn't). I have only heard black sabbath and N.I.B prior to this. It's very bluesy but i wouldn't say this is the strongest album. As a amateur guitarist i really love Iommis solos on allot of the songs but it can get a bit noodly at times.

Very fat

I was lucky enough to see Ozzy live a couple of times, both with Randy Rhodes on guitar but never saw Sabbath. I guess I won’t now as they’ve just played their last ever gig and are all geriatrics! This is a great album, dark, heavy and played with feeling. Musicianship is first class and always surprising.

It’s Black Sabbath 👍 4.5

Was super excited to get this one. Haven't listened to it in probably 20 years. It definitely holds up! My non-teenager brain can better handle longer songs now so I could get into it much more. I can also only imagine how novel and exciting this was back in 1970. Solid 9/10

Solid bitch

RIP to the Lord of Darkness, very good album

I bought this on CD 20+ years ago, listened to it once, found it boring, and haven't touched it since. Now I think it kinda rules?

Not as epic as their very-shortly-thereafter follow-up album, but all the parts of a legendary band are there, and mind blowing that they apparently recorded and mixed all of this in 2 days.

I really enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. Not over the top as most metal eventually became. Solid musically and Ozzy could belt it out.

Was actually blown away by the blues influences in this. Also the base lines were played much more like a regular guitar vs just providing the rhythm. Also did not expect harmonica on a metal album 😃.

Gran álbum. Nunca habia escuchado a Black Sabbath detenidamente y me gustó bastante, lo escuche dos veces seguidas y tiene tremendas rolitas como dicen por ahi. Muy buenas instrumentales.

Really solid listen for someone who's only heard a few songs from Black Sabbath before. Length of some of the tracks are long on spotify but really feel like different ones. The guitar is downright glorious, its hypnotic and incredibly impressive.

adri: 8'5, heavy metal. Se nota los inicios de un nuevo género, asi como el estilo hard rock de la época. Es muy reconocible cuando una canción es de Black Sabbath. mar: 7, me ha sorprendido bastante y se me ha pasado rápido, lo esperaba más tosco

If I were in a better mood, this could have been a 5 for me. Strong 4 though

I love guitar it would seem. I really seem to enjoy this type of music for working to, and kinda love the whole prince of darkness aesthetic

1970! Such early metal! VERY bluesy. Some harp even, but it actually feels right. Guitar tone is so hollow somehow. Mid scooped and treble boosted? NIB slaps. Evil woman though - surely it's parody! Warning sounds like Dave Soper - it's the kind of progy epic that I didn't really know existed back then though. I made the mistake of following with led zeppelin iii which would always make it look bad, but I had a lot of fun

Great Debut album that hits hard the whole way through

Dark and hard-hitting. Unique sound.

super classic

First half is basically flawless and drops just a wee bit in the second. Black Sabbath always find ways to create so much space and atmosphere for being heavy metal and Ozzy’s voice just fits so well into it all. 8/10

27/1001. I think I had this - or my sister had it, about 35 years ago… Anyway, most songs are familiar, since I also had tabs for the best of Sabbath and probably still would know most of them by heart on a guitar. The album must be considered a classic, basically it is one cornerstone in the history of metal. No blues scale really here but riffs and power chords. I wouldn’t call it a masterpiece though, a few easy to forget songs here and there and some jamming. But the sound is tight as ever, 55 years and it sounds as fresh as an ancient graveyard after rain.

Legendary. The album that started metal. ... and I'd probably be giving it five stars if it didn't sound like the band warming up in preparation for Paranoid. Great, absolutely significant, it merits its place on the list, but it's not Black Sabbath at their best.

Good ol' fashioned metal. That's what I'm talking about, baybee.

Sludgy psychedelic blues, downtuned with morbid lyrics. Great jams to be had on here. Fully agree with the book on this one.

A perfectly cromulent Black Sabbath album. It starts off nice, but then kinda stays in general Black Sabbath sounding things without really making any strides into the iconic. It was a decent listen, but not compelling enough to want to listen to it again - at least immediately.

Überraschend geil, bisschen viele Gitarren riffs. Gute Abwechslung mit frischen Elementen in den meisten Songs und guter gesang bei einem metal album 🤯. 4/5 fetzt

historically great album

Really fun to listen to all the instruments in the band jam together. This would be really fun to hear live. Felt the album grew into itself all the way through

Personally prefer paranoid, but still a solid album!

-holy shit this was just. awesome. i will need to relisten but i might even come to like it more than Paranoid someday. i really like the slow, hard doom metal stuff -might also be a contender for some of the coolest guitar sounds i’ve heard in metal. not knowledgeable enough to describe it but damn… solid -Favorites are Black Sabbath, The Wizard, and Warning

Bluesier than I expected. Similar to Cream, at times.

