Paranoid

Easiest 5 stars I've ever given. Before even listening I know - but this is one of the first albums I became attached to as a kid. Every track is perfect. Other bands paved the way, but Sabbath actively invented heavy metal. I think it could also be argued the song "Electric Funeral" alone also spawned an entire sub-genre of 'sludge' bands and eventually made the term 'Sabbath Clone' its own descriptor as bands tried to re-create it. || I've always loved the bass in this album, and obviously Iommi and Ozzy do great guitar/vocals - but on this listen, it was the first time I realized how truly incredible the drums are! Bill Ward always felt like a Sabbath afterthought to me, but listening more intently to the drums throughout, especially on the back half of the album, it's clear he's just as important a part of Sabbath's success. Perfect from top to bottom.

“Paranoid” by Black Sabbath (1970) When I listened to this as a teenager, my moral superiors were scandalized that I was sinfully indulging an embrace of the satanic. They were ignorant. This is not evil proudly standing as evil. This is evil as a genre pointing to the good, in the classic, gothic sense. “War Pigs” excoriates the fomenters of mass destruction, likening them to workers of the dark arts (It is Satan, not God, who laughs at their vain appeals for mercy before divine judgment). “Paranoid” is the empathy-evoking lament of a man losing his mind. “Planet Caravan” is morally neutral pagan sci-fi. “Iron Man”, also sci-fi, is a morality tale about the deadly potential of technology turned against us. “Electric Funeral” is simply apocalypse. “Hand of Doom” and “Fairies Wear Boots” are poetic sermons warning against the use of drugs (Would that he had heeded his own message). What’s not to like? You uninformed cultural moralists need to get off your high horse. While the prophetic voice in this message is rather too simplified, it’s not nearly as graphic as some portions of Sacred Scripture (slowly read Deuteronomy 28:47-57 before proceeding to The Lamentations of Jeremiah and the Revelation of St. John). Call me if you need counseling. The aesthetic question here is whether the mood of the message properly harmonizes with the mood of the music. Boy, does it. It is dark. It is heavy. It is horror harnessed in sound. Tony Iommi is one of the greatest guitarists of all time. If you want to play guitar like Iommi, all you have to do is cut off the ends of the first two fingers of your fretboard hand, and use homemade prosthetics and banjo strings in order to compensate. Simple. The pain of that horrible experience might just give you a sense of what a guitar can accomplish as a conveyor of human passion. Feedback and sustain on power chords (“War Pigs”, “Iron Man”) provide space and invite reflection, and exquisitely colorful lead riffs and solos amaze the listener. Jazz solo lines in the outro of “Planet Caravan” are exemplary for dynamic fluctuation and improvisation. Anybody can play the groove chords on “Iron Man”. But nobody can play them like Tony Iommi. Ozzy Osbourne has precisely the right voice for conveying these lyrics and melodies. He has a strong, snarly voice, and pitch control is a secondary concern. He understands the power of the emphatic consonant. Bill Ward’s heavy drums, with masterfully synchronized fills, provide fearsome rhythms and a fine solo break (in “Rat Salad”). And Geezer Butler’s virtuosity on electric bass set a standard for metal music, mastering the art of ‘pairing’ bass and electric rhythm without simple aping. Listen to how Butler’s pulsing bass vibrates the rattle wires of Ward’s snare drum on the intro to “Hand of Doom”. The engineers intentionally didn’t correct it. Masterful. Listen to this album. Today. Remove your hat; you’re in the presence of rock nobility. 5/5

Correct me if I'm wrong but this is one of the greatest album ever recorded.

The Beatles are widely considered to be the greatest band of all time, yet the Beatles did not write “Hand of Doom”. Curious.

Put me in a time machine and let me go back to 1970 and hear this for the first time and see others reactions. What a time that must have been. An absolute heavy metal and rock classic from start to finish.

