sparkospunky's Full Review: Paranoid by Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath was formed in 1966 in the rough and tumble industrial town of Birmingham, England. Paranoid was released in 1970, and was the follow-up album to the band's self-titled debut album. As the album liner notes, "Paranoid introduced themes that would recur throughout Black Sabbath's career--doom, destruction, and realms beyond the grave." Indeed, the music offered up in Paranoid is dark--in keeping with the name of the band. What is important is the instrumentation, and the influence that this seminal heavy metal band had over many artists that would follow them.
Even though the music is undeniably heavy metal, there is a starkness about it that is unforgettable. It was probably recorded on an eight-track machine, and this probably contributed to the album's stark, albeit grinding beauty.
The members of Black Sabbath and their contributions are as follows:
Tony Iommi, guitar
Geezer Butler, bass
Bill Ward, drums
Ozzy Osburne, vocals and harmonica
The tracks, and my observations about each, are as follows:
1. War Pigs/Luke's Wall--A droning distorted guitar accompanied by a free-style bass line start this song, which features Ozzy's somewhat strident, discordant vocals. The tune is the ultimate protest song, with some really overt, scathing lyrics about the politicians that feed the "war machine" for their own personal gain. War Pigs really is a song that has several different parts, or movements, which should tell you that there was a musical depth about this band which was much more than simply banging away at maximum volume. Tony Iommi's solo is incredible, especially when you realize that he was missing parts of a couple of fingers on his hand.
2. Paranoid--A neat guitar riff starts this jittery, hard-driving song. Ozzy's vocals again are a little grating, but that's part of the appeal of this band's music. Geezer Butler plays a relentless bass line that drives the band, and Iommi's murky guitar solo works well in projecting the feeling of this song.
3. Planet Caravan--A pensive, sad-sounding electric guitar starts this one. Ozzy's vocals sound as if he's underwater, and the bongos used instead of drums show a little of Bill Ward's versatility. If you didn't know this was Black Sabbath, you might think that the song was a little jazzy, and it really is. Iommi's non-distorted guitar solo is pure jazz, and it makes you wonder about his influences, and how he might have gotten off on this tangent of music. This song is a good example of the dark music of this band.
4. Iron Man--A kick drum, and an out of tune guitar, accompanied by a creaky voice announcing "I am Iron Man" start this one. The beat is ponderous and relentless; it makes you think of the huge iron machines at the start of the third segment of the original Star Wars trilogy. The complexion of the song changes for Iommi's solo; the drums get jumped up, and Butler plays an accompanying lead line on his bass guitar. Ozzy's shrill, strident vocals make this a trademark Black Sabbath tune.
5. Electric Funeral--Another dark tune in a minor key; it touches on the occult, and the melody is not pleasing at all--it sort of makes the skin crawl and the stomach roil. Of course, this is precisely the effect that Black Sabbath was trying to achieve. It comes complete with musical movements, and Bill Ward's drumming is really good in changing the tone of the song.
6. Hand Of Doom--Geezer Butler kicks this one off with his bass guitar, soon joined by the drums, and a southern-sounding Ozzy. When Iommi joins the fun, the song really gets heavy. Again, this song has distinct parts, or movements, and shows you that this band is not one-dimensional at all. All of the musicians are given a lot of freedom in this tune, and they each demonstrate their musical prowess.
7. Rat Salad--A fine guitar riff-driven song, with some nice Jack Bruce-style bass playing. Bill Ward's solo on the drums is really nice, and this instrumental tune really exhibits what fine musicians Ward, Iommi and Butler were. The concept might have been stolen from Led Zeppelin's "Moby Dick", but that's okay, it works well for Black Sabbath, too.
8. Jack The Stripper/Fairies Wear Boots--This one's a Black Sabbath signature song, featuring the big power guitar, raw bass and free-lance drums, along with some fine solo work by Iommi. When Ozzy enters, he's typically discordant, which, as I stated earlier, is part of this band's appeal. I think that Ozzy was like fine wine; he improved with age, but his raw, primal style suited this band perfectly.
This album probably provided the blueprint for a lot of the metal acts that were to follow. A lot of bands owe a debt to these metal trailblazers, and their music continues to be appreciated to this day.
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