4/5. Never imagined me liking heavy metal, but here we are. There is something mesmerizing about the relentless guitar and bass, the vocals, the other worldly fantasy lyrics. Need to hear more Black Sabbath.

I remember discovering Black sabbath about 8 years ago. I used to love their first two albums and I event got a compilation of their best hits from their early works. After some time, I got bored of them and I specially got tired of Ozzy's voice to the point I couldn't stand it. Today, after a long period of time, this list makes me listen to their debut album. I went to listen to this with the expectation of not liking it, but, surprisingly, I liked way more than I though I would, and particularly, I even liked Ozzy's voice. My problem with his singing style is, when he sings high notes, his voice feels forced, and that irritates me. Fortunately, in this album, Ozzy stays on a lower register, and it feels way more natural. So, what about the songs? This albums opens with a beast of a track, 'Black Sabbath'. The atmosphere is so gloomy and haunting. It is mind-blowing. And the fact that it stills this strong and impactful after 55 years makes it even better. After the opening, all the songs between 'The Wizard' and 'Evil Woman' are some very strong 'proto-metal' tracks, with strong riffs and catchy melodies, specially the harmonica in the 'The Wizard' and the choruses in 'NIB' and 'Evil Woman'. The last 3 songs (or 2, if you don't count 'Wicked World' as it was realeased as an exclusive track for the US version) are way weaker and more 'hard-rock' oriented. 'Sleeping Village' starts with a nice acoustic guitar which creates this great dismal atmosphere. My problem with this song is that I wish they would expand the song around the style and idea of this segment instead of changing to a more 'hard rock' track. Lastly, the last 2 tracks don't really add anything to the experience in my opinion, primarily 'Warning' which is a 10 minutes song that feels its only intention is to show off Tommy Iommi's guitar abilities. Don't get me wrong, I think is very impressive how good he plays knowing the backstory of this fingers, but I do feel it goes for way longer than it should. At the end, I'm thankful to come back to this album.

Sabbath is absolutely killer! Awesome album

The Black Sabbath debut. Quintessential metal, rock supremacy and songs that makes you think you're in a horror movie, a couple songs drag along at the end, but still very enjoyable.

Fantastic album. Especially for the band's debut. Ozzy in his prime killing the vocals - particularly on the intro of the title track. Would have been such a different sound in 1970 even compared to what were considered heavier bands at the time. Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler blending the guitar and bass to create an auditory sludge you just can't get enough of. Throw in Bill Wards drumming (which isn't anything crazy but it works so well) and you've got an iconic album. 8.5/10

Wild that this came out in 1970. They're definitely trend setters, this album was pretty solid.

I love this album. It's not as polished as Paranoid but has so much charm. N.I.B. is the clear hit but The Wizard remains weirdly one of my favorite all time songs. I can't go with 5 stars because it's rocky but such a good debut.

Really good. I'm glad that I discovered Black Sabbath. Probably the most overall find in terms of famous bands that I have overlooked. This album was really solid - haunting riffs, kind of bluesy, great lyrics. I wasn't into it as much as Paranoid, so maybe that set too high of a bar

This was a really interesting listen. From what I can see online, this was Sabbath’s first album. I remember reading about how the term “heavy metal” wasn’t really a thing before Sabbath, and Ozzy’s book said they considered themselves to be heavy blues at the beginning. You can certainly hear this in the album. It’s fascinating to sit and listen to the birth of a genre that has inspired countless other bands, knowingly or not.

Dark and lumbering

The longer the note, the more dread

Great album that really innovated Doom metal. Title track is easily the best, the vocals are unbeatable

4.5 stars easy. That first song, Black Sabbath on Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath, might be the most important metal song ever written. It defines so much about the sound of the genre moving forward and so many other sounds and cultures probably don't emerge without it. The overall sound of the album is incredible considering this is 1970. As it goes, it gets a little boring and becomes more of this Led Zeppelin psychedelic blues thing without the darkness of some of the earlier tracks.

Kick ass

Follow me now and you will not regret

The great-granddaddy of metal. Aged, a little rough around the edges, but still a solid album.

This album is funky as hell. The solos alone make it a very engaging listen, for the instrumental passages have THICK atmospheres about them. Ozzy genuinely sounds like a funky ass prophet of sorts. To me this album is a bluesy soup of rhythms, rock riffs, lumbering ass riffs, meat and potato drums, and a master funk wizard wailing thru it all. Wicked world is wild for that big band vibe. Wizard has the harmonica stuff, just really was not expecting those kinds of sounds but I think the charm of this album is captured in those odd funky moments. I do really love the drums on the lengthy closer apart from the very windy solos and how they all work together to keep that thing morphin. Tight album. It's not my favorite Black Sabbath album but it certainly has it's place with the eccentricity.