I don't expect anything I have to say is fresh, partly because this is well-trodden ground and partly because there's not much to talk about. That's not as negative as it sounds, just recognition that one of Sabbath's main virtues is recapitualating proof of concept that rock music can be chunked and stacked into songs like cheese cubes on a toothpick. I really like that bit of their music. They're very good at it. Riffs atops drum rolls atop looming bass atop screeching vocals. If they weren't, I wouldn't recognise so many of these (Kanye borrows the Iron Man riff for Hell of a Life, huh?) without ever having heard the album. My issues are (I warned you this wouldn't be original) that while all they want to do is rock (so far so good) they don't have much to rock around. A robin, a jailhouse, a clock--music is stuffed to the gunnels with things around which one can orbit. They've supposedly got weirdness, paranoia, satanism or whatever. But do they? Because despite their image, there's nothing especially evocative or atmospheric going on here. They could just as easily be singing about the best time to zest an orange (once it's hardened, I'm told, as that means the juice has moved from the innards to the outards) without causing much dissonance. Of course, ideas aren't a requirement in great music. I can listen to Franco Luamba or James Brown all day without giving too many shits about what they're saying. But that brings us to my other issue, which is that those guys have got rhythm, groove, funk and soul that's ass-bustingly transcendent, while Sabbath only have their cheese on a stick, and that can only get you so far.

SHAAARRONNNN. Three obvious big fat classic riffs in War Pigs, Paranoid and Iron Man but pretty sick how they can also pull off Planet Caravan in the middle of it all. I think Electric Funeral is my highlight though, can hear heaps of gizz and ORB.

Probably the most influential metal album of them all, and arguably the greatest collection of metal songs on a single record. War Pigs, Paranoid, Iron man and that’s just the opening three tracks. More focused and cohesive than its predecessor Toni Iommi’s ability to write a riff is unrivalled and Ozzy’s vocals are so simple but so incredibly effective, while the inimitable Bill Ward and Geezer Butler show why they are as under-appreciated as they are accomplished.

So this was the first album I ever bought at 13. To say my mother was disappointed that I stopped binge-listening her Tom Jones and Sadler & Young albums to binge-listen Black Sabbath is an understatement. I first hear it when an older brother of a friend played it for us. So heavy, dark & riff-centric. For me, all hard rock that came after paled by comparison. I read a review of this album about 10 years ago and the guy said just ignore Ozzy (happily) and the heavy guitar and listen to nothing but the bass and drums and you will get a better idea of what a great band they were. I see this is the 7th highest ranked 1001 album so I will not resist.

This is easily both the best heavy metal album of all time and the most influential heavy metal album of all time. War Pigs, Paranoid, and Iron Man are obviously beyond legendary tracks, but tracks like Electric Funeral still absolutely rip and I’m still surprised by how they got away with putting a mellow track like Planet Caravan between Paranoid and Iron Man while still maintaining a coherent sound. The music and vocals are top fucking tier coupled with the genre defining sound and aesthetic that kicked off a whole generation of metal. Not to mention the ironclad tearing down of pro-war sentiments. This is truly one of the most perfect albums of all time for me. 4.8 stars

War Pigs is a huge opening track and sets the tone for a genre defining album. Rifftastic Iommi with the unchained brilliance of Ozzie. A match made in metal heaven.

Classic metal album, unexpected jazziness on some songs, others are well known

I found myself not knowing when a song began and ended, a lot of the songs blended together, which isn't really for me. I like the genre of music and some of the songs are pretty iconic, however the blending is too much for me

An obvious metal masterpiece. Dark, intense, slow, ambient. Everything that a good stoner metal album could be

More of a blues rock album than I expected. Some really great technique on display. The compositions are simple but effective, and the repetitiveness serves the themes of the album well. The instrumentalists are super together all the time, they play well with one another. Bill Ward especially kills it on this album.

10/15 Raw as all hell. Standout Tracks: Planet Caravan, Iron Man, Electric Funeral, Hand of Doom

Quoting Rob’s mix-tape rules from the movie Hi Fidelity: “You gotta kick it off with a killer to take attention, and then you gotta kick it up a notch. But you don’t wanna blow your wad, so then you gotta cool it down a notch. There are a lotta rules.” - even though ‘Paranoid’ is not a mix, it nails that form spot on - ‘War Pigs’ is the best song on the album, and then it gets better with ‘Paranoid’. ‘Planet Caravan’ is still a closet favorite which I love playing to the Metal uninformed - “This is Back Sabbath?”. It all works - galloping, locomotive bass and drums, ominous guitars and Ozzy. They convey the emotions of the disillusioned industrial youth that they are. Love the lyrics throughout. ‘War Pigs’ could have been written 3000 years ago. This album and their eponymous debut album were released within six months of each other, which still amazes me. These albums changed Rock music forever. Doesn’t get much better. 5+ stars

Possibly the best early heavy metal albums. 10/10

Nope.

