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Black Sabbath info & bio

Black Sabbath are 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 cited as pioneers of heavy metal music; the band helped define the genre with their first three albums Black Sabbath, Paranoid (both 1970), and Master of Reality (1971).

After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band were previously named Earth, and before that the Polka Tulk Blues Band), they distinguished themselves through occult themes with horror-inspired lyrics and down-tuned guitars. Signing to Philips Records, their debut album, Black Sabbath, was a commercial success, as were the following two albums Paranoid and Master of Reality. Subsequent albums Vol. 4 (1972), Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973), Sabotage (1975), Technical Ecstasy (1976), and Never Say Die! (1978) saw the band explore more experimental and progressive styles.

During the late 1970s, the band's drug and alcohol problems, combined with legal issues with their former manager, saw the original line-up falling apart. In 1977, Osbourne left for three months, during which time he was replaced by Dave Walker, before leaving a second time in 1979. He was replaced by former Rainbow vocalist Ronnie James Dio, who recorded three albums with the band: Heaven and Hell (1980), Mob Rules (1981), and their first authorised live album Live Evil (1983), the last two featuring drummer Vinny Appice replacing Ward. Following Dio and Appice's departures, Iommi and Butler recorded Born Again (1983) with Ward returning on drums, and Ian Gillan, then-formerly of Deep Purple, on vocals. By 1984, Butler, Ward, and Gillan had all departed, leaving Iommi to assemble a new version of Black Sabbath. For the next 13 years, the band endured many personnel changes that included vocalists Glenn Hughes (another former Deep Purple member, who sang on the 1986 album Seventh Star), Ray Gillen and Tony Martin, as well as several bassists and drummers. Of the vocalists during these years, Martin's tenure was the longest, joining in 1987 and recording three albums before his initial departure in 1991: The Eternal Idol (1987), Headless Cross (1989), and Tyr (1990). That same year, Iommi reunited with Butler, Dio and Appice to record Dehumanizer (1992), though Dio and Appice both departed again by the end of 1992. Martin returned for two more studio albums, Cross Purposes (1994) and Forbidden (1995), and one live album, Cross Purposes Live (1994), before the band went on a one-year hiatus.

The original line-up of Iommi, Osbourne, Butler and Ward reunited in 1997, releasing a live album, Reunion, and touring sporadically until 2005. The band went on hiatus in 2006 when the Mob Rules line-up (Iommi, Butler, Dio, Appice) reunited as Heaven & Hell, touring during the late 2000s and releasing one studio album, The Devil You Know (2009), before disbanding after Dio's death in 2010. The original line-up reunited again in 2011, though Ward departed prior to the recording of their final studio album 13 (2013). To conclude their farewell tour, Black Sabbath played its last concert for eight years in their home city in 2017. Occasional partial reunions have occurred, most notably when Osbourne and Iommi performed at the closing ceremony of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. The original line-up will reunite for a final show for both the band and Osbourne as a solo artist, titled Back to the Beginning, at Villa Park on 5 July 2025.

Black Sabbath have sold over 70 million records as of 2013, making them one of the most commercially successful heavy metal bands. The band have been referred to as being part of the "unholy trinity of British hard rock and heavy metal in the early to mid-seventies", along with Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin. Black Sabbath were ranked by MTV as the "Greatest Metal Band of All Time" and placed second on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" list. Rolling Stone magazine ranked them 85 on its "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". They were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005 and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. They have won two Grammy Awards for Best Metal Performance, and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.