Yeeeeesssssss!!! This is going to be so much fun. Loved it

Shoutout to Bill Ward, one of the most underrated drummers in rock history. Dude had some amazing ideas on this thing.

Black Sabbath, their 1970 debut of the same name is an album I could listen to any day of the week. What a great way to start their career! The album starts strong with driving bass lines, impressive guitar work, decent vocals and gets better as you listen. Best song is Bassically / N.I.B. followed by Wicked World, but they’re all good. Very strong finish. Never a huge fan, but BS comes in at (4.3*s)

Now realizing that this album is considered the starting point of heavy metal I realize I need to redefine the genre in my mind and revise my stance on my fandom. What was once considered heavy metal is so much smoother and melodic than I expected. I've admittedly slept on Black Sabbath as I wouldn't call myself a heavy metal fan. Now getting some exposure to their early discography I realize I've been wrong about the early roots of metal. Black Sabbath's debut is a very solid album with some great tunes. Ozzie' young voice is raw and melodic while the darker lyrics add a lot of character to the mix. Iommi's guitar work is great and really drives the album behind Ozzie's vocals. Not sure why the likes of Black Sabbath didn't get more airplay in my youth. I definitely need to give these guys their due as they've been a blind spot for me for too long. 3.59 stars

because of listening to bark at the moon too young, ozzy's voice continues to scare me.

I've never actually listened to a full Black Sabbath's album, and I don't think I've ever heard stuff from their debut. For some reason, I expected it to be kinda scary. But it wasn't! It was very atmospheric and almost pensive. A nice surprise.

Eigenlijk best wel cool. Vooral het eerste nummer. Hele specifieke oldschool (doom) metal sound.

That's some good heavy dark rock 'n' roll. 8.2/10

3 albums maken op minder dan 2 jaar tijd, waarvan elk album schijte goed is, je moet het maar doen. Ruige sound, crunchy gitaren en dan die stem van Ozzy. Ik hoop dat Master of Reality en Paranoid ook nog komen. 4.4

As an evangelical kid who believed in Satan, I thought I would burn in hell if I listened to something like Black Sabbath, so I never tuned in. If this is the soundtrack to hell, sign me up--this turned out to be great.

Extremely short, which is a knock against most albums. Feel like you're not getting your money's worth if it's not at least 30min. Otherwise, wouldn't it just be an EP? However, the tracks are pretty good, underrated, hard rock Black Sabbath songs, especially Wicked World.

Previously rated: Vol. 4 (5/5) Paranoid (5/5) ********************* There's some killer stuff here that I already knew like The Wizard and N.I.B. in particular. But the last group of songs at the end don't really go anywhere. But I will gladly give it another listen in the future.

Heavy but hardly a slog. The soloing never feels repetitive. The vocals are iconic. For some reason I'd never before picked up on Ozzy's enunciation being so clear. Favorite track: Black Sabbath

Some good shit. Not nearly as good as Paranoid which came out only six months later (!) but still listenable and rocking. A little self-indulgent.

This album is not as strong as Paranoid, but it is insane to think this came out the same year. 4/5

Great listen. Not as heavy as expected. Interesting lyrics on this one. I found the singers voice strange as first but warmed up to it. Highlights: Black Sabbath, N.I.B., Warning Will return.

Debut album, supposed to invoke horror. Very early metal. Really good metal. Laying a ton of ground work.

Good riffs

powerful riffs

Good albim

This probably blew people’s minds when it was first released. The power and darkness of the riffs are still amazing today.

Starting off with rainy church bells is an interesting choice, love that guitar riff accompanying the bells. The ramp up was a lot fun to finish off a solid first track. Starting out the next one with harmonica to soothe the soul. You can tell they had a lot of fun with the directional audio in general, nice engineering.

🤘🤘🤘 The build up on the title track is epic. Listened to this album on my way to work, walked in and punched my boss in the face, took a shit in the drive through tube and quit my job.

Oh god please no

Very good album lots of neat riffs

I liked the guitars and the melodies.

A bit too instrument heavy for general listening but when in the mood for light metal it is great.

It was weird if im being honest

I quite enjoy Sabbath, though I will say they have better stuff than this self titled album. Still, much enjoyed.

I really enjoyed this. Was really only familiar with Crazy Train (which is just Ozzy anyway) so this was a pleasant surprise. Great riffs and energy, a lot of zeppelin in there.

Hell yah dude. Absolutely

Fuck yes, so good

Never really listened to Sabbath before, but this was really interesting, bridging from blues to metal. A worthwhile listen.

Though not better than "Paranoid", it is a really great start for this band's career, and, like Paranoid, a innovative one too. It really tells us that the 60s was no more and that a new era of music is rising. Quite progressive in my opinion, and I like to give it a 8/10.