Perfection

This freakin rocked. I had heard more of the songs than I expected, fun ride all the way through

Black Sabbath's Paranoid is a landmark metal album, brimming with heavy riffs, gloomy atmospheres, and Ozzy Osbourne's iconic vocals. Songs like "Paranoid" and "War Pigs" are undeniable classics, while tracks like "Planet Caravan" showcase the band's versatility. Pioneering and influential, Paranoid remains a must-listen for any metal fan. 5 out of 5 stars

This album is perfect. Banger after banger after banger after banger. And those changes in the song are just godly. One of the best ever

Super hårdt OG super catchy, lyder virkelig som et mission statement for hele genren. Jeg tror egentlig marginalt bedre jeg kan lide debuten, men den her fortjener stadig at joine Ágætis Byrjun på Claus-Rasmus-Sandra Five Star Hall of Fame™

I may be Paranoid, but not an Android. I. AM. IRON MAAAAAAAAAN Incredible work!

Out of all albums that I love this is one of the most pesimistic when it comes to lyrics. Great, dynamic, atmospheric music with hypnotizing Ozzy's vocals make perfect match. Depressing lyrics make this whole experience hit different. One moment You want to jump to great riff, couple of seconds later you are dragged to the bottom with apocaliptic visions. One of my favourites. 6/5

Anthony, Andrew, and I took some mushrooms and tripped hard to an early Sabbath concert where Ozzy still had youth in his face that he hadn't destroyed with drugs yet. Then we turned on a Tom Jones record, and watched a industrial crusher destroy a bunch of toys on YouTube. We laughed our heads off. This record is still one of the most imitated, but never duplicated. Lightning stuck hard with this one. Favorite tracks: "Iron Man", "Faeries Wear Boots", "Electric Funeral"

Grandma Died On This Day. Allh Yar7em El Fey9a

Never considered myself a fan of metal but I can appreciate the genre because of albums such as this. Going through the lyrics of some of these songs shows them talking about generational topics (such as war pigs with them referencing, I’m assuming, Vietnam), to having an abstract story (Iron Man). Musically, everything from the guitars to the vocals made this album an absolute banger. The simple replay-ability of this album gives it a 5, no contest.

5/5 While metal wasn’t invented by a single artist or band, Black Sabbath did bring together a blueprint that is referenced to this day. This album is fun to listen to and full of that dark energy you are looking for when listening to metal, without feeling obscene or “evil” just for the sake of sounding that way. The Heavy and distorted riffs and Ozzie’s iconic voice are of course great but listening to the drums and bass specifically show that they help support the band just as much as everything else. Of course the big three hits are amazing but the rest of the tracks are great listens as well. I enjoyed “Planet Caravans” slow paced spacey feeling (the traveling bongos are fun), “Electric Funeral” has intense imagery in the lyrics and really brings forward the bass and drums, and “Rat Salad” is a fun jam session and drum solo. I guess I’d say that “Fairies Wear Boots” is the weak point of the album for me but that’s not saying much as it isn’t a bad listen. Fav Tracks: No point in choosing

A stone cold classic. I actually like it BECAUSE the guitar relys more on tone than on histrionics. The first half is incredible from War Pigs through Iron Man its one classic after another. I especially the moody Planet Caravan. The second half can get a little heavy handed, but not enough to dim the status as an all time metal classic; 5 stars.

What's to say about this album that hasn't already been said? A great trip from start to finish. I think when I was younger I wasn't a big fan of Planet Caravan but I love the trippy groove of that track now and it makes a good bridge from Paranoid to Iron Man. On side two It feel like Electric Funeral pays an homage to early Pink Floyd with the vocal melody at the beginning.

This album is great because it also contains the 1001 greatest guitar riffs you must listen to

