Black Sabbath

Black Sabbath in 1970. Left to right: Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Bill Ward, Ozzy Osbourne
Photo: Warner Bros. Records -  Public Domain, Link

Black Sabbath was an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. Their albums, Black Sabbath (1970), Paranoid (1970), and Master of Reality (1971) helped define the genre. The band had multiple line-up changes following Osbourne's departure in 1979, with Iommi being the only constant member throughout its history.

Previous names for the band had been the dreadful Polka Tulk Blues Band (either from a brand of talcum powder or an Indian/Pakistani clothing shop) Mythology and Earth. They changed to Black Sabbath in 1969. 

The traditional meaning of "sabbath" is of a day of religious observance and abstinence from work, kept by Jews from Friday evening to Saturday evening, and by most Christians on Sunday.

The band clearly was embracing the supposed annual midnight meeting of witches with the Devil and so a "black sabbath" suggests a "holy" day of witchcraft. 

They distinguished themselves through occult themes with horror-inspired lyrics and tuned-down guitars. 

The band discovered that there was another English group named Earth, so they made another name change. They saw the 1963 horror film Black Sabbath starring Boris Karloff on the marquee across from their rehearsal space. Osbourne and Butler wrote the lyrics for a song called "Black Sabbath", which they say was inspired not so much by the film but by the work of horror and adventure-story writer Dennis Wheatley. Butler also claimed that he had a vision of a black silhouetted figure standing at the foot of his bed. To further add to the occult of the song, it uses the musical tritone known as "the Devil's Interval."

The band's music, appearance, and lyrics were atypical of 1969 when music was more reflective of the 60s flower power, folk/rock, and peace & love hippie culture. 

Black Sabbath has sold over 70 million records worldwide,and are one of the most influential heavy metal bands of all time. 

Of Paranoid , Rolling Stone magazine said it "changed music forever" calling the band "the Beatles of heavy metal" and Time magazine called Paranoid "the birthplace of heavy metal", placing it in their Top 100 Albums of All Time. 

MTV placed Black Sabbath at number one on their Top Ten Heavy Metal Bands. VH1 ranked Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" the number one song on their 40 Greatest Metal Songs countdown.