“Alright guys. It’s the first song on our first album. Let’s not get too crazy.” *Single handily invents Doom Metal*

A rip roaring good time indeed. Imagine this being your debut album? Cheeeezzzz. Faves: Black Sabbath, A bit of finger…

Of ik moest inkomen of dit album werd gaandeweg steeds beter. 8/10

Not many albums codify a whole genre. It also swings more than you might expect

Best track N.I.B.

I've only ever heard a few Black Sabbath singles as outside of Led Zeppelin, I've never been that into this style of 70s hard rock. However, I really liked this. Some great riffs, with a surprising amount of melody. That said it suffers from being a early (the first?) metal album in that it feels quite quaint in comparison to how heavy the genre has become in some places

This was a solid metal album with a badass vibe. I already liked Black Sabbath before this but this made me have a deeper appreciation for them! Some of the songs reminded me of Led Zeppelin but overall I really enjoyed this album!

I can't say I've ever been a fan of heavy metal or Black Sabbath, but there is something dark, gloomy and sinister about their debut album that introduced us to Ozzy and his evil intentions. The first heavy metal album is merely an extension of the hard rock blues sound of the late 60's, with Sabbath playing up the devil/anti-religion jargon that attracted additional attention. Definitely a record that has it's influence and importance, blah blah blah...it truly is something you need to be in the mood for full impact, but regardless an essential listen.

Hell yeah, this isn’t polished at all but fuck the tone and the sound is so good. Sabbath’s peak would come a bit later but there’s something to them not having great production or control over the instruments. Iommi sounds like he’s battling his guitar the entire time, the band is thrashing, and Ozzy is in full theatrics. Great fuckin’ album, but could do without the 14 minute jam at the end.

Really enjoyed this, effortlessly cool and classic.

The first heavy metal album (at least on purpose), and it still holds up amazingly well. You can hear the foundation of where Black Sabbath would evolve, but still a great debut. 4⭐️

Yeah this is where it all started cunt, never thought about a wizard being scary but I guess they're right. Sounds a lot like a poor man's cream tho

Have not listened to this since I was getting punched in the head by someone's older brother in a shag carpet basement some time in the early 1980s.

Excellent metal

Debut album. Apparently recorded in a couple days, but the band had been playing 7 45 minutes sets a day in a bar in Zurich, so they had lots of practice for the first couple albums

Good, grimey and way ahead of its time. Not as good as paranoid or MOR though.

I forgot how much of this is a blues album. The origins of metal are certainly in here, but to me it's still exceedingly proto. Aside from some riffs and lyrical aesthetic, it's sort of a blues/rock album to me. I see why Christgau and Bangs, two critics I respect the hell out of, found them to be hacks, but I think in retrospect they were wrong. I don't love metal, but I need Sabbath to be a little more metal before I can wholesale sign off. As it stands, they are a blues band with edge. 7.5/10

Not quite at the level of Paranoid, but still pretty fun.

ну зашибись че

Great debut.

Oh yeah - this album holds up so well for something over 50 years old. Ended up listening to Sabbath all day

Classic

Embarrassingly- I have not listened to this album before though I enjoyed Paranoid. I did this album perfectly with drive that lasted about the same time as the album. As a first listen I was impressed- 4/5

Uuuuuh, one of the best metal albums of all time. Amatzing musicianship + great atmosphere. Plenty of space for improvisation, which they did live. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

4- Stars (10/15)

Great album and the birth of the metal style. I forget how bluesy this album is but still maintains the metal feel. Completely forgot that they play harmonica even. It's not the fast, shred style, but it carries that darkness in tone and in feel. The singing doesn't really knock my socks off but the rest of the music does.

Awesome.

Between the album cover and the music itself, I love love love the vibes here.

Neat to see both the origins of Black Sabbath and heavy metal in this album. Although it doesn't reach the heights of Paranoid, it is still a great album with legendary musicians.

Ansaitsee paikkansa klassikkona ja genrensä isähahmona. Toimii myös edelleen. 4/5

This shit is so hard! Whoever is on the guitar is absolutely shredding. Ozzy’s voice is the perfect complement to it to, like a cherry on top of a sundae.

When I was a teenager in the 80s, I think I overlooked a lot of bands because they didn't fit my aesthetic at the time. It seems that Black Sabbath was one of those bands. Great album.

Don't like thr sinister vibe too much, but love the guitar playing. 4.5 stars

I get it, it was the birth of a new genre and massively influential. For me there is something lacking though, a bit of pizazz or theatrically. There are some killer riffs but it all goes a bit pedestrian and plodding at times. I think the production is partly to blame. Ozzy’s voice is a weak link here. Want to give this 3.5

Don’t think that it hits the heights of Paranoid which I rated a 5 but this comes very close to it. Great album, loved it.