Ох, это же Блэк Сабат Гитары звучат сочно. Слышно каждую ноту, плотно. War Pigs - ох какой соляк! У баса интересная партия тоже. Теперь я понимаю, за что любят Томи Айоми. У него просто ахерительные рифы и вкусные соляки. Paranoid - тут всё понятно Planet Caravan - вау, вот это перкуссия! Раньше я слушал только кавер Пантеры на эту песню, оригинал вообще другой. Бас всё так же творит чудо, гитара потихоньку подыгрывает, дополняя атмосферу. Интересно звучат соло Томми (уже в трех песнях подряд), они звучат сухо, практически без эффектов. Слышно лишь короткую реверберацию. Но эта реверберация создает невероятную глубину в песне. Iron Man - классика хэви метала) Опять же гитара звучит очень собранно и хрустяще. Есть непопадания, когда после паузы все немного играют мимо, но почему-то это не звучит как что-то прям очень плохое. Типа трушно, что-ли. Хм, концовка очень интересная, только сейчас обратил внимание на неё. Electric Funeral - Оззи снова не парится и поёт в унисон с гитарой Томми) КАК ЖЕ ОФИГИТЕЛЬНО ЗВУЧАТ ЭТИ ГИТАРЫ! Во всех песнях! Hand of Doom - барабаны очень панчевые, слышится каждая атака. Rat Salad - похоже на импровизацию. Барабанное соло драйвовое. Fairies Wear Boots - как всегда крутые рифы Томми Айоми. Интересно меняется ритм на протяжении всей песни. Хорошее закрытие альбома. ---- Буду ли я переслушивать этот альбом? ДА.

Such a great album. These guys were ahead of their time. You can see where so many future bands got their influences from.

ground breaking stunning album.

So fucking tight. Riffs for days. Can’t wait to drink a few rockshores and drift away to planet caravan.

When I first met Luke in a crowded Bot garden. Sandwiched between Laura and Jenny and opposite himself, I accidentally made out I was a massive metal head by talking to him solely about Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. That man was no liar. 8 tracks of pure godly tunes.

Legendary!

Classic

Amazing!

It's Sabbath, and I'm a metal head. Having said that, it's not a brilliant album, and you can tell its the birth of metal as a genre. There are some excellent tracks, but it could use some refinement. It us still a good album, just not one of the very best.

Staple thrash metal infused with riveting use of stylistic bar variations and impactful guitar riffs. Ozzy Osbourne's immediacy in his vocals create intangible catharsis for the record. Cohesive and a CHB, 'Paranoid' (album) is instantly recognizable to many listeners alike regardless of genre.

How I wish I'd gone to that Black Sabbath concert on May 5, 1982. I guess it only took 40 years to realize that. I was scared away at the time. How was I to know with everyone freaking out at the time? Good grief, this review will be more obscene than the album is. How can you not go, "Fuck yeah!" through this whole album? It's the "War Pigs" that are satanic! Fuck, yeah! What is this freaky, spacey, awesome sound in "Planet Caravan"? Fuck, yeah! Oh my God, that riff in "Iron Man" is so epic that we're going to play it and sing to it over and over for five and half minutes and never get tired of it. (When you look up "Riff" in Wikipedia, this is the riff that illustrates what a riff is. Fuck, yeah!) I went batshit when that voice that kind of sounds like Animal from the Muppets chanted "Electric Funeral! Electric Funeral" Fuck, yeah! When "Hand of Doom" slowly, creepily builds and builds to "Now you're gonna die!" Fuck, yeah! (Well, maybe not "yeah" except that it's definitely not glamorizing drug abuse, so, okay, fuck, yeah!) I will never get tired of the title "Rat Salad." Fuck, yeah. The album so far has dealt with war, depression, the end of the world (twice), and drug abuse, and ends with "Fairy with boots and dancing with a dwarf." Fuck. Yeah. (Granted it might have had to do with the "smokin' and trippin'" but as the album ends, "Yeah!") I had to giggle a few times when the lyrics really struggled to fit the rhythm "Ca-an he-e see-e, or is he blind?" and then I laughed again when I realized it sounded like Jack Black was singing, but I felt like a goddamn badass pulling up to work with it blaring on my car stereo and now I finally get it all.

Rockin album!

It's a miracle that Ozzy Osbourne is still alive

Epic 😎

Strong first half, weaker second half

Short and sweet. The guitar sound >>> Ozzy’s vocals. Of course this album is on this list, no problem saying that even though they’re not my favorite band.

Disappointing! War Pigs and Paranoid together made a tremendously strong, energetic start from out the outset, but all my enthusiasm was lost by the time Iron Man came on—at which point the album descended into lyrics that were edgy but shallow, and settled into that unfortunate aimless, rambly guitar/drum combo that seems to have dominated rock in the years prior. An easy five stars if the momentum had carried through, but as it stands, three is being generous. Recommended season: Winter

- better than seeing them live (saw them live in Wacken and they are just too old for this) - still old man metal, not mine

What a treat!!

No skips

No notes.