Rough around the edges, but understandable for the first of its kind.

Surprisingly this is probably my favorite black Sabbath album I'm probably an odd one out on that one

Not my kind of music. But is was good

This album kind of rules. I can see myself boosting this to five stars with future listens. The first intro track alone, what a first impression!

++: Black Sabbath, Behind the Wall of Sleep, N.I.B., Evil Woman +: Sleeping Village, Warning +-: The Wizard 9,0/10

Ozzy! Black Sabbath! I love these guys! This is a great intro album for them it shows you just how they were and of course it's regarded as the first metal album so that's pretty dope! While it doesn't have many of their more popular songs it does well in showing what they could do and what they were planning on going for

I’ve never listened to this and was lukewarm on Black Sabbath coming in, but this is pretty sweet. My favorite British album to date from this journey.

great rock

I first bought this when I was 14, and I thought it was great. I have t heard it in 40+ years and it still kicks butt

More melodic than I would have thought. Very pleasantly surprised! 4/5

This is just really good rock. Maybe I'm a little numb to how good this is, as a listen to a lot of stuff like this, but this is my first time listening to this album. It's basic, as in, it has all the basic elements of rock of this time, without anything extra or particularly unique. But it's all very high level. The guitar riffs, the singing is excellent. I could listen to this over and over. Favorite Song(s): Black Sabbath, N.I.B., Wicked World

Det er noe så behagelig med å bare drukne ørene i de mørke og tjukke riffene til Iommi. De har en så naturlig og digg driv. Tilbakelent samtidig som intenst. "N.I.B." er definitivt høydepunktet. Noen av sangene mangler fokuset som man hører på de følgende albumene. Dette er langt fra den beste Sabbath platen, men det er et meget banebrytende album for det om.

9/10

black sabbath rocks

Pre: Yeah it's hard to qualify this as a pre-listen cause this is one of the first albums I bought on CD and listened to for many a car journey. Still, because of that I haven't listened to it in years so it's good to come back to it. Post: I know a good amount of this isn't Sabbath originals so it's interesting to see how a lot of it does come across heavily bluesy before they really found their footing. Coming back to this though I was mostly surprised how Ozzy doesn't seem to have found his footing yet really, which is hardly surprising for a debut but compared to Paranoid released the same year it's an interesting difference. Despite that though everyone else is on point. Geezer Butler is one of the reasons I wanted to learn Bass and this album has some amazing work in spades. N.I.B. has some excellent highlights from everyone all round. On the whole though I'd rate this album higher if I hadn't listened to the proceeding albums from them and what they're capable of. The Wizard, Black Sabbath are highlights to me but on the whole this does and is a band that hasn't quite found it's footing yet. Highlight: N.I.B. (Specifically the Geezer noodling at the start)

Great album, I enjoyed every song.

Get your dinner of bats and LSD ready: it’s Black Sabbath time! Again, I have heard Black Sabbath my entire life. I enjoy hearing some of the classics over and over again, but I actually enjoy listening to some of the deep cuts. I don’t normally get to hear even more. Geezer’s bass intro on NIB is a classic every bass player must know. What I appreciated more this listen was the continued jazz undertones Bill Ward used throughout, especially on Sleeping Village/Warning. This album definitely was less focused on the hard-driven rock and allowed Sabbath to show how amazing they were all musically. When people rip on metal, this is a good album to play for them with a healthy “HA!!!!”

Random thoughts: * This is the OG metal album. * It is basically a harder version of Led Zeppelin. * I especially hear that Zepp comparison especially in The Wizard due to the harmonica. * This album flowed nicely and was a good listen.

this EP from the very beginning has the distinct BS sound while still sounding raw and at the beginning of it's refinement. The epicness is still there while having a certain innocence to it. great album.

The album that birthed Heavy Metal. The sound, the feeling even the look in some regard. You've got top tier Metal classics like Black Sabbath, N.I.B. The Wizard.... The whole album is great. An essential metal record. A must have.

Ozzy, Tony, Geezer, and Bill, 4 likely lads from jolly old England. And they kicked off a whole new world. Favorite was the Wasp.

Fantastic, genre defining album. I think there is still growth from here to the next Black Sabbath albums and they were still finding their feet.

a bit rough around the edges but very very enjoyable. As the book blurb mentions the lyrics are a tiny bit comical now... but the overall aesthetic and vibe and groove are really great. Not hard for me to see how/why this is seen as a somewhat revolutionary moment in rock music history.

Had never heard their debut before; the blues roots are a bit more evident and it's not quite the classic that the follow ups were, but still mostly great stuff.

yeah. groundbreaking and a great way to kick off the metal genre.

Awesome.

A sludgy dark rock album that totally rocks. At only 5 songs, it's a lean album. Sounds like nothing else from it's time. I like Vol 4 better, but a great introduction to Black Sabbath.

loved: N.I.B. sleeping village warning wicked world

Sabbath rules. Who knew? Not me. The band and their propulsive, driving hard rock sounds great. Ozzy is a bit nasally but his voice soars with and complements the tunes. It’s awesome to hear the foundation of hard rock and metal being laid. Black Sabbath ran so that Metallica could fly.

i think i loved!

Never listened to this before, but I enjoyed their sound a lot.

The blueprint for the metal genre. Iommi, Butler, Ward, and Osborne This album is a statement and an incredibly strong debut.

I really don't know why I've never listened through this - as I love the 2nd album Paranoid. It's really good 4 stars to Paranoids 5. Just the bands dynamic - the drums, bass and guitar riffs make an incredible combo. That said I lost interest during the last long B-side track and no track is as good as War Pigs on Paranoid .. so 4.

I like this, but don’t really see it as all that revolutionary. Is it that far from Led Zeppelin or Cream or Jimi Hendrix? They’re just being much more overt about the demonic stuff as far as I can tell. About that demonic stuff: why were people searching high and low to make out that bands were into devil worship? “If you play it backward it kind of sounds like…” These lads put it front and centre - clear as midnight. No mystery about that at all. I’ve recently had a couple of Led Zep albums and a CCR and asked for a happy medium between the two. This does sort of hit a nice middle ground between the dark heavy stress of LZ and the clear and predictable chunks of CCR. Maybe Sabbath’s second album is their masterpiece and this was just kicking the doors open for that?

Riktigt bra, har inte sett varför metal måste bli mer mörkt och skrikande än så här detta är perfekt balanserat mer än så här överdriv

It's hilarious that this music was once considered evil and scary. It's a great album though, I always forget how much it kinda sounds like traditional bluesy rock.

Excellent listening experience, lovely dive I took into the Black Sabbath origin story lore. Full of bangers though not as iconic as some of their other work. Overall very pleasant listening and hype as all hell.

Interesting, thought I was going to like this one more.

Cool shit! I like the vibes and the vocals 👉👉

Dark punk rock

Went pretty great honestly! I don't think I ever would have specifically gone to listen to this without 1001 albums but it had some phenomenal riffs and fills - I'm impressed! Still nkg the biggest fan of the whole occult atmosphere but overall it's really good!

Can’t believe how much I enjoyed this. Not has “hard” as I expected it to be. Never would have tried it.

More Sabbath? Already? Yay! Hard to deny the impact of this album. The dawn of heavy metal. Even more amazing is the fact that this entire album was recorded live in 12 hours.

I loved it

Loved it! Haven't heard any of these songs before.

Come for the rage, stay for the guitar solos. Good garage music.

N.I.B. is a banger

Kinda dug this more than I would have expected, and must've had a Sabbath streak at some point as most of the songs were familiar to me.

Banger!

- Not really a metal album, but I still enjoyed it for a debut album - That tritone at the start was a real game-changer though, and I sometimes wonder what Metal music would be like today, if not for that - The Warning is such a great song, I would listen to that all again for that song - Some songs were a little dull for me, but I liked their experimentation throughout the album, there was some funk feels even

No arguments here. It's not Sabbath's best album by any stretch, but it established their sound and its influence is undeniable. It's crazy how brief this version linked to is, with just 6 songs and clocking in under 30 minutes (the 2014 remaster has 7 songs, delivering a more full album experience). Half of those songs remain among the best the band ever recorded ("Black Sabbath", "The Wizard", and "NIB") and have long been personal favorites. Metal wouldn't be what it is without this album, so it deserves respect and attention. I know they recorded better albums though, which keeps me from rating this one higher.

I'm the Prince of **********ing Darkness!! 4.

I can't imagine how mind blowing it must have been to stick this on your record player in 1970.

I love the doom metal opening on this album; one of the main types of metal that I still listen to so sick to hear such an early example of it. Then the wizard was always my favourite Sabbath track as a youth. There's a great fresh natural nearly-live sound on this album (apparently it was recorded in one day) that makes it so easy to listen to and enjoy. I really like Warning as the ending track, it stands out as a little different to what came before, with more blues rock than the rest and the great extended jam.

Best: NIB Worst: Liked songs: 100%, 6/6 Strong 4 Love the sound, especially the guitar. I thought i didn't like ozzy's voice before because I really hadn't heard much black sabbath, and I still don't love it, but it's growing on me. Crazy that the album came out in 1970, does NOT feel like it. I don't think it's long enough to warrant a 5/5, especially since it's sub half hour. Two or three more solid tracks and i think it could get there. Still a really good record.