You know, this sophomore Black Sabbath record has always been one of THOSE classics, the one where, maybe, on a purely conceptual level, its slow and sludgy presentation always turned me off of it ever-so-slightly, it's just never been MY style. But when it comes time to sit down and listen to the thing, I can just fucking hear it, I can hear all of why this album is so beloved. I'd say it usually clicks on that faster switch-up on 'Electric Funeral' with those squawking guitar hits right before the song, once again, muddies itself in that swampy riff that evokes this lethargic and almost comatose-inducing feeling within my gut. 'Paranoid' is just flat-out catchy, like a banger rock tune with some of the most haunting Ozzy lyrics out of ANY Sabbath song. The other huge song, 'Iron Man', I'm maybe more indifferent towards as a standalone track, I've never been a fan of that lead guitar and synched vocal melody, though in the track listing here it works really well in reigniting the album's momentum after the slower 'Planet Caravan'. And I do like 'Planet Caravan'...it's a much-needed, Black Sabbath-standard, slow switch-up - it's ethereal and warm, something the rest of this album is very much not. Case in point, 'Rat Salad', which if the name isn't raw enough for you, its short instrumental run-time sounds like an atonal punk track trying its hardest to squeeze its way onto a large radio station's queue, all while its ugly personality can't help but rear its head. The two undoubted highlights for me though are the two "two-part" songs here. First is 'Jack the Stripper / Fairies Wear Boots', which may have my favorite intro on the whole thing with that reverb guitar and tribal drum pattern. More than anything though I love how well it works with Ozzy's fantastical and dream-like imagery, especially as the song comes to its explosive closing and his insane ramblings come to a head. Then there's the opener 'War Pigs / Luke's Wall' which may be one of the greatest songs of all time. I just love everything about it. The ominous opening with those atomic sirens, the lyrics painting the destructive nature of the world's governments, as the ones who pull the strings hide behind the ones pulling the triggers. And maybe the most horrifying part is how many of these pigs will die peacefully, likely of old age, with no charges brought against them - but Ozzy almost seeks solace in the fact that they will pay their dues come Judgement Day. And when I call the music on this album dramatic, I reference moments like this song's opening 2 minutes with that effective tension-building and unpredictable song structure, right before it bursts into that sharp groove. I haven't listened to this album enough to dub it "memorable", but every time I do put it on it's just so much fun to get through. Well maybe not "fun", if there's one thing this album is, it's unabashedly dark and troubled. But it's a familiar kind of darkness, one that takes the shape of this addictive classic rock album. Like Iommi's constant riff switch-ups, those fat, melodic basslines, Ozzy's wailing vocals, and those staccato, stuttering, dramatic, and fill-heavy drums are like fucking crack. 'Paranoid' lands perfectly between those late '60s hard-rock sounds, and the sounds of '70s metal to come...a sweet spot very few other bands (and even albums) have ever found themselves in. This is what rock music was always meant to be.

Forging together elements of the blues, jazz, and classical music, Black Sabbath created one of the finest examples of early heavy metal with 1970's Paranoid. Building off of their pivotal self-titled debut released just 7 months prior, the band brings their songwriting skills to new heights with several all-time classic compositions, including apocalyptic war protest War Pigs and the instantly catchy and anthemic Iron Man. Even the "afterthought" title track purportedly written in 5 minutes became an enduring staple of the heavy metal canon. Vastly underappreciated by music critics of their time, Black Sabbath's influence cannot be overstated. Ozzy Osbourne's eerie vocals, Tony Iommi's dark blues riffs, Bill Ward's masterful drum fills, and Geezer Butler's melodic basslines and imaginative lyrics all come together to make a truly unforgettable record. Highlights: -War Pigs/Luke's Wall -Iron Man -Electric Funeral -Hand of Doom -Jack the Stripper/Fairies Wear Boots Lowlights: -Planet Caravan

Pretty iconic, not much else to say that hasn't been said already by my peers.

Very good like it very very much

Probably the best metal album out there, they got it down on lock by the second album, incredible, back to back classics on this. It’s like if Led Zeppelin had Black Dog, Rock and Roll, and Stairway to Heaven on the same album. Not my personal favourite from them but hard to argue that it isn’t their best output

An absolute staple in music history, if crazy train was on here it very well could be a top 10 album personally. Rat salad isn’t up there with something like Moby Dick, but the kits tone is beyond supreme and Bill ward has the moves of Muhammad Ali on war pigs.

For the last record I reviewed, I wrote that popular music would not be the same without. Without this record, I would not be the same.

This was really good. No fillers in this album. Really enjoyed listening and will definitely listen again 😏😏😏 I knew some of the songs on it, but never listened to them exclusively. Better late than never I guess 😅

While I didn't appreciate it initially, seeing them as fairly one dimensional compared to their '70s peers, I have come to appreciate Sabbath so much over the years; there is so much more going on that the, admittedly spectacular riffs. Listen to Geezer Butler's bass runs, especially at the end of War Pigs, the way Bill Ward plays, like a jazz drummer, and always to serve the song rather than merely to keep time, and Planet Caravan which holds the listener, at least this listener, spellbound for the duration, despite consisting of two repeated chords - Tony Iommi's deft jazz guitar solo skipping over the top. Black Sabbath would go on to even greater experimentation on later albums, particularly Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabotage but Paranoid built on the promise of their debut and laid the groundwork for even better things to come.

OK, again one of the rare times that I agree with this list. This is an album that stands alone in human history as one that everyone should hear. 5/5

War Pigs, Paranoid, and Iron Man are absolute classic tracks and on their own make this a 5/5 album. Planet Caravan was a surprise for me and might be my favourite song of the bunch. I love how they could switch gears into this rather delicate song but still carry over some heaviness in the drums and ethereal, psychedelic tone in the vocals and guitar.

What can you say that hasn’t already been said about this album? Legends.

Like there's really any other score that this album can be given?

Yes great

Never listened to this before all the way through. Every element rocks, but especially the guitar work Contains some classic songs but will give a nod to Planet Caravan. Pacing is an overlooked album quality I think, and this provides a nice moment of calm between the chaos of Paranoid and crunching riff of Iron Man.

So many great guitar riffs, love the raw feel to this album, hits hard, very iconic

Songs i know: most of em Songs i like: all of em Beast of an album, this should probably be on one of the voyager golden disk tbf other than that instrumental track. Imagine knocking about when this shit dropped, I'd be full of tatts and off my skull constantly eating bats heads. Low 5.

The OG. Anyone who knows me knows I loves me some stoner metal, and this is the progenitor of pretty much all of it. It strikes a great balance between sick riffs and bong rips, and the production on it is perfect. There isn’t really a duff track on it. Even though Rat Salad is an instrumental, it’s a bloody good one which doesn’t outstay its welcome. 5/5 would bong rip again

Mammoth-sounding stoner metal by factory workers from the West Midlands. What's not to like. Pretty much invented the genre and its bluesy sound hasn't aged like a lot of their peers. When the songs are this good they don't age though. Starts with an absolute hammer with War Pigs and doesn't stop. I remember finding my dad's vinyl copy of this as a kid and trying to scratch Paranoid. He was fuming. Absolute Riffageddon from Tony and the lads throughout the album. It never gets stodgy either with some great key changes in songs like Iron Man when he gets shreddy. Highlights: Hard to not pick the whole album but... War Pigs Paranoid Iron Man Rat Salad - Exercising their jazzy chops and I’m here for it. Fairies Wear Boots Lowlights: If I had to pick anything it would be I don’t love Planet Caravan as much as the rest. Think that bong might have been too packed for that one lads.

Best album I’ve had to rate so far. Not a bad song on it. It has the hits on it “War Pigs”, “Paranoid”, “Iron Man” and every other track is well crafted. It’s the original Stoner Rock, you can hear the influence bands like QOTSA get from this album in songs like “Planet Caravan”.

I don’t know if it was Iron Man or War Pigs that I heard first, but I remember hearing it and somehow realizing that there was more than music than the soft rock pop in the 1950s that my dad had been playing for me on public radio. Black Sabbath was hard, fast, heavy, everything my young brain wanted when I was 12. Matter fact, my brain still wants that. This album was the beginning of heavy metal as we know it. I don’t think there’s any heavy metal aficionado or even just general appreciators who wouldn’t agree that this was the start of the genre. Paranoid is just a banger that every guitar player in bass player needs to add to the repertoire. Most of this album has been covered over, and over, and over again. Planet Caravan had its best cover on Pantera‘s third album Far Beyond Driven, and I had the honor of watching it live at RedRocks with giant pot leaves emblazoned the rocks (it’s was almost as good as watching the Sabbath Reunion in 2001). What I liked about this listen were the deep cuts like Fairies Wear Boots and Rat Salad which don’t get a whole lot of radio play. Overall, this album is a must and a top entry for the 1001 Must Listens albums. Classic.

i'm pretty new to sabbath but the two albums i've experienced have been great! this one is obviously no exception. metal in the purest form, just loud guitars, moody riffs and ozzy's iconic vocals. the only song that lacked for me here was 'planet caravan' but other than that, this album is pretty much perfect. and now i'm bummed i never got into black sabbath until now!