Yeah good! Not as good as Paranoid but certainly listenable

One song in and the guitar got vibrato. Production on this project is pretty great. Didn’t even realize this was “metal” until I read the reviews. Shows how much I know about metal or rock for that matter. Good project tho! Guitars were tantalizing. 3.5/5

First metal album and it delivers almost perfectly

"Black Sabbath" is the debut album by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath. It is considered the first true heavy metal album. The album was produced by Rodger Bain and was recorded in a single 12-hour session and had very few overdubs. Black Sabbath is Ozzy Osbourne (lead vocals, harmonica), Tony Iommi (guitar), Geezer Butler (bass) and Bill Ward (drums). The album received generally negative reviews upon its release but reappraisals cite it as one of the greatest and most influential heavy metal albums of all time. Commercially, it was a success hitting #8 in the UK and #23 in the US. Rain, thunder and bells ringing open the the self-titled "Black Sabbath." Iommi's frightening guitar riff and ozzy's eerie vocals. Plodding drums but it builds. The song takes off as Iommi gets a reverbing-echoing guitar sound. The song is about waking up from a nightmare. Ozzy rocks the harmonica in "The Wizzard." The band gets a start-stop-start dynamic going especially the drums. Iommi riffs and Ozzy harmonica. A song about Lord of the Ring's Gandalf. The wah-wah riff and Ozzy's "Oh Yeah" begin "N.I.B." Multple guitar solos. The song was named after Bill Ward's goatee and is told from Lucifer's point of view as he falls in love with woman. The band covers the Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation's "The Warning." It's bluesy, grungy. They really stretch this out with drum and guitar solos, pace changes and extended jams. Sludgy, grungy, dirty, heavy and stoner are all good descriptors of this. Heavy on the Tony Iommi riffs. Ozzy vocals are seething and searing. I do hear some of the Cream comparisons and there is a fair bit of extensive jamming and some filler. But, this is a classic, a defining album and they would continue to expand this sound, hell, within the same year. Horns up people!

Superunknown sin rating var ment her

Fucker veldig med slutten av intro sangen, men ikke så veldig starten. Har aldri vært noe særlig fan av Ozzy Osbourne sin stemme. Han kan passe veldig bra på noen sanger, men ikke alltid. Veldig kult valg å ha et munnspill på The Wizard, har alltid syntes at det er et undervurdert instrument, men beste sangen er nok N.I.B. Skjønner veldig godt at det har blitt en klassiker, det er jo så ulikt alt annet på den tiden. Men jeg har litt det samme problemet her som på Paranoid, det kan bli litt tynt og utdatert. Men synes allikevel det er mange gode ideer og at det har hatt en stor innvirkning på musikk som kom etter. Black Sabbath - 4/4.5

Classic sabbath, great album

For some reason black sabbath was one of the metal bands i didn't listen to as much of when i was young. Feels like a mistake

Los PADRES del Metal.

Metal like you would play at a Halloween party. Really dark.

Favorite Track: Black Sabbath

black sabbath is one of the artists this list has really helped me get into the most

This was so much more interesting than The Osbournes made me think it would be- super gothy and Victorian in places, and really great blues throughout. Another album that I had preconceived ideas about, which I thought I wouldn’t enjoy. I loved the blues elements mixed with really crunchy rock guitar- if Black Sabbath is the origin of metal that doesn’t necessarily make me think I’d like to listen to more metal, but I definitely need to take a look back at blues. I really enjoyed the fantasy songs and lyrics on The Wizard, and even in N.I.B., which sounds at first like a love song and then abstracts into something cultish and fantastical- he’s the devil! Evil Woman was funky but felt a bit like it was telling a story from a Thomas Hardy novel in context with the rest of the album. Musically, I loved the weird sproinging noises on Sleeping Village, and I loved the album opening with a rainy village soundscape, then falling into clangy guitars and bells tolling doom. It felt like the album could quite easily be stripped of guitars to something simpler and folky/bluesy, but they definitely add a lot- squealing and grime. So many of the riffs were really memorable and felt totally epic. Cannot believe how much I liked this. I put it on several times just while I was pottering about the house and felt like a powerful witch. So fun.

Ozzy es amor.

I quite enjoyed this. It is considered the Father of Metal music. I was fascinated when listening slowly that it had such a heavy blues and jazz connection. I was very lucky to have this one on Vinyl in my house.

The birth of metal sounded a lot different than you'd think. By today's standards, this almost plays like a Cream album with a little more teeth.

awesome

Near classic.

Super solid.

really liked this. thought it holds up super well

Solider Hardrock mit starken Riffs. Meine Favoriten sind “Sleeping Village” ( Geheimtipp) und “Wicked World”. Es ist auf jeden Fall zu empfehlen, wenn mal Hard sein soll.