What are we talking about. I am a metal fan so this album is like the beginnig of everything for me. I really like the doom vibes, and obviously a lot of legendary songs

Amazing

Yeah this rocked. Their three most classic songs are all here and the rest is great too. Really well done arrangements, and awesome guitar parts. Some of it was jammier than I expected which was fun too.

Some face melting riffs. I like the album cover. There are some older recordings of Black Sabbath in which they are much closer to a straight blues band. I don't know enough about how they made it here, but they took the heavy blues roots and elevated them. Ozzy's voice works so well dancing over the guitar riffs. Planet Caravan a more psychedelic jazz track had me captivated on this listen. The mixing is so good. Electric Funeral. Tony Iommi is so good. Bill Ward killing it on every track. Geezer Butler bass so good I have just realized that this is one of my favorite albums.

At the time of writing this, the album is nearly 55 years old. How on earth does it sound so fresh and relevant after all this time. Great album. Deserves top marks.

Great album,love it

one of the best albums of all time. Some off songs but full of monumental hits.

Class

Brilliant

One of the best albums ever released. Has a little bit of everything: doom metal, rock, instrumental, killer parts from all members. I don't think there's a weak spot anywhere to be found, and that's while it's one of the most iconic albums ever. The hits are incredible, and the lesser known tracks are just as enjoyable

Flawless

One of my favorite metal albums. Every cut here hits, even if it isn't as hard as it was in 70.

The embodiment of all killer no filler

Previously rated: Vol. 4 (5/5) ********************* Fantastic metal album. 54 years old and still gets a lot of play on classic rock radio (War Pigs, Paranoid, Iron Man). Some other great new-to-me songs like Electric Funeral. Easy 5/5 and will listen again.

soittakaa paranoid!!!!! heh... tarkotti albumia... ei biisiå.... biljardi soittoa spotifyssä... prkl.. hand of boom 20 miljions... voivoi kun itkettää... voivoi kun huohottaa.. noh... yksi parhaista albumeista ikinä juuh jassoo.. eiköhän se ole tullut seleväksi.. valtavirtaaa valtavirtaa valtavirtaaaaaaaaaa...... noh.... astu jokeen... anna virran viedä... ehkä opit jotain...... ei tarvitse olla itse rautamies nauttiakseen tästä pätkästä. juu ei ole meikän suosikki sapatti albumi (olen homo) mutta voisin kuunnella koko homman kerran päivässä ja kyllästyisin vasta ehkä kolmantena päivänä. jeesuksellahan se kolme päivää kuppaili ennen kun ylösnousemus (Boner heh). hand of doom

From the first chords of 'War Pigs' you know what you are going to get! I haven't listened to this album for years and had forgotten how good it is; that Iommi guitar with Ozzies vocals just fit perfectly; just like they do in in 'Paranoid'. ... but then they can also do distracting stuff like 'Planet Caravan' which is almost an America west coast sound, brilliant. Then there is 'Iron Man' with that amazing riff that says it all. Butler and Ward create a solid backing for tony and Ozzie. Every track on this album is different and great, from 'War Pigs' through 'planet Caravan' and 'Hand of Doom' to 'Iron man' and 'Electric Hero' finishing off with the ubiquitous (for that time) instrumental/drum solo of 'Rat Salad' and the almost bluesy 'Fairies Wear Boots'. We were so spoiled in the early 70's with the four greatest rock/metal groups of all time - Black Sabbath, The Who,Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin.

iconic

4-5

Perfect early metal from Ozzy and co! A very influential album too. I like that it still sounds very musical, not a compressed impenetrable wall of distorted guitars.

What other score could I give?

Classic Sabbath.

Classic Sabbath.

Banger! War Pigs alone is 5 stars

Jetzt schlägt der Nostalgiebonus bei mir voll durch. Dieses Album ist für mich ein "Were it all started" Moment. Damit wurde nicht nur meine Metal-Fackel entzündet. Meine ersten 5*