Surprisingly good. I enjoyed this one. Put it on the 4 side of 3.5.

This is OK and still holds up pretty well after 50 years plus. I've never been a fan of Ozzy's voice particularly, but I can live with it in reasonably small quantities. The drive and style of this mean that it's really not a problem here. Half decent and I'd listen again for sure.

First impressions are that this is a heavy blues album. The band has a great sound, I’ve always been a sucker for that heavy sounding 70’s drumming. Vocally, not much to praise about. Ozzy isn’t off key at any point but he more or less talks and low range yells throughout this . The more harmonious Ozzy won’t come until much later. Lyrically this won’t win any competitions but that really isn’t the goal here. This is good and it’s only 5 songs. I could have sworn I was 12 songs deep. As long as you like blues infused rock from the 70’s you are good to go here. I’ll be returning for more now that I know Ozzy and the boys aren’t really devil worshipers. Choice cut: The Wizard…

The best thing to come out of an industrial accident!

Lots of great stuff but feels like the back part is padded out a bit.

4/5. Great dynamics between guitar and bass. I also liked the medley structure.

General impression: this is awesome Detailed review: Kind of similar to my review thoughts on Ambient 1 - it’s crazy that the album that basically invented the new genre (heavy metal in this case) is still such a great example of that genre. It’s clearly more like heavy blues-rock, but all the touchstones of metal are right there. Deeper thoughts (context): Score: 4.2 Number of albums left to review: 950 Number of albums from the list I’d consider “must-listens”: 30 (including this one) Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 21

7/10 D.I.B

7/10

Muddy, silly, heavy, sloppy, awesome! Who could not love this?

Cool riffs, full sound. Pretty enjoyable throughout. Liked this one much better than vol. 4.

Interesting. I have never listened to it. It seems a lot more blues oriented that from Paranoid onward.

Black Sabbath

One of the best debut albums ever, as well as one of the most important albums in the history of metal. However, not the best in the sabbath catalogue.

BELLO BELLO BELLO. MI PIACCIONO I BLACK SABBATHHHHHHHH!! Carico, mixed, interesting, just beautiful

I didn't expect to care about this album at all. Much better than I expected. 4/5

Absolutely amazing the only low point is weirdly Ozzys vocals

Harmonica. Wicked bass lines. Jazzy timing. Mouth harp. I enjoyed this way more than I expected. My first impression of Ozzy was from his reality show on MTV. The rock scene in the 70s was pretty incredible.

so much better than their cheesy reputation

The title track is 4 or 5 stars but the rest of the album didn’t quite live up to the promise - I mostly only like slower doom metal rather than the loud shouty kind. Between a 3 and a 4 but going with my first instinct.

The only Black Sabbath album I’ve ever listened to was Paranoid, and I thoroughly loved it, so I was excited to get this one. And it did not disappoint. I had Metallica Master of Puppets yesterday, but Black Sabbath album has exactly what I was looking for, but missing, on Master of Puppets - some damn heart and soul. Make it messy. Make it dark. Make it sexy. Ozzy gets it. MoP was so uptight - honestly not sure why people like it. But this is a Black Sabbath review, so enough about that. I read this album was almost entirely recorded in a single day and released on Friday the 13th. Everything about this album is perfectly suited to be the starting point for Black Sabbath and all associated lore. Really enjoyed it. 4/5 Highlights: Black Sabbath The Wizard

Groundbreaking for its time, really enjoyable listen

Very dark, cool to hear where some bands that I liked got this from, such as AIC, Metallica, and Slayer. Awesome early metal album.

The riffs on this album are great, except for (funnily enough) the riff on the most popular track here, N.I.B., which is too simple to prop up such a lengthy song. Any melody doubled between electric guitar and bass feels weighty and stadium-shaking, even if it's really only shaking a localised environment like your middle ear. But it gives off the impression of raw power. Led Zeppelin does the same thing, to equally great effect. The title track is excellent, almost a proto-doom-metal genre – which is pretty ballsy for a year where other hugely popular releases were Let It Be, All Things Must Pass, and Cosmo's Factory. (Very different to their contemporaries, is what I'm saying. And in the 60s and 70s, that was usually a good thing.) The Wizard, Evil Woman, and N.I.B. are all fun, energetic jam tracks set to rock-solid guitar hooks. Admittedly, a couple of the tracks are definite filler and are entirely kept afloat by the riffs. My favourite moment was listening to Black Sabbath on Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath. 4/5 Key tracks: Black Sabbath, The Wizard, Wicked World

Classic Sabbath.

A strong debut. Not a fan of how Ozzy sounds on most of these songs tho